Holidays Calendar for October 26, 2026
October 26 is National Day in Austria. This holiday was created to commemorate the anniversary of the 1955 Declaration of Neutrality.
The Republic of Nauru annually celebrates Angam Day on October 26. The name of the holiday angam in Nauran means “celebration”, “to have triumphed over all hardships” or “to have reached a set goal”.
People of Benin every year celebrate Armed Forces Day on October 26. This is a public holiday, people enjoy a day off and children don't go to school.
Mourning Day is observed in Libya every year on October 26. This is one of the most important official holidays in Libya and it was created to commemorate those people, who died during the Italian occupation of the country.
National Gospel Day is celebrated in the Cook Islands every year on October 26. This holiday celebrates the day, when Christianity was brought to the islands by a missionary John Williams in 1821.
Labour Day is a public holiday in New Zealand. It is celebrated annually on the fourth Monday in October.
The end of lent is one of the public holidays in Laos and Myanmar. This is a Buddhist holiday, and it has different names in these countries. For instance, it's Thadingyut Full Moon in Myanmar and Boun Ok Phansa in Laos.
Dr. José Gregorio Hernández Day is a Venezuelan holiday celebrated annually on October 26 to commemorate the birthday of a renowned Venezuelan physician who was beatified by the Catholic Church.
Peniamina Gospel Day is a public holiday in Niue celebrated in October, typically on the fourth Monday or Friday of the month. It derives from the nation's conversion to Christianity.
Intersex Awareness Day is an international observance designated to raise public awareness of intersex people and to highlight the problems they face every day. It's observed every year on October 26.
World Amyloidosis Day is observed annually on October 26. It was launched in 2021 to raise awareness of a rare and complex disease that is barely known by the general public and even many medical professionals.
International Mavrud Day is a wine-related holiday celebrated annually on October 26. It was created to raise awareness of one of the oldest Bulgarian grape varieties and to promote Bulgarian wines and wine tourism.
Court Staff Day is one of the official professional holidays in Tajikistan. It was established according to the Law on Holidays and is celebrated annually on October 26.
National Mule Day, also known as National Mule Appreciation Day or Mule Day USA, is observed annually on October 26. It was created to celebrate the animal that is often associated with stubbornness but is in fact very intelligent, patient, even-tempered, and hard-working.
Accession Day is an annual holiday celebrated in Jammu and Kashmir, the northernmost state of India. It commemorates the day when Jammu and Kashmir joined the Dominion of India.
The Foundation Day of Catanduanes (Araw ng Pagkakatatag ng Catanduanes) is a special non-working holiday in the Philippine province of Catanduanes that commemorates its separation from the province of Albay. It is celebrated annually on October 26.
October 26 is National Mincemeat Day. This food holiday is dedicated to a type of pie filling which is popular in English-speaking countries and has been around for centuries.
For many people in North America, fall is strongly associated with pumpkins because they are carved as jack-o’-lanterns for Halloween, and pumpkin pie is a Thanksgiving meal staple. No wonder that many Americans celebrate National Pumpkin Day. Although unofficial, it is quite popular throughout the United States.
Fans of Southern cuisine observe National Chicken-Fried Steak Day on October 26. This food holiday was created to celebrate a breaded cutlet dish that isn’t actually made with chicken; the word “chicken” in the name refers to the cooking technique.
This Day in History
- 2014 Britain withdrew its forces from Afghanistan after the end of Operation Herrick. The operation started on June 20, 2002, lasting for 12 years, 4 months and 7 days.
- 2010 Died: Glen Little, American circus clown who served with the Ringling Bros. and Barnum & Bailey Circus for over 20 years. He earned the title "Master Clown" given by the Ringling organization.
- 2007 Died: Arthur Kornberg, American biochemist who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1959 for the discovery of the mechanisms in the biological synthesis of RNA and DNA.
- 2002 Russian special forces troops stormed the Dubrovka Theater in Moscow that had been occupied by Chechen terrorists three days before. 132 hostages died during the storming.
- 1992 A software error caused London's brand new computer-aided ambulance-dispatch system to fail. It had been in operation only a few hours when problems began to arise.
- 1989 Died: Charles J. Pedersen, American organic chemist best known for discovering crown ethers and describing methods of synthesizing them. He was awarded the 1987 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.
- 1984 Born: Sasha Cohen, retired American figure skater. She is the 2006 Olympic silver medalist, a three-time World Championship medalist, the 2003 Grand Prix Final Champion, and the 2006 U.S. Champion.
- 1984 Stephanie Fae Beauclair, better known as Baby Fae, became the first infant subject of a xenotransplant procedure, receiving the heart of a baboon. She died within a month of the procedure.
- 1979 Died: Park Chung-hee, South Korean politician and army officer who served as the third president of South Korea. He was fatally shot by Kim Jae-gyu, the director of the Korean Central Intelligence Agency.
- 1977 The last natural case of smallpox was registered in Merca district, Somalia. This date is considered to be the anniversary of the eradication of smallpox.
- 1973 Born: Seth MacFarlane, American actor, animator, writer, producer, director, comedian, and singer. He is best known as the creator and star of the television series Family Guy and The Orville.
- 1971 Born: Anthony Rapp, American actor and singer best known for originating the role of March Cohen in the Broadway musical Rent and playing Paul Stamets on Star Trek: Discovery.
- 1967 Born: Keith Urban, Australian and American country singer, songwriter and guitarist. He was a coach on the Australian version of the singing competition The Voice and a judge on American Idol.
- 1965 Died: Sylvia Likens, American murder victim. She was tortured to death by her caregiver Gertrude Baniszewski, Baniszewski's children, and other young people from their neighborhood.
- 1963 Born: Tom Cavanagh, Canadian actor and director. He is probably best known for portraying Eobard Thawne / Reverse-Flash and the various versions of Harrison Wells in the Arrowverse.
- 1962 Born: Cary Elwes, English Actor. He is known for his roles as Westley in The Princess Bride, Robin Hood in Robin Hood: Men in Tights, and Dr. Lawrence Gordon in the Saw film series.
- 1961 Born: Dylan McDermott, American actor. He is best known for playing Bobby Donnell on the legal drama series The Practice, which earned him a Golden Globe Award.
- 1959 Born: Evo Morales, Bolivian politician, the 80th President of Bolivia. He was the first Bolivian president to come from the indigenous population.
- 1958 Pan American Airways made the first commercial flight of the Boeing 707 from New York City, United States to Paris, France.
- 1957 Died: Gerty Cori, Bohemian-Austrian and American biochemist who was the third woman to win a Nobel Prize in science, and the first woman to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.
- 1956 Born: Rita Wilson, American actress, singer, and producer. Her film credits include Volunteer, Sleepless in Seattle, Jungle All the Way, The Story of Us, Runaway Bride, and more.
- 1952 Died: Hattie McDaniel, American actress, singer-songwriter, and comedienne. For her role as Mammy in Gone with the Wind, she won the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress.
- 1947 Born: Hillary Clinton, American politician and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state from 2009 to 2013 and the first lady of the United States as the wife of Bill Clinton from 1993 to 2001.
- 1945 Born: Pat Conroy, American author, best known for his novels The Water is Wide, The Lords of Discipline, The Prince of Tides, and The Great Santini that were all made into films.
- 1930 Died: Waldemar Haffkine, Russian-French bacteriologist known for his pioneering work in vaccines. He was the first microbiologist to develop and use vaccines against cholera and bubonic plague.
- 1917 Brazil declared war on the Central Powers during World War I, making it the only country in Latin America to be directly involved in the war.
- 1916 Born: François Mitterrand, French politician, the 21st President of France who served from 1981 to 1995,which makes him the longest-serving President of France.
- 1890 Died: Carlo Collodi, Italian writer known for his children's stories, including the world-renowned fairy tale novel The Adventures of Pinocchio.
- 1869 Born: Washington Luís, Brazilian politician, the 13th (and the last) President of the First Brazilian Republic from 1926 until his deposition by a military coup in 1930.
- 1863 The world's oldest football association, the Football Association, was formed in London.
- 1860 The Expedition of the Thousand during the Unification of Italy ended when Giuseppe Garibaldi presented his conquests to King Victor Emmanuel of Sardinia.
- 1794 Born: Konstantin Thon, Russian architect during the reign of Nicholas I. He is best known for the Grand Kremlin Palace and the Cathedral of Christ the Savior in Moscow.
- 1689 General Piccolomini of Austria burned down Skopje, the capital of Macedonia, to prevent the spread of cholera. He died of cholera himself soon after.
- 1491 Born: Zhengde, Emperor of China. His reign lasted from June 19, 1505 to April 20, 1521. It was full of reckless, foolish and pointless actions.
- 1440 Died: Gilles de Rais, French knight, companion-in-arms of Joan of Arc and the inspiration for the fairytale Bluebeard by Charles Perrault.