Holidays Calendar for July 15, 2020

July 15 is Sultan's Birthday in Brunei. This holiday celebrates the day of birth of current Sultan Hassanal Bolkiah, the 29th representative of the ruling dynasty in Brunei.

Democracy and National Unity Day (Demokrasi ve Milli Birlik Günü) is a public holiday in Turkey celebrated on July 15. It is the country’s newest public holiday, created to commemorate the national unity against the 2016 Turkish coup d'état attempt that took place on July 15, 2016.

Ukrainian Statehood Day is a public holiday celebrated in Ukraine every July 15. Its date was chosen to commemorate the baptism of Kyivan Rus’ by Grand Prince Volodymyr the Great.

Many historic counties of England have special observances that celebrate their history and culture. For example, Hampshire Day is celebrated on July 15, which is Saint Swithun’s Day (the feast day of the patron saint of Winchester Cathedral).

Glioblastoma Awareness Day is observed annually on the third Wednesday of July. It was created to raise awareness of the most aggressive and the most common type of brain cancer that has a very poor survival prognosis.

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Ukrainian Peacekeepers' Day is a new holiday, that was established by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine (the supreme council) in 2003. It's annually observed on July 15.

Developmental Disability Professionals Day, also known as DDP Day or National DDP Day, is observed annually on July 15. It was created to recognize the work done by specialists who are often underappreciated despite providing assistance to some of the most vulnerable people in the country.

The Day of the Baptism of Rus’ is an annual observance commemorating the baptism of Grand Prince Volodymyr the Great and the start of the Christianization of Kyivan Rus’. It is celebrated on July 15 in Ukraine and on July 28 in Russia.

Lithuania and Poland annually observe Battle of Grunwald Day. This battle was fought on July 15, 1410 between the alliance of Kingdom of Poland and the Grand Duchy of Lithuania and the German-Prussian Teutonic Knights.

July 15 is National Tapioca Pudding Day. Tapioca pudding is a sweet dessert made with tapioca and milk, cream, or coconut milk.

National Hot Dog Day is an informal holiday in the United States celebrated every July. It was established by the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council. Hot Dog Day celebrates hot dogs as one of the staples of American cuisine.

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Orange Chicken Day, occasionally referred to as National Orange Chicken Day, is observed annually on July 15. It was created to celebrate a dish of American Chinese cuisine that has been popular since the late 1980s.

Gummy candies come in all kinds of different shapes, flavors and colors. Gummy worms are arguably one of the most popular types of gummy candy, so it is not surprising they even have a holiday dedicated to them. National Gummy Worm Day is observed annually on July 15.

Many people have more stuff than they need; it takes up closet and garage space, just lying there, useless, while there are people out there who could have use for it. National Give Something Away Day was created to encourage people to get rid of things they don’t really need by giving them to those who need them most.

World Youth Skills Day, that annually falls on July 15, is one of new UN International Days of observance. It was established by the UN General Assembly on November 11, 2014.

Social Media Giving Day is an online holiday celebrated on July 15. It was inaugurated by Givver.com, a platform dedicated to fundraising via Twitter, in 2013.

National Pet Fire Safety Day is observed annually on July 15. It was created by the American Kennel Club to remind pet owners to consider their pets when planning fire prevention measures and emergency actions in case of fire at home.

 

This Day in History

  • 2021 Died: Peter R. de Vries, Dutch investigative journalist and crime reporter. He succumbed to his injuries after being shot in the head in Amsterdam nine days prior.
  • 2006 Twitter was officially launched, eventually becoming one of the largest social media platforms in the world.
  • 2002 The Anti-Terrorism Court of Pakistan sentenced Ahmed Omar Saeed Sheikh to death, and three others suspected of murdering The Wall Street Journal reporter Daniel Pearl to life.
  • 1997 Died: Gianni Versace, Italian fashion designer, the founder of the Versace fashion house. He was murdered outside his Miami Beach home by Andrew Cunanan.
  • 1990 Born: Olly Alexander, English singer, actor, and LGBT activist who represented the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2024 in Malmö, Sweden.
  • 1990 Died: Margaret Lockwood, English actress and singer, famous for her performances in the 1940s Gainsborough melodramas such as The Man in Grey, Love Story and The Wicked Lady.
  • 1986 Born: Yahya Abdul-Mateen II, American actor. He is best known for his roles as Black Manta in the Aquaman films and Morpheus / Agent Smith in The Matrix Resurrections.
  • 1985 Born: Tomer Capone, Israeli actor best known for starring as Serge / Frenchie in Amazon Prime Video's superhero streaming television series The Boys.
  • 1983 The Armenian terrorist organization ASALA launched a bombing attack on a Turkish Airlines check-in counter at Orly Airport in Paris, France. 8 people were killed and 55 injured by the explosion.
  • 1979 Born: Laura Benanti, American actress and singer. She is best known for her roles in Broadway musicals such as The Sound of Music, Gypsy, Swing!, Into the Woods, and She Loves Me.
  • 1976 Born: Diane Kruger, German-American actress and model, best known for roles as Helen in Troy, Dr. Abigail Chase in National Treasure and Bridget von Hammersmark in Inglourious Basterds.
  • 1975 An Apollo spacecraft and a Soyuz spacecraft were launched on the first joint Soviet-United States human-crewed flight.
  • 1974 Greek Junta-sponsored nationalists launched a riot in Nicosa, Cyprus, deposing President Makarios and installing Nikos Sampson as Cypriot President.
  • 1973 Born: Brian Austin Green, American actor, best known for his portrayal of David Silver on the television series Beverly Hills, 90210.
  • 1967 Born: Adam Savage, American actor and special effects designer, best known as one of two co-hosts of the Discovery Channel series MythBusters and Unchained Reaction.
  • 1963 Born: Brigitte Nielsen, Danish actress, model, and singer. She is best known for her roles in the 1985 films Red Sonja and Rocky IV, later returning to the Rocky series in Creed II.
  • 1961 Born: Forest Whitaker, American actor, producer and director. He is the recipient of various accolades, including an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, and a British Academy Film Award.
  • 1955 The Mainau Declaration against nuclear weapons was signed by 18 Nobel Prize laureates. Later the declaration was co-signed by 34 other laureates.
  • 1946 Born: Linda Ronstadt, American singer who performed and recorded in diverse genres including rock, country, light opera, the Great American Songbook, and Latin music.
  • 1940 Died: Robert Wadlow, American giant, known as Alton Giant and the Giant of Illinois. He was the tallest person in recorded history. He reached 8 ft 11.1 in (2.72 m) in height and weighed 439 lb (199 kg).
  • 1939 Died: Eugen Bleuler, Swiss psychiatrist and eugenicist, notable for his contributions to the understanding of mental illness. He coined the terms schizophrenia, autism, schizoid, and ambivalence.
  • 1926 Born: Leopoldo Galtieri, Argentinian general and politician, the 44th President of Argentina. He was the last military dictator of Argentina, deposed soon after assuming the office.
  • 1922 Born: Leon M. Lederman, American experimental physicist who received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1988, along with Melvin Schwartz and Jack Steinberger, for research on neutrinos.
  • 1921 Born: Robert Bruce Merrifield, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate for the invention of solid phase peptide synthesis.
  • 1919 Died: Hermann Emil Fischer, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate for his work on sugar and purine synthesis.
  • 1918 Born: Bertram Brockhouse, Canadian physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate. He received the prize for his contributions to the development of neutron spectroscopy.
  • 1916 William Boeing and George Conrad Westervelt incorporated Pacific Aero Products, later renamed Boeing. Nowadays The Boeing Company is one of the largest global aircraft manufacturers.
  • 1910 Emil Kraepelin gave the name to Alzheimer's disease in his book Clinical Psychiatry. He named the disease after his colleague Alois Alzheimer, who suffered from it.
  • 1904 Died: Anton Chekhov, Russian physician and author, considered to be one of the greatest short story writers in history. He is also known for his plays such as The Seagull, The Cherry Orchard, Three Sisters, and Uncle Vanya.
  • 1890 Died: Gottfried Keller, Swiss author, poet, and playwright, best remembered for his novel Green Henry. He was one of the most popular narrators of literary realism in the late 19th century.
  • 1888 The volcano Mount Bandai erupted in Fukushima Prefecture, Japan. About 500 people were killed.
  • 1868 Died: William T. G. Morton, American dentist. Morton became the first to use inhaled ether as a surgical anesthetic. The promotion of anesthesia after its discovery became an obsession for the rest of his life.
  • 1867 Born: Jean-Baptiste Charcot, French physician and explorer. He led the 1903 French Antarctic expedition in 1903 lasted for almost 2 years. During that time he explored and described about 1,000 km of the sealine.
  • 1848 Born: Vilfredo Pareto, Italian economist and sociologist, known for several important contributions to economics, particularly in the study of income distribution and the analysis of individuals' choices.
  • 1834 The Spanish Inquisition was officially disbanded after nearly 356 years of existence. According to some modern estimates, between 3,000 and 5,000 people were executed during this period.
  • 1765 Died: Charles-André van Loo, French painter who was the most famous member of a successful dynasty of painters of Dutch origin. One of his most famous paintings is Marriage of the Virgin, preserved in the Louvre.
  • 1609 Died: Annibale Carracci, Italian painter. He is best known for his monumental fresco cycle The Loves of the Gods located in the west wing of the Palazzo Farnese in Rome.
  • 1606 Born: Rembrandt, Dutch painter and etcher who is considered to be one of the greatest painters and printmakers in Dutch history.