Chinese constellation

The Chinese have a tradition of grouping stars in constellations that is completely different from the Western one.

In traditional Chinese thought, the arrangement of the sky reflects the political arrangements on Earth: the most northern stars represents the most elevated figures, and Polaris represent the Emperor - around which all other stars revolve. Also, the sky around the North Celestial Pole (the circumpolar region) is divided into Three Enclosures (三垣 sān yuán).

In addition, for the Chinese, the region of sky passed through by the ecliptic is not divided into 12 zodiacal constellations, but into Twenty-eight Mansions (二十八宿 èrshíbā xiù). In each day of the month, the Moon occupies one of these mansions. The Twenty-eight Mansions reflect the movement of the Moon, whereas the Zodiac reflects that of the Sun. (Indian astronomy also has a system of lunar mansions, called Nakshatras.)

Three Enclosures

The Three Enclosures (三垣 sān yuán) are:

• Purple Forbidden enclosure (紫微垣, Zǐ Wēi Yuán) - the nothersmost area of the night sky, contain the north pole, in the center of stars' movements;
• Supreme Palace enclosure (太微垣, Tài Wēi Yuán) - lies at one side of the Forbidden Enclosure;
• Heavenly Market enclosure (天市垣, Tiān Shì Yuán) - lies at the other side of the Forbidden Enclosure.

Twenty-eight Mansions

The Twenty-eight Mansions (二十八宿 èrshíbā xiù) are:

Four Symbols (四象)	"Xiu" (宿)
	name	pinyin	literal translation	approx. localization due to official constellations
The Azure Dragon of the East (東方青龍)	角	Jiăo	Horn	Virgo, around Spica
	亢	Kàng	Neck	Virgo
	氐	Dī	Root	Libra
	房	Fáng	Room	Libra
	心	Xīn	Heart	Scorpius, around Antares
	尾	Wěi	Tail	Scorpius
	箕	Jī	Winnowing Basket	Sagittarius
The Black Tortoise of the North (北方玄武)	斗	Dǒu	Dipper	Sagittarius
	牛	Niú	Ox	Capricornus
	女	Nǚ	Girl	Aquarius
	虛	Xū	Emptiness	Aquarius
	危	Wēi	Rooftop, Danger	Aquarius/Pegasus
	室	Shì	Encampment, Room	Pegasus
	壁	Bì	Wall	Pegasus, around Algenib
The White Tiger of the West (西方白虎)	奎	Kuí	Legs	Andromeda
	婁	Lóu	Bond	Aries
	胃	Wèi	Stomach	Aries
	昴	Mǎo	Hairy Head	Taurus, around The Pleiades
	畢	Bì	Net	Taurus
	觜	Zī	Turtle Beak	Orion
	參	Shēn	Three Stars	Orion
The Vermillion Bird of the South (南方朱雀)	井	Jǐng	Well	Gemini
	鬼	Guǐ	Ghost, Demon	Cancer
	柳	Liǔ	Willow	Hydra
	星	Xīng	Star	Hydra, around Alphard
	張	Zhāng	Extended Net,Growth	Crater
	翼	Yì	Wings	Corvus
	軫	Zhěn	Chariot, Strongly (as of emotion)	Corvus