What are the important events that happened on August 31? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
August 31: Facts & Myths About This Day
August 31 is the 243rd day of the year 2025 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 122 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Sunday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is August 18, 2025 – a Sunday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 29,276,640 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 ‘dihectatetracontatrigon’ day.
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Virgo is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Peridot is the modern birthstone for this month. Diamond is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 170 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 4,636 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
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August 31 Historical Events
- 1218 –Al-Kamil becomes Sultan of Egypt, Syria and northern Mesopotamia on the death of his father Al-Adil.
- 1907 –Count Alexander Izvolsky and Sir Arthur Nicolson sign the St. Petersburg Convention, which results in the Triple Entente alliance.
- 1920 –Polish-Bolshevik War: a decisive Polish victory in the Battle of Komarów.
- 1936 –Radio Prague, now the official international broadcasting station of the Czech Republic, goes on the air.
- 1940 –Pennsylvania Central Airlines Trip 19 crashes near Lovettsville, Virginia. The CAB investigation of the accident is the first investigation to be conducted under the Bureau of Air Commerce act of 1938.
- 1941 –World War II: Serbian paramilitary forces defeat Germans in the Battle of Loznica.
- 1949 –The retreat of the Democratic Army of Greece in Albania after its defeat on Gramos mountain marks the end of the Greek Civil War.
- 1986 –The Soviet passenger liner Ship sinks in the Black Sea after colliding with the bulk carrier Pyotr Vasev, killing 423.
- 1997 –Diana, Princess of Wales, her companion Dodi Al-Fayed and driver Henri Paul die in a car crash in Paris.
- 1999 –A LAPA Boeing 737-200 crashes during takeoff from Jorge Newbury Airport in Buenos Aires, killing 65, including two on the ground.
Who were born on August 31?
- 1896 –Félix-Antoine Savard, Canadian priest and novelist (d. 1982)
- 1928 –James Coburn, American actor (d. 2002)
- 1940 –Wilton Felder, American musician
- 1948 –Rudolf Schenker, German guitarist (Scorpions)
- 1949 –Richard Gere, American actor
- 1955 –Edwin Moses, American hurdler
- 1957 –Glenn Tilbrook, English singer and guitarist (Squeeze)
- 1964 –Raymond P. Hammond, American poet and editor
- 1969 –Andrew Cunanan, American spree killer (d. 1997)
- 1987 –Ondřej Pavelec, Czech ice hockey player
Who died on August 31?
- 651 –Aidan of Lindisfarne, Irish bishop and missionary (birth date unknown)
- 1920 –Wilhelm Wundt, German psychologist (b. 1832)
- 1927 –William Carver, American sharpshooter & show hoster (b. 1851)
- 1940 –Georges Gauthier, French-Canadian religious figure (b. 1871)
- 1985 –Frank Macfarlane Burnet, Australian biologist, Nobel laureate (b. 1899)
- 1986 –Henry Moore, English sculptor (b. 1898)
- 1986 –Urho Kekkonen, Finnish politician (b. 1900)
- 2005 –Michael Sheard, British actor (b. 1940)
- 2006 –Tom Delaney, British racing driver (b. 1911)
- 2007 –Karloff Lagarde, Mexican professional wrestler (b. 1928)
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