In astrology, the position of the sun at the time of your birth determines your sun sign or, as it's more commonly known, your star sign. The sun is deemed very important in astrology; it rules willpower and ego and is fundamental to who a person is and what they're about.

The position of the other planets at the time you were born also has an effect on how you behave, but it's the sun's position, over all the other planets' positions, that is taken into account when determining a person's character.

Elements

There are 12 star signs, and each star sign belongs to an "element." The elements are Fire, Earth, Air and Water: Aries, Leo and Sagittarius are Fire signs; Taurus, Virgo and Capricorn are Earth signs; Gemini, Libra and Aquarius are Air signs; and Cancer, Scorpio and Pisces are Water signs. There are basic personality types for each element, and each element reflects a quality of human nature. Fire represents the physical, Earth the practical, Air the intellectual and Water the emotional.

So for example, it's probable that someone born under the sign of Virgo will go about things in a more practical way than, say, someone who's born under the sign of Gemini, who will use his or her intuition to work through situations. But while people born under the signs of the same element will be concerned with the basic human nature quality associated with that group, the position of the sun at the time of their birth will bestow on them different, additional traits.

Groups

As well the four elements of Fire, Earth, Air and Water, star signs are divided into three groups: Cardinal, Fixed and Mutable. Aries, Cancer, Libra and Capricorn are Cardinal signs; Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, and Aquarius are Fixed signs; and Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius and Pisces are Mutable signs. Cardinal signs are associated with enterprise and initiating projects -- these people cause things to start and happen. Fixed signs are concerned with maintaining and stabilizing, protecting what they have.

And Mutable signs are concerned with changing situations -- these people readily accept change (whereas Fixed signs oppose it).

Astrological Wheel of Life

As well as the basic qualities each element and group contributes to an individual, the position of a person's sun sign in the astrological wheel also determines their character. The astrological wheel can be seen as a life cycle, with each sign representing a stage of personal growth and development along the course of a life. For example, Aries is the first sign of the Zodiac, and the traits of Aries can be likened to those of a newborn baby, the very first stage on life's journey.

Individuals born under Aries are known for being forthright and having little regard for how their actions may affect others. They are often accused of being selfish. However, included in the positive traits of this sign, is the ability to see the potential in a situation or idea, as though they are seeing something through the eyes of a baby, with all the wonderment associated with it.

At the end of the spectrum is Pisces (the last sign of the zodiac), which represents the end of life, or the moving from one life to another. Pisces is associated with all matters spiritual.

These individuals are "deep" people, feeling their way through situations as opposed to thinking their way through them. Again, the traits associated with this sign can be linked to the last stage on that journey of life -- which was started with Aries -- where an individual has moved to a higher level of enlightenment. This is an example of how the basic star sign astrology can be used to interpret a person's character and personality.