What are the important events that happened on January 16? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
January 16: Facts & Myths About This Day
January 16 is the 16th day of the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 350 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Tuesday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is January 3, 2024 – a Tuesday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 28,422,720 minutes has elapsed since midnight of January 1, 1970 – the Unix epoch.
Strange as it may, if we name this day after a polygon then it will be called ‘hexadecagon’ day.
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Capricorn is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Garnet is the modern birthstone for this month. Emerald is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 25 days remaining before the start of the next Chinese New Year.
The ancient Maya civilization believes that the end of the world will happen on December 21, 2012. There are now 4,043 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
Do people and celebrities interest you? Discover all the January 16 famous birthdays who share your special day. Learn some fun facts about your birthday!
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January 16 Historical Events
- 550 –Gothic War (535–554): The Ostrogoths, under King Totila, conquer Rome after a long siege, by bribing the Isaurian garrison.
- 1120 –The Council of Nablus is held, establishing the earliest surviving written laws of the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem.
- 1412 –The Medici family is appointed official banker of the Papacy.
- 1556 –Philip II becomes King of Spain.
- 1761 –The British capture Pondicherry, India from the French.
- 1847 –John C. Fremont is appointed Governor of the new California Territory.
- 1878 –Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) – Battle of Philippopolis: Captain Burago with a squadron of Russian Imperial army dragoons liberates Plovdiv from Ottoman rule.
- 1945 –Adolf Hitler moves into his underground bunker, the so-called Führerbunker.
- 1969 –Soviet spacecraft Soyuz 4 and Soyuz 5 perform the first-ever docking of manned spacecraft in orbit, the first-ever transfer of crew from one space vehicle to another, and the only time such a transfer was accomplished with a space walk.
- 2003 –The Space Shuttle Columbia takes off for mission STS-107 which would be its final one. Columbia disintegrated 16 days later on re-entry.
Who were born on January 16?
- 1898 –Margaret Booth, American film editor (d. 2002)
- 1901 –Fulgencio Batista, Cuban leader (d. 1973)
- 1910 –Dizzy Dean, American baseball player (d. 1974)
- 1911 –Roger Lapébie, French cyclist (d. 1996)
- 1923 –Gene Feist, American stage actor and producer
- 1933 –Susan Sontag, American writer (d. 2004)
- 1948 –Dalvanius Prime, New Zealand entertainer (d. 2002)
- 1950 –Debbie Allen, American dancer and choreographer
- 1951 –Glenn Ordway, American radio talk show host
- 1979 –Aaliyah, American R&B singer/actress (d. 2001)
Who died on January 16?
- 1387 –Elizabeth of Bosnia, Hungarian queen and regent (b. 1340)
- 1400 –John Holland, 1st Duke of Exeter, English politician (b. 1352)
- 1659 –Charles Annibal Fabrot, French lawyer (b. 1580)
- 1794 –Edward Gibbon, English historian (b. 1737)
- 1886 –Amilcare Ponchielli, Italian opera composer (b. 1834)
- 1963 –Ike Quebec, American tenor-saxophone player (b. 1918)
- 1968 –Bob Jones, Sr, American evangelist (b. 1883)
- 1969 –Vernon Duke, American composer and songwriter (b. 1903)
- 1993 –Glenn Corbett, American actor (b. 1930)
- 1997 –Ennis Cosby, son of entertainer Bill Cosby (b. 1969)
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