A birthday on the globe
18 May on the globe: what happened in the world on this day, and who was born
For 18 May, the English Wikipedia lists 68 events and 219 births. 43 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 18 May through the years
The Earth on 18 May
The picture on the globe was assembled by NASA from satellite photographs taken in May 2004: the snow, the ice and the green are those of the month.
On 18 May the Sun passes straight overhead at noon along the parallel of 19.6° north. In London, the day lasts about 15 hours 45 minutes.
Beyond 70° north the Sun no longer sets; beyond 70° south 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 · Edinburgh
1843
The Disruption in Edinburgh of the Free Church of Scotland from the Church of Scotland.
On the map: Edinburgh.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Chinese.
Europe · Cádiz
1499
Alonso de Ojeda sets sail from Cádiz on his voyage to what is now Venezuela.
On the map: Cádiz.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish and Chinese.
Europe · Frankfurt
1848
Opening of the first German National Assembly (Nationalversammlung) in Frankfurt, Germany.
On the map: Frankfurt.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish and Chinese.
Europe · Eurovision Song Contest 1996
1996
Ireland won the Eurovision song contest for the seventh time, the highest number of wins for any country before Sweden tied it in 2023.
On the map: the coordinates Wikidata gives for the article “Eurovision Song Contest 1996”.
Asia · Constantinople
332
Emperor Constantine the Great announces free distributions of food to the citizens in Constantinople.
On the map: Constantinople.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Chinese.
Asia · Mumbai
1912
The first Indian film, Shree Pundalik by Dadasaheb Torne, is released in Mumbai.
On the map: Mumbai.
Asia · Nanjing
1948
The First Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China officially convenes in Nanking.
On the map: Nanjing.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish and Chinese.
North America · Supreme Court of the United States
1896
The United States Supreme Court rules in Plessy v. Ferguson that the "separate but equal" doctrine is constitutional.
On the map: Supreme Court of the United States.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Chinese.
North America · Venice, Los Angeles
1926
Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappears in Venice, California.
On the map: Venice, Los Angeles.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Spanish.
North America · E3
2005
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion publicly debuted at the Electronic Entertainment Expo.
On the map: E3.
18 May
Born on 18 May#
The English Wikipedia lists 219 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 18 May
1872
Bertrand Russell, British mathematician, historian, and philosopher, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1970)
Place of birth: Trellech.
Born on 18 May
1048
Omar Khayyám, Persian mathematician, astronomer, and poet (died 1131)
Place of birth: Hira.
Born on 18 May
1883
Walter Gropius, German-American architect, designed the John F. Kennedy Federal Building (died 1969)
Place of birth: Berlin.
Born on 18 May
1897
Frank Capra, Italian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1991)
Place of birth: Bisacquino.
Born on 18 May
1970
Tina Fey, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
Place of birth: Upper Darby Township.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1919
Margot Fonteyn, British ballerina (died 1991)
Place of birth: Reigate.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1850
Oliver Heaviside, English engineer, mathematician, and physicist (died 1925)
Place of birth: Camden Town.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1975
John Higgins, Scottish snooker player
Place of birth: Wishaw.
18 May
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: 18 May 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 18 May
The list is the English Wikipedia’s, in its own wording, as it stood in October 2026. 22 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.
- 332
Emperor Constantine the Great announces free distributions of food to the citizens in Constantinople.
Asia · ConstantinopleWikipedia: Constantine the Great - 872
Louis II of Italy is crowned for the second time as Holy Roman Emperor at Rome, at the age of 47. His first coronation was 28 years earlier, in 844, during the reign of his father Lothair I.
Europe · RomeWikipedia: Louis II of Italy - 1012
Pope Benedict VIII begins his papacy following the death of his predecessor Pope Sergius IV earlier that month.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Pope Benedict VIII - 1096
First Crusade: Around 800 Jews are massacred in Worms, Germany.
Europe · Worms massacreWikipedia: First Crusade - 1152
The future Henry II of England marries Eleanor of Aquitaine. He would become king two years later, after the death of his cousin once removed King Stephen of England.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Henry II of England - 1268
The Principality of Antioch, a crusader state, falls to the Mamluk Sultan Baibars in the Siege of Antioch.
Asia · Siege of AntiochWikipedia: Siege of Antioch - 1291
Fall of Acre, the end of Crusader presence in the Holy Land.
Asia · Siege of AcreWikipedia: Siege of Acre - 1302
Bruges Matins, the nocturnal massacre of the French garrison in Bruges by members of the local Flemish militia.
Europe · BrugesWikipedia: Matins of Bruges - 1388
During the Battle of Buyur Lake, General Lan Yu leads a Ming army forward to crush the Mongol hordes of Tögüs Temür, the Khan of Northern Yuan.
Asia · Battle of Buir LakeWikipedia: Battle of Buir Lake - 1499
Alonso de Ojeda sets sail from Cádiz on his voyage to what is now Venezuela.
Europe · CádizWikipedia: Alonso de Ojeda - 1565
The Great Siege of Malta begins, in which Ottoman forces attempt and fail to conquer Malta.
Europe · Great Siege of MaltaWikipedia: Great Siege of Malta - 1593
Playwright Thomas Kyd's accusations of heresy lead to an arrest warrant for Christopher Marlowe.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Thomas Kyd - 1631
In Dorchester, Massachusetts, John Winthrop takes the oath of office and becomes the first Governor of Massachusetts.
North America · Dorchester, BostonWikipedia: Dorchester, Boston - 1652
Slavery in Rhode Island is abolished, although the law is not rigorously enforced.
no place on the mapWikipedia: History of Rhode Island - 1695
The 1695 Linfen earthquake in Shannxi, Qing dynasty causes extreme damage and kills at least 52,000 people.
Asia · 1695 Linfen earthquakeWikipedia: 1695 Linfen earthquake - 1756
The Seven Years' War begins when Great Britain declares war on France.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Seven Years' War - 1783
First United Empire Loyalists reach Parrtown (later called Saint John, New Brunswick), Canada, after leaving the United States.
North America · Saint John, New BrunswickWikipedia: United Empire Loyalist - 1794
Battle of Tourcoing during the Flanders Campaign of the War of the First Coalition.
Europe · Battle of TourcoingWikipedia: Battle of Tourcoing - 1803
Napoleonic Wars: The United Kingdom revokes the Treaty of Amiens and declares war on France.
Europe · Treaty of AmiensWikipedia: Treaty of Amiens - 1804
Napoleon Bonaparte is proclaimed Emperor of the French by the French Senate.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Napoleon - 1811
Battle of Las Piedras: The first great military triumph of the revolution of the Río de la Plata in Uruguay led by José Artigas.
Latin America · UruguayWikipedia: Battle of Las Piedras - 1812
John Bellingham is found guilty and sentenced to death by hanging for the assassination of British Prime Minister Spencer Perceval.
Britain & Ireland · Assassination of Spencer PercevalWikipedia: Assassination of Spencer Perceval - 1843
The Disruption in Edinburgh of the Free Church of Scotland from the Church of Scotland.
Britain & Ireland · EdinburghWikipedia: Disruption of 1843 - 1848
Opening of the first German National Assembly (Nationalversammlung) in Frankfurt, Germany.
Europe · FrankfurtWikipedia: Frankfurt National Assembly - 1860
United States presidential election: Abraham Lincoln wins the Republican Party presidential nomination over William H. Seward, who later becomes the United States Secretary of State.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1860 United States presidential election - 1863
American Civil War: Union forces under Ulysses S. Grant begin the Siege of Vicksburg during the Vicksburg campaign in order to take full control of the Mississippi River.
North America · Siege of VicksburgWikipedia: American Civil War - 1896
Khodynka Tragedy: A mass panic on Khodynka Field in Moscow during the festivities of the coronation of Russian Tsar Nicholas II results in the deaths of 1,389 people.
Europe · Khodynka TragedyWikipedia: Khodynka Tragedy - 1896
The United States Supreme Court rules in Plessy v. Ferguson that the "separate but equal" doctrine is constitutional.
North America · Supreme Court of the United StatesWikipedia: Plessy v. Ferguson - 1900
The United Kingdom proclaims a protectorate over Tonga.
Oceania · TongaWikipedia: Protectorate - 1912
The first Indian film, Shree Pundalik by Dadasaheb Torne, is released in Mumbai.
Asia · MumbaiWikipedia: Cinema of India - 1917
World War I: The Selective Service Act of 1917 is passed, giving the President of the United States the power of conscription.
no place on the mapWikipedia: World War I - 1922
Seamus Woods and Roger McCorley lead an Irish Republican Army attack on the headquarters of the Royal Irish Constabulary in Belfast.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Seamus Woods - 1926
Evangelist Aimee Semple McPherson disappears in Venice, California.
North America · Venice, Los AngelesWikipedia: Evangelism - 1927
After being founded for 20 years, the Nationalist government approves Tongji University to be among its first national universities.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Tongji University - 1927
The Bath School disaster: Forty-five people, including many children, are killed by bombs planted by a disgruntled school-board member in Bath Township, Michigan.
North America · Bath School disasterWikipedia: Bath School disaster - 1933
New Deal: President Franklin D. Roosevelt signs an act creating the Tennessee Valley Authority.
no place on the mapWikipedia: New Deal - 1936
In a crime that captivated Japan, Sada Abe strangled her lover, cut off his genitals, and carried them around with her for several days until her arrest.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Sada Abe - 1944
Deportation of Crimean Tatars by the Soviet Union.
Europe · Deportation of the Crimean TatarsWikipedia: Deportation of the Crimean Tatars - 1944
World War II: Battle of Monte Cassino: Conclusion after seven days of the fourth battle as German paratroopers evacuate Monte Cassino.
Europe · Battle of Monte CassinoWikipedia: World War II - 1948
The First Legislative Yuan of the Republic of China officially convenes in Nanking.
Asia · NanjingWikipedia: Legislative Yuan - 1952
First Indochina War: Viet Minh forces overran a French and Laotian garrison at Muong Khoua, leaving only four survivors.
Asia · Battle of Muong KhouaWikipedia: First Indochina War - 1953
Jacqueline Cochran becomes the first woman to break the sound barrier.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Jacqueline Cochran - 1955
Operation Passage to Freedom, the evacuation of 310,000 Vietnamese civilians, soldiers and non-Vietnamese members of the French Army from communist North Vietnam to South Vietnam following the end of the First Indochina War, ends.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Demographics of Vietnam - 1962
The French government and representatives of the Provisional Government of the Algerian Republic reach a settlement to end the Algerian war in the Évian Accords.
Europe · Évian AccordsWikipedia: Évian Accords - 1965
Israeli spy Eli Cohen is hanged in Damascus, Syria.
Asia · DamascusWikipedia: Eli Cohen - 1969
Apollo program: Apollo 10 is launched.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Apollo program - 1972
During approach to Kharkiv International Airport, Aeroflot Flight 1491 crashes near Ruska Lozova, killing all 112 aboard.
Europe · Aeroflot Flight 1491Wikipedia: Aeroflot Flight 1491 - 1973
Aeroflot Flight 109 is hijacked mid-flight and the aircraft is subsequently destroyed when the hijacker's bomb explodes, killing all 82 people on board.
Asia · Aeroflot Flight 109Wikipedia: Aeroflot Flight 109 - 1974
Nuclear weapons testing: Under project Smiling Buddha, India successfully detonates its first nuclear weapon becoming the sixth nation to do so.
Asia · Smiling BuddhaWikipedia: Smiling Buddha - 1977
Likud party wins the 1977 Israeli legislative election, with Menachem Begin, its founder, as the sixth Prime Minister of Israel.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1977 Israeli legislative election - 1980
Mount St. Helens erupts in Washington, United States, killing 57 people and causing $3 billion in damage.
North America · 1980 eruption of Mount St. HelensWikipedia: 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens - 1980
Rioting spreads to Miami's mostly African-American neighborhoods of Overtown and Liberty City following the previous day's courthouse protests.
North America · MiamiWikipedia: 1980 Miami riots - 1980
Students in Gwangju, South Korea begin demonstrations calling for democratic reforms.
Asia · Gwangju UprisingWikipedia: Gwangju Uprising - 1990
In France, a modified TGV train achieves a new rail world speed record of 515.3 km/h (320.2 mph).
no place on the mapWikipedia: TGV - 1991
Northern Somalia declares independence from the rest of Somalia as the Republic of Somaliland.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Somalia - 1993
Riots in Nørrebro, Copenhagen, caused by the approval of the four Danish exceptions in the Maastricht Treaty referendum. Police open fire against civilians for the first time since World War II and injure 11 demonstrators.
Europe · NørrebroWikipedia: 1993 Danish Maastricht Treaty referendum - 1994
Israeli troops finish withdrawing from the Gaza Strip, ceding the area to the Palestinian National Authority to govern.
Asia · Gaza StripWikipedia: Gaza Strip - 1996
Ireland won the Eurovision song contest for the seventh time, the highest number of wins for any country before Sweden tied it in 2023.
Europe · Eurovision Song Contest 1996Wikipedia: Eurovision Song Contest 1996 - 2005
A second photo from the Hubble Space Telescope confirms that Pluto has two additional moons, Nix and Hydra.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Hubble Space Telescope - 2005
The Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion publicly debuted at the Electronic Entertainment Expo.
North America · E3Wikipedia: E3 - 2006
The post Loktantra Andolan government passes a landmark bill curtailing the power of the monarchy and making Nepal a secular country.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2006 Nepalese revolution - 2009
The LTTE are defeated by the Sri Lankan government, ending almost 26 years of fighting between the two sides.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Sri Lankan civil war - 2013
Mark Carson, an openly gay man, was murdered in a hate crime incident in New York City, prompting a 1,500-person march against anti-LGBTQ violence.
North America · Murder of Mark CarsonWikipedia: Murder of Mark Carson - 2015
At least 78 people die in a landslide caused by heavy rains in the Colombian town of Salgar.
Latin America · 2015 Colombian landslideWikipedia: 2015 Colombian landslide - 2018
A school shooting at Santa Fe High School in Texas kills ten people.
North America · 2018 Santa Fe High School shootingWikipedia: 2018 Santa Fe High School shooting - 2018
Cubana de Aviación Flight 972 crashes in Santiago de las Vegas after takeoff from José Martí International Airport in Havana, Cuba, killing 112 of the 113 people on board.
Latin America · Cubana de Aviación Flight 0972Wikipedia: Cubana de Aviación Flight 0972 - 2019
United States presidential election: Joe Biden launches his presidential campaign.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2020 United States presidential election - 2026
A shooting carried out by two gunmen at the Islamic Center of San Diego results in the deaths of five people, including the perpetrators.
North America · 2026 Islamic Center of San Diego shootingWikipedia: 2026 Islamic Center of San Diego shooting
Who was born on 18 May
In order of how many Wikipedia editions have an article about each. The first 60 of 219 are shown.
- 1920
Pope John Paul II (died 2005)
Holy Father John Paul II Family Home in WadowiceWikipedia: Pope John Paul II - 1872
Bertrand Russell, British mathematician, historian, and philosopher, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1970)
TrellechWikipedia: Bertrand Russell - 1048
Omar Khayyám, Persian mathematician, astronomer, and poet (died 1131)
- 1868
Nicholas II of Russia (died 1918)
PushkinWikipedia: Nicholas II - 1883
Walter Gropius, German-American architect, designed the John F. Kennedy Federal Building (died 1969)
- 1897
Frank Capra, Italian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1991)
BisacquinoWikipedia: Frank Capra - 1970
Tina Fey, American actress, producer, and screenwriter
Upper Darby TownshipWikipedia: Tina Fey - 1891
Rudolf Carnap, German-American philosopher and academic (died 1970)
RonsdorfWikipedia: Rudolf Carnap - 1919
Margot Fonteyn, British ballerina (died 1991)
ReigateWikipedia: Margot Fonteyn - 1850
Oliver Heaviside, English engineer, mathematician, and physicist (died 1925)
Camden TownWikipedia: Oliver Heaviside - 1978
Ricardo Carvalho, Portuguese footballer
AmaranteWikipedia: Ricardo Carvalho - 1990
Yuya Osako, Japanese footballer
KasedaWikipedia: Yuya Osako - 1955
Chow Yun-fat, Hong Kong actor and screenwriter
Hong KongWikipedia: Chow Yun-fat - 1895
Augusto César Sandino, Nicaraguan rebel leader (died 1934)
NiquinohomoWikipedia: Augusto César Sandino - 1711
Roger Joseph Boscovich, Ragusan physicist, astronomer, and mathematician (died 1787)
DubrovnikWikipedia: Roger Joseph Boscovich - 1901
Vincent du Vigneaud, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1978)
- 1876
Hermann Müller, German journalist and politician, 12th Chancellor of Germany (died 1931)
MannheimWikipedia: Hermann Müller - 1912
Perry Como, American singer and television host (died 2001)
CanonsburgWikipedia: Perry Como - 1979
Milivoje Novaković, Slovenian footballer
LjubljanaWikipedia: Milivoje Novaković - 1914
Boris Christoff, Bulgarian-Italian opera singer (died 1993)
PlovdivWikipedia: Boris Christoff - 1960
Yannick Noah, French tennis player
- 1937
Jacques Santer, Luxembourger jurist and politician, 22nd Prime Minister of Luxembourg
WasserbilligWikipedia: Jacques Santer - 1939
Giovanni Falcone, Italian lawyer and judge (died 1992)
PalermoWikipedia: Giovanni Falcone - 1933
H. D. Deve Gowda, Indian farmer and politician, 11th Prime Minister of India
HaradanahalliWikipedia: H. D. Deve Gowda - 1969
Antônio Carlos Zago, Brazilian footballer and manager
Presidente PrudenteWikipedia: Antônio Carlos Zago - 2002
Alina Zagitova, Russian figure skater
IzhevskWikipedia: Alina Zagitova - 1975
John Higgins, Scottish snooker player
WishawWikipedia: John Higgins - 1944
W. G. Sebald, German novelist, essayist, and poet (died 2001)
WertachWikipedia: W. G. Sebald - 1971
Brad Friedel, American international soccer player, manager and sportscaster
LakewoodWikipedia: Brad Friedel - 1975
Jack Johnson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1883
Eurico Gaspar Dutra, Brazilian marshal and politician, 16th President of Brazil (died 1974)
- 1909
Fred Perry, English tennis player and academic (died 1995)
StockportWikipedia: Fred Perry - 1967
Heinz-Harald Frentzen, German race car driver
MönchengladbachWikipedia: Heinz-Harald Frentzen - 1912
Richard Brooks, American director, producer, and screenwriter (died 1992)
PhiladelphiaWikipedia: Richard Brooks - 1952
George Strait, American singer, guitarist and producer
PoteetWikipedia: George Strait - 1979
Mariusz Lewandowski, Polish footballer
- 1986
Kevin Anderson, South African tennis player
JohannesburgWikipedia: Kevin Anderson - 1797
Frederick Augustus II of Saxony (died 1854)
- 1981
Mahamadou Diarra, Malian international footballer
- 2000
Ryan Sessegnon, English footballer
RoehamptonWikipedia: Ryan Sessegnon - 1941
Miriam Margolyes, English-Australian actress and singer
- 1942
Nobby Stiles, English footballer, coach, and manager (died 2020)
CollyhurstWikipedia: Nobby Stiles - 1980
Michaël Llodra, French tennis player
- 1980
Diego Pérez, Uruguayan footballer
MontevideoWikipedia: Diego Pérez - 1947
John Bruton, Irish politician, 10th Taoiseach of Ireland (died 2024)
DunboyneWikipedia: John Bruton - 1954
Eric Gerets, Belgian footballer and manager
- 1912
Walter Sisulu, South African politician (died 2003)
TranskeiWikipedia: Walter Sisulu - 1949
Rick Wakeman, English progressive rock keyboardist and songwriter
PerivaleWikipedia: Rick Wakeman - 1957
Michael Cretu, Romanian-German keyboard player and producer
BucharestWikipedia: Michael Cretu - 1692
(O.S.) Joseph Butler, English bishop, theologian, and apologist (died 1752)
WantageWikipedia: Joseph Butler - 1822
Mathew Brady, American photographer and journalist (died 1896)
Warren CountyWikipedia: Mathew Brady - 1889
Thomas Midgley Jr., American chemist and engineer (died 1944)
Beaver FallsWikipedia: Thomas Midgley Jr. - 1933
Bernadette Chirac, French politician, First Lady of France (died 2026)
16th arrondissement of ParisWikipedia: Bernadette Chirac - 1911
Big Joe Turner, American blues/R&B singer (died 1985)
Kansas CityWikipedia: Big Joe Turner - 1914
Pierre Balmain, French fashion designer, founded Balmain (died 1982)
Saint-Jean-de-MaurienneWikipedia: Pierre Balmain - 1948
Tom Udall, American lawyer and politician, 28th New Mexico Attorney General, United States Senator from New Mexico
TucsonWikipedia: Tom Udall - 1979
Jens Bergensten, Swedish video game designer, co-designed Minecraft
- 1983
Gary O'Neil, English footballer
BeckenhamWikipedia: Gary O'Neil - 1931
Robert Morse, American actor (died 2022)
NewtonWikipedia: Robert Morse - 1984
Niki Terpstra, Dutch cyclist
BeverwijkWikipedia: Niki Terpstra
What is celebrated on 18 May
- Christian feast day: Ælfgifu of Shaftesbury
- Christian feast day: Blessed Blandine Merten
- Christian feast day: Eric IX of Sweden
- Christian feast day: Felix of Cantalice
- Christian feast day: Pope John I
- Christian feast day: Venantius of Camerino
- Christian feast day: May 18 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Baltic Fleet Day (Russia)
- Day of Remembrance of Crimean Tatar genocide (Ukraine)
- Independence Day (Somaliland) (unrecognized)
- International Museum Day
- National Speech Pathologist Day (United States)
- Revival, Unity, and Poetry of Magtymguly Day (Turkmenistan)
- Teacher's Day (Syria)
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.