The sky's twelve-house belt — the year told as constellations; pattern laid over stars so time could be read.
Greek ζωδιακός κύκλος (zōdiakos kyklos, "circle of little animals"), from ζώδιον (zōdion, a little animal or carved figure), the diminutive of ζῷον (zōon, animal, living being) — the belt of the sky is named for the animal figures early astronomers saw traced among its stars.
A calendar read by looking up rather than counting days — the stars arranged into a belt of twelve houses so the year can be told in shapes rather than numbers. The belt itself never moves; only the reading of it does.