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Horoscopes · Systems of many cultures

Western (tropical) · Zodiac sign 1

♈︎ Aries

Ram · Ram

Aries ♈, the ram: a cardinal fire sign ruled by Mars, 21 March – 19 April.

Aries, the ram, begins the tropical zodiac at the spring equinox. It is a cardinal fire sign ruled by Mars, and in traditional astrology it is the sign of the sun's exaltation. Astrologers associate it with initiative, courage and impulsiveness.

The dates are approximate because the sun's entry into each sign shifts by a day or so from year to year; the calculator on this site gives the exact sign for a birth date and time. In traditional astrology a sign is read together with its planetary ruler, the house it occupies and the aspects to it, not in isolation.

Personality

courageous · energetic · direct · pioneering · competitive · impulsive · honest

In Western astrology Aries is described as the pioneer of the zodiac: bold, energetic and eager to be first. As the cardinal fire sign that opens the year at the spring equinox, and the sign of Mars, it is given the temperament of the ram that charges ahead, with a love of challenge, a quick enthusiasm and an instinct to act rather than wait.

Astrologers credit Aries with courage, honesty and the ability to get things started, to lead in a crisis and to recover quickly from setbacks. The same fire is said to bring impatience, a short temper that flares and fades, and a tendency to lose interest once the excitement of the beginning has passed.

In love Aries is portrayed as ardent, direct and generous, a partner who pursues openly and needs room to be independent. At work the sign is linked with leadership, enterprise, sport and any field that rewards initiative and quick decisions; routine and slow committees are said to try its patience. Traditional astrologers add that the sun is exalted in Aries, giving the sign vitality and self-assertion, but that the full picture depends on the moon, the rising sign and the rest of the chart.

Stone: Diamond

Sources and further reading