A birthday on the globe
14 October on the globe: what happened in the world on this day, and who was born
For 14 October, the English Wikipedia lists 71 events and 224 births. 36 of the events stand at their places as rays of light; three 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 14 October through the years
The Earth on 14 October
The picture on the globe was assembled by NASA from satellite photographs taken in October 2004: the snow, the ice and the green are those of the month.
On 14 October the Sun passes straight overhead at noon along the parallel of 8.1° south. In London, the day lasts about 10 hours 50 minutes.
Beyond 82° south the Sun no longer sets; beyond 82° 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 · Roundhay Garden Scene
1888
Louis Le Prince films the first motion picture, Roundhay Garden Scene.
On the map: Roundhay Garden Scene.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
Europe · Tartu
1920
Finland and Soviet Russia sign the Treaty of Tartu, exchanging some territories.
On the map: Tartu.
Europe · Partizan Stadium
2014
The Serbia vs. Albania UEFA qualifying match is canceled after 42 minutes due to several incidents on and off the pitch. Albania is eventually awarded a win.
On the map: Partizan Stadium.
North America · Carpenters' Hall
1774
American Revolution: The First Continental Congress denounces the British Parliament's Intolerable Acts and demands British concessions.
On the map: Carpenters' Hall.
North America · Montreal
1966
The city of Montreal begins the operation of its underground Montreal Metro rapid transit system.
On the map: Montreal.
North America · Washington, D.C.
1979
The first National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights draws approximately 100,000 people.
On the map: Washington, D.C..
Wikipedia: National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights
14 October
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 · Thanksgiving
1789
In the United States, George Washington proclaims the first Thanksgiving Day.
On the map: Thanksgiving.
Translated from the list on Wikipedia in Spanish.
The article on Wikipedia in Spanish: Día de Acción de Gracias
14 October
Born on 14 October#
The English Wikipedia lists 224 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 14 October
1906
Hannah Arendt, German-American philosopher and theorist (died 1975)
Place of birth: Lindener Marktplatz 2, Hannover.
Born on 14 October
1893
Lillian Gish, American actress (died 1993)
Place of birth: Springfield.
Born on 14 October
1927
Roger Moore, English actor and producer (died 2017)
Place of birth: Stockwell.
Born on 14 October
1993
Charlie Kirk, American media personality and political activist (died 2025)
Place of birth: Arlington Heights.
Born on 14 October
1978
Usher, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor
Place of birth: Dallas.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1980
Ben Whishaw, English actor
Place of birth: Clifton.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1965
Steve Coogan, English actor, comedian, producer, and screenwriter
Place of birth: Middleton.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1968
Matthew Le Tissier, English footballer and journalist
Place of birth: Saint Peter Port.
14 October
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: 14 October 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 14 October
The list is the English Wikipedia’s, in its own wording, as it stood in October 2026. 32 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.
- 1066
The Norman conquest of England begins with the Battle of Hastings.
Britain & Ireland · Battle of HastingsWikipedia: Battle of Hastings - 1322
Robert the Bruce of Scotland defeats King Edward II of England at the Battle of Old Byland, forcing Edward to accept Scotland's independence.
Britain & Ireland · Battle of Old BylandWikipedia: Battle of Old Byland - 1548
Forces of the Burmese Toungoo dynasty led by King Tabinshwehti departed Martaban to begin an invasion of the Ayutthaya Kingdom.
Asia · MottamaWikipedia: Toungoo dynasty - 1586
Mary, Queen of Scots, goes on trial for conspiracy against Queen Elizabeth I of England.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Mary, Queen of Scots - 1656
The General Court of the Massachusetts Bay Colony enacts the first punitive legislation against the Religious Society of Friends.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Massachusetts General Court - 1758
Seven Years' War: Frederick the Great suffers a rare defeat at the Battle of Hochkirch.
Europe · Battle of HochkirchWikipedia: Battle of Hochkirch - 1773
The first recorded ministry of education, the Commission of National Education, is formed in the Polish–Lithuanian Commonwealth.
Europe · Polish–Lithuanian CommonwealthWikipedia: Commission of National Education - 1774
American Revolution: The First Continental Congress denounces the British Parliament's Intolerable Acts and demands British concessions.
North America · Carpenters' HallWikipedia: American Revolution - 1791
The revolutionary group the United Irishmen is formed in Belfast, Ireland leading to the Irish Rebellion of 1798.
Britain & Ireland · BelfastWikipedia: Irish Rebellion of 1798 - 1805
War of the Third Coalition: A French corps defeats an Austrian attempt to escape encirclement at Ulm.
Europe · Battle of ElchingenWikipedia: Battle of Elchingen - 1806
War of the Fourth Coalition: Napoleon decisively defeats Prussia at the Battle of Jena–Auerstedt.
Europe · Battle of Jena–AuerstedtWikipedia: War of the Fourth Coalition - 1808
The Republic of Ragusa is annexed by France.
Europe · Republic of RagusaWikipedia: Republic of Ragusa - 1809
The Treaty of Schönbrunn is signed, ending the War of the Fifth Coalition, the final successful war in Napoleon Bonaparte's military career.
Europe · Schönbrunn PalaceWikipedia: Treaty of Schönbrunn - 1843
Irish nationalist Daniel O'Connell is arrested by the British on charges of criminal conspiracy.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Daniel O'Connell - 1863
American Civil War: Confederate troops under the command of A. P. Hill fail to drive the Union Army completely out of Virginia.
North America · Battle of Bristoe StationWikipedia: American Civil War - 1884
George Eastman receives a U.S. Government patent on his new paper-strip photographic film.
no place on the mapWikipedia: George Eastman - 1888
Louis Le Prince films the first motion picture, Roundhay Garden Scene.
Britain & Ireland · Roundhay Garden SceneWikipedia: Louis Le Prince - 1898
The steam ship SS Mohegan sinks near the Lizard peninsula, Cornwall, killing 106.
Britain & Ireland · CornwallWikipedia: SS Mohegan - 1908
The Chicago Cubs defeat the Detroit Tigers, 2–0, clinching the 1908 World Series; this would be their last until winning the 2016 World Series.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1908 World Series - 1910
English aviator Claude Grahame-White lands his aircraft on Executive Avenue near the White House in Washington, D.C.
North America · White HouseWikipedia: White House - 1912
Former president Theodore Roosevelt is shot and mildly wounded by John Flammang Schrank in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. With the fresh wound in his chest, and the bullet still within it, Roosevelt delivers his scheduled speech.
North America · MilwaukeeWikipedia: Theodore Roosevelt - 1913
Senghenydd colliery disaster, the United Kingdom's worst coal mining accident, claims the lives of 439 miners.
Britain & Ireland · Senghenydd colliery disasterWikipedia: Senghenydd colliery disaster - 1915
World War I: Bulgaria joins the Central Powers.
no place on the mapWikipedia: World War I - 1920
Finland and Soviet Russia sign the Treaty of Tartu, exchanging some territories.
Europe · TartuWikipedia: Treaty of Tartu - 1923
After the Irish Civil War the 1923 Irish hunger strikes were undertaken by thousands of Irish republican prisoners protesting the continuation of their internment without trial.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1923 Irish hunger strikes - 1926
The first book featuring English author A. A. Milne's fictional bear Winnie-the-Pooh was published.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Winnie-the-Pooh - 1930
The former and first President of Finland, K. J. Ståhlberg, and his wife, Ester Ståhlberg, are kidnapped from their home by members of the far-right Lapua Movement.
Europe · KulosaariWikipedia: Ståhlberg kidnapping - 1933
Germany withdraws from the League of Nations and World Disarmament Conference.
no place on the mapWikipedia: League of Nations - 1939
World War II: The German submarine U-47 sinks the British battleship HMS Royal Oak within her harbour at Scapa Flow, Scotland.
no place on the mapWikipedia: World War II - 1940
World War II: The Balham underground station disaster kills sixty-six people during the London Blitz.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Balham station - 1942
World War II: The German submarine U-69 (1940) sinks the Canadian passenger ferry SS Caribou approximately 20 nautical miles southwest of Port aux Basques, Newfoundland.
North America · Channel-Port aux BasquesWikipedia: German submarine U-69 - 1943
World War II: Prisoners at Sobibor extermination camp covertly assassinate most of the on-duty SS officers and then stage a mass breakout.
Europe · Sobibor extermination campWikipedia: Sobibor extermination camp - 1943
World War II: The Second Philippine Republic, a puppet state of Japan, is inaugurated with José P. Laurel as its president.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Second Philippine Republic - 1943
World War II: The United States Eighth Air Force loses 60 of 291 B-17 Flying Fortresses during the Second Raid on Schweinfurt.
Europe · SchweinfurtWikipedia: Second Schweinfurt raid - 1947
Flying the Bell X-1 over Muroc Army Air Field in California, Captain Chuck Yeager breaks the sound barrier in level flight, reaching Mach 1.05.
North America · Edwards Air Force BaseWikipedia: Bell X-1 - 1949
The Smith Act trials of Communist Party leaders in the United States convicts eleven defendants of conspiring to advocate the violent overthrow of the federal government.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Smith Act trials of Communist Party leaders - 1952
Korean War: The Battle of Triangle Hill is the biggest and bloodiest battle of 1952.
Asia · Battle of Triangle HillWikipedia: Korean War - 1953
Israeli military commander Ariel Sharon and his Unit 101 special forces attacked the village of Qibya on the West Bank, destroying 45 buildings, killing 42 villagers, and wounding 15 others.
Asia · Qibya massacreWikipedia: Qibya massacre - 1956
Dr. B. R. Ambedkar, leader of India's Untouchable caste, converts to Buddhism along with 385,000 of his followers (see Neo-Buddhism).
no place on the mapWikipedia: B. R. Ambedkar - 1956
The Queen Elizabeth Way, North America's first intercity divided highway, opens.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Queen Elizabeth Way - 1957
At least 81 people are killed in the most devastating flood in the history of the Spanish city of Valencia.
Europe · 1957 Valencia floodWikipedia: 1957 Valencia flood - 1957
The 23rd Canadian Parliament becomes the only one to be personally opened by the Queen of Canada.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 23rd Canadian Parliament - 1962
The Cuban Missile Crisis begins when an American reconnaissance aircraft takes photographs of Soviet ballistic missiles being installed in Cuba.
Latin America · Cuban Missile CrisisWikipedia: Cuban Missile Crisis - 1964
Martin Luther King Jr. receives the Nobel Peace Prize for combating racial inequality through nonviolence.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Nobel Peace Prize - 1964
The Soviet Presidium and the Communist Party Central Committee each vote to accept Nikita Khrushchev's "voluntary" request to retire from his offices.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Presidium of the Supreme Soviet of the Soviet Union - 1966
The Dutch Cals cabinet fell after Norbert Schmelzer, the leader of the government party, filed a successful motion against the budget, in what later became known as the Night of Schmelzer.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Night of Schmelzer - 1966
The city of Montreal begins the operation of its underground Montreal Metro rapid transit system.
North America · MontrealWikipedia: Montreal - 1968
Apollo program: The first live television broadcast by American astronauts in orbit is performed by the Apollo 7 crew.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Apollo program - 1968
Jim Hines becomes the first man ever to break the so-called "ten-second barrier" in the 100-meter sprint with a time of 9.95 seconds.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Jim Hines - 1968
The 6.5 Mw Meckering earthquake shakes the southwest portion of Western Australia with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), causing $2.2 million in damage and leaving 20–28 people injured.
Oceania · 1968 Meckering earthquakeWikipedia: 1968 Meckering earthquake - 1973
In the Thammasat student uprising, over 100,000 people protest in Thailand against the military government. Seventy-seven are killed and 857 are injured by soldiers.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1973 Thai popular uprising - 1975
An RAF Avro Vulcan bomber explodes and crashes over Żabbar, Malta after an aborted landing, killing five crew members and one person on the ground.
Europe · 1975 Żabbar Avro Vulcan crashWikipedia: 1975 Żabbar Avro Vulcan crash - 1979
The first National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights draws approximately 100,000 people.
North America · Washington, D.C.Wikipedia: National March on Washington for Lesbian and Gay Rights - 1980
The 6th Congress of the Workers' Party ended, having anointed North Korean President Kim Il Sung's son Kim Jong Il as his successor.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 6th Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea - 1981
Vice President Hosni Mubarak is elected as the President of Egypt, one week after the assassination of Anwar Sadat.
Africa · Assassination of Anwar SadatWikipedia: Assassination of Anwar Sadat - 1982
U.S. President Ronald Reagan proclaims a war on drugs.
no place on the mapWikipedia: War on drugs - 1991
Burmese opposition leader Aung San Suu Kyi is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Aung San Suu Kyi - 1994
Yasser Arafat, Yitzhak Rabin and Shimon Peres receive the Nobel Peace Prize for their role in the establishment of the Oslo Accords and the framing of future Palestinian self government.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Oslo Accords - 1998
Eric Rudolph is charged with six bombings, including the 1996 Centennial Olympic Park bombing in Atlanta, Georgia.
North America · Centennial Olympic Park bombingWikipedia: Centennial Olympic Park bombing - 2003
The Steve Bartman Incident takes place at Wrigley Field in Chicago, Illinois.
North America · Steve Bartman incidentWikipedia: Steve Bartman incident - 2004
MK Airlines Flight 1602 crashes during takeoff from Halifax Stanfield International Airport, killing all seven people on board.
North America · MK Airlines Flight 1602Wikipedia: MK Airlines Flight 1602 - 2004
Pinnacle Airlines Flight 3701 crashes in Jefferson City, Missouri. The two pilots (the aircraft's only occupants) are killed.
North America · Pinnacle Airlines Flight 3701Wikipedia: Pinnacle Airlines Flight 3701 - 2011
Michael Woodford was dismissed as the CEO of the optics manufacturer Olympus after uncovering internal financial misconduct, escalating the corporate scandal into one of the largest in Japanese business history.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Olympus scandal - 2012
Felix Baumgartner successfully jumps to Earth from a balloon in the stratosphere.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Felix Baumgartner - 2014
A snowstorm and avalanche in the Nepalese Himalayas triggered by the remnants of Cyclone Hudhud kills 43 people.
Asia · 2014 Nepal snowstorm disasterWikipedia: 2014 Nepal snowstorm disaster - 2014
The Serbia vs. Albania UEFA qualifying match is canceled after 42 minutes due to several incidents on and off the pitch. Albania is eventually awarded a win.
Europe · Partizan StadiumWikipedia: Serbia v Albania - 2015
A suicide bomb attack in Tonsa, Pakistan kills at least seven people and injures 13 others.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2015 Tonsa bombing - 2017
An Al-Shabaab suicide bomber detonated a massive truck bomb at the Zobe junction in Somalia's capital, Mogadishu, killing 587 people, injuring 316 others, and leaving more than 500 missing.
Africa · 14 October 2017 Mogadishu bombingsWikipedia: 14 October 2017 Mogadishu bombings - 2021
About 10,000 American employees of John Deere go on strike.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2021 John Deere strike - 2023
Australians vote to reject a constitutional amendment that would have established an Indigenous Voice to Parliament.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2023 Australian Indigenous Voice referendum - 2025
A coup d'état successfully overthrows Malagasy president Andry Rajoelina.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2025 Malagasy coup d'état
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.
- 1789
In the United States, George Washington proclaims the first Thanksgiving Day.
North America · ThanksgivingTranslated from the list on Wikipedia in SpanishWikipedia: Día de Acción de Gracias
Who was born on 14 October
In order of how many Wikipedia editions have an article about each. The first 60 of 224 are shown.
- 1890
Dwight D. Eisenhower, American general and politician, 34th President of the United States (died 1969)
Eisenhower Birthplace State Historic SiteWikipedia: Dwight D. Eisenhower - 1906
Hannah Arendt, German-American philosopher and theorist (died 1975)
Lindener Marktplatz 2, HannoverWikipedia: Hannah Arendt - 1943
Mohammad Khatami, Iranian scholar and politician, 5th President of Iran
ArdakanWikipedia: Mohammad Khatami - 1893
Lillian Gish, American actress (died 1993)
SpringfieldWikipedia: Lillian Gish - 1927
Roger Moore, English actor and producer (died 2017)
StockwellWikipedia: Roger Moore - 1930
Mobutu Sese Seko, Congolese soldier and politician, President of Zaire (died 1997)
- 1633
James II of England (died 1701)
- 1993
Charlie Kirk, American media personality and political activist (died 2025)
Arlington HeightsWikipedia: Charlie Kirk - 1978
Usher, American singer-songwriter, dancer, and actor
DallasWikipedia: Usher - 1784
Ferdinand VII of Spain (died 1833)
Royal Monastery of San Lorenzo de El EscorialWikipedia: Ferdinand VII - 1882
Éamon de Valera, American-Irish rebel and politician, 3rd President of Ireland (died 1975)
ManhattanWikipedia: Éamon de Valera - 1888
Katherine Mansfield, New Zealand novelist, short story writer, and essayist (died 1923)
WellingtonWikipedia: Katherine Mansfield - 1644
William Penn, English businessman who founded Pennsylvania (died 1718)
LondonWikipedia: William Penn - 1914
Raymond Davis Jr., American chemist and physicist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 2006)
Washington, D.C.Wikipedia: Raymond Davis Jr. - 1938
Farah Pahlavi, Empress of Iran
TehranWikipedia: Farah Pahlavi - 1894
E. E. Cummings, American poet and playwright (died 1962)
CambridgeWikipedia: E. E. Cummings - 1911
Lê Đức Thọ, Vietnamese general and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1990)
Hà NamWikipedia: Lê Đức Thọ - 1973
George Floyd, American police brutality victim (died 2020)
FayettevilleWikipedia: George Floyd - 1992
Ahmed Musa, Nigerian footballer
- 1940
Cliff Richard, Indian-English singer-songwriter and actor
LucknowWikipedia: Cliff Richard - 1906
Hassan al-Banna, Egyptian religious leader, founded the Muslim Brotherhood (died 1949)
MahmoudiyahWikipedia: Hassan al-Banna - 1983
Lin Dan, Chinese badminton player
LongyanWikipedia: Lin Dan - 1946
François Bozizé, Gabonese general and politician, President of the Central African Republic
- 1712
George Grenville, English lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Great Britain (died 1770)
WestminsterWikipedia: George Grenville - 1980
Ben Whishaw, English actor
CliftonWikipedia: Ben Whishaw - 1939
Ralph Lauren, American fashion designer, founded the Ralph Lauren Corporation
The BronxWikipedia: Ralph Lauren - 1643
Bahadur Shah I, Mughal emperor (died 1712)
BurhanpurWikipedia: Bahadur Shah I - 1801
Joseph Plateau, Belgian physicist and academic, created the Phenakistoscope (died 1883)
BrusselsWikipedia: Joseph Plateau - 1944
Udo Kier, German-American actor and director (died 2025)
CologneWikipedia: Udo Kier - 1569
Giambattista Marino, Italian poet (died 1625)
- 1630
Sophia of Hanover (died 1714)
The HagueWikipedia: Sophia of Hanover - 1954
Mordechai Vanunu, Moroccan-Israeli technician and academic
MarrakechWikipedia: Mordechai Vanunu - 1946
Craig Venter, American biologist, geneticist, and academic (died 2026)
Salt Lake CityWikipedia: J. Craig Venter - 1867
Masaoka Shiki, Japanese poet, author, and critic (died 1902)
MatsuyamaWikipedia: Masaoka Shiki - 1257
Przemysł II of Poland (died 1296)
- 1404
Marie of Anjou (died 1463)
- 1952
Nikolai Andrianov, Russian gymnast and coach (died 2011)
VladimirWikipedia: Nikolai Andrianov - 1975
Floyd Landis, American cyclist
FarmersvilleWikipedia: Floyd Landis - 2001
Rowan Blanchard, American actress
Los AngelesWikipedia: Rowan Blanchard - 1840
Dmitry Pisarev, Russian author and critic (died 1868)
ZnamenskoeWikipedia: Dmitry Pisarev - 1965
Steve Coogan, English actor, comedian, producer, and screenwriter
MiddletonWikipedia: Steve Coogan - 1942
Péter Nádas, Hungarian author and playwright (died 2026)
BudapestWikipedia: Péter Nádas - 1974
Jessica Drake, American porn actress and director
San AntonioWikipedia: Jessica Drake - 1900
W. Edwards Deming, American statistician, author, and academic (died 1993)
Sioux CityWikipedia: W. Edwards Deming - 1969
Viktor Onopko, Russian footballer and manager
LuhanskWikipedia: Viktor Onopko - 1910
John Wooden, American basketball player and coach (died 2010)
- 1871
Alexander von Zemlinsky, Austrian composer, conductor, and teacher (died 1942)
- 1968
Matthew Le Tissier, English footballer and journalist
Saint Peter PortWikipedia: Matt Le Tissier - 1983
Betty Heidler, German hammer thrower
East BerlinWikipedia: Betty Heidler - 1988
Max Thieriot, American actor
Los Altos HillsWikipedia: Max Thieriot - 1978
Paul Hunter, English snooker player (died 2006)
- 1425
Alesso Baldovinetti, Italian painter (died 1499)
FlorenceWikipedia: Alesso Baldovinetti - 1971
Jorge Costa, Portuguese footballer and manager (died 2025)
- 1791
Friedrich Parrot, Baltic German naturalist (died 1841)
KarlsruheWikipedia: Friedrich Parrot - 1872
Reginald Doherty, English tennis player (died 1910)
WimbledonWikipedia: Reginald Doherty - 1963
Lori Petty, American actress
ChattanoogaWikipedia: Lori Petty - 1563
Jodocus Hondius, Flemish engraver and cartographer (died 1611)
- 1915
Loris Francesco Capovilla, Italian cardinal (died 2016)
PontelongoWikipedia: Loris Francesco Capovilla - 1970
Jon Seda, American actor
ManhattanWikipedia: Jon Seda - 1974
Natalie Maines, American singer-songwriter
LubbockWikipedia: Natalie Maines
What is celebrated on 14 October
- Christian feast day: Angadrisma
- Christian feast day: Fortunatus of Todi
- Christian feast day: Joseph Schereschewsky (Episcopal Church (USA))
- Christian feast day: Pope Callixtus I
- Christian feast day: October 14 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Christian feast day: Intercession of the Theotokos
- Day of the Cathedral of the Living Pillar (Georgian Orthodox Church)
- Mother's Day (Belarus)
- National Education Day (Poland), formerly Teachers' Day
- Nyerere Day (Tanzania)
- Second Revolution Day (Yemen)
- World Standards Day (International)
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.