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This day in history

This day in history: 1 February

Events, births and deaths on this date, ordered by how many people look them up.

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Born on this day · Died on this day198 · 99

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Key facts

350 historical events, births and deaths are listed for 1 February.
Entries come from Wikipedia’s day pages and are ordered by page views.
2022: Five-year-old Moroccan boy Rayan Aourram falls into a 32-meter (105 feet) deep well in Ighran village in Tamorot commune, Chefchaouen Province, Morocco, but dies four days later, before rescue workers reached him.

Holidays and observances

Abolition of Slavery Day (Mauritius)

Air Force Day (Nicaragua)

Christian feast day: Blessed Candelaria of San José

Christian feast day: Brigid of Ireland (Saint Brigid's Day)

Christian feast day: February 1 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Christian feast day: Verdiana

Earliest day on which Constitution Day can fall, while February 7 is the latest; celebrated on the first Monday in February. (Mexico)

Federal Territory Day (Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, Malaysia)

Foundation Day (of the Ryukyu Kingdom, celebrated in Okinawa Prefecture)

Heroes Day (Rwanda)

Memorial Day of the Republic (Hungary)

National Freedom Day (United States)

Events

2022Five-year-old Moroccan boy Rayan Aourram falls into a 32-meter (105 feet) deep well in Ighran village in Tamorot commune, Chefchaouen Province, Morocco, but dies four days later, before rescue workers reached him.

2021A coup d'état in Myanmar removes Aung San Suu Kyi from power and restores military rule.

2013The Shard, the sixth-tallest building in Europe, opens its viewing gallery to the public.

2012Seventy-four people are killed and over 500 injured as a result of clashes between fans of Egyptian football teams Al Masry and Al Ahly in the city of Port Said.

2009The first cabinet of Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir was formed in Iceland, making her the country's first female prime minister and the world's first openly gay head of government.

2007The National Weather Service in the United States switches from the Fujita scale to the new Enhanced Fujita scale to measure the intensity and strength of tornadoes.

2005King Gyanendra of Nepal carries out a coup d'état to capture the democracy, becoming Chairman of the Councils of ministers.

2004Double suicide attack in Erbil on the offices of Iraqi Kurdish political parties by members of Jama'at al-Tawhid wal-Jihad

2004Hajj pilgrimage stampede: In a stampede at the Hajj pilgrimage in Saudi Arabia, 251 people are trampled to death and 244 injured.

2003Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrated during the reentry of mission STS-107 into the Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts aboard.

2002Daniel Pearl, American journalist and South Asia Bureau Chief of The Wall Street Journal, kidnapped on January 23, is beheaded and mutilated by his captors.

1998Rear Admiral Lillian E. Fishburne becomes the first female African American to be promoted to rear admiral.

1996The Communications Decency Act is passed by the U.S. Congress.

1992The Chief Judicial Magistrate of Bhopal court declares Warren Anderson, ex-CEO of Union Carbide, a fugitive under Indian law for failing to appear in the Bhopal disaster case.

1991A magnitude 6.8 earthquake strikes the Hindu Kush region, killing at least 848 people in Afghanistan, Pakistan and present-day Tajikistan.

1991A runway collision between USAir Flight 1493 and SkyWest Flight 5569 at Los Angeles International Airport results in the deaths of 34 people, and injuries to 30 others.

1982The Intel 80286 is released, which introduced protected mode memory. The IBM PC/AT and its clones used this CPU.

1981The Underarm bowling incident of 1981 occurred when Trevor Chappell bowls underarm on the final delivery of a game between Australia and New Zealand at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

1979Iranian Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini returns to Tehran after nearly 15 years of exile.

1974A fire in the 25-story Joelma Building in São Paulo, Brazil kills 189 and injures 293.

1972Kuala Lumpur becomes a city by a royal charter granted by the Yang di-Pertuan Agong of Malaysia.

1968Canada's three military services, the Royal Canadian Navy, the Canadian Army and the Royal Canadian Air Force, are unified into the Canadian Forces.

1968The New York Central Railroad and the Pennsylvania Railroad are merged to form Penn Central Transportation.

1968Vietnam War: The execution of Viet Cong officer Nguyễn Văn Lém by South Vietnamese National Police Chief Nguyễn Ngọc Loan is recorded on motion picture film, as well as in an iconic still photograph taken by Eddie Adams.

1964The Beatles have their first number one hit in the United States with "I Want to Hold Your Hand".

1960Four black students stage the first of the Greensboro sit-ins at a lunch counter in Greensboro, North Carolina.

1957Northeast Airlines Flight 823 crashes on Rikers Island in New York City, killing 20 people and injuring 78 others.

1950The first prototype of the MiG-17 makes its maiden flight.

1946The Parliament of Hungary abolishes the monarchy after nine centuries, and proclaims the Hungarian Republic.

1946Trygve Lie of Norway is picked to be the first United Nations Secretary-General.

1942Mao Zedong makes a speech on "Reform in Learning, the Party and Literature", which puts into motion the Yan'an Rectification Movement.

1942Voice of America, the official external radio and television service of the United States government, begins broadcasting with programs aimed at areas controlled by the Axis powers.

1942World War II: Josef Terboven, Reichskommissar of German-occupied Norway, appoints Vidkun Quisling the Minister President of the National Government.

1942World War II: U.S. Navy conducts Marshalls–Gilberts raids, the first offensive action by the United States against Japanese forces in the Pacific Theater.

1924Russia–United Kingdom relations are restored, over six years after the Communist revolution.

1908Lisbon Regicide: King Carlos I of Portugal and Infante Luis Filipe are shot dead in Lisbon.

1900Great Britain, defeated by Boers in key battles, names Lord Roberts commander of British forces in South Africa.

1897Shinhan Bank, the oldest bank in South Korea, opens in Seoul.

1896La bohème premieres in Turin at the Teatro Regio (Turin), conducted by the young Arturo Toscanini.

1895Fountains Valley, Pretoria, the oldest nature reserve in Africa, is proclaimed by President Paul Kruger.

Born on this day

2002Brian Brobbey, Dutch footballer

2002Seth Jarvis, Canadian ice hockey player

2001Egor Chinakhov, Russian ice hockey player

2000Talanoa Hufanga, American football player

1999Mohamed Abdelmonem, Egyptian footballer

1998Jazz Chisholm Jr., Bahamian baseball player

1997Drew Eubanks, American basketball player

1997Jihyo, South Korean singer

1996Ahmad Abughaush, Jordanian taekwondo athlete

1996Azurá Stevens, American basketball player

1996Doyoung, South Korean singer

1994Anna-Lena Friedsam, German tennis player

1994Harry Styles, English singer-songwriter and actor

1994Julia Garner, American actress

1993Diego Mella, Italian footballer

1992Sean Manaea, American baseball player

1991Blake Austin, Australian rugby league player

1991Kyle Palmieri, American ice hockey player

1990Tyler Myers, American-Canadian ice hockey player

1989Ricky Pinheiro, Portuguese footballer

1988Brett Anderson, American baseball player

1987Austin Jackson, American baseball player

1987Giuseppe Rossi, Italian footballer

1987Heather Morris, American actress, singer, and dancer

1987Moises Henriques, Portuguese-Australian cricketer

1987Ronda Rousey, American mixed martial artist, wrestler and actress

1987Sebastian Boenisch, Polish footballer

1986Jorrit Bergsma, Dutch speed skater

1986Ladislav Šmíd, Czech ice hockey player

1986Lauren Conrad, American fashion designer and author

1985Dean Shiels, Irish footballer

1984Darren Fletcher, Scottish footballer

1983Andrew VanWyngarden, American singer-songwriter and musician

1983Jurgen Van den Broeck, Belgian cyclist

1983Kevin Martin, American basketball player

1982Gavin Henson, Welsh rugby player

1982Shoaib Malik, Pakistani cricketer

1981Christian Giménez, Argentinian footballer

1981Graeme Smith, South African cricketer

1981Hins Cheung, Hong Kong singer-songwriter

Died on this day

2025Fay Vincent, American lawyer and businessman, 8th Commissioner of Baseball (born 1938)

2025Horst Köhler, Polish-German economist and politician, 9th President of Germany (born 1943)

2022Remi De Roo, Canadian bishop of the Catholic Church (born 1924)

2021Dustin Diamond, American actor, director, stand-up comedian, and musician (born 1977)

2021Temur Tsiklauri, Georgian pop singer and actor (born 1946)

2019Clive Swift, English actor (born 1936)

2019Jeremy Hardy, English comedian, radio host and panelist (born 1961)

2019Wade Wilson, American football player and coach (born 1959)

2018Barys Kit, Belarusian rocket scientist (born 1910)

2018Mowzey Radio, Ugandan singer and songwriter (born 1985)

2017Desmond Carrington, British actor and broadcaster (born 1926)

2016Óscar Humberto Mejía Victores, Guatemalan general and politician, 27th President of Guatemala (born 1930)

2015Aldo Ciccolini, Italian-French pianist (born 1925)

2015Monty Oum, American animator, director, and screenwriter (born 1981)

2015Udo Lattek, German footballer, manager, and sportscaster (born 1935)

2014Luis Aragonés, Spanish footballer and manager (born 1938)

2014Maximilian Schell, Austrian-Swiss actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1930)

2014Rene Ricard, American poet, painter, and critic (born 1946)

2014Vasily Petrov, Russian marshal (born 1917)

2013Cecil Womack, American singer-songwriter and producer (born 1947)

2013Ed Koch, American lawyer, judge, and politician, 105th Mayor of New York City (born 1924)

2013Helene Hale, American politician (born 1918)

2013Shanu Lahiri, Indian painter and educator (born 1928)

2012Don Cornelius, American television host and producer (born 1936)

2012Wisława Szymborska, Polish poet and translator, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1923)

2010Jack Brisco, American professional wrestler (born 1941)

2008Beto Carrero, Brazilian actor and businessman (born 1937)

2007Gian Carlo Menotti, Italian-American playwright and composer (born 1911)

2005John Vernon, Canadian-American actor (born 1932)

2004Suha Arın, Turkish director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1942)

Quote of the day

“You have power over your mind, not outside events. Realise this, and you will find strength.”

Marcus Aurelius

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Where do the entries come from?

From Wikipedia’s on-this-day pages for this language, updated once a day and ordered by how often each article is read.

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