第四冊
十二生相來唸歌
Volume IV: Jingle of the Twelve Chinese Zodiac Animals
文 | 林麗黛 許忠和
圖 | 蔡靜江
「十二生肖」的臺語文用字為「十二生相」，以十二種動物代表年份。十二生肖動物「鼠、牛、虎、兔、龍、蛇、馬、羊、猴、雞、狗、豬」，依次和十二地支「子、丑、寅、卯、辰、巳、午、未、申、酉、戌、亥」對應成為：「子鼠、丑牛、寅虎、卯兔、辰龍、巳蛇、午馬、未羊、申猴、酉雞、戌狗、亥豬」，也就是說子年的生肖一定是鼠，丑年是牛，以此類推。
在臺灣社會，十二生肖也流傳下了許多習俗、圖像、故事、諺語、唸謠，成為深入庶民生活的文化藝術。這本《十二生相來唸歌》就以順口溜的臺灣唸謠，開始十二生肖的諺語尋趣──
一鼠賊仔名，二牛駛犁兄，三虎山坪，四兔遊東京，五龍皇帝命，六蛇予人驚，七馬跑兵營，八羊食草嶺，九猴樹頭，十雞啼三聲，十一狗顧門埕，十二豬菜刀仔命。
國語的『十二生肖』，臺語是講「十二生相」，用十二種動物代表年閣。十二生相的動物「鼠、牛、虎、兔、龍、蛇、馬、羊、猴、雞、狗、豬」，依照順序和十二地支「子、丑、寅、卯、辰、巳、午、未、申、酉、戌、亥」對應，成做：「子鼠、丑牛、寅虎、卯兔、辰龍、巳蛇、午馬、未羊、申猴、酉雞、戌狗、亥豬」，也就是講子年的生相一定是鼠，丑年是牛，照按呢推算。
佇臺灣社會，十二生相也有流傳一寡風俗、圖像、故事、諺語、唸謠，成做深入老百姓生活的文化藝術。這本《十二生相來唸歌》就用押韻紲喙的臺灣唸謠，𤆬(tshuā)咱走揣十二生相諺語的趣味──
一鼠賊仔名，二牛駛犁兄，三虎山坪，四兔遊東京，五龍皇帝命，六蛇予人驚，七馬跑兵營，八羊食草嶺，九猴樹頭，十雞啼三聲，十一狗顧門埕，十二豬菜刀仔命。
Each year is represented with one of the twelve Chinese Zodiac Animals. The twelve animals are a rat, ox, tiger, rabbit, dragon, snake, horse, goat, monkey, rooster, dog and pig. They mirror the twelve early branches, Zi, Chou, Yin, Mao, Chen, Si, Wu, Wei, Shen, You, Xu and Hai, respectively. Therefore, the year of Zi is the year of the rat, the year of Chou is the year of the ox, and so on and so forth.
In the Taiwanese society, various customs, images, stories, proverbs, and songs about the twelve Chinese Zodiac Animals have been passed down and integrated into the culture and art of everyday life. This volume “Jingle of the Twelve Chinese Zodiac Animals” presents the fascinating proverbs about the Chinese Zodiac with the Taiwanese jingle.
The content of the jingle is as follows. The first is the rat which refers to thieves. The second is the ox that drags ploughs. The third is the tiger that in the mountains saunters around. The fourth is the rabbit that in the city meanders around. The fifth is the dragon that wears a title of royalty. The sixth is the snake that scares everybody. The seventh is the horse that marches in the barracks. The eighth is the goat that eats grass. The ninth is the monkey that climbs trees. The tenth is the rooster that crows. The eleventh is the dog that guards the yard. The twelfth is the pig that gets slaughtered.
