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January 17 in History
- 38 BC – Octavian divorces his wife Scribonia and marries Livia Drusilla, ending the fragile peace between the Second Triumvirate and Sextus Pompey.
- 1362 – Saint Marcellus’ flood kills at least 25,000 people on the shores of the North Sea.
- 1377 – Pope Gregory XI reaches Rome, after deciding to move the Papacy back to Rome from Avignon.
- 1524 – Giovanni da Verrazzano sets sail westward from Madeira to find a sea route to the Pacific Ocean.
- 1562 – France grants religious toleration to the Huguenots in the Edict of Saint-Germain.
- 1595 – During the French Wars of Religion, Henry IV of France declares war on Spain.
- 1608 – Emperor Susenyos I of Ethiopia surprises an Oromo army at Ebenat; his army reportedly kills 12,000 Oromo at the cost of 400 of his men.
- 1648 – England’s Long Parliament passes the “Vote of No Addresses”, breaking off negotiations with King Charles I and thereby setting the scene for the second phase of the English Civil War.
- 1773 – Captain James Cook leads the first expedition to sail south of the Antarctic Circle.
- 1781 – American Revolutionary War: Battle of Cowpens: Continental troops under Brigadier General Daniel Morgan defeat British forces under Lieutenant Colonel Banastre Tarleton at the battle in South Carolina.
- 1799 – Maltese patriot Dun Mikiel Xerri, along with a number of other patriots, is executed.
- 1811 – Mexican War of Independence: In the Battle of Calderón Bridge, a heavily outnumbered Spanish force of 6,000 troops defeats nearly 100,000 Mexican revolutionaries.
- 1852 – The United Kingdom signs the Sand River Convention with the South African Republic.
- 1873 – A group of Modoc warriors defeats the United States Army in the First Battle of the Stronghold, part of the Modoc War.
- 1885 – A British force defeats a large Dervish army at the Battle of Abu Klea in the Sudan.
- 1893 – Lorrin A. Thurston, along with the Citizens’ Committee of Public Safety, led the Overthrow of the Kingdom of Hawaii and the government of Queen Liliʻuokalani.
- 1899 – The United States takes possession of Wake Island in the Pacific Ocean.
- 1903 – El Yunque National Forest in Puerto Rico becomes part of the United States National Forest System as the Luquillo Forest Reserve.
- 1904 – Anton Chekhov’s The Cherry Orchard receives its premiere performance at the Moscow Art Theatre.
- 1912 – British polar explorer Captain Robert Falcon Scott reaches the South Pole, one month after Roald Amundsen.
- 1915 – Russia defeats Ottoman Turkey in the Battle of Sarikamish during the Caucasus Campaign of World War I.
- 1917 – The United States pays Denmark $25 million for the Virgin Islands.
- 1918 – Finnish Civil War: The first serious battles take place between the Red Guards and the White Guard.
- 1920 – Alcohol Prohibition begins in the United States as the Volstead Act goes into effect.
- 1929 – Popeye the Sailor Man, a cartoon character created by E. C. Segar, first appears in the Thimble Theatre comic strip.
- 1941 – Franco-Thai War: Vichy French forces inflict a decisive defeat over the Royal Thai Navy.
- 1943 – World War II: Greek submarine Papanikolis captures the 200-ton sailing vessel Agios Stefanos and mans her with part of her crew.
- 1944 – World War II: Allied forces launch the first of four assaults on Monte Cassino with the intention of breaking through the Winter Line and seizing Rome, an effort that would ultimately take four months and cost 105,000 Allied casualties.
- 1945 – World War II: The Vistula–Oder Offensive forces German troops out of Warsaw.
- 1945 – The SS-Totenkopfverbände begin the evacuation of the Auschwitz concentration camp as Soviet forces close in.
- 1945 – Swedish diplomat Raoul Wallenberg is taken into Soviet custody while in Hungary; he is never publicly seen again.
- 1946 – The UN Security Council holds its first session.
- 1948 – The Renville Agreement between the Netherlands and Indonesia is ratified.
- 1950 – The Great Brink’s Robbery: Eleven thieves steal more than $2 million from an armored car company’s offices in Boston.
- 1950 – United Nations Security Council Resolution 79 relating to arms control is adopted.
- 1961 – U.S. President Dwight D. Eisenhower delivers a televised farewell address to the nation three days before leaving office, in which he warns against the accumulation of power by the “military–industrial complex” as well as the dangers of massive spending, especially deficit spending.
- 1961 – Former Congolese Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba is murdered in circumstances suggesting the support and complicity of the governments of Belgium and the United States.
- 1966 – Palomares incident: A B-52 bomber collides with a KC-135 Stratotanker over Spain, killing seven airmen, and dropping three 70-kiloton nuclear bombs near the town of Palomares and another one into the sea.
- 1969 – Black Panther Party members Bunchy Carter and John Huggins are killed during a meeting in Campbell Hall on the campus of UCLA.
- 1977 – Capital punishment in the United States resumes after a ten-year hiatus, as convicted murderer Gary Gilmore is executed by firing squad in Utah.
- 1981 – President of the Philippines Ferdinand Marcos lifts martial law eight years and five months after declaring it.
- 1991 – Gulf War: Operation Desert Storm begins early in the morning as aircraft strike positions across Iraq, it is also the first major combat sortie for the F-117. LCDR Scott Speicher’s F/A-18C Hornet from VFA-81 is shot down by a Mig-25 and is the first American casualty of the War. Iraq fires eight Scud missiles into Israel in an unsuccessful bid to provoke Israeli retaliation.
- 1991 – Crown prince Harald V of Norway becomes King Harald V, following the death of his father, King Olav V.
- 1992 – During a visit to South Korea, Japanese Prime Minister Kiichi Miyazawa apologizes for forcing Korean women into sexual slavery during World War II.
- 1994 – The 6.7 Mw Northridge earthquake shakes the Greater Los Angeles Area with a maximum Mercalli intensity of IX (Violent), leaving 57 people dead and more than 8,700 injured.
- 1995 – The 6.9 Mw Great Hanshin earthquake shakes the southern Hyōgo Prefecture with a maximum Shindo of VII, leaving 5,502–6,434 people dead, and 251,301–310,000 displaced.
- 1996 – The Czech Republic applies for membership of the European Union.
- 1997 – Cape Canaveral Air Force Station: A Delta II carrying the GPS IIR-1 satellite explodes 13 seconds after launch, dropping 250 tons of burning rocket remains around the launch pad.
- 1998 – Lewinsky scandal: Matt Drudge breaks the story of the Bill Clinton–Monica Lewinsky affair on his Drudge Report website.
- 2002 – Mount Nyiragongo erupts in the Democratic Republic of the Congo, displacing an estimated 400,000 people.
- 2007 – The Doomsday Clock is set to five minutes to midnight in response to North Korea’s nuclear testing.
- 2010 – Rioting begins between Muslim and Christian groups in Jos, Nigeria, results in at least 200 deaths.
Births on January 17
- 1342 – Philip II, Duke of Burgundy (d. 1404)
- 1429 – Antonio del Pollaiolo, Italian artist (d.c. 1498)
- 1463 – Frederick III, Elector of Saxony (d. 1525)
- 1463 – Antoine Duprat, French cardinal (d. 1535)
- 1472 – Guidobaldo da Montefeltro, Italian captain (d. 1508)
- 1484 – George Spalatin, German priest and reformer (d. 1545)
- 1501 – Leonhart Fuchs, German physician and botanist (d. 1566)
- 1504 – Pope Pius V (d. 1572)
- 1517 – Henry Grey, 1st Duke of Suffolk, English Duke (d. 1554)
- 1560 – Gaspard Bauhin, Swiss botanist, physician, and academic (d. 1624)
- 1574 – Robert Fludd, English physician, astrologer, and mathematician (d. 1637)
- 1593 – William Backhouse, English alchemist and astrologer (d. 1662)
- 1600 – Pedro Calderón de la Barca, Spanish playwright and poet (d. 1681)
- 1612 – Thomas Fairfax, English general and politician (d. 1671)
- 1640 – Jonathan Singletary Dunham, American settler (d. 1724)
- 1659 – Antonio Veracini, Italian violinist and composer (d. 1745)
- 1666 – Antonio Maria Valsalva, Italian anatomist and physician (d. 1723)
- 1686 – Archibald Bower, Scottish historian and author (d. 1766)
- 1706 – Benjamin Franklin, American publisher, inventor, and politician, 6th President of Pennsylvania (d. 1790)
- 1712 – John Stanley, English organist and composer (d. 1786)
- 1719 – William Vernon, American businessman (d. 1806)
- 1728 – Johann Gottfried Müthel, German pianist and composer (d. 1788)
- 1732 – Stanisław August Poniatowski, Polish-Lithuanian king (d. 1798)
- 1734 – François-Joseph Gossec, French composer and conductor (d. 1829)
- 1761 – Sir James Hall, 4th Baronet, Scottish geologist and geophysicist (d. 1832)
- 1789 – August Neander, German historian and theologian (d. 1850)
- 1793 – Antonio José Martínez, Spanish-American priest, rancher and politician (d. 1867)
- 1814 – Ellen Wood, English author (d. 1887)
- 1820 – Anne Brontë, English author and poet (d. 1849)
- 1828 – Lewis A. Grant, American lawyer and general, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1918)
- 1828 – Ede Reményi, Hungarian violinist and composer (d. 1898)
- 1832 – Henry Martyn Baird, American historian and academic (d. 1906)
- 1834 – August Weismann, German biologist, zoologist, and geneticist (d. 1914)
- 1850 – Joaquim Arcoverde de Albuquerque Cavalcanti, Brazilian cardinal (d. 1930)
- 1850 – Alexander Taneyev, Russian pianist and composer (d. 1918)
- 1851 – A. B. Frost, American author and illustrator (d. 1928)
- 1853 – Alva Belmont, American suffragist (d. 1933)
- 1852 – T. Alexander Harrison, American painter and academic (d. 1930)
- 1857 – Wilhelm Kienzl, Austrian pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 1941)
- 1857 – Eugene Augustin Lauste, French-American engineer (d. 1935)
- 1858 – Tomás Carrasquilla, Colombian author (d. 1940)
- 1860 – Douglas Hyde, Irish academic and politician, 1st President of Ireland (d. 1949)
- 1863 – David Lloyd George, Welsh lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 1945)
- 1863 – Konstantin Stanislavski, Russian actor and director (d. 1938)
- 1865 – Sir Charles Fergusson, 7th Baronet, English general and politician, 3rd Governor-General of New Zealand (d. 1951)
- 1867 – Carl Laemmle, German-born American film producer, co-founded Universal Studios (d. 1939)
- 1867 – Sir Alfred Rawlinson, 3rd Baronet, English colonel, pilot, and polo player (d. 1934)
- 1871 – David Beatty, 1st Earl Beatty, English admiral (d. 1936)
- 1871 – Nicolae Iorga, Romanian historian and politician, 34th Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1940)
- 1875 – Florencio Sánchez, Uruguayan journalist and playwright (d. 1910)
- 1876 – Frank Hague, American lawyer and politician, 30th Mayor of Jersey City (d. 1956)
- 1877 – Marie Zdeňka Baborová-Čiháková, Czech botanist and zoologist (d. 1937)
- 1877 – May Gibbs, English-Australian author and illustrator (d. 1969)
- 1880 – Mack Sennett, Canadian-American actor, director, and producer (d. 1960)
- 1881 – Antoni Łomnicki, Polish mathematician and academic (d. 1941)
- 1881 – Harry Price, English psychologist and author (d. 1948)
- 1882 – Noah Beery, Sr., American actor (d. 1946)
- 1883 – Compton Mackenzie, English-Scottish author, poet, and playwright (d. 1972)
- 1886 – Glenn L. Martin, American pilot and businessman, founded the Glenn L. Martin Company (d. 1955)
- 1887 – Ola Raknes, Norwegian psychoanalyst and philologist (d. 1975)
- 1888 – Babu Gulabrai, Indian philosopher and author (d. 1963)
- 1897 – Marcel Petiot, French physician and serial killer (d. 1946)
- 1898 – Lela Mevorah, Serbian librarian (d. 1972)
- 1899 – Al Capone, American mob boss (d. 1947)
- 1899 – Robert Maynard Hutchins, American philosopher and academic (d. 1977)
- 1899 – Nevil Shute, English engineer and author (d. 1960)
- 1901 – Aron Gurwitsch, Lithuanian-American philosopher and author (d. 1973)
- 1904 – Hem Vejakorn, Thai painter and illustrator (d. 1969)
- 1905 – Ray Cunningham, American baseball player (d. 2005)
- 1905 – Peggy Gilbert, American saxophonist and bandleader (d. 2007)
- 1905 – Eduard Oja, Estonian composer, conductor, educator, and critic (d. 1950)
- 1905 – Guillermo Stábile, Argentinian footballer and manager (d. 1966)
- 1905 – Jan Zahradníček, Czech poet and translator (d. 1960)
- 1907 – Henk Badings, Indonesian-Dutch composer and engineer (d. 1987)
- 1907 – Alfred Wainwright, British fellwalker, guidebook author and illustrator (d. 1991)
- 1908 – Cus D’Amato, American boxing manager and trainer (d. 1985)
- 1911 – Busher Jackson, Canadian ice hockey player (d. 1966)
- 1911 – John S. McCain Jr., American admiral (d. 1981)
- 1911 – George Stigler, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1991)
- 1914 – Anacleto Angelini, Italian-Chilean businessman (d. 2007)
- 1914 – Irving Brecher, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2008)
- 1914 – Paul Royle, Australian lieutenant and pilot (d. 2015)
- 1914 – William Stafford, American poet and author (d. 1993)
- 1916 – Peter Frelinghuysen Jr., American lieutenant and politician (d. 2011)
- 1917 – M. G. Ramachandran, Indian actor, director, and politician, 5th Chief Minister of Tamil Nadu (d. 1987)
- 1918 – Keith Joseph, English lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Education (d. 1994)
- 1918 – George M. Leader, American soldier and politician, 36th Governor of Pennsylvania (d. 2013)
- 1920 – Georges Pichard, French author and illustrator (d. 2003)
- 1921 – Asghar Khan, Pakistani general and politician (d. 2018)
- 1921 – Jackie Henderson, Scottish footballer, forward (d. 2005)
- 1921 – Charlie Mitten, English footballer, outside forward and manager (d. 2002)
- 1921 – Antonio Prohías, Cuban cartoonist (d. 1998)
- 1922 – Luis Echeverría, Mexican academic and politician, 50th President of Mexico
- 1922 – Nicholas Katzenbach, American soldier, lawyer, and politician, 65th United States Attorney General (d. 2012)
- 1922 – Betty White, American actress, game show panelist, television personality, and animal rights activist
- 1923 – Rangeya Raghav, Indian author and playwright (d. 1962)
- 1924 – Rik De Saedeleer, Belgian footballer and journalist (d. 2013)
- 1924 – Jewel Plummer Cobb, American biologist, cancer researcher, and academic (d. 2017)
- 1925 – Gunnar Birkerts, Latvian-American architect (d. 2017)
- 1925 – Robert Cormier, American author and journalist (d. 2000)
- 1925 – Abdul Hafeez Kardar, Pakistani cricketer and author (d. 1996)
- 1926 – Newton N. Minow, American lawyer and politician
- 1926 – Moira Shearer, Scottish-English ballerina and actress (d. 2006)
- 1926 – Clyde Walcott, Barbadian cricketer (d. 2006)
- 1927 – Thomas Anthony Dooley III, American physician and humanitarian (d. 1961)
- 1927 – Eartha Kitt, American actress and singer (d. 2008)
- 1927 – Harlan Mathews, American lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
- 1927 – E. W. Swackhamer, American director and producer (d. 1994)
- 1928 – Jean Barraqué, French composer (d. 1973)
- 1928 – Vidal Sassoon, English-American hairdresser and businessman (d. 2012)
- 1929 – Jacques Plante, Canadian-Swiss ice hockey player, coach, and sportscaster (d. 1986)
- 1929 – Tan Boon Teik, Malaysian-Singaporean lawyer and politician, Attorney-General of Singapore (d. 2012)
- 1931 – James Earl Jones, American actor
- 1931 – Douglas Wilder, American sergeant and politician, 66th Governor of Virginia
- 1931 – Don Zimmer, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 2014)
- 1932 – Sheree North, American actress and dancer (d. 2005)
- 1933 – Dalida, Egyptian-French singer and actress (d. 1987)
- 1933 – Prince Sadruddin Aga Khan, French-Pakistani diplomat, United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (d. 2003)
- 1933 – Shari Lewis, American actress, puppeteer/ventriloquist, and television host (d. 1998)
- 1934 – Donald Cammell, Scottish-American director and screenwriter (d. 1996)
- 1935 – Ruth Ann Minner, American businesswoman and politician, 72nd Governor of Delaware
- 1936 – John Boyd, English academic and diplomat, British ambassador to Japan
- 1936 – A. Thangathurai, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician (d. 1997)
- 1937 – Alain Badiou, French philosopher and academic
- 1938 – John Bellairs, American author and academic (d. 1991)
- 1938 – Toini Gustafsson, Swedish cross country skier
- 1939 – Christodoulos of Athens, Greek archbishop (d. 2008)
- 1939 – Maury Povich, American talk show host and producer
- 1940 – Nerses Bedros XIX Tarmouni, Egyptian-Armenian patriarch (d. 2015)
- 1940 – Kipchoge Keino, Kenyan athlete
- 1940 – Tabaré Vázquez, Uruguayan physician and politician, 39th President of Uruguay
- 1941 – István Horthy, Jr., Hungarian physicist and architect
- 1942 – Muhammad Ali, American boxer and activist (d. 2016)
- 1942 – Ita Buttrose, Australian journalist and author
- 1942 – Ulf Hoelscher, German violinist and educator
- 1942 – Nigel McCulloch, English bishop
- 1943 – Chris Montez, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1943 – René Préval, Haitian agronomist and politician, 52nd President of Haiti (d. 2017)
- 1944 – Ann Oakley, English sociologist, author, and academic
- 1945 – Javed Akhtar, Indian poet, playwright, and composer
- 1945 – Anne Cutler, Australian psychologist and academic
- 1948 – Davíð Oddsson, Icelandic politician, 21st Prime Minister of Iceland
- 1949 – Anita Borg, American computer scientist and academic (d. 2003)
- 1949 – Gyude Bryant, Liberian businessman and politician (d. 2014)
- 1949 – Augustin Dumay, French violinist and conductor
- 1949 – Andy Kaufman, American actor and comedian (d. 1984)
- 1949 – Mick Taylor, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1950 – Luis López Nieves, Puerto Rican-American author and academic
- 1952 – Tom Deitz, American author (d. 2009)
- 1952 – Darrell Porter, American baseball player and sportscaster (d. 2002)
- 1952 – Ryuichi Sakamoto, Japanese pianist, composer, and producer
- 1953 – Jeff Berlin, American bass player and educator
- 1953 – Carlos Johnson, American singer and guitarist
- 1954 – Robert F. Kennedy, Jr., American lawyer, radio host, activist, and environmentalist
- 1955 – Steve Earle, American singer-songwriter, musician, record producer, author and actor
- 1955 – Pietro Parolin, Italian cardinal
- 1955 – Steve Javie, American basketball player and referee
- 1956 – Damian Green, English journalist and politician
- 1956 – Paul Young, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1957 – Steve Harvey, American actor, comedian, television personality and game show host
- 1957 – Ann Nocenti, American journalist and author
- 1958 – Tony Kouzarides, English biologist, cancer researcher
- 1959 – Susanna Hoffs, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actress
- 1960 – John Crawford, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1960 – Chili Davis, Jamaican-American baseball player and coach
- 1961 – Brian Helgeland, American director, producer, and screenwriter
- 1962 – Jun Azumi, Japanese broadcaster and politician, 46th Japanese Minister of Finance
- 1962 – Jim Carrey, Canadian-American actor and producer
- 1962 – Sebastian Junger, American journalist and author
- 1963 – Kai Hansen, German singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1963 – Colin Gordon, English footballer, striker, agent, manager, chief executive
- 1964 – Michelle Obama, American lawyer and activist, 46th First Lady of the United States
- 1964 – John Schuster, Samoan-New Zealand rugby player
- 1965 – Sylvain Turgeon, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1966 – Trish Johnson, English golfer
- 1966 – Joshua Malina, American actor
- 1967 – Richard Hawley, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1968 – Rowan Pelling, English journalist and author
- 1968 – Ilja Leonard Pfeijffer, Dutch author, poet, and scholar
- 1969 – Naveen Andrews, English actor
- 1969 – Lukas Moodysson, Swedish director, screenwriter, and author
- 1969 – Tiësto, Dutch DJ and producer
- 1970 – Cássio Alves de Barros, Brazilian footballer
- 1970 – Jeremy Roenick, American ice hockey player and actor
- 1970 – Genndy Tartakovsky, Russian-American animator, director, and producer
- 1971 – Giorgos Balogiannis, Greek basketball player
- 1971 – Richard Burns, English race car driver (d. 2005)
- 1971 – Kid Rock, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actor
- 1971 – Sylvie Testud, French actress, director, and screenwriter
- 1973 – Cuauhtémoc Blanco, Mexican footballer and actor
- 1973 – Chris Bowen, Australian politician, 37th Treasurer of Australia
- 1973 – Liz Ellis, Australian netball player and sportscaster
- 1973 – Aaron Ward, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
- 1974 – Yang Chen, Chinese footballer and manager
- 1974 – Vesko Kountchev, Bulgarian viola player, composer, and producer
- 1974 – Derrick Mason, American football player
- 1975 – Freddy Rodriguez, American actor
- 1978 – Lisa Llorens, Australian Paralympian
- 1978 – Ricky Wilson, English singer-songwriter
- 1980 – Maksim Chmerkovskiy, Ukrainian-American dancer and choreographer
- 1980 – Zooey Deschanel, American singer-songwriter and actress
- 1980 – Modestas Stonys, Lithuanian footballer
- 1981 – Warren Feeney, Northern Irish footballer and manager
- 1982 – Dwyane Wade, American basketball player
- 1982 – Amanda Wilkinson, Canadian singer
- 1983 – Álvaro Arbeloa, Spanish footballer
- 1983 – Johannes Herber, German basketball player
- 1983 – Rick Kelly, Australian race car driver
- 1983 – Marcelo Garcia, Brazilian martial artist
- 1984 – Calvin Harris, Scottish singer-songwriter, DJ, and producer
- 1985 – Pablo Barrientos, Argentinian footballer
- 1985 – Betsy Ruth, American wrestler and manager
- 1985 – Simone Simons, Dutch singer-songwriter
- 1987 – Cody Decker, American baseball player
- 1988 – Andrea Antonelli, Italian motorcycle racer (d. 2013)
- 1988 – Will Genia, Australian rugby player
- 1988 – Héctor Moreno, Mexican footballer
- 1989 – Taylor Jordan, American baseball player
- 1989 – Kelly Marie Tran, American actress
- 1990 – Santiago Tréllez, Colombian footballer
- 1991 – Trevor Bauer, American baseball player
- 1991 – Esapekka Lappi, Finnish Rally Driver
- 1991 – Slade Griffin, Australian rugby league player
- 1991 – Alise Post, American BMX rider
- 1993 – Frankie Cocozza, British singer
- 1994 – Mark Steketee, Australian cricketer
- 1998 – Jeff Reine-Adelaide, French footballer
- 1998 – Sophie Molineux, Australian cricketer
- 2000 – Devlin DeFrancesco, Canadian race car driver
Deaths on January 17
- 395 – Theodosius I, Roman emperor (b. 347)
- 644 – Sulpitius the Pious, French bishop and saint
- 764 – Joseph of Freising, German bishop
- 1040 – Mas’ud I of Ghazni, Sultan of the Ghaznavid Empire (b. 998)
- 1156 – André de Montbard, fifth Grand Master of the Knights Templar
- 1168 – Thierry, Count of Flanders (b. 1099)
- 1229 – Albert of Riga, German bishop (b. 1165)
- 1329 – Saint Roseline, Carthusian nun (b. 1263)
- 1334 – John of Brittany, Earl of Richmond (b. 1266)
- 1345 – Henry of Asti, Greek patriarch
- 1345 – Martino Zaccaria, Genoese Lord of Chios
- 1369 – Peter I of Cyprus (b. 1328)
- 1456 – Elisabeth of Lorraine-Vaudémont, French translator (b. 1395)
- 1468 – Skanderbeg, Albanian soldier and politician (b. 1405)
- 1588 – Qi Jiguang, Chinese general (b. 1528)
- 1598 – Feodor I of Russia (b. 1557)
- 1617 – Fausto Veranzio, Croatian bishop and lexicographer (b. 1551)
- 1705 – John Ray, English botanist and historian (b. 1627)
- 1718 – Benjamin Church, American colonel (b. 1639)
- 1737 – Matthäus Daniel Pöppelmann, German architect (b. 1662)
- 1738 – Jean-François Dandrieu, French organist and composer (b. 1682)
- 1751 – Tomaso Albinoni, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1671)
- 1826 – Juan Crisóstomo Arriaga, Spanish-French composer (b. 1806)
- 1834 – Giovanni Aldini, Italian physicist and academic (b. 1762)
- 1861 – Lola Montez, Irish actress and dancer (b. 1821)
- 1863 – Horace Vernet, French painter (b. 1789)
- 1869 – Alexander Dargomyzhsky, Russian composer (b. 1813)
- 1878 – Edward Shepherd Creasy, English historian and jurist (b. 1812)
- 1884 – Hermann Schlegel, German ornithologist and herpetologist (b. 1804)
- 1887 – William Giblin, Australian lawyer and politician, 13th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1840)
- 1888 – Big Bear, Canadian tribal chief (b. 1825)
- 1891 – George Bancroft, American historian and politician, 17th United States Secretary of the Navy (b. 1800)
- 1893 – Rutherford B. Hayes, American general, lawyer, and politician, 19th President of the United States (b. 1822)
- 1903 – Ignaz Wechselmann, Hungarian architect and philanthropist (b. 1828)
- 1908 – Ferdinand IV, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1835)
- 1909 – Francis Smith, Australian lawyer, judge, and politician, 4th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1819)
- 1911 – Francis Galton, English polymath, anthropologist, and geographer (b. 1822)
- 1927 – Juliette Gordon Low, American founder of the Girl Scouts of the USA (b. 1860)
- 1930 – Gauhar Jaan, One of the first performers to record music on 78 rpm records in India. (b. 1873)
- 1931 – Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich of Russia (b. 1864)
- 1932 – Ahmet Derviş, Turkish general (b. 1881)
- 1932 – Albert Jacka, Australian captain, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1893)
- 1933 – Louis Comfort Tiffany, American stained glass artist (b. 1848)
- 1936 – Mateiu Caragiale, Romanian journalist, author, and poet (b. 1885)
- 1942 – Walther von Reichenau, German field marshal (b. 1884)
- 1947 – Pyotr Krasnov, Russian historian and general (b. 1869)
- 1947 – Jean-Marie-Rodrigue Villeneuve, Canadian cardinal (b. 1883)
- 1951 – Jyoti Prasad Agarwala, Indian poet, playwright, and director (b. 1903)
- 1952 – Walter Briggs Sr., American businessman (b. 1877)
- 1961 – Patrice Lumumba, Congolese politician, 1st Prime Minister of the Democratic Republic of the Congo (b. 1925)
- 1970 – Simon Kovar, Russian-American bassoon player and educator (b. 1890)
- 1972 – Betty Smith, American author and playwright (b. 1896)
- 1977 – Dougal Haston, Scottish mountaineer (b. 1940)
- 1977 – Gary Gilmore, American murderer (b. 1940)
- 1981 – Loukas Panourgias, Greek footballer and lawyer (b. 1899)
- 1984 – Kostas Giannidis, Greek pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1903)
- 1987 – Hugo Fregonese, Argentinian director and screenwriter (b. 1908)
- 1988 – Percy Qoboza, South African journalist and author (b. 1938)
- 1991 – Olav V of Norway (b. 1903)
- 1992 – Frank Pullen, English soldier and businessman (b. 1915)
- 1993 – Albert Hourani, English-Lebanese historian and academic (b. 1915)
- 1994 – Yevgeni Ivanov, Russian spy (b. 1926)
- 1994 – Helen Stephens, American runner, shot putter, and discus thrower (b. 1918)
- 1996 – Barbara Jordan, American lawyer and politician (b. 1936)
- 1996 – Sylvia Lawler, English geneticist (b. 1922))
- 1997 – Bert Kelly, Australian farmer and politician, 20th Australian Minister for the Navy (b. 1912)
- 1997 – Clyde Tombaugh, American astronomer and academic, discovered Pluto (b. 1906)
- 2000 – Philip Jones, English trumpet player and educator (b. 1928)
- 2000 – Ion Rațiu, Romanian journalist and politician (b. 1917)
- 2002 – Camilo José Cela, Spanish author and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
- 2002 – Roman Personov, Russian physicist and academic (b. 1932)
- 2003 – Richard Crenna, American actor and director (b. 1926)
- 2004 – Raymond Bonham Carter, English banker (b. 1929)
- 2004 – Harry Brecheen, American baseball player and coach (b. 1914)
- 2004 – Ray Stark, American film producer (b. 1915)
- 2004 – Noble Willingham, American actor (b. 1931)
- 2005 – Charlie Bell, Australian businessman (b. 1960)
- 2005 – Virginia Mayo, American actress, singer, and dancer (b. 1920)
- 2005 – Albert Schatz, American microbiologist and academic (b. 1920)
- 2005 – Zhao Ziyang, Chinese politician, 3rd Premier of the People’s Republic of China (b. 1919)
- 2006 – Pierre Grondin, Canadian surgeon (b. 1925)
- 2007 – Art Buchwald, American journalist and author (b. 1925)
- 2007 – Yevhen Kushnaryov, Ukrainian engineer and politician (b. 1951)
- 2008 – Bobby Fischer, American chess player and author (b. 1943)
- 2008 – Ernie Holmes, American football player, wrestler, and actor (b. 1948)
- 2009 – Anders Isaksson, Swedish journalist and historian (b. 1943)
- 2010 – Gaines Adams, American football player (b. 1983)
- 2010 – Jyoti Basu, Indian politician and CM of West Bengal for 23 years (b. 1914)
- 2010 – Michalis Papakonstantinou, Greek journalist and politician, Foreign Minister of Greece (b. 1919)
- 2010 – Erich Segal, American author and screenwriter (b. 1937)
- 2011 – Don Kirshner, American songwriter and producer (b. 1934)
- 2012 – Ernie Alexander, American educator and politician (b. 1933)
- 2012 – Julius Meimberg, German soldier and pilot (b. 1917)
- 2012 – Johnny Otis, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1921)
- 2012 – Marty Springstead, American baseball player and umpire (b. 1937)
- 2013 – Mehmet Ali Birand, Turkish journalist and author (b. 1941)
- 2013 – Jakob Arjouni, German author (b. 1964)
- 2013 – Yves Debay, Belgian journalist (b. 1954)
- 2013 – John Nkomo, Zimbabwean politician, Vice President of Zimbabwe (b. 1934)
- 2013 – Lizbeth Webb, English soprano and actress (b. 1926)
- 2014 – Syedna Mohammed Burhanuddin, Indian spiritual leader, 52nd Da’i al-Mutlaq (b. 1915)
- 2014 – Francine Lalonde, Canadian educator and politician (b. 1940)
- 2014 – Alistair McAlpine, Baron McAlpine of West Green, English businessman and politician (b. 1942)
- 2014 – John J. McGinty III, American captain, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1940)
- 2014 – Sunanda Pushkar, Indian-Canadian businesswoman (b. 1962)
- 2014 – Suchitra Sen, Indian film actress (b. 1931)
- 2015 – Ken Furphy, English footballer and manager (b. 1931)
- 2015 – Faten Hamama, Egyptian actress and producer (b. 1931)
- 2015 – Don Harron, Canadian actor and screenwriter (b. 1924)
- 2016 – Blowfly, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1939)
- 2016 – Melvin Day, New Zealand painter and historian (b. 1923)
- 2016 – V. Rama Rao, Indian lawyer and politician, 12th Governor of Sikkim (b. 1935)
- 2016 – Sudhindra Thirtha, Indian religious leader (b. 1926)
- 2017 – Tirrel Burton, American football player and coach (b. 1929)
- 2018 – Jessica Falkholt, Australian actress (b. 1988)
- 2019 – S. Balakrishnan, Malayalam movie composer (b. 1948)
- 2020 – Derek Fowlds, British actor (b.1937)
Holidays and observances on January 17
- Christian feast day:
- Anthony the Great
- Blessed Angelo Paoli
- Blessed Gamelbert of Michaelsbuch
- Charles Gore (Church of England)
- Jenaro Sánchez Delgadillo (one of Saints of the Cristero War)
- Mildgyth
- Our Lady of Pontmain
- Sulpitius the Pious
- January 17 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- National Day (Menorca, Spain)
- The opening ceremony of Patras Carnival, celebrated until Clean Monday. (Patras)
-
January 12 in History
- 1528 – Gustav I of Sweden is crowned King of Sweden, having already reigned since his election in June 1523.
- 1554 – Bayinnaung, who would go on to assemble the largest empire in the history of Southeast Asia, is crowned King of Burma.
- 1616 – The city of Belém, Brazil is founded on the Amazon River delta, by Portuguese captain Francisco Caldeira Castelo Branco.
- 1808 – John Rennie’s scheme to defend St Mary’s Church, Reculver, founded in 669, from coastal erosion is abandoned in favour of demolition, despite the church being an exemplar of Anglo-Saxon architecture and sculpture.
- 1808 – The organizational meeting leading to the creation of the Wernerian Natural History Society, a former Scottish learned society, is held in Edinburgh.
- 1848 – The Palermo rising takes place in Sicily against the Bourbon Kingdom of the Two Sicilies.
- 1866 – The Royal Aeronautical Society is formed in London.
- 1872 – Yohannes IV is crowned Emperor of Ethiopia in Axum, the first imperial coronation in that city in over 200 years.
- 1895 – The National Trust is founded in the United Kingdom.
- 1911 – The University of the Philippines College of Law is formally established; three future Philippine presidents are among the first enrollees.
- 1915 – The United States House of Representatives rejects a proposal to require states to give women the right to vote.
- 1916 – Both Oswald Boelcke and Max Immelmann, for achieving eight aerial victories each over Allied aircraft, receive the German Empire’s highest military award, the Pour le Mérite as the first German aviators to earn it.
- 1918 – The Minnie Pit Disaster coal mining accident occurs in Halmer End, Staffordshire, in which 155 men and boys die.
- 1921 – Acting to restore confidence in baseball after the Black Sox Scandal, Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis is elected as Major League Baseball’s first commissioner.
- 1932 – Hattie Caraway becomes the first woman elected to the United States Senate.
- 1942 – World War II: United States President Franklin D. Roosevelt creates the National War Labor Board.
- 1945 – World War II: The Red Army begins the Vistula–Oder Offensive.
- 1962 – Vietnam War: Operation Chopper, the first American combat mission in the war, takes place.
- 1964 – Rebels in Zanzibar begin a revolt known as the Zanzibar Revolution and proclaim a republic.
- 1966 – Lyndon B. Johnson states that the United States should stay in South Vietnam until Communist aggression there is ended.
- 1967 – Dr. James Bedford becomes the first person to be cryonically preserved with intent of future resuscitation.
- 1969 – The New York Jets of the American Football League defeat the Baltimore Colts of the National Football League to win Super Bowl III in what is considered to be one of the greatest upsets in sports history.
- 1970 – Biafra capitulates, ending the Nigerian Civil War.
- 1971 – The Harrisburg Seven: Rev. Philip Berrigan and five other activists are indicted on charges of conspiring to kidnap Henry Kissinger and of plotting to blow up the heating tunnels of federal buildings in Washington, D.C.
- 1976 – The United Nations Security Council votes 11–1 to allow the Palestine Liberation Organization to participate in a Security Council debate (without voting rights).
- 1986 – Space Shuttle program: Congressman Bill Nelson lifts off from Kennedy Space Center aboard Columbia on mission STS-61-C as a payload specialist.
- 1990 – A seven-day pogrom breaks out against the Armenian civilian population of Baku, Azerbaijan, during which Armenians were beaten, tortured, murdered, and expelled from the city.
- 1991 – Persian Gulf War: An act of the U.S. Congress authorizes the use of American military force to drive Iraq out of Kuwait.
- 1998 – Nineteen European nations agree to forbid human cloning.
- 2001 – Downtown Disney opens to the public as part of the Disneyland Resort in Anaheim, California.
- 2004 – The world’s largest ocean liner, RMS Queen Mary 2, makes its maiden voyage.
- 2005 – Deep Impact launches from Cape Canaveral on a Delta II rocket.
- 2006 – A stampede during the Stoning of the Devil ritual on the last day at the Hajj in Mina, Saudi Arabia, kills at least 362 Muslim pilgrims.
- 2010 – An earthquake in Haiti occurs, killing between 220,000 and 300,000 people and destroying much of the capital Port-au-Prince.
- 2012 – Violent protests occur in Bucharest, Romania, as two-day-old demonstrations continue against President Traian Băsescu’s economic austerity measures. Clashes are reported in numerous Romanian cities between protesters and law enforcement officers.
- 2015 – Government raids kill 143 Boko Haram fighters in Kolofata, Cameroon.
- 2016 – Ten people are killed and 15 wounded in a bombing near the Blue Mosque in Istanbul.
- 2020 – Taal Volcano in the Philippines erupts, and kills 39 people.
Births on January 12
- 1483 – Henry III of Nassau-Breda (d. 1538)
- 1562 – Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy (d. 1630)
- 1576 – Petrus Scriverius, Dutch historian and scholar (d. 1660)
- 1577 – Jan Baptist van Helmont, Flemish chemist and physician (d. 1644)
- 1588 – John Winthrop, English lawyer and politician, 2nd Governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony (d. 1649)
- 1591 – Jusepe de Ribera, Spanish painter (d. 1652)
- 1597 – François Duquesnoy, Flemish sculptor and educator (d. 1643)
- 1598 – Jijabai Shahaji Bhosale, venerated mother of Indian king Chatrapati Shivaji Maharaj (d. 1674)
- 1628 – Charles Perrault, French author and academic (d. 1703)
- 1673 – Rosalba Carriera, Italian painter (d. 1757)
- 1711 – Gaetano Latilla, Italian composer (d. 1788)
- 1715 – Jacques Duphly, French organist and composer (d. 1789)
- 1716 – Antonio de Ulloa, Spanish general and politician, 1st Spanish Governor of Louisiana (d. 1795)
- 1721 – Duke Ferdinand of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel, Prussian field marshal (d. 1792)
- 1723 – Samuel Langdon, American minister, theologian, and academic (d. 1797)
- 1724 – Frances Brooke, English author and playwright (d. 1789)
- 1729 – Edmund Burke, Irish philosopher, academic, and politician (d. 1797)
- 1746 – Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi, Swiss philosopher and educator (d. 1827)
- 1751 – Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies (d. 1825)
- 1772 – Mikhail Speransky, Russian academic and politician (d. 1839)
- 1786 – Sir Robert Inglis, 2nd Baronet, English politician (d. 1855)
- 1792 – Johan August Arfwedson, Swedish chemist and academic (d. 1841)
- 1797 – Gideon Brecher, Austrian physician and author (d. 1873)
- 1799 – Priscilla Susan Bury, British botanist (d. 1872)
- 1822 – Étienne Lenoir, Belgian engineer, designed the internal combustion engine (d. 1900)
- 1837 – Adolf Jensen, German pianist and composer (d. 1879)
- 1849 – Jean Béraud, Russian-French painter and academic (d. 1935)
- 1853 – Gregorio Ricci-Curbastro, Italian mathematician (d. 1925)
- 1856 – John Singer Sargent, American painter and academic (d. 1925)
- 1863 – Swami Vivekananda, Indian monk and philosopher (d. 1902)
- 1869 – Bhagwan Das, Indian philosopher, academic, and politician (d. 1958)
- 1873 – Spyridon Louis, Greek runner (d. 1940)
- 1874 – Laura Adams Armer, American author and photographer (d. 1963)
- 1876 – Fevzi Çakmak, Turkish field marshal and politician, Prime Minister of the Turkish Provisional Government (d. 1950)
- 1876 – Jack London, American novelist and journalist (d. 1916)
- 1876 – Ermanno Wolf-Ferrari, Italian composer and educator (d. 1948)
- 1877 – Frank J. Corr, American lawyer and politician, 45th Mayor of Chicago (d. 1934)
- 1878 – Ferenc Molnár, Hungarian-American author and playwright (d. 1952)
- 1879 – Ray Harroun, American race car driver and engineer (d. 1968)
- 1879 – Anton Uesson, Estonian engineer and politician, 17th Mayor of Tallinn (d. 1942)
- 1882 – Milton Sills, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1930)
- 1884 – Texas Guinan, American entertainer and bootlegger (d. 1933)
- 1889 – Mirza Basheer-ud-Din Mahmood Ahmad, Indian-Pakistani spiritual leader (d. 1965)
- 1890 – Johannes Vares, Estonian poet, physician, and politician (d. 1946)
- 1892 – Mikhail Gurevich, Russian engineer and businessman, co-founded the Russian Aircraft Corporation (d. 1976)
- 1893 – Hermann Göring, German commander, pilot, and politician, Minister President of Prussia (d. 1946)
- 1893 – Alfred Rosenberg, Estonian-German architect and politician, Reich Minister for the Occupied Eastern Territories (d. 1946)
- 1894 – Georges Carpentier, French boxer and actor (d. 1975)
- 1895 – Leo Aryeh Mayer, Polish-Israeli scholar and academic (d. 1959)
- 1896 – David Wechsler, Romanian-American psychologist and author (d. 1981)
- 1899 – Pierre Bernac, French opera singer and educator (d. 1979)
- 1899 – Paul Hermann Müller, Swiss chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1965)
- 1901 – Karl Künstler, German SS officer (d. 1945)
- 1903 – Igor Kurchatov, Russian physicist and academic (d. 1960)
- 1903 – Andrew J. Transue, American politician and attorney (Morissette v. United States) (d. 1995)
- 1904 – Mississippi Fred McDowell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1972)
- 1905 – Nihal Atsız, Turkish author, poet, and philosopher (d. 1975)
- 1905 – James Bennett Griffin, American archaeologist and academic (d. 1997)
- 1905 – Tex Ritter, American actor and singer (d. 1974)
- 1906 – Emmanuel Levinas, Lithuanian-French historian, philosopher, and academic (d. 1995)
- 1907 – Sergei Korolev, Russian colonel and engineer (d. 1966)
- 1908 – Jean Delannoy, French actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 2008)
- 1908 – Clement Hurd, American illustrator (d. 1988)
- 1910 – Patsy Kelly, American actress and comedian (d. 1981)
- 1910 – Luise Rainer, German-English actress (d. 2014)
- 1912 – Richard Kuremaa, Estonian footballer (d. 1991)
- 1914 – Mieko Kamiya, Japanese psychiatrist and psychologist (d. 1979)
- 1915 – Paul Jarrico, American screenwriter and producer (d. 1997)
- 1915 – Joseph-Aurèle Plourde, Canadian archbishop and academic (d. 2013)
- 1916 – Ruth R. Benerito, American chemist and inventor (d. 2013)
- 1916 – Mary Wilson, Baroness Wilson of Rievaulx, British poet and Spouse of the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 2018)
- 1916 – P. W. Botha, South African politician, 8th Prime Minister of South Africa (d. 2006)
- 1917 – Walter Hendl, American pianist, composer, and conductor (d. 2007)
- 1917 – Jimmy Skinner, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2007)
- 1920 – James Farmer, American activist, and politician, co-founded Congress of Racial Equality (d. 1999)
- 1920 – Jerzy Zubrzycki, Polish-Australian sociologist and academic (d. 2009)
- 1922 – Tadeusz Żychiewicz, Polish journalist and historian (d. 1994)
- 1923 – Ira Hayes, American marine who raised the U.S. flag on Iwo Jima (d. 1955)
- 1924 – Olivier Gendebien, Belgian racing driver and businessman (d. 1998)
- 1925 – Bill Burrud, American television host, producer, and actor (d. 1990)
- 1926 – Morton Feldman, American composer and academic (d. 1987)
- 1926 – Ray Price, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2013)
- 1928 – Ruth Brown, American R&B singer-songwriter and actress (d. 2006)
- 1929 – Alasdair MacIntyre, Scottish-American philosopher and academic
- 1929 – Jaakko Hintikka, Finnish philosopher and logician (d. 2015)
- 1930 – Tim Horton, Canadian ice hockey player and businessman, founded Tim Hortons (d. 1974)
- 1930 – Jennifer Johnston, Irish author and playwright
- 1930 – Glenn Yarbrough, American singer and actor (d. 2016)
- 1933 – Pavlos Matesis, Greek author and playwright (d. 2013)
- 1934 – Alan Sharp, Scottish-American author and screenwriter (d. 2013)
- 1934 – Mick Sullivan, English rugby player and coach (d. 2016)
- 1935 – Teresa del Conde, Mexican historian and critic (d. 2017)
- 1935 – Kreskin, American mentalist
- 1936 – Jennifer Hilton, Baroness Hilton of Eggardon, English police officer and politician
- 1936 – Raimonds Pauls, Latvian pianist and composer
- 1936 – Brajanath Ratha, Indian poet and activist (d. 2014)
- 1936 – Mufti Mohammad Sayeed, Indian lawyer and politician, Indian Minister of Home Affairs (d. 2016)
- 1937 – Shirley Eaton, English actress
- 1938 – Qazi Hussain Ahmad, Pakistani scholar and politician (d. 2013)
- 1940 – Bob Hewitt, Australian-South African tennis player
- 1940 – Ronald Shannon Jackson, American drummer and composer (d. 2013)
- 1940 – Dick Motz, New Zealand cricketer (d. 2007)
- 1941 – Long John Baldry, English-Canadian singer-songwriter and voice actor (d. 2005)
- 1941 – Fiona Caldicott, English psychiatrist and psychotherapist
- 1941 – Chet Jastremski, American swimmer and physician (d. 2014)
- 1942 – Bernardine Dohrn, American domestic terrorist, political activist and academic
- 1944 – Hans Henning Atrott, German author and theorist
- 1944 – Joe Frazier, American boxer (d. 2011)
- 1944 – Cynthia Robinson, American R&B trumpet player and singer (d 2015)
- 1945 – Maggie Bell, Scottish singer-songwriter
- 1946 – Hazel Cosgrove, Lady Cosgrove, Scottish lawyer and judge
- 1946 – George Duke, American keyboard player, composer, and educator (d. 2013)
- 1947 – Richard Carwardine, English historian and academic
- 1947 – Tom Dempsey, American football player and educator
- 1947 – Sally Hamwee, Baroness Hamwee, English politician
- 1948 – Kenny Allen, English footballer
- 1948 – Anthony Andrews, English actor and producer
- 1948 – Gordon Campbell, Canadian educator and politician, 34th Premier of British Columbia
- 1948 – Brendan Foster, English runner and sportscaster
- 1948 – William Nicholson, English author and screenwriter
- 1949 – Kentarō Haneda, Japanese pianist and composer (d. 2007)
- 1949 – Ottmar Hitzfeld, German footballer and manager
- 1949 – Hamadi Jebali, Tunisian engineer, journalist, and politician, 19th Prime Minister of Tunisia
- 1949 – Haruki Murakami, Japanese novelist, short-story writer, and essayist
- 1950 – Sheila Jackson Lee, American lawyer, judge, and politician
- 1950 – Göran Lindblad, Swedish dentist and politician
- 1950 – Bob McEwen, American businessman and politician
- 1950 – Dorrit Moussaieff, Israeli-Icelandic jewelry designer and businesswoman, 5th First Lady of Iceland
- 1951 – Kirstie Alley, American actress and producer
- 1951 – Chris Bell, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 1978)
- 1951 – Rush Limbaugh, American talk show host and author
- 1951 – Drew Pearson, American football player and sportscaster
- 1952 – Phil Perry, American singer-songwriter and producer
- 1952 – Ricky Van Shelton, American country singer-songwriter and guitarist
- 1952 – John Walker, New Zealand runner and politician
- 1952 – Walter Mosley, American novelist
- 1953 – Mary Harron, Canadian director and screenwriter
- 1954 – Howard Stern, American radio host, actor, and author
- 1954 – Martin Kylhammar, Swedish professor of culture and society
- 1955 – Tom Ardolino, American rock drummer (NRBQ) (d. 2012)
- 1956 – Nikolai Noskov, Russian rock singer and singer-songwriter
- 1957 – John Lasseter, American animator, director, and producer
- 1957 – Jeremy Sams, English director, playwright, and composer
- 1958 – Christiane Amanpour, English-born Iranian-American journalist
- 1958 – Curt Fraser, American-Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1959 – B. Brian Blair, American wrestler and politician
- 1959 – Per Gessle, Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1960 – Oliver Platt, Canadian-American actor
- 1960 – Dominique Wilkins, French-American basketball player and manager
- 1961 – Simon Russell Beale, Malaysia-born English actor and historian
- 1962 – Joe Quesada, American author and illustrator
- 1962 – Richie Richardson, Antiguan cricketer
- 1962 – Luna Vachon, American-Canadian wrestler and manager (d. 2010)
- 1963 – François Girard, Canadian director and screenwriter
- 1963 – Nando Reis, Brazilian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
- 1964 – Jeff Bezos, American computer scientist and businessman, founded Amazon.com
- 1965 – Raekwon, American rapper
- 1965 – Rob Zombie, American singer-songwriter, producer, actor, and director
- 1966 – Olivier Martinez, French actor
- 1966 – Craig Parry, Australian golfer
- 1967 – Vendela Kirsebom, Norwegian-Swedish model and actress
- 1968 – Junichi Masuda, Japanese director, producer, and composer
- 1968 – Heather Mills, English businesswoman, activist and model
- 1968 – Mauro Silva, Brazilian footballer
- 1969 – David Mitchell, English novelist
- 1969 – Margaret Nagle, American screenwriter and producer
- 1970 – Zack de la Rocha, American singer-songwriter
- 1971 – Scott Burrell, American basketball player and coach
- 1972 – Priyanka Gandhi, Indian politician
- 1972 – Espen Knutsen, Norwegian ice hockey player and coach
- 1972 – Paul Wilson, Australian cricketer and umpire
- 1973 – Brian Culbertson, American pianist and producer
- 1973 – Hande Yener, Turkish singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
- 1974 – Melanie C, English singer-songwriter and actress
- 1974 – Tor Arne Hetland, Norwegian skier
- 1975 – Jason Freese, American saxophonist, songwriter, and producer
- 1975 – Jocelyn Thibault, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1977 – Yoandy Garlobo, Cuban baseball player
- 1978 – Luis Ayala, Mexican baseball player
- 1978 – Maurizio Zaffiri, Italian rugby player
- 1979 – Marián Hossa, Slovak ice hockey player
- 1979 – Lee Bo-young, South Korean actress and model
- 1979 – Grzegorz Rasiak, Polish footballer
- 1979 – David Zabriskie, American cyclist
- 1980 – Bobby Crosby, American baseball player
- 1981 – Amerie, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
- 1981 – João Paulo Daniel, Brazilian footballer
- 1981 – Dan Klecko, American football player
- 1981 – Angus Macdonald, New Zealand rugby player
- 1981 – Luis Ernesto Pérez, Mexican footballer
- 1982 – Paul-Henri Mathieu, French tennis player
- 1982 – Hans Van Alphen, Belgian decathlete
- 1982 – Dean Whitehead, English footballer
- 1982 – Dontrelle Willis, American baseball player
- 1984 – Daniel Sepulveda, American football player
- 1984 – Jonathan Zydko, French footballer
- 1985 – Artem Milevskiy, Ukrainian footballer
- 1985 – Issa Rae, American actress, writer, director, producer and web series creator
- 1985 – Borja Valero, Spanish footballer
- 1986 – Kehoma Brenner, German rugby player
- 1986 – Miguel Ángel Nieto, Spanish footballer
- 1987 – Naya Rivera, American actress and singer
- 1987 – Salvatore Sirigu, Italian footballer
- 1988 – Claude Giroux, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1989 – Thiemo-Jérôme Kialka, German footballer
- 1989 – Axel Witsel, Belgian footballer
- 1991 – Pixie Lott, English singer-songwriter, dancer, and actress
- 1991 – Matt Srama, Australian rugby league player
- 1992 – Ishak Belfodil, Algerian footballer
- 1992 – Samuele Longo, Italian footballer
- 1993 – Zayn Malik, English singer-songwriter
- 1993 – Simone Pecorini, Italian footballer
- 1993 – Do Kyungsoo, South Korean singer and member of boy band EXO
- 1995 – Sarah Mehain, Canadian Paralympic swimmer
- 1995 – Alessio Romagnoli, Italian footballer
Deaths of January 12
- 690 – Benedict Biscop, English scholar and saint, founded the Monkwearmouth–Jarrow Abbey (b. 628)
- 914 – Ahmad Samani, Samanid emir
- 947 – Sang Weihan, Chinese chief of staff (b. 898)
- 1140 – Louis I, Landgrave of Thuringia
- 1167 – Aelred of Rievaulx, English monk and saint (b. 1110)
- 1320 – John Dalderby, bishop of Lincoln
- 1321 – Marie of Brabant, Queen of France (b. 1256)
- 1405 – Eleanor Maltravers, English noblewoman (b. 1345)
- 1519 – Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (b. 1459)
- 1665 – Pierre de Fermat, French mathematician and lawyer (b. 1601)
- 1674 – Giacomo Carissimi, Italian priest and composer (b. 1605)
- 1700 – Marguerite Bourgeoys, French-Canadian nun and saint, founded the Congregation of Notre Dame of Montreal (b. 1620)
- 1720 – William Ashhurst, English banker and politician, Lord Mayor of London (b. 1647)
- 1732 – John Horsley, English-Scottish historian and author (b. 1685)
- 1735 – John Eccles, English composer (b. 1668)
- 1759 – Anne, Princess Royal and Princess of Orange (b. 1709)
- 1765 – Johann Melchior Molter, German violinist and composer (b. 1696)
- 1777 – Hugh Mercer, Scottish-American general and physician (b. 1726)
- 1778 – François Bigot, French politician (b. 1703)
- 1781 – Richard Challoner, English bishop (b. 1691)
- 1829 – Karl Wilhelm Friedrich Schlegel, German philosopher, poet, and critic (b. 1772)
- 1833 – Marie-Antoine Carême, French chef (b. 1784)
- 1834 – William Grenville, 1st Baron Grenville, English academic and politician, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1759)
- 1856 – Ľudovít Štúr, Slovak philologist and politician (b. 1815)
- 1861 – Václav Hanka, Czech philologist and author (b. 1791)
- 1892 – James Caulfeild, 3rd Earl of Charlemont, Irish politician, Lord Lieutenant of Tyrone (b. 1820)
- 1892 – William Reeves, Irish bishop and historian (b. 1815)
- 1899 – Hiram Walker, American businessman, founded Canadian Club (b. 1816)
- 1909 – Hermann Minkowski, Lithuanian-German mathematician and academic (b. 1864)
- 1911 – Andreas Papagiannakopoulos, Greek journalist, judge, and politician (b. 1845)
- 1916 – Georgios Theotokis, Greek lawyer and politician, 80th Prime Minister of Greece (b. 1844)
- 1921 – Gervase Elwes, English tenor and actor (b. 1866)
- 1926 – Austin Chapman, Australian businessman and politician, 4th Australian Minister for Defence (b. 1864)
- 1934 – Paul Kochanski, Polish violinist and composer (b. 1887)
- 1938 – Oscar Florianus Bluemner, German-American painter and illustrator (b. 1867)
- 1940 – Ralph Hitz, Austrian-American hotelier (b. 1891)
- 1940 – Edward Smith, English lieutenant, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1898)
- 1943 – Jan Campert, Dutch journalist and critic (b. 1902)
- 1944 – Lance C. Wade, American commander and pilot (b. 1915)
- 1958 – Charles Hatfield, American meteorologist (b. 1875)
- 1960 – Nevil Shute, English engineer and author (b. 1899)
- 1962 – Ariadna Tyrkova-Williams, Russian journalist and activist (b. 1869)
- 1965 – Lorraine Hansberry, American author, playwright, and director (b. 1936)
- 1967 – Burhan Asaf Belge, Turkish diplomat (b. 1887)
- 1971 – John Tovey, 1st Baron Tovey, English admiral (b. 1885)
- 1973 – Roy Franklin Nichols, American historian and academic (b. 1896)
- 1974 – Princess Patricia of Connaught (b. 1886)
- 1976 – Agatha Christie, English crime novelist, short story writer, and playwright (b. 1890)
- 1977 – Henri-Georges Clouzot, French director and screenwriter (b. 1907)
- 1983 – Nikolai Podgorny, Ukrainian engineer and politician (b. 1903)
- 1988 – Connie Mulder, South African politician (b. 1925)
- 1988 – Piero Taruffi, Italian racing driver and motorcycle racer (b. 1906)
- 1990 – Laurence J. Peter, Canadian-American author and educator (b. 1919)
- 1991 – Robert Jackson, Australian public servant and diplomat (b. 1911)
- 1992 – Kumar Gandharva, a Hindustani classical singer (b. 1924)
- 1994 – Gustav Naan, Estonian physicist and philosopher (b. 1919)
- 1996 – Joachim Nitsche, German mathematician and academic (b. 1926)
- 1997 – Jean-Edern Hallier, French author (b. 1936)
- 1997 – Charles Brenton Huggins, Canadian-American physician and physiologist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1901)
- 1998 – Roger Clark, English racing driver (b. 1939)
- 1999 – Doug Wickenheiser, Canadian-American ice hockey player (b. 1961)
- 2000 – Marc Davis, American animator and screenwriter (b. 1913)
- 2000 – Bobby Phills, American basketball player (b. 1969)
- 2001 – Luiz Bonfá, Brazilian guitarist and composer (b. 1922)
- 2001 – William Redington Hewlett, American engineer and businessman, co-founded Hewlett-Packard (b. 1913)
- 2002 – Cyrus Vance, American lawyer and politician, 57th U.S. Secretary of State (b. 1917)
- 2003 – Dean Amadon, American ornithologist and author (b. 1912)
- 2003 – Kinji Fukasaku, Japanese actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1930)
- 2003 – Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentine general and politician, 44th President of Argentina (b. 1926)
- 2003 – Maurice Gibb, Manx-Australian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (b. 1949)
- 2003 – Alan Nunn May, English physicist and spy (b. 1911)
- 2004 – Olga Ladyzhenskaya, Russian mathematician and academic (b. 1921)
- 2005 – Amrish Puri, Indian actor (b. 1932)
- 2006 – Pablita Velarde, Santa Clara Pueblo (Native American) painter (b. 1918)
- 2007 – Alice Coltrane, American pianist and composer (b. 1937)
- 2007 – James Killen, Australian soldier, lawyer, and politician, 38th Australian Minister for Defence (b. 1925)
- 2008 – Max Beck, American intersex advocate (b. 1966)
- 2009 – Claude Berri, French actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1934)
- 2010 – Daniel Bensaïd, French philosopher and author (b. 1946)
- 2010 – Hasib Sabbagh, Palestinian businessman and philanthropist, co-founded Consolidated Contractors Company (b. 1920)
- 2012 – Bjørn G. Andersen, Norwegian geologist and academic (b. 1924)
- 2012 – Glenda Dickerson, American director, choreographer, and educator (b. 1945)
- 2012 – Bill Janklow, American lawyer and politician, 27th Governor of South Dakota (b. 1939)
- 2012 – Charles H. Price II, American businessman and diplomat, United States Ambassador to the United Kingdom (b. 1931)
- 2012 – Jim Stanley, American football player and coach (b. 1935)
- 2013 – Precious Bryant, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1942)
- 2013 – Eugene Patterson, American journalist and activist (b. 1923)
- 2014 – Alexandra Bastedo, English actress (b. 1946)
- 2014 – Connie Binsfeld, American educator and politician, 58th Lieutenant Governor of Michigan (b. 1924)
- 2014 – George Dement, American soldier, businessman, and politician (b. 1922)
- 2015 – Trevor Colbourn, American historian and academic (b. 1927)
- 2015 – Robert Gover, American journalist and author (b. 1929)
- 2015 – Carl Long, American baseball player (b. 1935)
- 2015 – Elena Obraztsova, Russian soprano and actress (b. 1939)
- 2015 – Inge Vermeulen, Brazilian-Dutch field hockey player (b. 1985)
- 2017 – William Peter Blatty, American writer and filmmaker (b. 1928)
- 2017 – Graham Taylor, former Grimsby Town player and former manager of the England football team. (b. 1944)
- 2018 – Keith Jackson, American sports commentator and journalist (b. 1928)
- 2020 – Sir Roger Scruton, English philosopher, and writer (b. 1944)
Holidays and observances on January 12
- Christian feast day:
- Aelred of Rievaulx
- Benedict Biscop
- Bernard of Corleone
- Marguerite Bourgeoys
- Tatiana
- January 12 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Earliest day on which Lee–Jackson Day can fall while January 18 is the latest, celebrated on the Friday before Martin Luther King Day. (Commonwealth of Virginia)
- Memorial Day (Turkmenistan)
- National Youth Day (India)
- Prosecutor General’s Day (Russia)
- Zanzibar Revolution Day (Tanzania)
-
January 8 in History
- 307 – Jin Huaidi becomes emperor of China in succession to his father, Jin Huidi, despite a challenge from his uncle, Sima Ying
- 871 – Alfred the Great leads a West Saxon army to repel an invasion by Danelaw Vikings.
- 1297 – François Grimaldi, disguised as a monk, leads his men to capture the fortress protecting the Rock of Monaco, establishing his family as the rulers of Monaco
- 1454 – The papal bull Romanus Pontifex awards the Kingdom of Portugal exclusive trade and colonization rights to all of Africa south of Cape Bojador
- 1499 – Louis XII of France marries Anne of Brittany in accordance with a law set by his predecessor, Charles VIII.
- 1547 – The first Lithuanian-language book, the Catechism of Martynas Mažvydas, is published in Königsberg.
- 1735 – The premiere of George Frideric Handel’s Ariodante takes place at the Royal Opera House, Covent Garden.
- 1746 – Second Jacobite rising: Bonnie Prince Charlie occupies Stirling.
- 1790 – George Washington delivers the first State of the Union address in New York City.
- 1806 – Cape Colony in southern Africa becomes a British colony as a result of the Battle of Blaauwberg.
- 1811 – An unsuccessful slave revolt is led by Charles Deslondes in the north American settlements of St. Charles and St. James, Louisiana.
- 1815 – War of 1812: Battle of New Orleans: Andrew Jackson leads American forces in victory over the British.
- 1828 – The Democratic Party of the United States is organized.
- 1835 – The United States national debt is zero for the only time.
- 1863 – American Civil War: Second Battle of Springfield.
- 1867 – African American men are granted the right to vote in Washington, D.C.
- 1877 – Crazy Horse and his warriors fight their last battle against the United States Cavalry at Wolf Mountain, Montana Territory.
- 1889 – Herman Hollerith is issued US patent #395,791 for the ‘Art of Applying Statistics’ — his punched card calculator.
- 1904 – The Blackstone Library is dedicated, marking the beginning of the Chicago Public Library system.
- 1912 – The African National Congress is founded, under the name South African Native National Congress (SANNC).
- 1918 – U.S. President Woodrow Wilson announces his “Fourteen Points” for the aftermath of World War I.
- 1920 – The steel strike of 1919 ends in failure for the Amalgamated Association of Iron, Steel and Tin Workers labor union.
- 1926 – Crown Prince Nguyễn Phúc Vĩnh Thuỵ ascends the throne to become the last monarch of Vietnam.
- 1926 – Abdul-Aziz ibn Saud is crowned King of Hejaz.
- 1936 – Kashf-e hijab decree is made and immediately enforced by Reza Shah, Iran’s head of state, banning the wearing of Islamic veils in public.
- 1940 – World War II: Britain introduces food rationing.
- 1945 – World War II: Philippine Commonwealth troops under the Philippine Commonwealth Army units enter the province of Ilocos Sur in Northern Luzon and attack Japanese Imperial forces.
- 1956 – Operation Auca: Five U.S. missionaries are killed by the Huaorani of Ecuador shortly after making contact with them.
- 1959 – Charles de Gaulle is proclaimed as the first President of the French Fifth Republic.
- 1961 – In France a referendum supports Charles de Gaulle’s policies in Algeria.
- 1963 – Leonardo da Vinci’s Mona Lisa is exhibited in the United States for the first time, at the National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C.
- 1964 – President Lyndon B. Johnson declares a “War on Poverty” in the United States.
- 1972 – Bowing to international pressure, President of Pakistan Zulfikar Ali Bhutto releases Bengali leader Sheikh Mujibur Rahman from prison, who had been arrested after declaring the independence of Bangladesh.
- 1973 – Soviet space mission Luna 21 is launched.
- 1973 – Watergate scandal: The trial of seven men accused of illegal entry into Democratic Party headquarters at Watergate begins.
- 1975 – Ella T. Grasso becomes Governor of Connecticut, the first woman to serve as a Governor in the United States other than by succeeding her husband.
- 1977 – Three bombs explode in Moscow, Russia, Soviet Union, within 37 minutes, killing seven. The bombings are attributed to an Armenian separatist group.
- 1981 – A local farmer reports a UFO sighting in Trans-en-Provence, France, claimed to be “perhaps the most completely and carefully documented sighting of all time”.
- 1982 – Breakup of the Bell System: AT&T agrees to divest itself of twenty-two subdivisions.
- 1989 – Kegworth air disaster: British Midland Flight 92, a Boeing 737-400, crashes into the M1 motorway, killing 47 of the 126 people on board.
- 1994 – Russian cosmonaut Valeri Polyakov on Soyuz TM-18 leaves for Mir. He would stay on the space station until March 22, 1995, for a record 437 days in space.
- 1996 – An Antonov An-32 cargo aircraft crashes into a crowded market in Kinshasa, Zaire, killing up to 223 on the ground; two of six crew members are also killed.
- 2002 – President George W. Bush signs into law the No Child Left Behind Act.
- 2003 – Turkish Airlines Flight 634 crashes near Diyarbakır Airport, Turkey, killing the entire crew and 70 of the 75 passengers.
- 2003 – Air Midwest Flight 5481 crashes at Charlotte-Douglas Airport, Charlotte, North Carolina, killing all 21 people on board.
- 2004 – The RMS Queen Mary 2, then the largest ocean liner ever built, is christened by her namesake’s granddaughter, Queen Elizabeth II.
- 2005 – The nuclear sub USS San Francisco collides at full speed with an undersea mountain south of Guam. One man is killed, but the sub surfaces and is repaired.
- 2009 – A 6.1-magnitude earthquake in northern Costa Rica kills 15 people and injures 32.
- 2010 – Gunmen from an offshoot the Front for the Liberation of the Enclave of Cabinda attack a bus carrying the Togo national football team on its way to the 2010 Africa Cup of Nations, killing three.
- 2011 – The attempted assassination of Arizona Representative Gabrielle Giffords and subsequent shooting in Casas Adobes, Arizona, in which five people were shot dead.
- 2016 – Joaquín Guzmán, widely regarded as the world’s most powerful drug trafficker, is recaptured following his escape from a maximum security prison in Mexico.
- 2020 – Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashes immediately after takeoff at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport; all 176 on board are killed. The plane was shot down by an Iranian anti-aircraft missile.
Births on January 8
- 1037 – Su Dongpo, Chinese calligrapher and poet (d. 1101)
- 1345 – Kadi Burhan al-Din, poet, kadi, and ruler of Sivas (d. 1398)
- 1462 – Walraven II van Brederode, Dutch nobleman (d. 1531)
- 1529 – John Frederick II, duke of Saxony (d. 1595)
- 1556 – Uesugi Kagekatsu, Japanese daimyō (d. 1623)
- 1583 – Simon Episcopius, Dutch theologian and academic (d. 1643)
- 1587 – Johannes Fabricius, German astronomer and academic (d. 1616)
- 1587 – Jan Pieterszoon Coen, Governor-General of the Dutch East Indies (d. 1629
- 1589 – Ivan Gundulić, Croatian poet and playwright (d. 1638)
- 1601 – Baltasar Gracián, Spanish priest and author (d. 1658)
- 1628 – François-Henri de Montmorency, duc de Luxembourg, French general (d. 1695)
- 1632 – Samuel von Pufendorf, German economist and jurist (d. 1694)
- 1635 – Luis Manuel Fernández de Portocarrero, Spanish cardinal (d. 1709)
- 1638 – Elisabetta Sirani, Italian painter (d. 1665)
- 1735 – John Carroll, American archbishop, founder of Georgetown University (d. 1815)
- 1763 – Edmond-Charles Genêt, French-American translator and diplomat (d. 1834)
- 1786 – Nicholas Biddle, American banker and financier (d. 1844)
- 1788 – Rudolf of Austria, Austrian archduke and archbishop (d. 1831)
- 1792 – Lowell Mason, American composer and educator (d. 1872)
- 1805 – John Bigler, American lawyer, politician, and diplomat, 3rd Governor of California (d. 1871)
- 1805 – Orson Hyde, American religious leader, 3rd President of the Quorum of the Twelve Apostles (d. 1878)
- 1812 – Sigismond Thalberg, Swiss pianist and composer (d. 1871)
- 1817 – Theophilus Shepstone, English-South African politician (d. 1893)
- 1821 – James Longstreet, American general and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Turkey (d. 1904)
- 1823 – Alfred Russel Wallace, Welsh geographer, biologist, and explorer (d. 1913)
- 1824 – Wilkie Collins, English novelist, playwright, and short story writer (d. 1889)
- 1824 – Francisco González Bocanegra, Mexican poet and composer (d. 1861)
- 1830 – Hans von Bülow, German pianist and composer (d. 1894)
- 1836 – Lawrence Alma-Tadema, Dutch-English painter and academic (d. 1912)
- 1843 – Frederick Abberline, English police officer (d. 1929)
- 1843 – Karl Eduard Heusner, German admiral (d. 1891)
- 1852 – James Milton Carroll, American pastor and author (d. 1931)
- 1854 – Fanny Bullock Workman, American mountaineer, geographer, and cartographer (d. 1925)
- 1860 – Emma Booth, English author (d. 1903)
- 1862 – Frank Nelson Doubleday, American publisher, founded the Doubleday Publishing Company (d. 1934)
- 1864 – Prince Albert Victor, Duke of Clarence and Avondale (d. 1892)
- 1865 – Winnaretta Singer, American philanthropist (d. 1943)
- 1866 – William G. Conley, American educator and politician, 18th Governor of West Virginia (d. 1940)
- 1867 – Emily Greene Balch, American economist and author, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1961)
- 1870 – Miguel Primo de Rivera, Spanish general and politician, Prime Minister of Spain (d. 1930)
- 1871 – James Craig, 1st Viscount Craigavon, Irish captain and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Northern Ireland (d. 1940)
- 1873 – Iuliu Maniu, Romanian lawyer and politician, 32nd Prime Minister of Romania (d. 1953)
- 1876 – Arturs Alberings, Latvian lawyer and politician, Prime Minister of Latvia (d. 1934)
- 1879 – Charles Bryant, English-American actor and director (d. 1948)
- 1881 – Henrik Shipstead, American dentist and politician (d. 1960)
- 1881 – Linnie Marsh Wolfe, American librarian and author (d. 1945)
- 1883 – Pavel Filonov, Russian painter and poet (d. 1941)
- 1883 – Patrick J. Hurley, American general, politician, and diplomat, 51st United States Secretary of War (d. 1963)
- 1885 – John Curtin, Australian journalist and politician, 14th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1945)
- 1885 – Mór Kóczán, Hungarian javelin thrower and pastor (d. 1972)
- 1885 – A. J. Muste, Dutch-American pastor and activist (d. 1967)
- 1888 – Richard Courant, German-American mathematician and academic (d. 1972)
- 1891 – Walther Bothe, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1957)
- 1891 – Storm Jameson, English journalist and author (d. 1986)
- 1891 – Bronislava Nijinska, Russian dancer and choreographer (d. 1972) name=”Jöckle1995″>Clemens Jöckle (1995). Encyclopedia of Saints. Alpine Fine Arts Collection. p. 319. ISBN 978-0-88168-226-7.</ref>
- 1896 – Jaromír Weinberger, Czech-American composer and academic (d. 1967)
- 1897 – Dennis Wheatley, English soldier and author (d. 1977)
- 1899 – S. W. R. D. Bandaranaike, Sri Lankan lawyer and politician, 4th Prime Minister of Sri Lanka (d. 1959)
- 1900 – Dorothy Adams, American character actress (d. 1988)
- 1900 – Merlyn Myer, Australian philanthropist (d. 1982)
- 1902 – Georgy Malenkov, Russian engineer and politician (d. 1988)
- 1902 – Carl Rogers, American psychologist and academic (d. 1987)
- 1904 – Karl Brandt, German physician and SS officer (d. 1948)
- 1904 – Tampa Red, American guitarist and songwriter (d. 1981)
- 1905 – Carl Gustav Hempel, German philosopher from the Vienna and the Berlin Circle (d. 1997)
- 1905 – Giacinto Scelsi, Italian composer and poet (d. 1988)
- 1906 – Serge Poliakoff, Russian-French painter (d. 1969)
- 1907 – Keizō Hayashi, Japanese general and civil servant (d. 1991)
- 1908 – Fearless Nadia, Australian-Indian actress and stuntwoman (d. 1996)
- 1908 – William Hartnell, English actor (d. 1975)
- 1909 – Ashapoorna Devi, Indian author and poet (d. 1995)
- 1909 – Willy Millowitsch, German actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1999)
- 1909 – Bruce Mitchell, South African cricketer (d. 1995)
- 1909 – Evelyn Wood, American author and educator (d. 1995)
- 1910 – Galina Ulanova, Russian actress and ballerina (d. 1998)
- 1911 – Gypsy Rose Lee, American actress, dancer, and author (d. 1970)
- 1912 – José Ferrer, Puerto Rican-American actor and director (d. 1992)
- 1912 – Lawrence Walsh, Canadian-American lawyer, judge, and politician, 4th United States Deputy Attorney General (d. 2014)
- 1915 – Walker Cooper, American baseball player and manager (d. 1991)
- 1917 – Peter Matthew Hillsman Taylor, American novelist, short story writer, and playwright (d. 1994)
- 1922 – Dale D. Myers, American engineer (d. 2015)
- 1923 – Larry Storch, American actor and comedian
- 1923 – Giorgio Tozzi, American opera singer and actor (d. 2011)
- 1923 – Johnny Wardle, English cricketer (d. 1985)
- 1923 – Joseph Weizenbaum, German-American computer scientist and author (d. 2008)
- 1924 – Benjamin Lees, Chinese-American soldier and composer (d. 2010)
- 1924 – Ron Moody, English actor and singer (d. 2015)
- 1925 – Mohan Rakesh, Indian author and playwright (d. 1972)
- 1926 – Evelyn Lear, American operatic soprano (d. 2012)
- 1926 – Lazzaro Donati, Italian artist (d. 1977)
- 1926 – Kerwin Mathews, American actor (d. 2007)
- 1926 – Kelucharan Mohapatra, Indian dancer and choreographer (d. 2004)
- 1926 – Hanae Mori, Japanese fashion designer
- 1926 – Soupy Sales, American comedian and actor (d. 2009)
- 1927 – Charles Tomlinson, English poet and academic (d. 2015)
- 1928 – Slade Gorton, American colonel, lawyer, and politician, 14th Attorney General of Washington
- 1928 – Gaston Miron, Canadian poet and author (d. 1996)
- 1928 – Luther Perkins, American country guitarist (d. 1968)
- 1929 – Saeed Jaffrey, Indian-British actor (d. 2015)
- 1931 – Bill Graham, German-American businessman (d. 1991)
- 1931 – Clarence Benjamin Jones, American lawyer and scholar
- 1933 – Nolan Miller, American fashion and jewelry designer (d. 2012)
- 1933 – Charles Osgood, American soldier and journalist
- 1933 – Jean-Marie Straub, French director and screenwriter
- 1933 – Willie Tasby, American baseball player
- 1934 – Jacques Anquetil, French cyclist (d. 1987)
- 1934 – Gene Freese, American baseball player and manager (d. 2013)
- 1934 – Roy Kinnear, British actor (d. 1988)
- 1934 – Alexandra Ripley, American author (d. 2004)
- 1935 – Lewis H. Lapham, American publisher, founded Lapham’s Quarterly
- 1935 – Elvis Presley, American singer, guitarist, and actor (d. 1977)
- 1936 – Zdeněk Mácal, Czech-American conductor
- 1936 – Robert May, Baron May of Oxford, Australian-English zoologist, ecologist, and academic (d. 2020)
- 1937 – Shirley Bassey, Welsh singer
- 1938 – Bob Eubanks, American game show host and producer
- 1938 – Yevgeny Nesterenko, Russian opera singer and educator
- 1939 – Carolina Herrera, Venezuelan-American fashion designer
- 1939 – Ruth Maleczech, American actress (d. 2013)
- 1939 – Alan Wilson, English mathematician and academic
- 1940 – Mark Bretscher, English biologist and academic
- 1940 – Cristy Lane, American country and gospel singer
- 1941 – Graham Chapman, English actor and screenwriter (d. 1989)
- 1942 – Stephen Hawking, English physicist and author (d. 2018)
- 1942 – Junichirō Koizumi, Japanese politician, 56th Prime Minister of Japan
- 1942 – Yvette Mimieux, American actress
- 1942 – Royce Waltman, American basketball player and coach (d. 2014)
- 1943 – Charles Murray, American political scientist and author
- 1944 – Terry Brooks, American lawyer and author
- 1945 – Nancy Bond, American author and academic
- 1945 – Phil Beal, English footballer, defender
- 1945 – Kadir Topbaş, Turkish architect and politician, 31st Mayor of Istanbul
- 1946 – Robby Krieger, American guitarist and songwriter
- 1946 – Miguel Ángel Félix Gallardo, Mexican drug lord
- 1947 – Don Bendell, American rancher and author
- 1947 – David Bowie, English singer-songwriter, producer, and actor (d. 2016)
- 1947 – David Gates, American journalist and novelist
- 1947 – Antti Kalliomäki, Finnish pole vaulter and politician
- 1947 – Luke Williams, New Zealand-American wrestler
- 1948 – Gillies MacKinnon, Scottish director and screenwriter
- 1949 – Lawrence Rowe, Jamaican cricketer
- 1951 – Kenny Anthony, Saint Lucian politician, 5th Prime Minister of Saint Lucia
- 1951 – Karen Tei Yamashita, American author and academic
- 1952 – Vladimir Feltsman, Russian-American pianist and educator
- 1952 – Peter McCullagh, Irish mathematician and academic
- 1953 – Bruce Sutter, American baseball player
- 1954 – Konstantinos Kypriotis, Greek martial artist (d. 1995)
- 1955 – Spiros Livathinos, Greek footballer and coach
- 1955 – Mike Reno, Canadian singer and drummer
- 1957 – Nacho Duato, Spanish dancer and choreographer
- 1958 – Betsy DeVos, American businesswoman and politician, 11th Secretary of Education
- 1958 – Rey Misterio, Sr., Mexican wrestler, trainer, and actor
- 1959 – Kim Duk-koo, South Korean boxer (d. 1982)
- 1959 – Paul Hester, Australian drummer (d. 2005)
- 1960 – Dave Weckl, American drummer
- 1961 – Calvin Smith, American sprinter
- 1966 – Willie Anderson, American basketball player
- 1966 – Igor Vyazmikin, Russian ice hockey player (d. 2009)
- 1966 – Andrew Wood, American singer-songwriter (d. 1990)
- 1967 – Torsten Gowitzke, German footballer and manager
- 1967 – Steven Jacobs, Australian television host and actor
- 1967 – R. Kelly, American singer-songwriter, record producer, and former professional basketball player
- 1967 – Tom Watson, English politician
- 1971 – Jason Giambi, American baseball player
- 1971 – Jesper Jansson, Swedish footballer
- 1971 – Pascal Zuberbühler, Swiss footballer and coach
- 1972 – Paul Clement, English footballer, coach, and manager
- 1972 – Giuseppe Favalli, Italian footballer
- 1973 – Mike Cameron, American baseball player
- 1975 – Harris Jayaraj, Indian composer and producer
- 1976 – Kenneth Andam, Ghanaian sprinter and businessman
- 1976 – Carl Pavano, American baseball player
- 1977 – Amber Benson, American actress, writer, director, and producer
- 1977 – Francesco Coco, Italian footballer
- 1979 – Seol Ki-hyeon, South Korean footballer and manager
- 1979 – Adrian Mutu, Romanian footballer
- 1979 – Stipe Pletikosa, Croatian footballer
- 1979 – Sarah Polley, Canadian actress, director, and screenwriter
- 1980 – Adam Goodes, Australian footballer
- 1980 – Rachel Nichols, American actress and producer
- 1981 – Jeff Francis, Canadian baseball player
- 1981 – Trent Waterhouse, Australian rugby league player
- 1982 – Gaby Hoffmann, American actress
- 1983 – Jon Daly, Irish footballer
- 1984 – Jeff Francoeur, American baseball player
- 1984 – Jeon Ji-ae, South Korean actress
- 1984 – Kim Jong-un, North Korean soldier and politician, 3rd Supreme Leader of North Korea (probable)
- 1986 – David Silva, Spanish footballer
- 1988 – Adrián López, Spanish footballer
- 1988 – Michael Mancienne, English footballer
- 1989 – Aaron Cruden, New Zealand rugby player
- 1991 – Josh Hazlewood, Australian cricketer
- 1991 – Stefan Johansen, Norwegian footballer
- 1991 – Stefan Savić, Montenegrin footballer
- 1991 – Shin Ji-min, South Korean singer and rapper
- 1992 – Stefanie Dolson, American basketball player
- 1992 – Koke, Spanish footballer
- 1992 – Apostolos Vellios, Greek footballer
Deaths on January 8
- 307 – Hui of Jin, Chinese emperor (b. 259)
- 482 – Severinus of Noricum, Italian apostle and saint
- 871 – Bagsecg, Viking warrior and leader
- 926 – Athelm, archbishop of Canterbury
- 1079 – Adèle of France, countess of Flanders (b. 1009)
- 1107 – Edgar, king of Scotland (b. 1074)
- 1198 – Celestine III, pope of the Catholic Church (b. 1106)
- 1332 – Andronikos III, emperor of Trebizond
- 1337 – Giotto, Italian painter and architect, designed Scrovegni Chapel and Giotto’s Campanile (b. 1266)
- 1354 – Charles de La Cerda, French nobleman (b. 1327)
- 1424 – Stephen Zaccaria, archbishop of Patras
- 1456 – Lawrence Giustiniani, Italian bishop and saint (b. 1381)
- 1464 – Thomas Ebendorfer, Austrian historian and academic (b. 1385)
- 1538 – Beatrice of Portugal, duchess of Savoy (b. 1504)
- 1557 – Albert Alcibiades, margrave of Brandenburg-Kulmbach (b. 1522)
- 1570 – Philibert de l’Orme, French sculptor and architect, designed the Château d’Anet (b. 1510)
- 1598 – John George, Elector of Brandenburg (b. 1525)
- 1642 – Galileo Galilei, Italian physicist, mathematician, astronomer, and philosopher (b. 1564)
- 1664 – Moses Amyraut, French physician and theologian (b. 1596)
- 1707 – John Dalrymple, 1st Earl of Stair, Scottish soldier and politician, Scottish Secretary of State (b. 1648)
- 1713 – Arcangelo Corelli, Italian violinist and composer (b. 1653)
- 1775 – John Baskerville, English printer and type designer (b. 1706)
- 1789 – Jack Broughton, English boxer (b. 1703)
- 1794 – Justus Möser, German lawyer and jurist (b. 1720)
- 1815 – Edward Pakenham, Anglo-Irish general and politician (b. 1778)
- 1825 – Eli Whitney, American engineer and theorist, invented the cotton gin (b. 1765)
- 1853 – Mihály Bertalanits, Slovene-Hungarian poet and educator (b. 1788)
- 1854 – William Beresford, 1st Viscount Beresford, English field marshal and politician, Lieutenant-General of the Ordnance (b. 1768)
- 1865 – Aimé, duc de Clermont-Tonnerre, French general and politician, French Minister of Defence (b. 1779)
- 1874 – Charles Étienne Brasseur de Bourbourg, French historian and archaeologist (b. 1814)
- 1878 – Nikolay Nekrasov, Russian poet and critic (b. 1821)
- 1878 – Gauchito Gil, Argentinian saint (b. 1847)
- 1880 – Emperor Norton, English-American businessman (b. 1811)
- 1883 – Miska Magyarics, Slovene-Hungarian poet (b. 1825)
- 1896 – William Rainey Marshall, American banker and politician, 5th Governor of Minnesota (b. 1825)
- 1896 – Paul Verlaine, French poet and writer (b. 1844)
- 1901 – John Barry, Irish soldier, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1873)
- 1912 – Friedrich Schrempf, German journalist and politician (b. 1858)
- 1914 – Simon Bolivar Buckner, American general and 30th Governor of Kentucky (b. 1823)
- 1916 – Rembrandt Bugatti, Italian sculptor (b. 1884)
- 1916 – Ada Rehan, Irish-American actress (b. 1860)
- 1918 – Johannes Pääsuke, Estonian photographer and director (b. 1892)
- 1918 – Ellis H. Roberts, American journalist and politician, 20th Treasurer of the United States (b. 1827)
- 1920 – Josef Josephi, Polish-born singer and actor (b.1852)
- 1925 – George Bellows, American painter (b.1882)
- 1934 – Andrei Bely, Russian novelist, poet, and critic (b. 1880)
- 1934 – Alexandre Stavisky, Ukrainian-French financier (b. 1886)
- 1935 – Rauf Yekta, Turkish musicologist and author (b. 1871)
- 1938 – Johnny Gruelle, American author and illustrator (b. 1880)
- 1941 – Robert Baden-Powell, 1st Baron Baden-Powell, English general (b. 1857)
- 1942 – Joseph Franklin Rutherford, American lawyer and religious leader (b. 1869)
- 1943 – Richard Hillary, Australian pilot and author (b. 1919)
- 1943 – Andres Larka, Estonian general and politician, 1st Estonian Minister of War (b. 1879)
- 1944 – William Kissam Vanderbilt II, American lieutenant and sailor (b. 1878)
- 1945 – Karl Ernst Krafft, Swiss astrologer and author (b. 1900)
- 1948 – Kurt Schwitters, German painter and graphic designer (b. 1887)
- 1950 – Joseph Schumpeter, Czech-American economist and academic (b. 1883)
- 1952 – Antonia Maury, American astronomer and astrophysicist (b. 1866)
- 1953 – Hugh Binney, English admiral and politician, 16th Governor of Tasmania (b. 1883)
- 1954 – Eduard Wiiralt, Estonian-French painter and illustrator (b. 1898)
- 1956 – Jim Elliot, American missionary and martyr (b. 1928)
- 1958 – Mary Colter, American architect, designed the Desert View Watchtower (b. 1869)
- 1961 – Schoolboy Rowe, American baseball player and coach (b. 1910)
- 1963 – Kay Sage, American painter (b. 1898)
- 1969 – Albert Hill, English runner and coach (b. 1889)
- 1969 – Elmar Kaljot, Estonian footballer and coach (b. 1901)
- 1970 – Georges Guibourg, French actor, singer, and playwright (b. 1891)
- 1972 – Kenneth Patchen, American poet and author (b. 1911)
- 1975 – Richard Tucker, American tenor (b. 1913)
- 1976 – Zhou Enlai, Chinese soldier and politician, 1st Premier of the People’s Republic of China (b. 1898)
- 1976 – Robert Forgan, Scottish-English physician and politician (b. 1891)
- 1979 – Sara Carter, American singer-songwriter and harp player (b. 1898)
- 1980 – John Mauchly, American physicist and academic (b. 1907)
- 1981 – Matthew Beard, American actor (b. 1925)
- 1982 – Grégoire Aslan, Swiss-English actor and screenwriter (b. 1908)
- 1983 – Gerhard Barkhorn, German general and pilot (b. 1919)
- 1983 – Tom McCall, American journalist and politician, 30th Governor of Oregon (b. 1913)
- 1983 – Gale Page, American actress (b. 1910)
- 1984 – Eerik Kumari, Estonian ornithologist and academic (b. 1912)
- 1986 – Pierre Fournier, French cellist and educator (b. 1906)
- 1990 – Bernard Krigstein, American illustrator (b. 1919)
- 1990 – Terry-Thomas, English actor and comedian (b. 1911)
- 1991 – Steve Clark, English singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1960)
- 1994 – Pat Buttram, American actor and comedian (b. 1915)
- 1994 – Harvey Haddix, American baseball player and coach (b. 1925)
- 1996 – Metin Göktepe, Turkish photographer and journalist (b. 1968)
- 1996 – François Mitterrand, French sergeant and politician, 21st President of France (b. 1916)
- 1996 – Howard Taubman, American author and critic (b. 1907)
- 1997 – Melvin Calvin, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
- 1998 – Michael Tippett, English composer and conductor (b. 1905)
- 2002 – Alexander Prokhorov, Australian-Russian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
- 2002 – Dave Thomas, American businessman and philanthropist, founded Wendy’s (b. 1932)
- 2003 – Ron Goodwin, English composer and conductor (b. 1925)
- 2004 – John A. Gambling, American radio host (b. 1930)
- 2006 – Tony Banks, Baron Stratford, Northern Irish broadcaster and politician, Minister for Sport and the Olympics (b. 1943)
- 2007 – Jane Bolin, American lawyer and judge (b. 1908)
- 2007 – Arthur Cockfield, Baron Cockfield, English lawyer and politician, Secretary of State for Business, Innovation and Skills (b. 1916)
- 2007 – Yvonne De Carlo, Canadian-American actress and singer (b. 1922)
- 2007 – David Ervine, Northern Irish politician and activist (b. 1953)
- 2007 – Iwao Takamoto, American animator, director, and producer (b. 1925)
- 2008 – George Moore, Australian jockey and trainer (b. 1923)
- 2009 – Lasantha Wickrematunge, Sri Lankan Journalist (b. 1958)
- 2010 – Art Clokey, American animator, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
- 2011 – Jiří Dienstbier, Czech journalist and politician (b. 1937)
- 2011 – Thorbjørn Svenssen, Norwegian footballer (b. 1924)
- 2012 – Dave Alexander, American singer and pianist (b. 1938)
- 2012 – T. J. Hamblin, English haematologist and academic (b. 1943)
- 2012 – John Madin, English architect, designed the Birmingham Central Library (b. 1924)
- 2012 – Bernhard Schrader, German chemist and academic (b. 1931)
- 2012 – Alexis Weissenberg, Bulgarian-French pianist and educator (b. 1929)
- 2013 – Kenojuak Ashevak, Canadian sculptor and illustrator (b. 1927)
- 2013 – Jeanne Manford, American educator and activist, co-founded PFLAG (b. 1920)
- 2013 – Alasdair Milne, Indian-English director and producer (b. 1930)
- 2014 – Vicente T. Blaz, American general and politician (b. 1928)
- 2014 – Madeline Gins, American poet and architect (b. 1941)
- 2014 – Irma Heijting-Schuhmacher, Dutch-Australian swimmer (b. 1925)
- 2014 – Antonino P. Roman, Filipino lawyer and politician (b. 1939)
- 2015 – Andraé Crouch, American singer-songwriter, producer, and pastor (b. 1942)
- 2015 – Kep Enderby, Australian lawyer, judge, and politician, 23rd Attorney-General for Australia (b. 1926)
- 2015 – Patsy Garrett, American actress and singer (b. 1921)
- 2016 – Maria Teresa de Filippis, Italian racing driver (b. 1926)
- 2016 – German Moreno, Filipino television host, actor, comedian and talent manager (b. 1933)
- 2017 – Nicolai Gedda, Swedish operatic tenor (b. 1925)
- 2017 – James Mancham, Seychellois politician (b. 1939)
- 2017 – Akbar Hashemi Rafsanjani, Iranian politician (b. 1934)
- 2017 – Peter Sarstedt, Indian-British singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1941)
- 2020 – Pat Dalton, Australian rules footballer (b. 1942)
- 2020 – Buck Henry, American actor, screenwriter, and director (b. 1930)
Holidays and observances on January 8
- Babinden (Belarus, Russia)
- Christian feast day:
- Abo of Tiflis
- Apollinaris Claudius
- Blessed Eurosia Fabris
- Gauchito Gil (Folk Catholicism)
- Gudula
- Harriet Bedell (Episcopal Church (USA))
- Lawrence Giustiniani
- Lucian of Beauvais
- Maximus of Pavia
- Our Lady of Prompt Succor (Roman Catholic Church)
- Pega (Anglican and Roman Catholic churches)
- Severinus of Noricum
- Thorfinn of Hamar
- January 8 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Commonwealth Day (Northern Mariana Islands)
- Earliest day on which Children’s Day can fall, while January 14 is the latest; celebrated on the second Saturday in January. (Thailand)
- Earliest day on which Lee–Jackson Day can fall, while January 14 is the latest; celebrated on Friday before Martin Luther King Jr. Day. (Virginia)
- Typing Day (International observance)