Holidays Calendar for December 3, 2024
On December 3, the Catholic Church celebrates the feast day of Saint Francis Xavier, a well-known Catholic missionary and one of the founders of the Society of Jesus (Jesuit Order). It is an official holiday in the Spanish autonomous community of Navarre, where Francis Xavier was born, and in the Indian state of Goa, where he led a mission.
3December is an annual event celebrating 3D computer graphics. It was launched by Alias System Corporation. Currently, the event is coordinated by Autodesk, as Autodesk acquired Alias in December 2006.
Global No Pesticides Use Day is observed on December 3. It was launched by Pesticide Action Network (PAN) International in 1998 to commemorate the Bhopal disaster of 1984, which is considered the world's worst industrial disaster.
For most people, the first Tuesday in December is just another day, but for many basketball players and fans around the globe, it is World Trick Shot Day. This inspiring holiday was created by the Harlem Globetrotters in 2016 to encourage people to show off their basketball skills.
Lawyer's Day is an official professional holiday in Russia celebrated on December 3. It was established in February 2008 by President Vladimir Putin and has been observed every year ever since.
On December 3 every year, the lawyer community of India celebrates Advocate's Day. The holiday marks the birth anniversary of Dr. Rajendra Prasad, the first President of India who also was a very eminent lawyer.
On December 3 every year, Cuban doctors celebrate their professional holiday. National Doctor’s Day in Cuba was established to commemorate the birthday of Carlos Juan Finlay, a Cuban physician and epidemiologist who was the first to discover the transmission vector of yellow fever.
International Basque Language Day, also known as International Day of the Basque Language, is celebrated on December 3. It was established in 1948 and became official in 1995.
Day of the Unknown Soldier is an official memorial day in Russia dedicated to the memory of all Russian and Soviet soldiers who died in the line of duty in Russia or abroad and whose names are unknown. It is observed annually on December 3.
Navarre Day (Día de Navarra) is celebrated annually on December 3 in the Spanish autonomous community of Navarre. It marks the feast day of the patron saint of Navarre, Saint Francis Xavier.
December 3 is a holiday for all the coffeeholics out there because the National Peppermint Latte Day is observed on this date. Celebrate this food-related holiday by treating yourself to a cup of peppermint-flavored caffellatte.
National Green Bean Casserole Day is celebrated annually on December 3. It is a great occasion to perfect your green bean casserole recipe between Thanksgiving and Christmas.
Peppermint Bark Cheesecake Day is one of many cheesecake days created by Patti Jewel. It is celebrated on December 3 in honor of a delicious dessert that combines the sweetness of chocolate and the freshness of peppermint.
International Day of Persons with Disabilities is an annual United Nations observance held on December 3. It was established by the General Assembly in 1992 as International Day of Disabled Persons and has been celebrated every year ever since.
Festivals on December 3, 2024
- Night of the Proms in Frankfurt am Main, Germany
- Rome Christmas Market in Rome, Italy
- Jazz Bez in Lviv, Ukraine
- Guadalajara International Book Fair in Guadalajara, Mexico
- Winter Wonderland at VDNG in Kyiv, Ukraine
- Prague Christmas Market in Prague, Czech Republic
- Cavalcade of Lights in Toronto, Canada
- Brussels Christmas Market in Brussels, Belgium
- Krakow Christmas Market in Krakow, Poland
- Riga Christmas Market in Riga, Latvia
- Merano Christmas Market in Merano, Italy
- Liège Christmas Market in Liège, Belgium
- Warsaw Christmas Market in Warsaw, Poland
- Nuremberg Christmas Market in Nuremberg, Germany
- Vilnius Christmas Market in Vilnius, Lithuania
This Day in History
- 2024 South Korean president Yoon Suk Yeol declared martial law, which included the prohibition of any political activities and a suspension of the freedom of the press. The martial law was lifted within 24 hours.
- 2023 Mount Marapi, a complex volcano on the Indonesian island of Sumatra, erupted, sending ash as high as 10,000 ft into the air. The eruption killed 24 people and injured another 12.
- 2022 Up to 40,000 residential and business customers were left without electricity as a result of a shooting attack on two electrical distribution substations located in Moore County, North Carolina.
- 2014 The Japanese space agency JAXA launched the space explorer Hayabusa2 on a six-year round trip mission to an asteroid to collect rock samples.
- 2012 Typhoon Bopha made landfall in the Philippines, killing at least 475 people.
- 2011 Died: Dev Anand, Indian actor, writer, director and producer known for his work in Hindi cinema. He is considered one of the greatest and most successful actors in the history of Indian cinema.
- 2000 Died: Gwendolyn Brooks, American poet and teacher. She became the first African-American (she preferred the term "Black") person to win a Pulitzer prize.
- 1999 Died: John Paul Larkin, better known by his stage name Scatman John, American musician, the creator of fusion of scat signing and dance music. His best known hits are "Scatman" and "Scatman's World".
- 1997 Representatives from 121 countries signed the Ottawa Treaty, prohibiting the manufacture and deployment of anti-personnel landmines. China, Russia and the United States didn't sign the treaty.
- 1994 The PlayStation, developed and marketed by Sony Computer Entertainment, was released in Japan for the first time.
- 1992 The world's first text message was sent to a phone from a personal computer via the Vodafone network.
- 1985 Born: Amanda Seyfried, American actress known for her roles in the films Mean Girls, Mamma Mia! and its sequel, Jennifer's Body, Les Misérables, A Million Ways to Die in the West, Mank, and more.
- 1984 More than 3,800 people were killed and 150,000-160,000 others injured due to a methyl isocyanate leak from a Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal, India. It was one of the world's worst industrial disasters in history.
- 1981 Died: Walter Knott, American farmer, founder of the Knott's Berry Farm amusement park in California. His park is the 13th most visited theme park in North America.
- 1980 Born: Jenna Dewan, American actress and dancer known for her role as Nora Clark in the film Step Up. Her television credits include Supergirl, Superman & Lois, The Resident, The Rookie, and more.
- 1979 Born: Tiffany Haddish, American stand-up comedian and actress. Her breakthrough came in with a leading role in the comedy film Girls Trip, which earned her several accolades.
- 1976 Seven armed men raided the residence of reggae musician Bob Marley in Kingston, Jamaica. Marley was shot in the chest and arm and his wife was shot in the head, but both survived.
- 1973 Born: Holly Marie Combs, American actress and producer, best known for her roles as Kimberly Brock in Picket Fences, Piper Halliwell in Charmed, and Ella Montgomery in Pretty Little Liars.
- 1968 Born: Brendan Fraser, Canadian-American actor. He emerged as a star playing Rick O'Connell in The Mummy trilogy and won an Academy Award for his lead role in the 2022 film The Whale.
- 1967 A transplant team headed by Christian Barnard carried out the first heart transplant on a human at Groote Schuur Hospital in Cape Town, South Africa.
- 1965 Born: Katarina Witt, German former figure skater. A two-time Olympic champion, Witt is regarded as one of the greatest ladies' singles figure skaters of all time.
- 1960 Born: Daryl Hannah, American actress and environmental activist. Her film credits include The Fury, Blade Runner, Summer Lovers, Splash, Roxanne, Wall Street, and Steel Magnolias.
- 1960 Born: Julianne Moore, American actress and author. Her most acclaimed films include The Hunger Games: Mockingjay – Part 1, The Lost World: Jurassic Park, Hannibal, Nine Months, Carrie.
- 1948 Born: Ozzy Osbourne, English musician and media personality. He rose to prominence during the 1970s as a founding member and the lead singer of the heavy metal band Black Sabbath.
- 1935 Died: Princess Victoria of the United Kingdom, a member of the British Royal Family, the fourth child and second daughter of King Edward VII and Queen Alexandra.
- 1933 Born: Paul J. Crutzen, Dutch meteorologist and atmospheric chemist. He is known for his work on the hole in the ozone layer, which won him the 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
- 1930 Born: Jean-Luc Godard, French and Swiss film director, screenwriter, and film critic. He rose to prominence as a pioneer of the French New Wave film movement of the 1960s.
- 1925 Born: Kim Dae-jung, South Korean lieutenant and politician, the 8th President of South Korea from February 25, 1998 to February 25, 2003. He was awarded the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize for his policy of engagement with North Korea.
- 1919 The Quebec Bridge connecting Sainte-Foy and Lévis opened to traffic after nearly 20 years of planning and construction, including two collapses causing 89 deaths.
- 1911 Born: Nino Rota, Italian composer, pianist and conductor, best known for his film scores. His most notable works are the first two Godfather films by Francis Ford Coppola and two of Franco Zeffirelli's Shakespeare films.
- 1910 George Claude demonstrated the modern neon lighting for the first time at the Paris Motor Show.
- 1902 Died: Prudente de Morais, Brazilian politician, the 3rd President of Brazil who served in office from November 15, 1894 to November 15, 1898.
- 1900 Born: Richard Kuhn, German chemist, the 1938 Nobel Prize in Chemistry laureate. He was awarded the Prize for his work on carotenoids and vitamins.
- 1894 Died: Robert Louis Stevenson, Scottish author and poet, most famous for his works Treasure Island, Kidnapped, and Strange Case of Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde.
- 1892 Died: Afanasy Fet, Russian poet regarded as one of the finest lyricists in Russian literature.
- 1888 Died: Carl Zeiss, German scientific instrument maker, optician and businessman. In 1846 he founded his workshop, which is still in business as Carl Zeiss AG.
- 1886 Born: Manne Siegbahn, Swedish physicist. He was awarded the 1924 Nobel Prize in Physics for his discoveries and research in the field of X-ray spectroscopy.
- 1884 Born: Rajendra Prasad, Indian politician, lawyer, journalist and scholar who served as the first president of India from 1952 to 1962.
- 1789 Died: Claude Joseph Vernet, French painter, renowned for his seascapes. His most famous paintings include The Expulsion of the Jesuits, A Calm at a Mediterranean Port, Shipwreck, Mediterranean Night.
- 1596 Born: Nicola Amati, Italian master luthier, one of the most well-known luthiers from the Casa Amati (House of Amati). His students incluided Andrea Guarneri and Giovanni Battista Rogeri.