If you were born in August, this page collects what is actually known about the month – the two star signs it spans, its birthstone and birth flower, where its name comes from, and who else shares it. It also looks honestly at whether a birth month predicts anything about a person, because that is the question most people arrive with.
August at a Glance
| Length | 31 days |
| Star signs | Leo (1-22 August); Virgo (23-31 August) |
| Birthstone | Peridot and Spinel |
| Birth flower | Gladiolus and Poppy |
| Name origin | Renamed from Sextilis, the sixth month of the old Roman year, in honour of the emperor Augustus. |
Notable People Born in August
| Name | Born | Known for |
|---|---|---|
| Barack Obama | 4 August 1961 | US President |
| Neil Armstrong | 5 August 1930 | Astronaut |
| Napoleon Bonaparte | 15 August 1769 | Emperor of the French |
| Saif Ali Khan | 16 August 1970 | Actor |
| Usain Bolt | 21 August 1986 | Sprinter |
| Mother Teresa | 26 August 1910 | Missionary and Nobel laureate |
What the Astrological Tradition Says
Set out below as tradition rather than as fact. These associations come from Western astrology, which is a system of symbolism with a long cultural history and no demonstrated predictive power. Read them the way you would read any folklore.
Leo (1-22 August)
The tradition associates Leo with being warm, theatrical, generous, keen on recognition. Whether any of that describes you is something only you can judge, and the section below explains why it will tend to feel accurate either way.
Virgo (23-31 August)
The tradition associates Virgo with being analytical, precise, practical, inclined to worry about detail. Whether any of that describes you is something only you can judge, and the section below explains why it will tend to feel accurate either way.
Does Your Birth Month Actually Affect Anything?
It is worth separating two very different claims. The first is that your birth month shapes your personality. That is the claim astrology makes, and when it has been tested under controlled conditions – where neither the participant nor the assessor knows which sign is which – it has not held up. People reliably recognise themselves in a description written for any sign, an effect documented since Bertram Forer’s classroom experiment in 1948.
The second claim is narrower and better supported. Where a system sorts people by a fixed annual cut-off date, those born just after the cut-off are the oldest in their cohort and are consistently over-represented at elite levels. This is the relative age effect, first documented in Canadian junior ice hockey in the 1980s and since found in football, cricket and school attainment data in many countries. Note what it is: an artefact of where the administrative line is drawn, not a property of the month. Move the cut-off and the advantage moves with it.
There is also genuine epidemiological research into seasonality of birth and certain health outcomes, though effect sizes are small and confounded by geography, latitude and maternal nutrition. None of it supports personality prediction.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which star sign is August?
August covers two: Leo from 1-22 August and Virgo from 23-31 August.
What is the birthstone for August?
Peridot and Spinel.
What is the birth flower for August?
Gladiolus and Poppy.
Do people born in the same month share a personality?
There is no good evidence that they do. The one reliable birth-date effect is the relative age effect, which comes from where a school or sporting year draws its cut-off rather than from the month itself.
Born in a Different Month?
- People born in January
- People born in February
- People born in March
- People born in April
- People born in May
- People born in June
- People born in July
- People born in September
- People born in October
- People born in November
- People born in December
6 Comments
Wowww
Everything they said here is just me
I am an August born
But I like hanging out with a few close friends, I due share my secrets with my sister.
this is quite true, I testify to all.
Wow, My birthdate is Aug 12, and majority of the characteristics are not remotely close to my daily being. I have many close friends I trust and hangout almost on a daily basis, i’m generous with money and the giving of my material possessions to a fault causing me to struggle financially, I’m certainly not a loner as I am apart of many groups both politically and socially. I have writers block when trying to write a letter, I’m more comfortable with face to face conversations. Etc…
However, I do get angry, but am not quick to anger. I’d rather give the other person the opportunity to explain their side first before I give an angry response if deserved, my reaction is to give someone the benefit of the doubt. However I am quick to anger when I’ve purchased something And I am not provided what is promised! I do dislike how I respond when feeling I’m being taken advantage.
I’m glad I am grounded enough not to let your belief that all people born in August have the same characteristics in which it obviously does not in my case.
Aaah, it’s like u guys were describing me.
It has really made ma day, my birthday that this is natural , everything I feel, or I have on me.
Right I am born in August and I have the worst attitude.
U at right..!!