What are the important events that happened on January 18? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
January 18: Facts & Myths About This Day
January 18 is the 18th day of the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 348 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Thursday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is January 5, 2024 – a Thursday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 28,425,600 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 ‘octadecagon’ day.
Capricorn is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Garnet is the modern birthstone for this month. Emerald is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 23 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 4,045 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
Do people and celebrities interest you? Discover all the January 18 famous birthdays who share your special day. Learn some fun facts about your birthday! (Sponsored link)
January 18 Historical Events
- 1486 –King Henry VII of England marries Elizabeth of York, daughter of Edward IV.
- 1520 –King Christian II of Denmark and Norway defeats the Swedes at Lake Åsunden.
- 1535 –Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro founded Lima, the capital of Peru.
- 1916 –A 611 gram chondrite type meteorite strikes a house near the village of Baxter in Stone County, Missouri.
- 1944 –The Metropolitan Opera House in New York City hosts a jazz concert for the first time. The performers are Louis Armstrong, Benny Goodman, Lionel Hampton, Artie Shaw, Roy Eldridge and Jack Teagarden.
- 1977 –Scientists identify a previously unknown bacterium as the cause of the mysterious Legionnaires’ disease.
- 1978 –The European Court of Human Rights finds the United Kingdom government guilty of mistreating prisoners in Northern Ireland, but not guilty of torture.
- 1983 –The International Olympic Committee restores Jim Thorpe’s Olympic medals to his family.
- 1997 –Boerge Ousland of Norway becomes the first person to cross Antarctica alone and unaided.
- 2005 –The Airbus A380, the world’s largest commercial jet, is unveiled at a ceremony in Toulouse, France
Who were born on January 18?
- 1901 –Ivan Petrovsky, Russian mathematician (d. 1973)
- 1904 –Anthony Galla-Rini, American accordionist (d. 2006)
- 1904 –Cary Grant, English actor (d. 1986)
- 1915 –Vassilis Tsitsanis, Greek singer and songwriter (d. 1984)
- 1955 –Fergus Martin, Irish artist
- 1961 –Bobby Hansen, American basketball player
- 1964 –Andrea Leand, American tennis player
- 1967 –Kim Perrot, American basketball player (d. 1999)
- 1977 –Richard Wall, Irish actor
- 1981 –Olivier Rochus, Belgian tennis player
Who died on January 18?
- 1677 –Jan van Riebeeck, Dutch merchant (b. 1619)
- 1803 –Ippolit Bogdanovich, Russian poet (b. 1743)
- 1873 –Edward George Bulwer-Lytton, English author (b. 1803)
- 1923 –Wallace Reid, American actor (b. 1891)
- 1936 –Rudyard Kipling, British writer, Nobel laureate (b. 1865)
- 1952 –Curly Howard, American actor and comedian (b. 1903)
- 1978 –Walter H. Thompson, English Scotland Yard detective (b. 1890)
- 2008 –Frank Lewin, American composer and music theorist (b. 1925)
- 2009 –Grigore Vieru, Romanian poet (b. 1935)
- 2009 –Nora Kovach, Hungarian-born American ballerina (b. 1931)
Holy Toledo! Did you know that coffee and word games are an excellent combination to sharpen your vocabulary? Let’s give it a quick spin. Within 30 seconds, how many words can you think of from these letters NEHUUUBPVDVN? Check your answers here: Word finder NEHUUUBPVDVN. (Sponsored by WordFinder.Cafe)