Zodiac Signs in the Complete Horoscope

The Zodiak sign symbols (glyphs) in ink, by Stefan Stenudd.

The Twelve Zodiac Star Signs and Their Meanings in Classical Astrology

In astrology as well as astronomy, the zodiac is a 360° circle around the earth, where each of the twelve zodiac signs is 30°.

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In astronomy it is simply used as a coordinate system, to mark the positions of celestial bodies. In astrology and the horoscope, though, the zodiac signs have their own meanings.

The Zodiac Signs in the Horoscope

There are twelve zodiac signs, each 30° wide, making a total of 360°, which is the full circle around the earth. They correspond to the same number of constellations of stars in the sky, but the latter are not equally wide.

In astrology and the horoscope, each zodiac sign represents a character, a tendency, which affects any celestial body therein. The planets express what happens, the Houses where it happens, the aspects why, and the zodiac signs how.

Every planet moves through the zodiac signs (with very differing speed), and changes character according to what sign it occupies at the moment. The planets are the acting forces in the horoscope, but the zodiac signs nuance and alter their character.

Here are the twelve zodiac signs, with links to the webpage of each on this website:

Zodiac Signs

Aries

Leo

Sagittarius

Horoscope chart with only the twelve zodiac signs marked, each covering 30° of the circle's 360°. In a birth chart, the Ascendant decides what sign should be on the left side (on the cusp of Aries in the image above). So, the Zodiac can be turned accordingly.

The Zodiac Signs of the Horoscope

Here are the twelve zodiac signs, their English meanings, and keywords for their respective characters in the horoscope:

Aries, the Ram challenging, impulsive
Taurus, the Bull conservative, concrete
Gemini, the Twins communicative, playful
Cancer, the Crab caring, sensitive
Leo, the Lion dominant, proud
Virgo, the Virgin careful, minute
Libra, the Scales negotiating, ethical
Scorpio, the Scorpion hidden, passionate
Sagittarius, the Archer impatient, independent
Capricorn, the Goat ambitious, decisive
Aquarius, the Water Bearer profound, original
Pisces, the Fish searching, submissive

Zodiac Sign Motto

Each zodiac sign can also be said to have a motto, an expression that helps to clarify its character. Here are the mottos of the twelve zodiac signs in the horoscope:

Aries, the Ram "I am."
Taurus, the Bull "I have."
Gemini, the Twins "I think."
Cancer, the Crab "I feel."
Leo, the Lion "I want."
Virgo, the Virgin "I scrutinize."
Libra, the Scales "I balance."
Scorpio, the Scorpion "I wish."
Sagittarius, the Archer "I see."
Capricorn, the Goat "I use."
Aquarius, the Water Bearer "I know."
Pisces, the Fish "I believe."

Zodiac Sign Element and Quality

The characters of the zodiac signs are to a large extent dependent on their astrological element and quality. Every zodiac sign in the horoscope belongs to one of the four Greek elements, which represent four aspects of life:

Fire activity
Earth materialism
Air thought
Water emotions

Since there are twelve zodiac signs and four elements, there are three signs belonging to each element. There are also three different basic qualities that zodiac signs have:

Cardinal leading
Fixed static
Mutable following

Four elements and three qualities make twelve possible combinations. So, each zodiac sign has its own unique combination of element and quality.

Element	Cardinal	Fixed	Mutable
Fire	Aries	Leo	Sagittarius
Earth	Capricorn	Taurus	Virgo
Air	Libra	Aquarius	Gemini
Water	Cancer	Scorpio	Pisces

In principle, the combination of element and quality that is unique to each zodiac sign in the horoscope, decides what its character is.

The elements and qualities of the Zodiac signs marked by colors: Fire = red, earth = brown, air = blue, water = green. Cardinal = dark, fixed = medium, mutable = light.

Zodiac Sign Ruling and Exalting

Each zodiac sign is also said to have a ruling and an exalting planet in the horoscope. This simply means that some planets are particularly enforced by the character of that zodiac sign. A planet rules over the zodiac sign where it fits better than the other planets do, and it exalts in a sign where it fits better than any other planet than the ruler of that sign.

Here are the ruling and exalting planets (note that also the sun and the moon are regarded as planets in this context) of the zodiac signs in the horoscope:

SIGN

RULER

EXALTED

Aries
Taurus
Gemini
Cancer
Leo
Virgo
Libra
Scorpio
Sagittarius
Capricorn
Aquarius
Pisces

Mars

Venus

Mercury

Moon

Sun

Mercury

Venus

Pluto

Jupiter

Saturn

Uranus

Neptune

Sun

Moon

Jupiter

Venus

Pluto

Venus

Mercury

Neptune

Uranus

Mars

Saturn

Mercury

Since there are twelve zodiac signs and only ten planets to divide between them, Venus and Mercury both rule and exalt in two signs each.

Regarding what planets rule and exalt in what zodiac signs, astrologers don't agree completely, but most of the above is generally accepted. In any case, the rulership and exaltation should not be overly emphasized in horoscope interpretations. A planet's character in a zodiac sign speaks well for itself, without these generalizations.

Zodiac. Albrecht Dürer's celestial globe, Northern hemisphere, 1515.

The zodiac figures. Albrecht Dürer's celestial globe, Northern hemisphere, 1515.

Star Sign — the Sun

Your Sun sign or Star sign is your Zodiac sign.

When people are said to be born in a certain zodiac sign, it only means that the sun was in that zodiac sign at their birth. It's their sun sign. The sun is only one component in the complete horoscope of classical astrology — although an important one — so predictions based only on that are not astrologically adequate. All the ingredients of the whole horoscope chart have to be considered. Still, the sun is very important in the horoscope, so it has a lot of influence

The sun moves steadily through the zodiac signs of the horoscope, spending slightly more than 30 days in each of them. The calendar system of leap years makes the dates of change from one sign to another jump around a little, but below are the average dates that the sun spends in each zodiac sign.

Aries March 21 — April 19
Taurus April 20 — May 20
Gemini May 21 — June 20
Cancer June 21 — July 22
Leo July 23 — August 22
Virgo August 23 — September 22
Libra September 23 — October 22
Scorpio October 23 — November 21
Sagittarius November 22 — December 21
Capricorn December 22 — January 19
Aquarius January 20 — February 19
Pisces February 20 — March 20

If you are born on a date of change, or the day before or after it, you should have your sun position calculated by a horoscope program, to ascertain what zodiac sun sign you are. I have written about how to do that here:

Your Own Horoscope

The zodiac, its images and symbols. From a book by Barocius, 1585.

The zodiac, its images and symbols. From a book by Barocius, 1585.

Vernal equinox

The traditional order of the zodiac signs starts with Aries, because it is the moment of the vernal equinox. That date was also the date of the new year in ancient Europe. At the autumnal equinox, the sun moves into the zodiac sign Libra. At the summer solstice it enters Cancer, and at the winter solstice Capricorn.

Zodiac Sign Symbols

The symbols (also called glyphs) used for the zodiac signs are the same in astrology and astronomy. I have made ink brush versions of those symbols, just for fun, which can be found on my webpages about each of the zodiac signs. Here is a more strict rendering of them:

Zodiac sign symbols (glyphs). From left to right: Aries, Taurus, Gemini, Cancer, Leo, Virgo, Libra, Scorpio, Sagittarius, Capricorn, Aquarius, Pisces.

The Twelve Zodiac Signs and Their Traits

Here are the zodiac signs, their symbols (glyphs), and keywords for what they represent in astrology and the horoscope in short. Their order is the traditional one. It starts with Aries, which the sun enters at the vernal equinox (usually celebrated as the New Year in ancient times), and finishes with Pisces.

Aries

English name: The Ram
Aries sign (glyph).

Keywords: challenging, impulsive
Motto: "I am."
Ruler: Mars
Exalted: the sun
Element: Fire
Quality: Cardinal
Sun sign dates: March 21 — April 19
For more about the Aries zodiac sign, click here.

Taurus

English name: The Bull
Taurus sign (glyph).

Keywords: conservative, concrete
Motto: "I have."
Ruler: Venus
Exalted: the moon
Element: Earth
Quality: Fixed
Sun sign dates: April 20 — May 20
For more about the Taurus zodiac sign, click here.

Gemini

English name: The Twins
Gemini sign (glyph).

Keywords: communicative, playful
Motto: "I think."
Ruler: Mercury
Exalted: Jupiter
Element: Air
Quality: Mutable
Sun sign dates: May 21 — June 20
For more about the Gemini zodiac sign, click here.

Cancer

English name: The Crab
Cancer sign (glyph).

Keywords: caring, sensitive
Motto: "I feel."
Ruler: the moon
Exalted: Venus
Element: Water
Quality: Cardinal
Sun sign dates: June 21 — July 22
For more about the Cancer zodiac sign, click here.

Leo

English name: The Lion
Leo sign (glyph).

Keywords: dominant, proud
Motto: "I want."
Ruler: the sun
Exalted: Pluto
Element: Fire
Quality: Fixed
Sun sign dates: July 23 — August 22
For more about the Leo zodiac sign, click here.

Virgo

English name: The Maiden (or Virgin)
Virgo sign (glyph).

Keywords: careful, minute
Motto: "I scrutinize."
Ruler: Mercury
Exalted: Venus
Element: Earth
Quality: Mutable
Sun sign dates: August 23 — September 22
For more about the Virgo zodiac sign, click here.

Libra

English name: The Scales
Libra sign (glyph).

Keywords: negotiating, ethical
Motto: "I balance."
Ruler: Venus
Exalted: Mercury
Element: Air
Quality: Cardinal
Sun sign dates: September 23 — October 22
For more about the Libra zodiac sign, click here.

Scorpio

English name: The Scorpion
Scorpio sign (glyph).

Keywords: hidden, passionate
Motto: "I wish."
Ruler: Pluto
Exalted: Neptune
Element: Water
Quality: Fixed
Sun sign dates: October 23 — November 21
For more about the Scorpio zodiac sign, click here.

Sagittarius

English name: The Archer
Sagittarius sign (glyph).

Keywords: impatient, independent
Motto: "I see."
Ruler: Jupiter
Exalted: Uranus
Element: Fire
Quality: Mutable
Sun sign dates: November 22 — December 21
For more about the Sagittarius zodiac sign, click here.

Capricorn

English name: The Goat (or Sea-Goat)
Capricorn sign (glyph).

Keywords: ambitious, decisive
Motto: "I use."
Ruler: Saturn
Exalted: Mars
Element: Earth
Quality: Cardinal
Sun sign dates: December 22 — January 19
For more about the Capricorn zodiac sign, click here.

Aquarius

English name: The Water-Bearer
Aquarius sign (glyph).

Keywords: profound, original
Motto: "I know."
Ruler: Uranus
Exalted: Saturn
Element: Air
Quality: Fixed
Sun sign dates: January 20 — February 19
For more about the Aquarius zodiac sign, click here.

Pisces

English name: The Fish
Pisces sign (glyph).

Keywords: searching, submissive
Motto: "I believe."
Ruler: Neptune
Exalted: Mercury
Element: Water
Quality: Mutable
Sun sign dates: February 20 — March 20
For more about the Pisces zodiac sign, click here.

Zodiac Sign Calculator

If you're unsure of your Zodiac sign, or if you want to know on what degree (between 0° and 30°) of the sign the sun was at your birth, please visit the Zodiac sign calculator. It's very easy to use, and then you'll know for sure. (I designed this calculator, but it's moved to another website.)

Horoscope Basics

Zodiac

Planets

Houses

Aspects

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