The Aquarius symbol: The water bearer
The water bearer is often identified with Ganymede, cupbearer to the Greek gods; older Babylonian sky lore pictured a great figure pouring water. Despite the image, Aquarius is an air sign: the water stands for ideas and knowledge poured out for everyone.
Aquarius falls in deep winter in the Northern Hemisphere, when the days are lengthening but the cold is at its hardest. It is the sign of clear, cold thinking and of looking ahead.
Aquarius’s traditional ruler is Saturn; modern astrologers add Uranus. Together they describe structure and rebellion: the reformer who builds new systems for a better future.
Aquarius strengths
- Originality
- Thinks differently and isn’t afraid to say so.
- Fairness
- Cares about how everyone is treated, not just friends.
- Friendship
- Keeps a wide, varied circle and stays loyal to it.
- Vision
- Imagines how things could work better.
Aquarius shadows
- Detachment
- Can analyze a feeling instead of having it.
- Contrariness
- Disagrees on principle when nothing is at stake.
- Distance
- Keeps people at arm’s length while caring about humanity at large.
Aquarius in love
Aquarius loves best as a friend first: shared ideals, interesting talk and a partner who respects its independence. It needs someone who doesn’t demand constant closeness, and who can coax it, gently, into saying what it feels. Its loyalty, once given, is steady and unusual.
Aquarius at work
Aquarius thrives in work that improves systems: technology, science, social causes, design, community organizing, anything innovative. It dislikes rules that exist only because they always have. Freedom to experiment and a mission it believes in bring out its best.
Aquarius and its opposite sign, Leo
Aquarius sits opposite Leo. Together they make the axis of the group and the individual: Aquarius thinks about everyone, Leo about the heart in front of it. Aquarius often grows by letting one person matter as much as a principle.
Best matches for Aquarius
- Aquarius and Gemini Two air signs: endless conversation and plenty of freedom.
- Aquarius and Libra Air with air: shared ideals, good friends and easy company.
- Aquarius and Sagittarius Air and fire: two independent spirits who love ideas and adventure.
Traditional matches, from how the elements and modalities sit together. Any two signs can work. Aquarius compatibility with every sign.
Aquarius rising
Aquarius rising gives a friendly but slightly unusual first impression. You tend to be open with everyone yet hard to know well, and you may stand out for your ideas or style. The lesson of this rising sign is to let people closer than the friendly, interesting surface.
Find your rising signMoon in Aquarius
With the Moon in Aquarius, you understand your feelings by thinking them through, often at a little distance. You need space, friendship and freedom to be yourself. Heavy emotional scenes can make you withdraw, so it helps to have people who let you return to a feeling once you are ready.
Find your moon signAquarius questions
What are the Aquarius dates?
The Sun is usually in Aquarius from January 20 to February 18. The exact start and end shift by a day or so from year to year, so if your birthday is on the edge, a birth chart calculated for your year, time and place settles it.
What element and modality is Aquarius?
Aquarius is a fixed air sign, ruled by Saturn (traditionally; Uranus in modern astrology). Its opposite sign is Leo.
Which signs are most compatible with Aquarius?
Traditionally Gemini, Libra and Sagittarius, because of how their elements and modalities sit with Aquarius’s. Any two signs can work; the pairing pages describe what each match tends to need.
What does it mean to have Aquarius rising?
Aquarius rising gives a friendly but slightly unusual first impression. Your rising sign depends on your birth time and place, not your birthday; the rising sign calculator works it out.
Further reading for Aquarius
- How To Make An Aquarius Woman Miss You
- Aquarius Moon Sign: Emotions, Space and Friendship
- Venus in Aquarius: Friend-First Love and What Attracts You
- Aquarius Season: Dates, Meaning and Midwinter Ideas
- Aquarius Man and Gemini Woman Compatibility Explained
- Who Is Aquarius Most Compatible With? An Honest Guide