Holidays Calendar for June 26, 2018

Azerbaijani Armed Forces Day is a public holiday in the Republic of Azerbaijan celebrated on June 26. It commemorates the creation of the country's military in 1918.

The Republic of Madagascar celebrates its Independence Day on June 26. On this day in 1960, Madagascar proclaimed its independence from France and the establishment of the Malagasy Republic.

Independence Day of State of Somaliland is a public holiday in Somalia that commemorates the proclamation of independence of British Somaliland as the State of Somaliland on June 26, 1960.

World Refrigeration Day is observed annually on June 26. It was established to highlight the importance of refrigeration technologies that people use in everyday life, as well as to raise the profile of the refrigeration, air conditioning and heat pump sector.

Public Prosecutors’ Day is an official professional holiday in Turkmenistan. It was established in 2017, when President Gurbanguly Berdimuhamedow signed a decree containing a new list of non-bank holidays and commemorations observed in Turkmenistan.

Prosecutor’s Office Employees Day is an official professional holiday in Belarus. It is celebrated annually on June 26 to commemorate the establishment of the State Prosecutor’s Office as part of the People’s Commissariat of Justice of the Byelorussian SSR in 1922.

National Beautician’s Day, also known as National Beauticians Day or National Beautician Day, is observed annually on June 26. It is celebrates professionals who play an important role in the beauty industry.

National Canoe Day, also referred to as simply Canoe Day, is celebrated annually on June 26. This holiday originated in Canada, but it is widely celebrated in the United States as well because the canoe plays an important role in the culture of both countries.

National Flag Day in Romania is observed on June 26. It was proclaimed in 1998 and has been celebrated each year ever since.

Sunthorn Phu Day is an official observance in Thailand that commemorates the birth of the country’s best-known royal poet. This observance is regulated by the government, but is not observed as a public holiday.

In Iceland, the birthday of the country’s President is an official flag day. On this day, the national flag of Iceland is raised on all official buildings. The birthday of the incumbent President of Iceland, Guðni Thorlacius Jóhannesson, falls on June 26.

Crimean Tatar Flag Day is an annual observance celebrated by Crimean Tatars (mostly those residing in Ukraine) on June 26. It celebrates the ethnic flag of Crimean Tatars that symbolizes their unity as a people.

Adults and children love creamy chocolate pudding, which is a delight on its own and as an addition to some sweet treats. Celebrate National Chocolate Pudding Day on June 26.

Rat Catcher's Day (also spelled Rat-catcher's Day and Ratcatcher's Day) is an informal holiday that commemorates the legend of the Pied Piper of Hamelin. It has two possible dates: June 26 or July 22.

National Coconut Day is an unofficial food holiday celebrated on June 26. It was launched in 2019 to celebrate coconuts, raise awareness of their numerous benefits, and support the coconut industry.

National Barcode Day is celebrated annually on June 26. It was created to commemorate the first commercial appearance of the Universal Product Code (UPC) and recognize the importance of barcodes in our everyday lives.

International Day in Support of Victims of Torture is a United Nations observance held on June 26. It was proclaimed by the UN General Assembly in December 1997.

International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking is an official United Nations observance that was established by the UN General Assembly in 1987. It is aimed at raising awareness of the importance of struggling against drug abuse and the illegal drug trade.


This Day in History

  • 2019 Died: Max Wright, American actor, best known for his role as Willie Tanner on the sitcom ALF. He also enjoyed a stage career in theater and acted at regional theaters around the country.
  • 2012 Died: Nora Ephron, American director, producer, and screenwriter, best remembered for her romantic comedies. She was nominated 3 times for the Academy Award for Best Writing and won a BAFTA Award for Best Original Screenplay and a Tony Award for Best Play (posthumously).
  • 2007 Pope Benedict XVI reinstated the traditional laws of papal election. According to new laws, a successful candidate must receive 2/3 of the votes
  • 2004 Died: Naomi Shemer, Israeli singer-songwriter, often called as the first lady of Israeli song and poetry. Her song Yerushlayim Shel Zahav (Jerusalem of Gold) became an unofficial second anthem of Israel.
  • 1997 Died: Don Hutson, American football player, the first star split end in National Football League history. By the moment of retirement Hutson held almost all important records of NFL and today he is considered as the best receiver ever.
  • 1995 President of Egypt Hosni Mubarak survived an assassination attempt in Addis Ababa.
  • 1977 Elvis Presley performed the final concern in his life in Indianapolis, Indiana. He died in August of the same year, before he could begin a new tour.
  • 1973 A Cosmos 3-M rocket exploded at Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Russia. 9 people were killed.
  • 1972 Born: Pierre Garand, Canadian singer, best known under his stage name Garou. He is best known for his work in the musical Notre-Dame de Paris, and the #1 hits Belle, Seul, Sous le vent and La Rivière de notre enfance.
  • 1970 Born: Chris O'Donnell, American actor and producer, best remembered for role as Dick Grayson/Robin in Batman Forever and Batman & Robin. He also starred in Grey's Anatomy, Vertical Limit, The Company and in Scent of a Woman.
  • 1948 William Shockeley patented the grown-junction transistor, the first type of the bipolar junction transistor.
  • 1944 One of the largest battles between Nazi Germany and Polish resistance forces, the Battle of Osuchy, took place. The battle ended with the defeat of the Polish forces.
  • 1943 Died: Karl Landsteiner, Austrian biologist and physician, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine laureate for investigations on blood transfusions, that resulted in discovery of blood groups.
  • 1939 Died: Ford Madox Ford, English author, poet, and critic. He is best remembered as an editor of journals The English Review and The Transatlantic Review, that became instrumental in the development of early 20th-century English literature.
  • 1937 Born: Robert Coleman Richardson, American physicist and academic, 1972 Nobel Prize in Physics laureate for discovery of the property of superfluidity in helium-3 atoms.
  • 1925 Born: Wolfgang Unzicker, German Chess Grandmaster, often called the world's strongest amateur chess player. He was one of the strongest German chess grandmasters from 1954 to 1970 and chose law instead of chess career.
  • 1922 Born: Eleanor Parker, American actress and singer. She appeared in more than 80 film during her career, was nominated three times for the Academy Award for Best Actress. One of her most memorable role was of Elsa von Schraeder in The Sound of Music (1965).
  • 1906 The first Grand Prix motor racing event was held outside the city of Le Mans, France.
  • 1898 Born: Willy Messerschmitt, German engineer and businessman, best known for designing the Messerschmitt Bf 109, the most important fighter in the Luftwaffe (German Air Force) of Germany before World War II.
  • 1892 Born: Pearl S. Buck, American author and educator, Nobel Prize laureate for her rich and truly epic descriptions of peasant life in China and for her biographical masterpieces.
  • 1870 The United States of America declared the Christian holiday of Christmas to be a federal holiday.
  • 1843 Treaty of Nanking, signed by Britain and China, came into force. The treaty ended the First Opium War and ceded Hong Kong Island to the British "in perpretuity".
  • 1836 Died: Claude Joseph Rouget de Lisle, French soldier and composer. His most notable work was the words and music for the Chant de guerre pour l'armée du Rhin, which later became known as La Marseillaise and French national anthem.
  • 1824 Born: William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, Irish physicist and engineer, best known for his important contributions in the mathematical analysis of electricity and formulation of the first and second laws of thermodynamics.
  • 1810 Died: Joseph-Michel Montgolfier, French inventor. Together with his brother he co-invented the hot air balloon.
  • 1752 Died: Giulio Alberoni, Spanish cardinal and statesman in the service of Philip V of Spain. Alberoni is known for being a remarkable soldier and a great gourmet. He advised the Spanish court on table manners and menus.
  • 1730 Born: Charles Messier, French astronomer, notable for publishing of a catalog consisting of nebulae and star clusters, now known as 110 Messier objects.
  • 1699 Born: Marie Thérèse Rodet Geoffrin, leading female figure in the French Enlightenment. She hosted popular French salon for most influential philosophers and encyclopédistes of her time and her qualities of politeness and civility helped stimulate and regulate intellectual discussions.
  • 1541 Died: Francisco Pizarro, Spanish explorer and politician, remembered today as a conqueror of the Incan Empire.
  • 1483 Richard III became the King of England. He was the last king of the House of York and the last of the Plantagenet dynasty.
  • 363 Died: Julian the Apostate, Roman Emperor, notable philosopher and author in Greek. He was the last non-Christian ruler of the Roman Empire.