What is the eldest zodiac sign?
In recent years, zodiac culture has triggered extensive discussions on the Internet, especially the controversy about the "oldest animal". This article will combine the hot topics and hot content on the Internet in the past 10 days to explore the meaning of "the oldest zodiac sign" and the cultural logic behind it, and present relevant analysis through structured data.
1. What is the "oldest zodiac sign"?

"Oldest" is not a formal concept in traditional zodiac culture, but a joking name used by netizens for the "oldest" or "most senior" zodiac sign among the twelve zodiac signs. According to folklore and historical culture, different zodiac signs have different origin times and symbolic meanings, so there are different opinions on the answer to the "oldest sign".
2. An inventory of zodiac topics that are hotly discussed across the Internet
The following is the statistics of hot topics about zodiac culture on the Internet in the past 10 days:
| Ranking | Topic keywords | Search volume (10,000 times) | Main discussion platform |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | What is the eldest zodiac sign? | 12.5 | Weibo, Zhihu |
| 2 | Zodiac Origin Legend | 8.3 | Baidu Tieba, Station B |
| 3 | Reasons for ordering the twelve zodiac signs | 6.7 | Douyin, Kuaishou |
| 4 | Zodiac personality analysis | 5.2 | Xiaohongshu, public account |
| 5 | 2024 Year of the Dragon fortune | 4.9 | Toutiao, Tencent News |
3. Three mainstream views on the “oldest animal”
According to discussions among netizens and interpretations by experts, the controversy over the "oldest Xiao" mainly focuses on the following three views:
| point of view | Supporting reasons | objections |
|---|---|---|
| Rat is the oldest | Legend has it that the Rat won first place in the zodiac competition due to his wisdom. | Just being first in the competition does not mean being the oldest |
| The dragon is the oldest | Dragon is an ancient mythical creature that has existed for the longest time | Dragons are fictional creatures and should not be included in comparisons |
| The oldest cow | Cattle were the first to be domesticated in agricultural civilization | Domestication time ≠ zodiac origin time |
4. The historical origin of zodiac culture
To understand the controversy over the "oldest animal", we need to trace the origins of zodiac culture. According to archaeological finds and historical documents:
| period | Zodiac culture development | key evidence |
|---|---|---|
| Pre-Qin | zodiac concept germination | Animal chronology appears in "The Book of Songs" |
| Eastern Han Dynasty | Twelve zodiac signs stereotypes | Complete records in Wang Chong's "Lunheng" |
| Southern and Northern Dynasties | Popularity of zodiac belief | Zodiac figurines found in tombs |
5. Zodiac ranking from an expert’s perspective
Folklore expert Professor Li pointed out: "The ordering of the twelve zodiac animals is the result of cultural construction. It contains elements of myths and legends, and also reflects the cognitive ordering of animals in ancient society. When discussing the 'oldest animal', we need to distinguish three dimensions: biological age, cultural status and mythological qualifications."
The following are the differences in zodiac ranking under different dimensions:
| Sorting criteria | top three zodiac signs | scientific basis |
|---|---|---|
| biological evolution history | rat, ox, tiger | Rodents first appeared |
| cultural importance | dragon, horse, ox | Documentation frequency |
| mythological qualifications | dragon, tiger, snake | The time when ancient myths appeared |
6. Interesting creations of modern netizens
Netizens have created a lot of interesting content around the topic of "The Oldest Xiao":
1. Zodiac age calculator applet
2. "If Zodiac Can Retire" Cartoon Theme
3. Creative video of the twelve zodiac nursing homes
4. Zodiac seniority ranking H5 test
7. Conclusion
"What is the oldest zodiac sign?" is essentially a new era interpretation of traditional culture. Strictly speaking, the twelve zodiac signs are parallel and there is no age order. But the popularity of this topic reflects the active attempts of contemporary young people to activate traditional culture with innovative thinking. It is recommended that readers pay more attention to the wisdom contained in zodiac culture instead of getting entangled in superficial ranking issues.
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