Holidays Calendar for February 3, 2018
Heroes' Day is celebrated annually in Mozambique on February 3. It honors the soldiers, who died in the Mozambican War of Independence.
The Democratic Republic of São Tomé and Príncipe annually celebrates Martyrs' Day on February 3. This holiday commemorates the death of the soldiers, who died in the fights for independence from Portugal.
In the traditional Chinese calendar, the spring season begins in early February and ends in early May, consisting of six solar terms: Lichun, Yushui, Jingzhe, Chunfen, Qingming, and Guyu. In some East Asian cultures, there are special celebrations dedicated to the beginning of spring. The Japanese one is named Setsubun.
February 3 is Day of the Virgin of Suyapa, the patroness of Honduras. This day commemorates rediscovery of stolen statue of Virgin of Suyapa.
Global Chaplains Day is celebrated annually on the first Saturday of February. It was created to honor chaplains around the globe for their selfless service and raise awareness of the important work they do.
National Women Physicians Day is celebrated annually on February 3 to recognize all female doctors and highlight the specific obstacles they face while building a career in medicine. The date of the holiday was chosen to commemorate the birthday of Dr. Elizabeth Blackwell, the first woman to receive a medical degree in the US.
There are quite a few occasions in Finland that are celebrated by flying the national flag. One of the most recently established Finnish flag flying days is the Day of Finnish Architecture and Design. It is observed on February 3 to commemorate the birthday of renowned Finnish architect and designer Alvar Aalto.
February 3 is Four Chaplains Day in the USA. This day commemorates the events of February 3, 1943, when the troop ship USAT Dorchester sank.
February 3 is annual observance of Communist Party of Vietnam Foundation Anniversary. This is not a public holiday, but the observance is very popular for the citizens of Vietnam.
February 3 is annual celebration of Veterans' Day in Thailand. This day commemorates the foundation day of the War Veterans Organization of Thailand.
February 3 is National Carrot Cake Day. You believe it or not, but this cake deserves to have its own holiday.
Ice Cream for Breakfast Day is an informal holiday celebrated on the first Saturday on February. It originated in the United States in the 1960s, but has since spread across the world.
The Golden Retriever is one of the most popular god breeds in the world due to its gentle and affectionate nature. It is one of the most frequently registered breeds in the United States, so it is not surprising that there is a National Golden Retriever Day. It is celebrated annually on February 3.
On the first Saturday in February, Peruvians celebrate National Pisco Sour Day. The holiday is dedicated to one of the most popular alcoholic cocktails that have originated from South America. Peru and Chile both claim the pisco sour as their national drink, which has made the cocktail a significant topic of Latin American pop culture.
National Missing Persons Day is observed in the United States annually on February 3. It was created to raise awareness of the hundreds of thousands of people that go missing every year and highlight the importance of broad and equal coverage of all missing persons cases.
Festivals on February 3, 2018
- Directors Guild of America Awards in Los Angeles, USA
- Carnival of Acireale in Acireale, Italy
- Bruges Beer Festival in Bruges, Belgium
- Carnival of Solsona in Solsona, Spain
- Annie Awards in Los Angeles, USA
- Goya Awards in Madrid, Spain
- Winterlude in Ottawa, Canada
- Winterlude in Gatineau, Canada
- Mardi Gras! Galveston in Galveston, USA
- FurCoNZ in Turangi, New Zealand
- Chiang Mai Flower Festival in Chiang Mai, Thailand
- National Apple Festival in Argentina in General Roca, Argentina
- Kurentovanje Carnival (Carnival of Ptuj) in Ptuj, Slovenia
- CYFEST (CYBERFEST) in Saint Petersburg, Russia
- Sapporo Snow Festival in Sapporo, Japan
This Day in History
- 2023 38 cars of a Norfolk Southern freight train carrying hazardous materials derailed in East Palestine, Ohio, United States, releasing hydrogen chloride and phosgene into the air.
- 2009 Died: Sheng-yen, Chinese monk and scholar, founder of the Dharma Drum Mountain, one of the most influential Buddhist organizations in Chinese Buddhism.
- 2006 Died: Al Lewis, American actor, best known for his role as Count Dracula lookalike "Grandpa Munster" in the CBS's The Munsters.
- 1995 Eileen Collins became the first woman astronaut to pilot the Space Shuttle as mission STS-63 got underway from Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
- 1989 Died: John Cassavetes, American actor, pioneer of American independent film. He is known for his roles in Rosemary's Baby and The Dirty Dozen.
- 1984 The first embryo transfer in the history from one woman to another resulting in a live birth was made at Harbor-UCLA Medical Center.
- 1976 Born: Isla Fisher, Australian actress and author, who began her career on Australian television. She is known for her roles in Scooby-Doo, Confessions of a Shopaholic, The Great Gatsby, and Now You See Me.
- 1975 Died: Umm Kulthum, Egyptian singer, songwriter, and film actress active from the 1920s to the 1970s. In her native Egypt, Kulthum is a national icon; she has been dubbed as "The Voice of Egypt" and "Egypt's Fourth Pyramid".
- 1972 A 7-day blizzard, which would kill at least 4,000 people, began in Iran, making it the deadliest snowstorm in history.
- 1970 Born: Warwick Davis, English actor and television presenter whose notable film credits include the Leprechaun, Harry Potter, Star Wars, and The Chronicles of Narnia film series.
- 1966 The unmanned Soviet Luna 9 spacecraft made the first controlled rocket assisted landing on the Moon.
- 1964 Died: Albert Richardson, English architect of the first half of the 20th century. One of his most notable works is the Manchester Opera House.
- 1959 Died: The Big Bopper, Buddy Holly, and Ritchie Valens, American singer-songwriters and guitarists. Their deaths in a plane crush near Clear Lake, Iowa were dubbed in Don McLean's song "American Pie" as "The Day the Music Died".
- 1958 Benelux Economic Union was founded, creating a testing ground for the later European Economic Community.
- 1956 Born: Nathan Lane, American actress known for his numerous roles on stage and screen, both comedic and dramatic. His accolades include three Tony Awards and three Emmy Awards.
- 1956 Died: Émile Borel, French mathematician, known for his work in the areas of measure theory and probability. He introduced an amusing thought experiment that entered popular culture as the infinite monkey theorem.
- 1950 Born: Morgan Fairchild, American actress primarily known for her television roles on Search for Tomorrow, Dallas, Flamingo Road, Paper Dolls, and Falcon Crest.
- 1949 Born: Arthur Kane, American bass player, known for the pioneering glam rock band the New York Dolls, one of the first bands in the early punk rock scene.
- 1945 Berlin was bombed by 1,000 B-17s. The bombing, which was part of Operation Thunderclap, resulted in the deaths of between 2,500 and 3,000 people and dehousing of another 120,000.
- 1931 258 people were killed in the Hawke's Bay earthquake that became New Zealand's worst natural disaster.
- 1924 Died: Woodrow Wilson, American politician, the 28th President of the United States, Nobel Peace Prize laureate for his sponsorship of the League of Nations.
- 1918 The Twin Peaks Tunnel in San Francisco began service. Its length is 11,920 feet (3,633 meters), and today this tunnel remains one of the world's longest tunnels for streetcars.
- 1904 Born: Pretty Boy Floyd, American bank robber who operated in the Midwest and West Southern Central States. Although Floyd was a robber, he was viewed positively by the general public.
- 1894 Born: Norman Rockwell, American painter and illustrator, best known cover illustrations of everyday life scenarios created for The Sunday Evening Post magazine and covers for Boy's Life calendars by Boy Scouts of America.
- 1874 Died: Lunalilo of Hawaii, known in the Hawaiian history as the most liberal king, but the shortest-reigning monarch. He died at the age of 39 from tuberculosis; his reign lasted only for 1 year and 25 days.
- 1874 Born: Gertrude Stein, American poet and art collector, known for her literary innovations and being a pioneer of Modernist literature. She became popular after publishing The Autobiography of Alice B. Toklas, which became a literary bestseller.
- 1857 Born: Giuseppe Moretti, Italian sculptor, popular in the USA for his public monuments in bronze and marble. Moretti designed the Vulcan statue, the largest cast iron statue in the world, and the city symbol of Birmingham, Alabama.
- 1830 Born: Robert Gascoyne-Cecil, 3rd Marquess of Salisbury, English politician, the first British Prime Minister of the 20th century and the last Prime Minister to head his full administration from the House of Lords.
- 1821 Born: Elizabeth Blackwell, American physician, the first woman who received a medical degree in the U.S. as well as the first woman in the UK Medical Register.
- 1809 Born: Felix Mendelssohn, German pianist, composer and conductor, best known for his "Wedding March".
- 1690 The first paper money in the Americas were issued by the colony of Massachusetts.
- 1468 Died: Johannes Gutenberg, German printer and publisher. He introduced printing to Europe after inventing the movable type printing technology, thus starting the Printing Revolution.
- 1377 More than 2,000 people were slaughtered by Papal troops in Cesena, Italy.