A birthday on the globe
1 January on the globe: what happened in the world on this day, and who was born
For 1 January, the English Wikipedia lists 129 events and 269 births. 38 of the events stand at their places as rays of light; 21 more are dashed circles, where the sentence links only to a country or a sea. The taller the ray, the longer ago it happened. The people born that day come further down, as blue points.
A birthday, yours or someone else’s:
Turn it into a greetingScroll: the globe turns to each place
The day you were born, on the globe.
Three things from your day
Scroll: your day first, then 1 January through the years
The Earth on 1 January
The picture on the globe was assembled by NASA from satellite photographs taken in January 2004: the snow, the ice and the green are those of the month.
On 1 January the Sun passes straight overhead at noon along the parallel of 23.0° south. In London, the day lasts about 7 hours 55 minutes.
Beyond 67° south the Sun no longer sets; beyond 67° north it no longer rises.
The line between day and night is tilted on the globe exactly as on this day of the year. On the dark side you can see the lights of towns.
Britain & Ireland · Hampton Court Palace
1604
The Masque of Indian and China Knights is performed by courtiers of James VI and I at Hampton Court.
On the map: Hampton Court Palace.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
Britain & Ireland · Scone Palace
1651
Charles II is crowned King of Scotland at Scone Palace.
On the map: Scone Palace.
Britain & Ireland · Olney, Buckinghamshire
1773
The hymn that becomes known as "Amazing Grace", previously titled "1 Chronicles 17:16–17, Faith's Review and Expectation", is first used to accompany a sermon led by John Newton in the town of Olney, Buckinghamshire, England.
On the map: Olney, Buckinghamshire.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Romanian.
Europe · Algarve
1707
John V is proclaimed King of Portugal and the Algarves in Lisbon.
On the map: Algarve.
Asia · George Town, Penang
1957
George Town, Penang, is made a city by a royal charter of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
On the map: George Town, Penang.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
Asia · Kabul
1965
The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan is founded in Kabul, Afghanistan.
On the map: Kabul.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Romanian.
North America · Ellis Island
1892
Ellis Island begins processing immigrants into the United States.
On the map: Ellis Island.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish and Romanian.
North America · Rose Bowl Game
1902
The first American college football bowl game, the Rose Bowl between Michigan and Stanford, is held in Pasadena, California.
On the map: Rose Bowl Game.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish and Romanian.
North America · Children's Wisconsin
2005
Jeanna Giese, the first known rabies survivor who did not receive the vaccine, was discharged from Children's Wisconsin.
On the map: Children's Wisconsin.
1 January
What the other Wikipedias remember#
For these years the English list has nothing on this day. The events below come from the same day’s lists on Wikipedia in Spanish and were translated for this page.
From Wikipedia in Spanish · Notre-Dame de Paris
1537
In Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris (France), Madeleine of France (daughter of Francis I) marries King James V of Scotland.
On the map: Notre-Dame de Paris.
Translated from the list on Wikipedia in Spanish.
The article on Wikipedia in Spanish: Catedral de Notre Dame de París
1 January
Born on 1 January#
The English Wikipedia lists 269 births for this day. The blue points are the birthplaces of 60 of these people: those written about in the most Wikipedia editions, where Wikidata gives a place of birth.
Born on 1 January
1863
Pierre de Coubertin, French historian and educator, founded the International Olympic Committee (died 1937)
Place of birth: 7th arrondissement of Paris.
Born on 1 January
1431
Pope Alexander VI (died 1503)
Place of birth: Xàtiva.
Born on 1 January
1823
Sándor Petőfi, Hungarian poet and activist (died 1849)
Place of birth: Kiskőrös.
Born on 1 January
1484
Huldrych Zwingli, Swiss pastor and theologian (died 1531)
Place of birth: Wildhaus.
Born on 1 January
1879
E. M. Forster, English author and playwright (died 1970)
Place of birth: London.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1854
James George Frazer, Scottish anthropologist and academic (died 1941)
Place of birth: Glasgow.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1768
Maria Edgeworth, Anglo-Irish author (died 1849)
Place of birth: Oxfordshire.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1985
Steven Davis, Northern Irish footballer
Place of birth: Ballymena.
1 January
Number one in the charts that week
At the cinema
An animal recorded that day
The record can be seen in GBIF, which brings together wildlife records from around the world.
All your birthdays
The weather that day
Data: Met Office Hadley Centre (HadCET); NOAA (GHCN-Daily, Mauna Loa).
Above the Earth
Sources: Jonathan McDowell, GCAT (launches); GFZ Potsdam (Kp index). Days are counted in Universal Time.
Football that day
International matches played that day:
Source: the “International football results” dataset kept by Mart Jürisoo (CC0).
Also that day
The earthquake’s page at the USGS
Source: the USGS catalogue. The day is counted in Universal Time (UTC).
In those days
Make a link for someone
Type the name, pick the day and the year of birth. The link opens straight on their day, with their name in the greeting.
The link carries the name, date and place typed here; anyone who gets it can see them.
Put another birthday beside it
Your mother’s, your child’s, a friend’s: the two days appear side by side.
Below: 1 January through the years.
The whole globe of the day
Drag the globe to turn it. Touch a ray or a point to read what happened there.
Everything Wikipedia lists for 1 January
The list is the English Wikipedia’s, in its own wording, as it stood in October 2026. 70 events have no place on the map: the sentence links to no place with coordinates, only to places too wide to mark, or to several countries.
- 153 BC
For the first time, Roman consuls begin their year in office on January 1.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Roman consul - 45 BC
The Julian calendar takes effect as the civil calendar of the Roman Republic, establishing January 1 as the new date of the new year.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Julian calendar - 42 BC
The Roman Senate posthumously deifies Julius Caesar.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Roman Senate - 193
The Senate chooses Pertinax against his will to succeed Commodus as Roman emperor.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Pertinax - 404
Saint Telemachus tries to stop a gladiatorial fight in a Roman amphitheatre, and is stoned to death by the crowd. This act impresses the Christian Emperor Honorius, who issues a historic ban on gladiatorial fights.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Saint Telemachus - 417
Emperor Honorius forces Galla Placidia into marriage to Constantius, his famous general (magister militum) (probable).
no place on the mapWikipedia: Honorius - 947
Emperor Taizong of the Khitan-led Liao dynasty captures Daliang, ending the dynasty and empire of the Later Jin.
Asia · KaifengWikipedia: Emperor Taizong of Liao - 1001
Grand Prince Stephen I of Hungary is named the first King of Hungary by Pope Sylvester II (probable).
no place on the mapWikipedia: Stephen I of Hungary - 1068
Romanos IV Diogenes marries Eudokia Makrembolitissa and is crowned Byzantine Emperor.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Romanos IV Diogenes - 1259
Michael VIII Palaiologos is proclaimed co-emperor of the Empire of Nicaea with his ward John IV Laskaris.
Asia · Empire of NicaeaWikipedia: Michael VIII Palaiologos - 1438
Albert II of Habsburg is crowned King of Hungary.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Albert II of Germany - 1502
The present-day location of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, is first explored by the Portuguese under their commissioned Florentine explorer, Amerigo Vespucci. Vespucci begins his suspicion that there is a whole continent between Europe and Asia.
Latin America · Rio de JaneiroWikipedia: Rio de Janeiro - 1515
Twenty-year-old Francis, Duke of Brittany, succeeds to the French throne following the death of his father-in-law, Louis XII.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Francis I of France - 1527
Croatian nobles elect Ferdinand I, Archduke of Austria as King of Croatia in the 1527 election in Cetin.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Ferdinand I, Holy Roman Emperor - 1600
Scotland recognises January 1 as the start of the year, instead of March 25.
Britain & Ireland · Kingdom of ScotlandWikipedia: Kingdom of Scotland - 1604
The Masque of Indian and China Knights is performed by courtiers of James VI and I at Hampton Court.
Britain & Ireland · Hampton Court PalaceWikipedia: The Masque of Indian and China Knights - 1651
Charles II is crowned King of Scotland at Scone Palace.
Britain & Ireland · Scone PalaceWikipedia: Charles II of England - 1700
Russia begins using the Anno Domini era instead of the Anno Mundi era of the Byzantine Empire.
Asia · Byzantine EmpireWikipedia: Anno Domini - 1707
John V is proclaimed King of Portugal and the Algarves in Lisbon.
Europe · AlgarveWikipedia: John V of Portugal - 1725
J. S. Bach leads the first performance of his chorale cantata Jesu, nun sei gepreiset, BWV 41, which features the trumpet fanfares from the beginning also in the end.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Johann Sebastian Bach - 1726
J. S. Bach leads the first performance of Herr Gott, dich loben wir, BWV 16, his church cantata for New Year's Day to a libretto by Georg Christian Lehms.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Johann Sebastian Bach - 1739
Bouvet Island, the world's remotest island, is discovered by French explorer Jean-Baptiste Charles Bouvet de Lozier.
Oceans · Bouvet IslandWikipedia: Bouvet Island - 1772
The first traveler's cheques, which could be used in 90 European cities, are issued by the London Credit Exchange Company.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Traveller's cheque - 1773
The hymn that becomes known as "Amazing Grace", previously titled "1 Chronicles 17:16–17, Faith's Review and Expectation", is first used to accompany a sermon led by John Newton in the town of Olney, Buckinghamshire, England.
Britain & Ireland · Olney, BuckinghamshireWikipedia: Amazing Grace - 1776
American Revolutionary War: Burning of Norfolk – Norfolk, Virginia, is burned to the ground by combined Royal Navy and Continental Army action.
North America · Burning of NorfolkWikipedia: Burning of Norfolk - 1776
General George Washington hoists the first United States flag, the Continental Union Flag, at Prospect Hill.
North America · United StatesWikipedia: George Washington - 1781
American Revolutionary War: One thousand five hundred soldiers of the 6th Pennsylvania Regiment under General Anthony Wayne's command rebel against the Continental Army's winter camp in Morristown, New Jersey in the Pennsylvania Line Mutiny of 1781.
North America · Morristown, New JerseyWikipedia: 6th Pennsylvania Regiment - 1785
The Times began publication in London as The Daily Universal Register.
no place on the mapWikipedia: The Times - 1788
The first edition of The Times of London, previously The Daily Universal Register, is published.
no place on the mapWikipedia: The Times - 1800
Quasi-War: An American convoy of four merchant vessels escorted by a schooner was attacked by a squadron of armed barges manned by Haitians.
Latin America · Action of 1 January 1800Wikipedia: Action of 1 January 1800 - 1801
Ceres, the largest and first known object in the Asteroid belt, is discovered by Giuseppe Piazzi.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Ceres - 1801
The legislative union of Kingdom of Great Britain and Kingdom of Ireland is completed, and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland is proclaimed.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Kingdom of Great Britain - 1804
French rule ends in Haiti. Haiti becomes the first black-majority republic and second independent country in North America after the United States.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Saint-Domingue - 1806
The French Republican Calendar is abolished.
no place on the mapWikipedia: French Republican calendar - 1808
The United States bans the importation of slaves.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Act Prohibiting Importation of Slaves - 1810
Major-General Lachlan Macquarie officially becomes Governor of New South Wales.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Lachlan Macquarie - 1818
Mary Wollstonecraft Shelley (anonymously) publishes the pioneering work of science fiction, Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus, in London.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Mary Shelley - 1822
The Greek Constitution of 1822 is adopted by the First National Assembly at Epidaurus.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Greek Constitution of 1822 - 1834
Most of Germany forms the Zollverein customs union, the first such union between sovereign states.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Zollverein - 1845
The Philippines moves its national calendar to align with other Asian countries' calendars by skipping Tuesday, December 31, 1844. The change has been ordered by Governor–General Narciso Claveria to reform the country's calendar so that it aligns with the rest of Asia. Its territory has been one day behind the rest of Asia for 323 years since the arrival of Ferdinand Magellan in the Philippines on March 16, 1521.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Narciso Clavería y Zaldúa - 1847
The world's first "Mercy" Hospital is founded in Pittsburgh, United States, by a group of Sisters of Mercy from Ireland; the name will go on to grace over 30 major hospitals throughout the world.
North America · UPMC MercyWikipedia: UPMC Mercy - 1860
The first Polish postage stamp is issued, replacing the Russian stamps previously in use.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Postage stamps and postal history of Poland - 1861
Liberal forces supporting Benito Juárez enter Mexico City.
Latin America · Mexico CityWikipedia: Liberal Party - 1863
American Civil War: The Emancipation Proclamation takes effect in Confederate territory.
no place on the mapWikipedia: American Civil War - 1877
Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom is proclaimed Empress of India.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Queen Victoria - 1885
Twenty-five nations adopt Sandford Fleming's proposal for standard time (and also, time zones).
no place on the mapWikipedia: Sandford Fleming - 1890
Eritrea is consolidated into a colony by the Italian government as Italian Eritrea.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Eritrea - 1892
Ellis Island begins processing immigrants into the United States.
North America · Ellis IslandWikipedia: Ellis Island - 1898
New York, New York annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York. The four initial boroughs, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx, are joined on January 25 by Staten Island to create the modern city of five boroughs.
North America · New York CityWikipedia: City of Greater New York - 1899
Spanish rule ends in Cuba.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Captaincy General of Cuba - 1900
Nigeria becomes a British protectorate with Frederick Lugard as high commissioner.
Africa · NigeriaWikipedia: Nigeria - 1901
The British colonies of New South Wales, Queensland, Victoria, South Australia, Tasmania, and Western Australia federate as the Commonwealth of Australia; Edmund Barton is appointed the first Prime Minister.
no place on the mapWikipedia: New South Wales - 1901
The Southern Nigeria Protectorate is established within the British Empire.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Southern Nigeria Protectorate - 1902
The first American college football bowl game, the Rose Bowl between Michigan and Stanford, is held in Pasadena, California.
North America · Rose Bowl GameWikipedia: Rose Bowl Game - 1910
Captain David Beatty is promoted to rear admiral, and becomes the youngest admiral in the Royal Navy (except for royal family members) since Horatio Nelson.
no place on the mapWikipedia: David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty - 1912
The Republic of China is established.
Asia · Republic of ChinaWikipedia: Republic of China - 1914
The SPT Airboat Line becomes the world's first scheduled airline to use a winged aircraft.
no place on the mapWikipedia: St. Petersburg–Tampa Airboat Line - 1915
Russia withdraws from its occupation of northwestern Iran, enabling a subsequent Ottoman invasion and massacres of Assyrians and Armenians.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Sayfo - 1923
Britain's Railways are grouped into the Big Four: LNER, GWR, SR, and LMS.
no place on the mapWikipedia: List of railway companies involved in the 1923 grouping - 1926
Ireland's first broadcaster, 2RN, began broadcasting.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2RN - 1927
New Mexican oil legislation goes into effect, leading to the formal outbreak of the Cristero War.
Latin America · MexicoWikipedia: Cristero War - 1928
Boris Bazhanov defects through Iran to seek asylum in France. He is the only member of Joseph Stalin's secretariat to have defected from the Soviet Union.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Boris Bazhanov - 1929
The former municipalities of Point Grey, British Columbia and South Vancouver, British Columbia are amalgamated into Vancouver.
North America · West Point GreyWikipedia: West Point Grey - 1932
The United States Post Office Department issues a set of 12 stamps commemorating the 200th anniversary of George Washington's birth.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Washington Bicentennial stamps of 1932 - 1934
A "Law for the Prevention of Genetically Diseased Offspring" comes into effect in Nazi Germany.
Europe · Nazi GermanyWikipedia: Nazi eugenics - 1934
Alcatraz Island in San Francisco Bay becomes a United States federal prison.
North America · Alcatraz IslandWikipedia: Alcatraz Island - 1942
The Declaration by United Nations is signed by twenty-six nations.
North America · Washington, D.C.Wikipedia: Declaration by United Nations - 1945
World War II: The German Luftwaffe launches Operation Bodenplatte, a massive, but failed, attempt to knock out Allied air power in northern Europe in a single blow.
Europe · BelgiumWikipedia: Operation Bodenplatte - 1947
Cold War: The American and British occupation zones in Allied-occupied Germany, after World War II, merge to form the Bizone, which later (with the French zone) became part of West Germany.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Cold War - 1947
The Canadian Citizenship Act 1946 comes into effect, converting British subjects into Canadian citizens. Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King becomes the first Canadian citizen.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Canadian Citizenship Act, 1946 - 1948
The British railway network is nationalized to form British Railways.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Transport in England - 1949
United Nations cease-fire takes effect in Kashmir from one minute before midnight. War between India and Pakistan stops accordingly.
Asia · India–Pakistan war of 1947–1948Wikipedia: India–Pakistan war of 1947–1948 - 1956
Sudan achieves independence from Egypt and the United Kingdom.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Sudan - 1957
George Town, Penang, is made a city by a royal charter of Queen Elizabeth II of the United Kingdom.
Asia · George Town, PenangWikipedia: George Town, Penang - 1957
Lèse majesté in Thailand is strengthened to include "insult" and changed to a crime against national security, after the Thai criminal code of 1956 went into effect.: 6, 18
no place on the mapWikipedia: Lèse-majesté in Thailand - 1958
The European Economic Community is established.
no place on the mapWikipedia: European Economic Community - 1959
Cuban Revolution: Fulgencio Batista, dictator of Cuba, is overthrown by Fidel Castro's forces.
Latin America · CubaWikipedia: Cuban Revolution - 1960
Cameroon achieves independence from France and the United Kingdom.
Africa · CameroonWikipedia: Cameroon - 1960
Three men were killed and two wounded in a mass shooting at a public house in Sheffield, England.
Britain & Ireland · East House mass shootingWikipedia: East House mass shooting - 1962
Western Samoa achieves independence from New Zealand; its name is changed to the Independent State of Western Samoa.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Territory of Western Samoa - 1964
The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is divided into the independent republics of Zambia and Malawi, and the British-controlled Rhodesia.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland - 1965
The People's Democratic Party of Afghanistan is founded in Kabul, Afghanistan.
- 1970
The defined beginning of Unix time, at 00:00.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Unix time - 1971
Cigarette advertisements are banned on American television.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Cigarette - 1973
Denmark, Ireland and the United Kingdom are admitted into the European Economic Community.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Denmark - 1976
A bomb explodes on board Middle East Airlines Flight 438 over Qaisumah, Saudi Arabia, killing all 81 people on board.
Asia · Middle East Airlines Flight 438Wikipedia: Middle East Airlines Flight 438 - 1978
Air India Flight 855, a Boeing 747, crashes into the Arabian Sea off the coast of Bombay, India, due to instrument failure, spatial disorientation, and pilot error, killing all 213 people on board.
Asia · Air India Flight 855Wikipedia: Air India Flight 855 - 1979
the Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations and Taiwan Relations Act enter into force. Through the Communiqué, the United States establishes normal diplomatic relations with China. Through the Act, the United States guarantees military support for Taiwan.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Joint Communiqué on the Establishment of Diplomatic Relations - 1981
Greece is admitted into the European Community.
Europe · GreeceWikipedia: Greece - 1982
Peruvian Javier Pérez de Cuéllar becomes the first Latin American to hold the title of Secretary-General of the United Nations.
Latin America · PeruWikipedia: Peru - 1983
The ARPANET officially changes to using TCP/IP, the Internet Protocol, effectively creating the Internet.
no place on the mapWikipedia: ARPANET - 1984
Brunei becomes independent of the United Kingdom.
Asia · BruneiWikipedia: Brunei - 1984
The original American Telephone & Telegraph Company is divested of its 22 Bell System companies as a result of the settlement of the 1974 United States Department of Justice antitrust suit against AT&T.
no place on the mapWikipedia: AT&T Corporation - 1985
Eastern Air Lines Flight 980 crashes into Mount Illimani in Bolivia, killing all 29 aboard.
Latin America · Eastern Air Lines Flight 980Wikipedia: Eastern Air Lines Flight 980 - 1985
The first British mobile phone call is made by Michael Harrison to his father Sir Ernest Harrison, chairman of Vodafone.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Mobile phone - 1987
The Isleta Pueblo tribe elect Verna Williamson to be their first female governor.
North America · Pueblo of IsletaWikipedia: Pueblo of Isleta - 1988
The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America comes into existence, creating the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Evangelical Lutheran Church in America - 1989
The Montreal Protocol comes into force, stopping the use of chemicals contributing to ozone depletion.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Montreal Protocol - 1990
David Dinkins is sworn in as New York City's first black mayor.
North America · New York CityWikipedia: David Dinkins - 1990
Seven people are killed and one injured in a mass shooting in Narsaq, Greenland.
North America · Narsaq massacreWikipedia: Narsaq massacre - 1993
Dissolution of Czechoslovakia: Czechoslovakia is divided into the Czech Republic and Slovak Republic.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Dissolution of Czechoslovakia - 1994
The North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA) comes into effect.
no place on the mapWikipedia: North American Free Trade Agreement - 1994
The Zapatista Army of National Liberation initiates twelve days of armed conflict in the Mexican state of Chiapas.
Latin America · ChiapasWikipedia: Zapatista Army of National Liberation - 1995
Austria, Finland and Sweden join the EU.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1995 enlargement of the European Union - 1995
The Draupner wave in the North Sea in Norway is detected, confirming the existence of freak waves.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Draupner wave - 1995
The World Trade Organization comes into being.
no place on the mapWikipedia: World Trade Organization - 1998
Argentinian physicist Juan Maldacena publishes a landmark paper initiating the study of AdS/CFT correspondence, which links string theory and quantum gravity.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Juan Maldacena - 1998
Following a currency reform, Russia begins to circulate new rubles to stem inflation and promote confidence.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1998 Russian monetary reform - 1999
The Euro currency is introduced in 11 member nations of the European Union (with the exception of the United Kingdom, Denmark, Greece and Sweden).
Europe · European UnionWikipedia: Euro - 2001
Greece adopts the Euro, becoming the 12th Eurozone country.
Europe · GreeceWikipedia: Greece - 2004
In a vote of confidence, General Pervez Musharraf wins 658 out of 1,170 votes in the Electoral College of Pakistan, and according to Article 41(8) of the Constitution of Pakistan, is "deemed to be elected" to the office of President until October 2007.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Constitution of Pakistan - 2005
Jeanna Giese, the first known rabies survivor who did not receive the vaccine, was discharged from Children's Wisconsin.
North America · Children's WisconsinWikipedia: Jeanna Giese - 2007
Adam Air Flight 574 breaks apart in mid-air and crashes near the Makassar Strait, Indonesia, killing all 102 people on board.
Asia · Adam Air Flight 574Wikipedia: Adam Air Flight 574 - 2007
Bulgaria and Romania join the EU.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2007 enlargement of the European Union - 2009
Sixty-six people die in a nightclub fire in Bangkok, Thailand.
Asia · 2009 Bangkok nightclub fireWikipedia: 2009 Bangkok nightclub fire - 2010
A suicide car bomber detonates at a volleyball tournament in Lakki Marwat, Pakistan, killing 105 and injuring 100 more.
Asia · 2010 Lakki Marwat suicide bombingWikipedia: 2010 Lakki Marwat suicide bombing - 2011
A bomb explodes as Coptic Christians in Alexandria, Egypt, leave a new year service, killing 23 people.
Africa · 2011 Alexandria bombingWikipedia: 2011 Alexandria bombing - 2011
Estonia officially adopts the Euro currency and becomes the 17th Eurozone country.
Europe · EstoniaWikipedia: Estonia - 2013
At least 60 people are killed and 200 injured in a stampede after celebrations at Félix Houphouët-Boigny Stadium in Abidjan, Ivory Coast.
Africa · 2013 Houphouët-Boigny stampedeWikipedia: 2013 Houphouët-Boigny stampede - 2015
The Eurasian Economic Union comes into effect, creating a political and economic union between Russia, Belarus, Armenia, Kazakhstan and Kyrgyzstan.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Eurasian Economic Union - 2017
An attack on a nightclub in Istanbul, Turkey, during New Year's celebrations, kills 39 people and injures 79 others.
Asia · Istanbul nightclub shootingWikipedia: Istanbul nightclub shooting - 2019
The NASA space probe New Horizons flew by the trans-Neptunian object Arrokoth, making it the farthest object visited by a spacecraft.
no place on the mapWikipedia: NASA - 2023
Croatia officially adopts the Euro, becoming the 20th Eurozone country, and becomes the 27th member of the Schengen Area.
Europe · CroatiaWikipedia: Croatia - 2024
A 7.5 Mww earthquake strikes the western coast of Japan, killing more than 500 people and injuring over 1,000 others. A majority of direct deaths were due to collapsed homes.
Asia · 2024 Noto earthquakeWikipedia: 2024 Noto earthquake - 2024
Artsakh ceases to exist.
Asia · Republic of ArtsakhWikipedia: Republic of Artsakh - 2024
Disney's copyright protection on Steamboat Willie and the original Mickey Mouse expires as they enter the public domain.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2024 in public domain - 2025
Fourteen people are killed and 57 others injured during a vehicle-ramming and shooting attack in New Orleans, Louisiana.
North America · 2025 New Orleans truck attackWikipedia: 2025 New Orleans truck attack - 2026
A fire at a bar during New Year's Eve celebrations in Crans-Montana, Switzerland, kills 41 people and injures 116 others.
Europe · 2026 Crans-Montana bar fireWikipedia: 2026 Crans-Montana bar fire - 2026
Bulgaria officially adopts the Euro, becoming the 21st Eurozone country.
Europe · BulgariaWikipedia: Bulgaria
What the other Wikipedias remember
For these years the English list has nothing on this day. The events below come from the same day’s lists on Wikipedia in Spanish and were translated for this page.
- 1537
In Notre-Dame Cathedral in Paris (France), Madeleine of France (daughter of Francis I) marries King James V of Scotland.
Europe · Notre-Dame de ParisTranslated from the list on Wikipedia in SpanishWikipedia: Catedral de Notre Dame de París
Who was born on 1 January
In order of how many Wikipedia editions have an article about each. The first 60 of 269 are shown.
- 1919
J. D. Salinger, American soldier and author (died 2010)
New York CityWikipedia: J. D. Salinger - 1863
Pierre de Coubertin, French historian and educator, founded the International Olympic Committee (died 1937)
7th arrondissement of ParisWikipedia: Pierre de Coubertin - 1431
Pope Alexander VI (died 1503)
- 1823
Sándor Petőfi, Hungarian poet and activist (died 1849)
KiskőrösWikipedia: Sándor Petőfi - 1484
Huldrych Zwingli, Swiss pastor and theologian (died 1531)
WildhausWikipedia: Huldrych Zwingli - 1956
Christine Lagarde, French lawyer and politician; Managing Director, International Monetary Fund
9th arrondissement of ParisWikipedia: Christine Lagarde - 1449
Lorenzo de' Medici, Italian politician (died 1492)
FlorenceWikipedia: Lorenzo de' Medici - 1879
E. M. Forster, English author and playwright (died 1970)
LondonWikipedia: E. M. Forster - 1894
Satyendra Nath Bose, Indian physicist and mathematician (died 1974)
- 1909
Stepan Bandera, Ukrainian soldier and politician (died 1959)
Staryi UhrynivWikipedia: Stepan Bandera - 1942
Alassane Ouattara, Ivorian economist and politician, President of the Ivory Coast
DimbokroWikipedia: Alassane Ouattara - 1972
Lilian Thuram, French footballer
Pointe-à-PitreWikipedia: Lilian Thuram - 1854
James George Frazer, Scottish anthropologist and academic (died 1941)
- 1968
Davor Šuker, Croatian footballer
OsijekWikipedia: Davor Šuker - 1895
J. Edgar Hoover, American law enforcement official; 1st Director of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (died 1972)
Washington, D.C.Wikipedia: J. Edgar Hoover - 1946
Rivellino, Brazilian footballer and manager
São PauloWikipedia: Rivellino - 1969
Verne Troyer, American actor (died 2018)
SturgisWikipedia: Verne Troyer - 1979
Vidya Balan, Indian actress
Palakkad districtWikipedia: Vidya Balan - 1924
Francisco Macías Nguema, Equatorial Guinean politician, 1st President of the Republic of Equatorial Guinea (died 1979)
- 1927
Maurice Béjart, French-Swiss dancer, choreographer, and director (died 2007)
MarseilleWikipedia: Maurice Béjart - 1887
Wilhelm Canaris, German admiral (died 1945)
AplerbeckWikipedia: Wilhelm Canaris - 766
Ali al-Ridha, 8th Imam of Twelver Shia Islam (died 818)
MedinaWikipedia: Ali al-Rida - 1900
Chiune Sugihara, Japanese soldier and diplomat (died 1986)
Kyosenji-templeWikipedia: Chiune Sugihara - 1467
Sigismund I the Old, Polish king (died 1548)
KozieniceWikipedia: Sigismund I the Old - 1768
Maria Edgeworth, Anglo-Irish author (died 1849)
OxfordshireWikipedia: Maria Edgeworth - 1921
Ismail al-Faruqi, Palestinian-American philosopher and academic (died 1986)
- 1927
Vernon L. Smith, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
WichitaWikipedia: Vernon L. Smith - 1982
David Nalbandian, Argentine tennis player
UnquilloWikipedia: David Nalbandian - 1995
Sardar Azmoun, Iranian footballer
Gonbad-e KavusWikipedia: Sardar Azmoun - 1864
Alfred Stieglitz, American photographer and curator (died 1946)
HobokenWikipedia: Alfred Stieglitz - 1914
Noor Inayat Khan, British SOE agent (died 1944)
- 1966
Ivica Dačić, Serbian journalist and politician, 95th Prime Minister of Serbia
PrizrenWikipedia: Ivica Dačić - 1984
Paolo Guerrero, Peruvian footballer
- 1938
Frank Langella, American actor
BayonneWikipedia: Frank Langella - 1892
Manuel Roxas, Filipino lawyer and politician, 5th President of the Philippines (died 1948)
- 1912
Kim Philby, British spy (died 1988)
AmbalaWikipedia: Kim Philby - 1959
Azali Assoumani, Comorian colonel and politician, President of the Comoros
MitsoudjéWikipedia: Azali Assoumani - 1909
Dana Andrews, American actor (died 1992)
CollinsWikipedia: Dana Andrews - 1985
Steven Davis, Northern Irish footballer
BallymenaWikipedia: Steven Davis - 1997
Gonzalo Montiel, Argentine footballer
Virrey del PinoWikipedia: Gonzalo Montiel - 1735
Paul Revere, American silversmith and engraver (died 1818)
- 1814
Hong Xiuquan, Chinese rebellion leader and king (died 1864)
Huadu DistrictWikipedia: Hong Xiuquan - 1923
Valentina Cortese, Italian actress (died 2019)
- 1655
Christian Thomasius, German jurist and philosopher (died 1728)
- 2000
Ice Spice, American rapper
The BronxWikipedia: Ice Spice - 1996
Mahmoud Dahoud, German footballer
AmoudahWikipedia: Mahmoud Dahoud - 1981
Mladen Petrić, Croatian footballer
DubraveWikipedia: Mladen Petrić - 1996
Andreas Pereira, Brazilian footballer
- 1948
Devlet Bahçeli, Turkish economist, academic, and politician, 57th Deputy Prime Minister of Turkey
- 1954
Bob Menendez, American lawyer and politician
New York CityWikipedia: Bob Menendez - 1955
Mary Beard, English classicist, academic and presenter
Much WenlockWikipedia: Mary Beard - 1945
Jacky Ickx, Belgian racing driver
BrusselsWikipedia: Jacky Ickx - 1953
Gary Johnson, American businessman and politician, 29th Governor of New Mexico
- 1986
Colin Morgan, Northern Irish actor
ArmaghWikipedia: Colin Morgan - 1557
Stephen Bocskay, Prince of Transylvania (died 1606)
Cluj-NapocaWikipedia: Stephen Bocskai - 1714
Kristijonas Donelaitis, Lithuanian pastor and poet (died 1780)
LasdinehlenWikipedia: Kristijonas Donelaitis - 1774
André Marie Constant Duméril, French zoologist and academic (died 1860)
- 1839
Ouida, English-Italian author and activist (died 1908)
Bury St EdmundsWikipedia: Ouida - 1879
William Fox, Hungarian-American screenwriter and producer, founded the Fox Film Corporation and Fox Theatres (died 1952)
TolcsvaWikipedia: William Fox - 1939
Michèle Mercier, French actress
What is celebrated on 1 January
- Christian feast day: Basil the Great (Eastern Orthodox Church)
- Christian feast day: Feast of the Circumcision of Christ Feast of the Holy Name of Jesus (Anglican Communion, Lutheran Church)
- Christian feast day: Fulgentius of Ruspe
- Christian feast day: Solemnity of Mary, Mother of God; and its related observances: World Day of Peace
- Christian feast day: January 1 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- The last day of Kwanzaa (African Americans)
- The eighth of the Twelve Days of Christmas (Western Christianity)
- Global Family Day
- Jump-up Day (Montserrat)
- New Year's Day (Gregorian calendar) Japanese New Year
- New Year's Day (Gregorian calendar) Novy God Day (Russia)
- Polar Bear Swim Day
- Public Domain Day (multiple countries)
- Triumph of the Revolution (Cuba)
A greeting link for someone
Type a name and, if you like, the year of birth. The link opens with a greeting, and beside each event it says how old the person turned that day, or how many years before their birth it happened.
The name and the year go only into the link you send.
All 366 days
How the globe is made
Where the events come from
Each edition of this page uses the day’s list from Wikipedia in its own language: Romanian, English, Spanish, Chinese. The lists are written by volunteers and differ from one edition to the next; the text of each event is Wikipedia’s, with a link to the article. A row that appears twice in a list is shown once. The lists have not been checked event by event: they are Wikipedia’s, mistakes included.
For events before 1582, and for countries that moved to the Gregorian calendar later (Britain in 1752, Russia in 1918), the same day may be counted Old Style in one list and New Style in another.
The chapter “What the other Wikipedias remember” adds up to five events a day from the lists of the other three editions, only for years in which the English list has nothing on that day. They were translated for this page, passed the same filters as the tour, and are not counted among the events of the English list.
How an event gets onto the map
The place comes from Wikidata. If the sentence links to the article about the event itself (a battle, an opening, an earthquake), dated to the same year, the ray stands on its coordinates or on those of its location. Otherwise it stands on the first place the sentence links to: a town, a building, a mountain, an island. This second step can be wrong: sometimes the sentence only mentions the place. That is why the page says, under each event, which place the ray stands on.
When the sentence links to a single state or province, or to a single sea, lake or desert larger than 5,000 km², the globe shows a dashed circle, not a ray. The circle has the area Wikidata gives, with its radius kept between 1.2° and 16°, or a radius of 4.5° when Wikidata gives no area; it says only that the sentence links to that place. Organisations, ships, spacecraft, museum objects, rivers, mountain ranges, languages and continents are never used as places. When a sentence names several states and no exact place, the event stays in the list only.
What the height means
The height of a ray shows how many years have passed, on a logarithmic scale: 10 years, 100 years and 1,000 years are equal steps apart; anything older than about 2,600 years has the tallest ray. The colour runs from pale yellow for recent years to violet for antiquity.
Where the tour stops
In each region the tour stops at up to three events (five in Britain and Ireland), chosen mainly by three things: whether Wikipedia’s editors put the event in the “On this day” box of their main page (the English, Spanish and Chinese editions), how many Wikipedia editions have an article about it, and how many of the four lists include it. Events whose sentence or article is about a war, an attack, a crime or a disaster are left out of the tour; they stay in the whole list, in Wikipedia’s wording. The filter is a list of words and a list of Wikidata types, so it can miss some.
The tour of births names the people with articles in the most editions and leaves aside those whom the list or Wikidata describes as rulers, politicians, commanders, leaders of movements or criminals; they stay in the list.
The Earth and the Sun
The daytime images are NASA’s Blue Marble Next Generation mosaics, one for each month of 2004; the night side is Black Marble 2016. The tilt of the line between day and night is computed for the day; the hour is chosen so that the place being read is in daylight. The latitude where the Sun stands overhead is the average of the four years of the leap cycle; in a given year it can differ by up to 0.4°.
The day you were born
The number ones come from the weekly lists on Wikipedia: Billboard for the United States (from 1940; the Hot 100 from August 1958), the UK Singles Chart (from November 1952), Los 40 Principales for Spain (from July 1966) and, for Romania, the Romanian Top 100 and Airplay 100 (2001–2021, with missing weeks). The page shows the chart of the week in which the day of birth falls, with its date; Billboard and the UK chart are dated at the end of their week. For Romania before 2001 and for China these sources have no weekly chart.
The films are those that reached cinemas in the United States up to ten days before or three days after that day (some of them in a few cinemas at first), from the English Wikipedia’s yearly lists (from 1968), in order of how many editions have an article about them. The events “in those days” are the ones on the neighbouring days’ lists that carry the year of birth, passed through the same filter as the tour.
The day of birth, year included
The Moon, the star sign and the constellation are worked out by the page itself, for noon Universal Time on the day. The lit part of the Moon is rounded and can differ by a few per cent from that at the hour of birth. The sign follows the usual zodiac of twelve equal parts starting at the March equinox; the constellation is the one the Sun actually stood in front of, by the borders set by the International Astronomical Union, and within a day of a border the page does not name it. When the Sun changes sign while it is that day anywhere on Earth, the page gives the moment of crossing, rounded to ten minutes and accurate to within about a quarter of an hour, and the clock time in a few cities, with the time zone and summer time of that year.
The year in the Chinese calendar is the one your device’s own calendar gives for the date, checked against the Hong Kong Observatory’s tables. “All your birthdays” uses the same sources as the rest of the chapter for the same day in every year since the birth: the temperature, well-known launches that took place on that very day, matches of the teams the edition follows, snow deeper than 10 cm and strong geomagnetic storms. The three things at the top and the four on the picture are chosen in a fixed order (the song, the animal, a full Moon, a well-known launch before an ordinary earthquake); on the picture you can change them.
When the link carries a year of birth, the page adds a few things about that exact day. The weather is the Met Office’s Central England temperature record and the readings from New York’s Central Park; the “usual high” is the average of the daily highs of 1961–1990 for that date, with two days either side. The carbon dioxide figure is the monthly mean at the Mauna Loa observatory, where measurements begin in March 1958.
The earthquake is the one with the largest magnitude in the USGS catalogue for that day, counted in Universal Time. Before the 1960s the catalogue has gaps even above magnitude 5.5, so in the older years many days have no earthquake. The page gives only the magnitude and the place: the country the epicentre falls in or, when the epicentre is at sea within 300 km of a coast, the nearest country; farther out, only the ocean.
The launches are those that reached orbit or left for the Moon and the planets, from Jonathan McDowell’s GCAT catalogue. If nothing left that day, the page shows the nearest launch within three days before or after, and says how many days away it was. The geomagnetic storm appears only when the Kp index reached at least 5 in one of the day’s eight three-hour intervals.
The animal comes from GBIF: an observation made by a person (the animal seen or heard, or its tracks), dated to that exact day, with coordinates and a CC0 or CC BY licence. Only a few hundred well-known species are searched (mammals, birds, turtles, butterflies); of those noted that day, mammals and species with articles in many Wikipedia editions come first; birds noted almost every day, and species used recently, wait their turn. Observations dated 1 January are left out, because records without a day are often filed there. An observation shows that the animal was recorded there, not how many animals there were.
The matches are those between national teams. Only matches of England, Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland, the Republic of Ireland, the United States, Canada and Australia are shown, along with those at the big final tournaments. The picture to send is drawn in the page from the day’s globe and the facts above, and stays on your device until you send it.
Sources
- Events, births and holidays: the day’s page on Wikipedia, text under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Coordinates, places of birth and the number of editions: Wikidata (CC0).
- The Earth by day: NASA Blue Marble Next Generation. The Earth by night: NASA Black Marble 2016.
- Borders and regions: Natural Earth.
- World population and births per year: UN World Population Prospects 2024.
- Charts and films: Wikipedia’s lists for Billboard, the UK Singles Chart, Los 40 Principales, Romanian Top 100, Airplay 100 and American films by year (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Weather: Met Office Hadley Centre, HadCET (Open Government Licence) and NOAA GHCN-Daily, New York Central Park. Carbon dioxide: NOAA Global Monitoring Laboratory, Mauna Loa.
- Earthquakes: the USGS catalogue. Launches: Jonathan McDowell, GCAT (CC BY). Kp index: GFZ Potsdam (CC BY 4.0). Matches: International football results, Mart Jürisoo (CC0).
- Animal observations: GBIF, with a link to each record; species names come from Wikidata.