Holidays Calendar for February 23, 2019
February 23 is one of the important holidays for Russia and number of former republics of the Soviet Union. This is Defender of the Fatherland Day.
National Day in Brunei annually falls on February 1. This holiday celebrates gaining independence from the United Kingdom in 1984, that actually happened on January 1.
Guyana annually celebrates Mashramani on February 23. The festival celebrates Republic Day, the day when Guyana officially became a republic in 1970.
The Emperor’s Birthday is one of the most important public holidays in Japan. It coincides with the actual birthday of the reigning emperor. Since Naruhito’s ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019, it has been celebrated on February 23.
World Peace and Understanding Day, also known as World Understanding and Peace Day, is observed annually on February 23. It was created to commemorate the founding anniversary of Rotary International, one of the world’s oldest and largest service organizations.
February 23 is perfect day to give your dog a treat because it is International Dog Biscuit Appreciation Day. This fun holiday was created to celebrate popular dog treats that come in various shapes, sizes, and flavors.
MAND Awareness Day is observed annually on February 23. It was created to raise awareness about MBD5-associated neurodevelopmental disorder (MAND), a genetic disorder that affects neurological and physical development, causing developmental delay and mild to severe intellectual disability.
World Sword Swallowers Day, sometimes referred to as International Sword Swallowers Day, is observed annually on the last Saturday of February. It was created to celebrate the exciting and dangerous art of sword swallowing and raise funds to help injured sword swallowers.
National Hospitality Workers Appreciation Day is observed annually on February 23. It was created to celebrate millions of people in the service industry who ensure that you have a good time while traveling or going out to restaurants and bars.
Some ceremonial counties of the United Kingdom have a special day set aside to celebrate their cultural heritage. For example, Shropshire Day is celebrated on February 23 because it is the feast day of Saint Milburga, who is venerated as the county’s patron saint.
February 23 is a great day to indulge in a slice of delicious banana bread. If you haven't baked it for ages, it's time to do it to celebrate National Banana Bread Day.
Diesel Engine Day is celebrated annually on February 23. This day commemorates the invention of the diesel engine, which revolutionized transportation and industrial power generation by offering a more fuel-efficient and durable alternative to steam and early gasoline engines.
Curling Is Cool Day is a fun unofficial holiday celebrated annually on February 23. It was created by Ruth and Tom Roy, the founders of Wellcat Holidays.
If you have a bottle of wine that you have been saving for a special occasion, but that occasion never seems to come, you should open it on the last Saturday of February because it’s Open That Bottle Night! This holiday was created specifically to encourage people to enjoy wine and share it with their loved ones.
Curling Day is celebrated in Canada on the last Saturday of February. It was created to honor a winter sport that originated in Scotland but is particularly popular in Canada.
Festivals for February 23, 2019
- Golden Raspberry Awards in Los Angeles, USA
- Panafrican Film and Television Festival of Ouagadougou (Fespaco) in Ouagadougou, Burkina Faso
- Carnival of Acireale in Acireale, Italy
- Carnival of Oruro in Oruro, Bolivia
- Kurentovanje Carnival (Carnival of Ptuj) in Ptuj, Slovenia
- Mardi Gras! Galveston in Galveston, USA
- Vilnius Book Fair in Vilnius, Lithuania
- Fantasporto Film Festival in Porto, Portugal
- New York International Children’s Film Festival in New York, USA
- FEST (Belgrade International Film Festival) in Belgrade, Serbia
- Salon du Chocolat in Brussels in Brussels, Belgium
- Carnival of Tarragona in Tarragona, Spain
- Hong Kong Arts Festival in Hong Kong, Hong Kong
- American Independence Film Festival in Kyiv, Ukraine
- Dubai Food Festival in Dubai, UAE
This Day in History
- 2021 Riots simultaneously began in four prisons in three provinces of Ecuador (Guayas, Azuay, and Cotopaxi). 79 inmates were killed and several others were injured.
- 2011 Died: Nirmala Srivastava, Indian religious leader, the founder and guru of Sahaja Yoga, a meditation technique and religious movement.
- 2010 An environmental disaster was sparked by unknown criminals. Over 2.5 million liters of diesel oil and other hydrocarbons were poured into the river Lambro in Northern Italy.
- 1998 The third and final day of the 1998 Central Florida tornado outbreak. It was the deadliest tornado event in Florida history, killing 42 people and causing 259 injuries.
- 1994 Born: Dakota Fanning, American actress. She made her breakthrough at the age of 7 due to her performance in the 2001 film I Am Sam. Her other film credits include War of the Worlds, Charlotte's Web, The Runaways, The Twilight Saga, and more.
- 1992 Born: Samara Weaving, Australian actress and model who came to prominence with her portrayal of Indi Walker on the soap opera Home and Away.
- 1987 Light and neutrinos from the explosion of the supernova SN 1987A in the Large Magellanic Cloud reached the Earth. It was the closest observed supernova since Kepler's Supernova in 1604.
- 1983 Born: Aziz Ansari, American actor, comedian, and filmmaker. He played Tom Haverford on the NBC series Parks and Recreation and created and starred in the Netflix series Master of None.
- 1983 Born: Emily Blunt, English actress who made her breakthrough in The Devil Wears Prada. Among her other notable works are Edge of Tomorrow, Into the Woods, The Girl on a Train, A Quiet Place, and other films.
- 1981 Born: Josh Gad, American actor best known for voicing Olaf in the Frozen franchise and playing Elder Arnold Cunningham in the Broadway musical The Book of Mormon.
- 1981 Antonio Tejero attempted a coup d'état in Spain by capturing the Spanish Congress of Deputies. He and 200 armed officers held the Parliament and cabinet hostage for 18 hours and surrendered the next morning without having harmed anyone.
- 1975 Born: Robert Lopez, American songwriter for musicals and playwright, best known for co-creating The Book of Mormon and Avenue Q. He frequently collaborates with his wife Kristen Anderson-Lopez.
- 1973 Died: Dickinson W. Richards, American physician, Nobel Prize laureate for the development of cardiac catheterization and the characterization of a number of cardiac diseases.
- 1965 Born: Kristin Davis, American actress and producer. She is known for playing Charlotte York in Sex and the City, as well as in two subsequent films and the revival show And Just Like That...
- 1965 Born: Michael Dell, American businessman, the founder of Dell Inc, an American multinational computer technology company, which has become one of the largest technological corporations in the world.
- 1960 Born: Naruhito, Emperor of Japan who acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne in 2019, following the abdication of his father, Akihito. The era of his reign was named Reiwa ("beautiful harmony").
- 1958 5-time world F1 champion Juan Manuel Fangio was kidnapped by Cuban rebels. Fangio was released after 29 hours and remained good friends with his kidnappers afterwards.
- 1952 Born: Brad Whitford, American guitarist and songwriter, best known as the rhythm guitarist of the hard rock band Aerosmith for which he was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in 2001.
- 1944 Died: Leo Baekeland, Belgian-American chemist, inventor of Bakelite, an inexpensive, nonflammable, versatile popular plastic. His invention marked the beginning of the modern plastic industry.
- 1941 American chemist Glenn T. Seaborg and his collaborators produced and isolated plutonium for the first time through the bombardment of uranium.
- 1932 Born: Majel Barrett-Roddenberry, American actress and producer best known for playing multiple roles in the Star Trek franchise, including Nurse Christine Chapel in the original series.
- 1931 Died: Nellie Melba, Australian soprano, one of the most famous singers of the late Victorian Era and the early 20th century. The dessert Peach Melba was named after her.
- 1924 Born: Allan McLeod Cormack, South-African-American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate for his work on X-ray computed tomography.
- 1898 Émile Zola was imprisoned in France after writing J'accuse, a letter in which he accused the French government of antisemitism and wrongful imprisonment of Captain Alfred Dreyfus.
- 1889 Born: Victor Fleming, American director, cinematographer, and producer, best known for his films The Wizard of Oz and Gone with the Wind.
- 1887 The Liguria earthquake struck off the coast of Imperia, Italy, with an estimated moment magnitude of 6.8–6.9, killing about 600–3,000 people.
- 1886 The first samples of man-made aluminum were produced by Charles Martin Hall after several years of intensive work. The process involved passing an electric current through a bath of alumina dissolved in cryolite.
- 1883 Born: Karl Jaspers, German philosopher and psychiatrist. Jaspers discovered an innovative philosophical system and is often viewed as a major exponent of existentialism in Germany.
- 1859 Died: Zygmunt Krasiński, Polish Romantic poet, best known for his drama The Un-Divine Comedy. He is regarded one of Poland's Three Bards, alongside Adam Mickiewicz and Juliusz Słowacki.
- 1855 Died: Carl Friedrich Gauss, German mathematician, astronomer, and physicist, sometimes referred to as the greatest mathematician since antiquity.
- 1850 Born: César Ritz, Swiss hotelier and founder of several hotels, most famously the Hôtel Ritz in Paris and the Ritz and Carlton Hotels in London.
- 1848 Died: John Quincy Adams, American politician who served as the 6th President of the United States. After his presidency, Adams uniquely returned to Congress as a member of the lower house.
- 1821 Died: John Keats, English poet. Although his works had been in publication for just 4 years before his death, he is considered one of the main figures of the second generation of Romantic poets along with Lord Byron and Percy Bysshe Shelley.
- 1792 Died: Joshua Reynolds, English painter and academic known for promoting the Grand Style in painting, which depended on idealization of the imperfect.
- 1744 Born: Mayer Amschel Rothschild, German banker, the founder of the Rothschild banking dynasty. This family is believed to have become the wealthiest family in human history.
- 1685 Born: George Frideric Handel, German-English composer, famous for his operas, anthems, and organ concertos. Among his most famous works are Messiah, Water Music, and Music for the Royal Fireworks.
- 1603 Died: Andrea Cesalpino, Italian philosopher, physician, and botanist, best known for classifying plants according to their fruits and seeds rather that alphabetically or by medicinal properties.