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Mind & Living · The 12 signs · 1 of 12Aries: the first sign
Aries opens the Western zodiac. It is the Ram, ruled by Mars, and in Indian astrology Mesha is a similar-looking sign that is worked out in a different way. Here is what each tradition says, what the sign is called around the world, and what readers in three countries are saying this week.
By GenXT Labs · 3 November 2026 · 6 min read
Aries at a glance
About 21 March to 19 April
Shifts by a day or two with the year and the sourceFire · cardinal
Cardinal means a sign that starts a seasonMars
Called Mangal in Indian astrologyThe Ram
First of the twelve signsCourage, initiative, directness
The usual flip side: impatience and impulsivenessMesha (मेष)
Also called Mesh in Hindi and NepaliTwo different "Aries"
A Western "Aries" is your Sun sign, worked out from your birth date against the tropical zodiac. India's Mesha rashi is normally your Moon sign, found from where the Moon stood at your birth, against the sidereal zodiac.2,3 The two zodiacs sit about 24 degrees apart, so many people are one sign in one system and a different sign in the other.3,4
For the Sun itself, the Vedic Sun-in-Mesha window runs from roughly 14 April to 14 May, about three to four weeks after the Western Aries window begins; sources differ by a day.2 That is why a horoscope read for the "wrong" system can sound unfamiliar.
Around the world: the first sign by other names
| Where | Name | What readers usually mean |
|---|---|---|
| India, Nepal | मेष · Mesh / Mesha | Mostly the Vedic Moon sign. Nepali readers also give each day by the Nepali calendar. |
| Mexico, Spain, Latin America | Aries | The Western Sun sign, with big daily, weekly and monthly horoscope channels. |
| Turkey | Koç (the ram) | The Western Sun sign, with weekly and monthly "burç" readings. |
| China | 白羊座 | The Western Sun sign. It sits beside an older system: the Chinese zodiac of 12 animals, set by birth year, not by these twelve signs.5 |
| Japan | 牡羊座 | The Western Sun sign, popular alongside Japan's own Nine Star Ki system. |
Where this comes from, and the evidence
Astrology is a belief system and a cultural tradition, and scientists regard it as a pseudoscience: tests have not found that birth signs predict personality or events.6 Many people enjoy it as culture or conversation. Treat it as entertainment, not advice, and please don't base health, money or relationship decisions on it.