What are the important events that happened on December 31? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
December 31: Facts & Myths About This Day
December 31 is the 366th day of the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar. The day of the week is Tuesday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is December 18, 2024 – a Tuesday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 28,926,720 minutes has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.
Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘trihectahexacontahexagon’ day.
Capricorn is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Turquoise is the modern birthstone for this month. Onyx is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 29 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.
The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,393 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
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December 31: This Day In History
It is widely known as New Year’s Eve since the following day is New Year’s Day. It is the last day of the year.
December 31 Historical Events
- 1225 –The Ly Dynasty of Vietnam ends after 216 years by the enthronement of the boy emperor Tran Thai Tong, husband of the last Ly monarch, Ly Chieu Hoang, starting the Tran Dynasty.
- 1759 –Arthur Guinness signs a 9,000 year lease at £45 per annum and starts brewing Guinness.
- 1831 –Gramercy Park is deeded to New York City.
- 1879 –Thomas Edison demonstrates incandescent lighting to the public for the first time, in Menlo Park, New Jersey.
- 1946 –President Harry S. Truman officially proclaims the end of hostilities in World War II.
- 1983 –In Nigeria a coup d'état led by Major General Muhammadu Buhari ends the Nigerian Second Republic.
- 1983 –The AT&T Bell System is broken up by the United States Government.
- 1994 –This date is skipped altogether in Kiribati as the Phoenix Islands and Line Islands change time zones from UTC−11:00 to UTC+13:00 and UTC-10:00 to UTC+14:00, respectively.
- 1999 –Five hijackers, who had been holding 155 hostages on an Indian Airlines plane, leave the plane with two Islamic clerics that they had demanded be freed.
- 2004 –The official opening of Taipei 101, the tallest skyscraper at that time in the world, standing at a height of 509 m.
Who were born on December 31?
- 1763 –Pierre-Charles Villeneuve, French admiral (d. 1806)
- 1901 –Julia Bathory, Hungarian glass designer(d. 2000)
- 1910 –Carl Dudley, American film director (d. 1973)
- 1938 –Rosalind Cash, American actress (d. 1995)
- 1973 –Crystal Knight, American pornographic actress and model
- 1973 –Shandon Anderson, American basketball player
- 1975 –Sander Schutgens, Dutch runner
- 1982 –Bryce Avary, The Rocket Summer, American musician
- 1982 –Luke Schenscher, Australian basketball player
- 1984 –Paul Rodriguez Jr., Professional skateboarder
Who died on December 31?
- 1194 –Duke Leopold V of Austria (killed at a tournament) (b. 1157)
- 1297 –Humphrey de Bohun, 3rd Earl of Hereford, English soldier (b. 1249)
- 1673 –Oliver St John, English statesman and judge
- 1909 –Spencer Trask, American financier (b. 1844)
- 1936 –Miguel de Unamuno, Spanish writer and philosopher (b. 1864)
- 1977 –Sabah III Al-Salim Al-Sabah, ruler of Kuwait (b. 1924)
- 1980 –Marshall McLuhan, Canadian writer (b. 1911)
- 1997 –Michael Kennedy, American politician (b. 1958)
- 2001 –Eileen Heckart, American actress (b. 1919)
- 2007 –Ettore Sottsass, Italian architect and designer (b. 1917)
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