Holidays Calendar for March 23, 2026
Pakistan Day is the national day of Pakistan that commemorates the Lahore Resolution of 1940 and the deceleration of the republic in 1953. It is celebrated on March 23.
A new public holiday, Day of the Liberation of Southern Africa, was added to Angola’s official calendar in 2018. It is celebrated on March 23 to commemorate the ending of the Battle of Cuito Cuanavale, which was one of the most important engagements during the Angolan Civil War and South African Border War.
National Puppy Day in the United States is celebrated on March 23 to encourage people adopt puppies from shelters and raise awareness about the horrors of puppy mills. It was created by Colleen Paige, a well-known American pet and family lifestyle expert, author and animal welfare activist.
On March 23, Poland and Hungary celebrate Day of Hungarian-Polish Friendship. This observance has been held in both countries since 2007.
On March 23, Bolivia celebrates Day of the Sea (Dia del Mar). Why does a landlocked country has a commemoration dedicated to the sea?
Malaysia is a federal state that consists of thirteen states and three federal territories. Most states are monarchies that celebrate the birthday of their incumbent monarch as a public holiday. For example, Sultan of Johor’s birthday is celebrated on March 23.
Martyrdom Day of Sardar Bhagat Singh is celebrated in the Indian state of Haryana on March 23 every year. It honors the memory of an Indian socialist revolutionary who is remembered as one of the most active participants of the Indian independence movement. Bhagat Singh was executed at the age of 23, so may Indians consider him to be a martyr.
Dips have existed for centuries, but a combination of chips and dips became popular in the USA only in the 1950s. Celebrate National Chip and Dip Day on March 23 by throwing a chips and dip party.
If you’re a fan of Latin American cuisine, treat yourself to some delicious tamales on March 23 because it is National Tamale Day. This amazing holiday was created to celebrate a dish that has been around for thousands of years – and this is not an exaggeration!
If you’ve been thinking about incorporating chia seeds into your diet, March 23 is the perfect day to do it because it is National Chia Day. This holiday was created to celebrate one of the most popular superfoods and raise awareness of the nutritional benefits of chia.
World Meteorological Day is an annual observance held by the World Meteorological Organization. It has been observed on March 23 since 1961.
This Day in History
- 2022 Died: Madeleine Albright, American diplomat and political scientist who served as the 64th United States secretary of state from 1997 to 2001. She was the first woman to hold that post.
- 2021 The container ship Ever Given ran aground and blocked the Suez Canal. The canal was blocked for six days, which had a significant impact on international trade.
- 2019 Kazakhstan's capital Astana was renamed Nur-Sultan in honor of President Nursultan Nazarbayev, shortly after his resignation. Its name was reverted back to Astana in 2022.
- 2015 Died: Lee Kuan Yew, Singaporean politician who served as the first Prime Minister of Singapore. He was responsible for Singaporean economic miracle.
- 2011 Died: Elizabeth Taylor, outstanding British-American actress who was one of the greatest screen actresses of the Golden Age of Hollywood. She won three Academy Awards.
- 2009 FedEx Express Flight 80 crashed at Tokyo's Narita International Airport, killing both the captain and first officer, the jet's only occupants.
- 2006 Died: Cindy Walker, American songwriter, country music singer and dancer. In 1997, she was inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
- 2003 US Army soldier Jessica Lynch was captured by the Iraqi forces during the Battle of Nasiriyah. She was rescued by by U.S. Special Operations Forces on April 1.
- 2002 Died: Eileen Farrell, American soprano whose career spanned nearly 60 years. She is considered one of the finest American sopranos of the 20th century.
- 2001 The Russian modular space station Mir re-entered the atmosphere of Earth and fell into the southern Pacific Ocean. It was deorbited due to a lack of funding.
- 1994 Aeroflot Flight 593 crashed in Siberia when the pilot's children unknowingly disabled the autopilot. All 75 people on board were killed in the crash.
- 1994 Died: Giulietta Masina, Italian film and stage actress, the wife and muse of Federico Fellini. She stared in two Academy Award-winning films.
- 1992 Died: Friedrich Hayek, Austrian and British economist who was awarded the 1974 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (along with Gunnar Myrdal).
- 1989 Martin Fleischmann and Stanley Pons from the University of Utah disclosed their discovery of cold fusion via a press release and a press conference.
- 1978 Born: Perez Hilton, American blogger, columnist, writer, and television personality. His blog is known for posts covering gossip items about celebrities.
- 1976 Born: Michelle Monaghan, American actress whose notable film credits include Kiss Kiss Bang Bang, Gone Baby Gone, Eagle Eye, Source Code, and the Mission Impossible franchise.
- 1974 Born: Randall Park, American actor best known for his roles as Louis Huang on Fresh Off the Boat and Agent Jimmy Woo in the Marvel Cinematic Universe.
- 1972 Died: Cristóbal Balenciaga, Spanish fashion designer who is best known for having founded the Balenciaga fashion house in 1914.
- 1968 Born: Damon Albarn, English singer-songwriter, musician, multiinstrumentalist, and record producer. He is best known as the co-creator of the virtual band Gorillaz.
- 1965 NASA launched Gemini 3, the second American manned space program. The crew consisted of Gus Grissom (command pilot) and John Young (pilot).
- 1964 Born: Hope Davis, American actress whose notable film credits include Flatliners, The Daytrippers, About Schmidt, American Splendor, Infamous, and Asteroid City.
- 1937 Born: Robert Gallo, American biomedical researcher who is best known for making significant contribution to the discovery and research of the HIV.
- 1912 Born: Wernher von Braun, German and American aerospace engineer and space architect who is referred to as one of the Fathers of Rocket Science.
- 1910 Born: Akira Kurosawa, influential Japanese film director, screenwriter, producer, and editor whose prolific career spanned almost 60 years.
- 1900 Born: Erich Fromm, German social psychologist, sociologist, psychoanalyst, philosopher, and democratic socialist. He is associated with critical theory.
- 1868 The University of California was officially established by the Organic Act, signed into law by the tenth governor of California Henry Huntly Haight.
- 1858 Born: Ludwig Quidde, German pacifist who was awarded the 1927 Nobel Peace Prize for contributions to Franco-German popular reconciliation (along with Ferdinand Buisson).
- 1857 The first passenger elevator designed by Elisha Otis was installed at 488 Broadway (the E. V. Haughwout Building) in New York City.
- 1842 Died: Stendhal (pen name of Marie-Henri Beyle), French writer who is best known for his novels The Red and the Black and The Charterhouse of Parma.
- 1826 Born: Ludwig Minkus, Austrian composer, violinist and teacher who worked in Russia for a long time. His most famous works are the ballets Don Quixote and La Bayadère.
- 1749 Born: Pierre-Simon Laplace, French scholar who made a significant contribution to the development of mathematics, statistics, physics, and astronomy.
- 1748 Died: Johann Gottfried Walther, German organist, composer, music theorist, and lexicographer of the Baroque era, cousin of Johann Sebastian Bach.
- 1568 Charles IX of France and Catherine de' Medici signed the Peace of Longjumeau that officially ended the second phase of the French Wars of Religion.
- 1555 Died: Pope Julius III (born Giovanni Maria Ciocchi del Monte), Pope from 1500 until his death. He is remembered for the Innocenzo scandal.
- 1430 Born: Margaret of Anjou, the wife of King Henry VI of England, Queen consort of England from 1445 to 1461 and from 1470 to 1471.