A birthday on the globe
22 December on the globe: what happened in the world on this day, and who was born
For 22 December, the English Wikipedia lists 62 events and 221 births. 33 of the events stand at their places as rays of light; eight 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 22 December through the years
The Earth on 22 December
The picture on the globe was assembled by NASA from satellite photographs taken in December 2004: the snow, the ice and the green are those of the month.
On 22 December the Sun passes straight overhead at noon along the parallel of 23.4° south. In London, the day lasts about 7 hours 50 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.
Europe · Theater an der Wien
1808
Ludwig van Beethoven conducts and performs in concert at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna, with the premiere of his Fifth Symphony, Sixth Symphony, Fourth Piano Concerto and Choral Fantasy.
On the map: Theater an der Wien.
Europe · Tórshavn
1888
The Christmas Meeting of 1888, considered to be the official start of the Faroese independence movement.
On the map: Tórshavn.
Europe · Paris
1971
The international aid organization Doctors Without Borders is founded by Bernard Kouchner and a group of journalists in Paris, France.
On the map: Paris.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Chinese.
Africa · Grande Comore
1974
Grande Comore, Anjouan and Mohéli vote to become the independent nation of Comoros. Mayotte remains under French administration.
On the map: Grande Comore.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Chinese.
Asia · Roorkee
1851
India's first freight train is operated in Roorkee, to transport material for the construction of the Ganges Canal.
On the map: Roorkee.
Asia · Visva-Bharati University
1921
Opening of Visva-Bharati College, also known as Santiniketan College, now Visva Bharati University, India.
On the map: Visva-Bharati University.
North America · United States Congress
1807
The Embargo Act, forbidding trade with all foreign countries, is passed by the U.S. Congress at the urging of President Thomas Jefferson.
On the map: United States Congress.
Also on the day’s list of Wikipedia in Romanian and Chinese.
North America · Kentville
1890
Cornwallis Valley Railway begins operation between Kentville and Kingsport, Nova Scotia.
On the map: Kentville.
North America · United States Air Force Plant 42
1964
The first test flight of the SR-71 (Blackbird) takes place at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, United States.
On the map: United States Air Force Plant 42.
22 December
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 Chinese and were translated for this page.
From Wikipedia in Spanish · Ecatepec de Morelos
1815
In San Cristóbal Ecatepec (Mexico), the independence leader José María Morelos is shot by firing squad.
On the map: Ecatepec de Morelos.
Translated from the list on Wikipedia in Spanish.
From Wikipedia in Spanish · Beijing
1947
During the Chinese Revolution, the Communists reach the gates of the city of Beijing.
On the map: Beijing.
Translated from the list on Wikipedia in Spanish.
From Wikipedia in Chinese · Schengen Agreement
1994
The Schengen Agreement comes into force. It is a treaty among 27 continental European countries making up the Schengen Area, whose purpose is to abolish border checkpoints between them and to coordinate border controls with countries outside the Schengen Area.
On the map: Schengen Agreement.
Translated from the list on Wikipedia in Chinese.
22 December
Born on 22 December#
The English Wikipedia lists 221 births for this day. The blue points are the birthplaces of 59 of these people: those written about in the most Wikipedia editions, where Wikidata gives a place of birth.
Born on 22 December
1984
Basshunter, Swedish singer, record producer and DJ
Place of birth: Halmstad.
Born on 22 December
1858
Giacomo Puccini, Italian composer and educator (died 1924)
Place of birth: Lucca.
Born on 22 December
1639
Jean Racine, French poet and playwright (died 1699)
Place of birth: La Ferté-Milon.
Born on 22 December
1887
Srinivasa Ramanujan, Indian mathematician and theorist (died 1920)
Place of birth: Erode.
Born on 22 December
2000
Joshua Bassett, American actor and singer
Place of birth: Oceanside.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1962
Ralph Fiennes, English actor
Place of birth: Ipswich.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1907
Peggy Ashcroft, English actress (died 1991)
Place of birth: Surrey.
Born in Britain and Ireland
1949
Robin Gibb, Manx-English singer-songwriter and producer (died 2012)
Place of birth: Douglas.
22 December
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: 22 December 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 22 December
The list is the English Wikipedia’s, in its own wording, as it stood in October 2026. 21 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.
- 69
Vespasian is proclaimed Emperor of Rome; his predecessor, Vitellius, attempts to abdicate but is captured and killed at the Gemonian stairs.
Europe · Gemonian stairsWikipedia: Gemonian stairs - 401
Pope Innocent I is elected, the only pope to succeed his father in the office.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Pope Innocent I - 856
Damghan earthquake: An earthquake near the Persian city of Damghan kills an estimated 200,000 people, the sixth deadliest earthquake in recorded history.
Asia · 856 Damghan earthquakeWikipedia: 856 Damghan earthquake - 880
Luoyang, eastern capital of the Tang dynasty, is captured by rebel leader Huang Chao during the reign of Emperor Xizong.
Asia · LuoyangWikipedia: Luoyang - 1135
Three weeks after the death of King Henry I of England, Stephen of Blois claims the throne and is privately crowned King of England, beginning the English Anarchy.
Europe · The AnarchyWikipedia: The Anarchy - 1216
Pope Honorius III approves the Dominican Order through the papal bull of confirmation Religiosam vitam.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Dominican Order - 1489
The forces of the Catholic Monarchs, Ferdinand and Isabella, take control of Almería from the Nasrid ruler of Granada, Muhammad XI.
Europe · AlmeríaWikipedia: Catholic Monarchs of Spain - 1769
Sino-Burmese War: The war ends with the Qing dynasty withdrawing from Burma forever.
Asia · Qing dynastyWikipedia: Sino-Burmese War - 1788
Nguyễn Huệ proclaims himself Emperor Quang Trung, in effect abolishing on his own the Lê dynasty.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Quang Trung - 1790
The Turkish fortress of Izmail is stormed and captured by Alexander Suvorov and his Russian armies.
Europe · IzmailWikipedia: Siege of Izmail - 1807
The Embargo Act, forbidding trade with all foreign countries, is passed by the U.S. Congress at the urging of President Thomas Jefferson.
North America · United States CongressWikipedia: United States Congress - 1808
Ludwig van Beethoven conducts and performs in concert at the Theater an der Wien, Vienna, with the premiere of his Fifth Symphony, Sixth Symphony, Fourth Piano Concerto and Choral Fantasy.
Europe · Theater an der WienWikipedia: Beethoven concert of 22 December 1808 - 1825
The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C., burns.
North America · Library of CongressWikipedia: Library of Congress - 1851
India's first freight train is operated in Roorkee, to transport material for the construction of the Ganges Canal.
Asia · RoorkeeWikipedia: Roorkee - 1864
American Civil War: Savannah, Georgia, falls to the Union's Army of the Tennessee, and General Sherman tells President Abraham Lincoln: "I beg to present you as a Christmas gift the city of Savannah".
North America · Savannah, GeorgiaWikipedia: American Civil War - 1885
Itō Hirobumi, a samurai, becomes the first Prime Minister of Japan.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Itō Hirobumi - 1888
The Christmas Meeting of 1888, considered to be the official start of the Faroese independence movement.
Europe · TórshavnWikipedia: Christmas Meeting of 1888 - 1890
Cornwallis Valley Railway begins operation between Kentville and Kingsport, Nova Scotia.
North America · KentvilleWikipedia: Cornwallis Valley Railway - 1891
Asteroid 323 Brucia becomes the first asteroid discovered using photography.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 323 Brucia - 1894
The Dreyfus affair begins in France, when Alfred Dreyfus is wrongly convicted of treason.
Europe · Dreyfus affairWikipedia: Dreyfus affair - 1906
An Mw 7.9 earthquake strikes Xinjiang, China, killing at least 280.
Asia · 1906 Manasi earthquakeWikipedia: 1906 Manasi earthquake - 1920
The GOELRO economic development plan is adopted by the 8th Congress of Soviets of the Russian SFSR.
no place on the mapWikipedia: GOELRO - 1921
Opening of Visva-Bharati College, also known as Santiniketan College, now Visva Bharati University, India.
Asia · Visva-Bharati UniversityWikipedia: Visva-Bharati University - 1937
The Lincoln Tunnel opens to traffic in New York City.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Lincoln Tunnel - 1939
Indian Muslims observe a "Day of Deliverance" to celebrate the resignations of members of the Indian National Congress over their not having been consulted over the decision to enter World War II with the United Kingdom.
no place on the mapWikipedia: World War II - 1940
World War II: Himara is captured by the Greek army.
Europe · HimarëWikipedia: Himarë - 1942
World War II: Adolf Hitler signs the order to develop the V-2 rocket as a weapon.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Adolf Hitler - 1944
World War II: Battle of the Bulge: German troops demand the surrender of United States troops at Bastogne, Belgium, prompting the famous one word reply by Brigadier General Anthony McAuliffe: "Nuts!"
Europe · Battle of the BulgeWikipedia: Battle of the Bulge - 1944
World War II: The People's Army of Vietnam is formed to resist Japanese occupation of Indochina, now Vietnam.
Asia · VietnamWikipedia: People's Army of Vietnam - 1945
U.S. President Harry S. Truman issues an executive order giving World War II refugees precedence in visa applications under U.S. immigration quotas.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Harry S. Truman - 1948
Sjafruddin Prawiranegara established the Emergency Government of the Republic of Indonesia (Pemerintah Darurat Republik Indonesia, PDRI) in West Sumatra.
Asia · West SumatraWikipedia: Sjafruddin Prawiranegara - 1963
The cruise ship Lakonia burns 290 kilometres (180 mi) north of Madeira, Portugal with the loss of 128 lives.
Europe · MadeiraWikipedia: Cruise ship - 1964
The first test flight of the SR-71 (Blackbird) takes place at Air Force Plant 42 in Palmdale, California, United States.
North America · United States Air Force Plant 42Wikipedia: Lockheed SR-71 Blackbird - 1965
In the United Kingdom, a 70 miles per hour (110 km/h) speed limit is applied to all rural roads including motorways for the first time.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Speed limit - 1968
Cultural Revolution: People's Daily posted the instructions of Mao Zedong that "The intellectual youth must go to the country, and will be educated from living in rural poverty."
no place on the mapWikipedia: Cultural Revolution - 1971
The international aid organization Doctors Without Borders is founded by Bernard Kouchner and a group of journalists in Paris, France.
Europe · ParisWikipedia: Médecins Sans Frontières - 1973
A Royal Air Maroc Sud Aviation Caravelle crashes near Tangier-Boukhalef Airport in Tangier, Morocco, killing 106.
Africa · 1973 Royal Air Maroc Sud Aviation Caravelle crashWikipedia: 1973 Royal Air Maroc Sud Aviation Caravelle crash - 1974
Grande Comore, Anjouan and Mohéli vote to become the independent nation of Comoros. Mayotte remains under French administration.
Africa · Grande ComoreWikipedia: 1974 Comorian independence referendum - 1975
U.S. President Gerald Ford creates the Strategic Petroleum Reserve in response to the 1970s energy crisis.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1970s energy crisis - 1978
The pivotal Third Plenum of the 11th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party is held in Beijing, with Deng Xiaoping reversing Mao-era policies to pursue a program for the reform and opening up.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 11th National Congress of the Chinese Communist Party - 1984
"Subway vigilante" Bernhard Goetz shoots four would-be muggers on a 2 express train in Manhattan section of New York, United States.
North America · New York CityWikipedia: 1984 New York City Subway shooting - 1987
In Zimbabwe, the political parties ZANU and ZAPU reach an agreement that ends the violence in the Matabeleland region known as the Gukurahundi.
Africa · ZimbabweWikipedia: Gukurahundi - 1988
Brazilian unionist and environmental activist Chico Mendes was murdered at his home in Xapuri.
Latin America · XapuriWikipedia: Trade union - 1989
German reunification: Berlin's Brandenburg Gate re-opens after nearly 30 years, effectively ending the division of East and West Germany.
no place on the mapWikipedia: German reunification - 1989
Romanian Revolution: Communist President of Romania Nicolae Ceaușescu is overthrown by Ion Iliescu after days of bloody confrontations. The deposed dictator and his wife Elena flee Bucharest in a helicopter as protesters erupt in cheers.
Europe · BucharestWikipedia: Romanian revolution - 1990
Final independence of Marshall Islands and Federated States of Micronesia after termination of trusteeship.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Marshall Islands - 1990
Lech Wałęsa is elected President of Poland.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 1990 Polish presidential election - 1992
During approach to Tripoli International Airport, a Boeing 727 operating as Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 1103 collides in mid-air with a Libyan Air Force Mikoyan-Gurevich MiG-23, killing 157 people.
Africa · Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 1103Wikipedia: Libyan Arab Airlines Flight 1103 - 1996
Airborne Express Flight 827 crashes in Narrows, Virginia, killing all six people on board.
North America · Airborne Express Flight 827Wikipedia: Airborne Express Flight 827 - 1997
Acteal massacre: Attendees at a prayer meeting of Roman Catholic activists for indigenous causes in the small village of Acteal in the Mexican state of Chiapas are massacred by paramilitary forces.
Latin America · Acteal massacreWikipedia: Acteal massacre - 1997
Somali Civil War: Hussein Farrah Aidid relinquishes the disputed title of President of Somalia by signing the Cairo Declaration, in Cairo, Egypt. It is the first major step towards reconciliation in Somalia since 1991.
Africa · CairoWikipedia: Attempts at reconciliation in Somalia - 1999
Just after taking off from London Stansted Airport, Korean Air Cargo Flight 8509 crashes into Hatfield Forest near Great Hallingbury, killing all four people on board.
Britain & Ireland · Korean Air Cargo Flight 8509Wikipedia: Korean Air Cargo Flight 8509 - 2001
Burhanuddin Rabbani, political leader of the Northern Alliance, hands over power in Islamic State of Afghanistan to the interim government headed by President Hamid Karzai.
Asia · Islamic State of AfghanistanWikipedia: Burhanuddin Rabbani - 2001
Richard Reid attempts to destroy a passenger airliner by igniting explosives hidden in his shoes aboard American Airlines Flight 63.
North America · American Airlines Flight 63Wikipedia: American Airlines Flight 63 - 2008
An ash dike ruptures at a solid waste containment area for a Tennessee Valley Authority coal-fired power plant in Roane County, Tennessee, releasing 4.2 million m3 (1.1 billion US gal) of coal fly ash slurry in the largest industrial spill in U.S. history.
North America · Kingston Fossil Plant coal fly ash slurry spillWikipedia: Kingston Fossil Plant coal fly ash slurry spill - 2010
The repeal of the Don't ask, don't tell policy, the 17-year-old policy banning homosexuals serving openly in the United States military, is signed into law by President Barack Obama.
no place on the mapWikipedia: Don't Ask, Don't Tell Repeal Act of 2010 - 2012
Bashir Ahmad Bilour of Awami National Party and eight others are killed in a Pakistan Taliban bomber suicide attack in Dhaki Nalbandi area near Qissa Khwani Bazaar.
Asia · PakistanWikipedia: Bashir Ahmad Bilour - 2014
The United States Copyright Office stated that works lacking human authorship, such as a photograph taken by a monkey, could not be registered for copyright in the United States.
no place on the mapWikipedia: United States Copyright Office - 2016
A study finds the VSV-EBOV vaccine against the Ebola virus between 70 and 100% effective, making it the first proven vaccine against the disease.
no place on the mapWikipedia: RVSV-ZEBOV vaccine - 2017
United Nations Security Council Resolution 2397 against North Korea is unanimously approved.
Asia · North KoreaWikipedia: United Nations Security Council Resolution 2397 - 2018
A tsunami caused by an eruption of Anak Krakatau in Indonesia kills at least 430 people and injures almost a thousand more.
Asia · 2018 Sunda Strait tsunamiWikipedia: 2018 Sunda Strait tsunami - 2018
The 2018–2019 United States federal government shutdown, the second-longest shutdown of the U.S. federal government in history, begins.
no place on the mapWikipedia: 2018–2019 United States federal government shutdown
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 Chinese and were translated for this page.
- 1815
In San Cristóbal Ecatepec (Mexico), the independence leader José María Morelos is shot by firing squad.
Latin America · Ecatepec de MorelosTranslated from the list on Wikipedia in SpanishWikipedia: Ecatepec de Morelos - 1947
During the Chinese Revolution, the Communists reach the gates of the city of Beijing.
- 1994
The Schengen Agreement comes into force. It is a treaty among 27 continental European countries making up the Schengen Area, whose purpose is to abolish border checkpoints between them and to coordinate border controls with countries outside the Schengen Area.
Who was born on 22 December
In order of how many Wikipedia editions have an article about each. The first 60 of 221 are shown.
- 1984
Basshunter, Swedish singer, record producer and DJ
HalmstadWikipedia: Basshunter - 1858
Giacomo Puccini, Italian composer and educator (died 1924)
- 1639
Jean Racine, French poet and playwright (died 1699)
La Ferté-MilonWikipedia: Jean Racine - 1887
Srinivasa Ramanujan, Indian mathematician and theorist (died 1920)
- 244
Diocletian, Roman emperor (died 311)
DocleaWikipedia: Diocletian - 2000
Joshua Bassett, American actor and singer
OceansideWikipedia: Joshua Bassett - 1962
Ralph Fiennes, English actor
IpswichWikipedia: Ralph Fiennes - 1972
Vanessa Paradis, French singer-songwriter and actress
Saint-Maur-des-FossésWikipedia: Vanessa Paradis - 1666
Guru Gobind Singh, Indian guru and poet (died 1708)
- 1970
Ted Cruz, Canadian-American lawyer and politician
Foothills Medical CentreWikipedia: Ted Cruz - 1876
Filippo Tommaso Marinetti, Egyptian-Italian poet and composer (died 1944)
AlexandriaWikipedia: Filippo Tommaso Marinetti - 1183
Chagatai Khan, Mongol ruler (died 1242)
MongoliaWikipedia: Chagatai Khan - 1912
Lady Bird Johnson, American beautification activist; 38th First Lady of the United States (died 2007)
KarnackWikipedia: Lady Bird Johnson - 1856
Frank B. Kellogg, American lawyer and politician, 45th United States Secretary of State, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1937)
PotsdamWikipedia: Frank B. Kellogg - 1955
Thomas C. Südhof, German-American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
GöttingenWikipedia: Thomas C. Südhof - 1960
Jean-Michel Basquiat, American painter and poet (died 1988)
Park SlopeWikipedia: Jean-Michel Basquiat - 1993
Meghan Trainor, American singer-songwriter and producer
NantucketWikipedia: Meghan Trainor - 1095
Roger II of Sicily (died 1154)
- 1907
Peggy Ashcroft, English actress (died 1991)
- 1963
Giuseppe Bergomi, Italian footballer and coach
SettalaWikipedia: Giuseppe Bergomi - 1993
Raphaël Guerreiro, Portuguese footballer
Le Blanc-MesnilWikipedia: Raphaël Guerreiro - 1989
Jordin Sparks, American singer-songwriter and actress
PhoenixWikipedia: Jordin Sparks - 1903
Haldan Keffer Hartline, American physiologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1983)
BloomsburgWikipedia: Haldan Keffer Hartline - 1926
Alcides Ghiggia, Italian-Uruguayan footballer and manager (died 2015)
MontevideoWikipedia: Alcides Ghiggia - 1937
Eduard Uspensky, Russian author, poet, and playwright (died 2018)
YegoryevskWikipedia: Eduard Uspensky - 1949
Robin Gibb, Manx-English singer-songwriter and producer (died 2012)
DouglasWikipedia: Robin Gibb - 1943
Paul Wolfowitz, American banker and politician, 25th United States Deputy Secretary of Defense
BrooklynWikipedia: Paul Wolfowitz - 1959
Bernd Schuster, German footballer and manager
AugsburgWikipedia: Bernd Schuster - 1850
Victoriano Huerta, Mexican general and politician, 35th President of Mexico (died 1916)
ColotlánWikipedia: Victoriano Huerta - 1883
Edgard Varèse, French-American composer (died 1965)
- 1949
Maurice Gibb, Manx-English singer-songwriter and producer (died 2003)
DouglasWikipedia: Maurice Gibb - 1983
José Fonte, Portuguese footballer
PenafielWikipedia: José Fonte - 1723
Carl Friedrich Abel, German viol player and composer (died 1787)
- 1991
DaBaby, American rapper
ClevelandWikipedia: DaBaby - 1998
G Hannelius, American actress and singer
- 1459
Sultan Cem, Ottoman politician (died 1495)
EdirneWikipedia: Cem Sultan - 1998
Casper Ruud, Norwegian tennis player
- 1952
Sandra Kalniete, Latvian politician and diplomat, former Latvian Minister of Foreign Affairs
Kolpashevsky DistrictWikipedia: Sandra Kalniete - 1868
Jaan Tõnisson, Estonian journalist, lawyer, and politician, 2nd Prime Minister of Estonia (died 1941?)
- 1898
Vladimir Fock, Russian physicist and mathematician (died 1974)
Saint PetersburgWikipedia: Vladimir Fock - 1936
Héctor Elizondo, American actor and director
New York CityWikipedia: Héctor Elizondo - 1961
Yuri Malenchenko, Russian colonel, pilot, and astronaut
SvitlovodskWikipedia: Yuri Malenchenko - 1965
David S. Goyer, American screenwriter
Ann ArborWikipedia: David S. Goyer - 1967
Dan Petrescu, Romanian footballer and manager
BucharestWikipedia: Dan Petrescu - 1968
Dina Meyer, American actress
QueensWikipedia: Dina Meyer - 1178
Emperor Antoku of Japan (died 1185)
- 1900
Marc Allégret, French director and screenwriter (died 1973)
- 1988
Mohamed El Shenawy, Egyptian footballer
Kafr el-SheikhWikipedia: Mohamed El Shenawy - 1899
Gustaf Gründgens, German actor and director (died 1963)
DüsseldorfWikipedia: Gustaf Gründgens - 1945
Diane Sawyer, American journalist
GlasgowWikipedia: Diane Sawyer - 1990
Jean-Baptiste Maunier, French actor and singer
BrignolesWikipedia: Jean-Baptiste Maunier - 1853
Sarada Devi, Indian mystic and philosopher (died 1920)
JayrambatiWikipedia: Sarada Devi - 1869
Edwin Arlington Robinson, American poet and playwright (died 1935)
Head TideWikipedia: Edwin Arlington Robinson - 1980
Chris Carmack, American actor, singer, and model
Washington, D.C.Wikipedia: Chris Carmack - 1874
Franz Schmidt, Austrian cellist, pianist, and composer (died 1939)
BratislavaWikipedia: Franz Schmidt - 1878
Myer Prinstein, Polish-American jumper (died 1925)
SzczuczynWikipedia: Myer Prinstein - 1892
Herman Potočnik, Slovenian-Austrian engineer (died 1929)
- 1928
Fredrik Barth, German-Norwegian anthropologist and academic (died 2016)
LeipzigWikipedia: Fredrik Barth - 1968
Luis Hernández, Mexican footballer
Poza Rica de HidalgoWikipedia: Luis Hernández - 1983
Doc Gallows, American wrestler
CumberlandWikipedia: Doc Gallows
What is celebrated on 22 December
- Dongzhi Festival
- Armed Forces Day (Vietnam)
- Christian feast day: Anastasia of Sirmium (Orthodox Church)
- Christian feast day: Eimhin
- Christian feast day: Ernan, Son of Eogan
- Christian feast day: Frances Xavier Cabrini (outside US)
- Christian feast day: Hunger
- Christian feast day: O Rex
- Christian feast day: Henry Budd (Episcopal Church (USA))
- Christian feast day: Lottie Moon (Episcopal Church (USA))
- Christian feast day: December 22 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Mother's Day (Indonesia)
- National Mathematics Day (India)
- Teachers' Day (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.