Holidays Calendar for May 22, 2025
Abolition Day is one of the public holidays in Martinique, an overseas region of France. It commemorates the abolition of slavery on the island of Martinique on May 22, 1848.
The national day of Yemen is known as Unity Day, Unification Day or Day of National Unity. It commemorates the unification of North Yemen and South Yemen that took place on May 22, 1990.
It you’re a fan of tequila-based cocktails, you absolutely have to celebrate World Paloma Day on May 22. It is dedicated to what is quite possibly the most beloved cocktail in Mexico that surpasses even the margarita in popularity.
International Being You Day is celebrated annually on May 22. It was created in 2021 by Dr. Dain Heer, the author of the book Being You, Changing the World and co-creator of Access Consciousness, a personal development company that empowers people to help themselves.
World Preeclampsia Day is observed annually on May 22. It was created to raise awareness of a fairly common pregnancy complication that can cause long-term health issues or even result in the death of the mother and/or the fetus if left untreated.
Detective fiction fans around the globe celebrate Sherlock Holmes Day on May 22 every year. Its date was chosen to commemorate the birthday of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, who created this iconic character.
National Maritime Day in the USA is celebrated annually on May 22. The holiday was created to recognize the importance of maritime industry.
Although the Brazilian Air Force was formally established on January 20, 1941, it celebrates its anniversary on another date, May 22. On this day in 1941, the National Air Forces of the Ministry of Aeronautics were renamed the Brazilian Air Force (Força Aérea Brasileira — FAB).
In Guatemala and Ecuador, Arbor Day is celebrated on May 22. The holiday was officially established in these two countries by a government decree in 2003, but the history of Tree Planting Day dates back to the early 20th century.
Republic Day in Sri Lanka is not a public holiday, and many Sri Lankans don't even know that such commemoration exists. Nevertheless, May 22 is an important day in the history of the country.
Every state and territory of Malaysia celebrates the birthday of its hereditary ruler or governor as a public holiday. The state of Pahang, however, went even further and also observes the death anniversary of the previous sultan. The holiday is named Hari Hol Pahang.
National Vanilla Pudding Day is celebrated annually on May 22. Enjoy a nice cold bowl of vanilla pudding to celebrate the holiday.
National Craft Distillery Day is celebrated annually on May 22 to raise awareness of craft distilleries that produce exclusive spirits in small batches, offering a worthy alternative to big brand names.
National Solitaire Day is celebrated annually on May 22. It was established by Microsoft to celebrate one of the most played computer games in the world.
In some Bulgarian and Greek villages, people still perform an old fire-walking ritual. This originally pagan tradition is now associated with the feast day of Saint Constantine and Saint Helen. It is called the nestinarstvo in Bulgaria and the anastenaria in Greece.
International Day for Biological Diversity, also known as World Biodiversity Day, is an international day for raising awareness about biodiversity issues. It is officially recognized by the United Nations and is held on May 22.
Harvey Milk Day is an annual observance held on May 22. It honors the memory of Harvey Milk, an American politician and gay rights activist, who was assassinated in 1978.
World Goth Day is an annual international holiday celebrated on May 22. It was created to celebrate the goth scene and raise awareness of the goth subculture around the world.
Although the Scout movement was originally designed for boys, girls quickly became interested in it, resulting in the formation of the Girl Guides. From the UK, girl guiding and girl scouting spread to other countries, including Japan. Japanese Girl Scouts even celebrate Girl Scout Day on May 22.
This Day in History
- 2021 21 professional runners died from hypothermia out of the 172 competing in a government-run 100-kilometre trail running race held in the Yellow River Stone Forest in China.
- 2017 Died: Nicky Hayden, American professional motorcycle racer. He was hit by a driver while riding his bicycle in Italy and succumbed to his injuries five days after the accident.
- 2014 Following six months of political crisis, the Royal Thai Armed Forces launched a coup d'état in Thailand. It was the twelfth coup in the country since 1932.
- 2010 Air India Express Flight 812 fell over a cliff and crashed, killing 158 people on board. It is the deadliest crush involving a Boeing 737.
- 2008 Died: Robert Asprin, American science fiction and fantasy author. He is probably best know for his Phule's Company and Myth Adventures series.
- 2007 Died: Pemba Doma Sherpa, Nepalese mountaineer. She was the first female mountaineer to climb Mount Everest via its north face.
- 1997 Kelly Flinn, the first female B-52 pilot in the US Air Force, was discharged after an adulterous affair with the husband of an enlisted subordinate.
- 1997 Died: Alfred Hershey, American bacteriologist and geneticist who was awarded the 1969 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, sharing it with two other scientists.
- 1992 Born: Anna Baryshnikov, American actress. She had her breakout role as Sandy in Manchester by the Sea and played Lavinia Norcross Dickinson on Dickinson.
- 1990 Windows 3.0 operating system was released. It was the first widely successful version of Windows and the first version to include the card game Solitaire.
- 1980 Japanese company Namco released Pac-Man, an arcade game that would become a social phenomenon. It is considered an icon of the 1980s pop culture.
- 1980 Born: Lucy Gordon, British model and actress best known for her role as Jane Birkin in Gainsbourg. She committed suicide before the premiere.
- 1978 Born: Ginnifer Goodwin, American actress best known for her roles as Margene Heffman on Big Love and Snow White on Once Upon a Time.
- 1974 Born: Sean Gunn, American actor best known for his roles as Kirk Gleason on Gilmore Girls and Kraglin Obfonteri in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
- 1972 Died: Margaret Rutherford, English actress who first came to prominence thanks to her roles in Blithe Spirit and The Importance of Being Earnest.
- 1970 Born: Naomi Campbell, English supermodel, actress, singer, and author. She was the first black model to appear on the cover of French Vogue.
- 1968 The nuclear-powered submarine USS Scorpion sank 400 miles southwest of the Azores. All 99 crewmen on board died in the incident.
- 1967 The L'Innovation department store in Brussels was destroyed in a fire. With 323 people killed, it is the most deadly fire in Belgian history.
- 1967 Died: Langston Hughes, American poet, novelist, columnist, playwright, and social activist. He is best known as a leader of the Harlem Renaissance.
- 1960 The most powerful earthquake ever recorded (9.5 on the moment magnitude scale) occurred, known as Great Chilean earthquake. It affected Chile, Hawaii, Japan, the Philippines, New Zealand, Australia, and the Aleutian Islands.
- 1943 Born: Betty Williams, Irish activist who was awarded the 1976 Nobel Peace Prize with Mairead Corrigan for co-founding the Community of Peace People.
- 1938 Died: Albert Claude, Belgian physician and cell biologist who was awarded the 1974 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, sharing it with two scientists.
- 1927 Born: George Andrew Olah, Hungarian and American chemist who was awarded the 1994 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his study of carbocations.
- 1924 Born: Charles Aznavour, French and American singer, songwriter, actor, public activist, and diplomat. He is known for his unique tenor voile with clear timbre.
- 1907 Born: Laurence Olivier, outstanding English stage and film actor, director, and producer who received four Academy Awards, two BAFTA Awards, five Emmy Awards, and three Golden Globe Awards.
- 1905 Born: Bodo von Borries, German physician. He is primarily remembered as the co-inventor of the electron microscope, along with Ernst Ruska.
- 1885 Died: Victor Hugo, French poet, playwright, and novelist whose best known works include the acclaimed novels Les Misérables and Notre-Dame de Paris.
- 1859 Born: Arthur Conan Doyle, Scottish physician and writer who is best known for his works of detective fiction about Sherlock Holmes, which are considered milestones in their genre.
- 1813 Born: Richard Wagner, German composer, conductor and theater director who is best known for his operas, namely the cycle The Ring of the Nibelung.
- 1802 Died: Martha Washington, the wife of the first American president George Washington. She is considered to be the first First Lady of the United States.
- 1760 Died: Rabbi Israel ben Eliezer, best known as Baal Shem Tov or Besht, Jewish mystical rabbi who is considered the founder of Hasidic Judaism.
- 1629 Albrecht von Wallenstein and Christian IV of Denmark signed the Treaty of Lübeck, which ended the Danish intervention in the Thirty Years' War.
- 1455 The Wars of the Roses began with the First Battle of St Albans, in which King Henry VI of England was defeated and captured by Richard, Duke of York.
- 337 Died: Constantine the Great, also known as Constantine I or St. Constantine, Roman Emperor who was the first Christian emperor of the Roman Empire.