What are the important events that happened on May 20? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
May 20: Facts & Myths About This Day
May 20 is the 141st day of the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 225 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Monday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is May 7, 2024 – a Monday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?
When this day started, 1,716,163,200 seconds 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 ‘hectatetracontahenagon’ day.
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Taurus is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Emerald is the modern birthstone for this month. Sapphire is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 254 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 4,168 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
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May 20 Historical Events
- 1570 –Cartographer Abraham Ortelius issues the first modern atlas.
- 1609 –Shakespeare’s sonnets are first published in London, perhaps illicitly, by the publisher Thomas Thorpe.
- 1882 –The Triple Alliance between Germany, Austria-Hungary and Italy is formed.
- 1883 –Krakatoa begins to erupt. The volcano’s final and most notable explosion occurs on August 26.
- 1908 –Budi Utomo organization is founded in Dutch East Indies, beginning the Indonesian National Awakening.
- 1941 –World War II: Battle of Crete – German paratroops invade Crete.
- 1949 –In the United States, the Armed Forces Security Agency, the predecessor to the National Security Agency, is established.
- 1956 –In Operation Redwing (shot Cherokee), the first United States airborne hydrogen bomb is dropped over Bikini Atoll in the Pacific Ocean;
- 1990 –The first post-Communist presidential and parliamentary elections are held in Romania.
- 1996 –Gay rights: The Supreme Court of the United States rules in Romer v. Evans against a law that would have prevented any city, town or county in the state of Colorado from taking any legislative, executive, or judicial action to protect the rights of gays and lesbians.
Who were born on May 20?
- 1776 –Simon Fraser, Canadian explorer (d.1862)
- 1882 –Sigrid Undset, Norwegian author, Nobel laureate (d. 1949)
- 1917 –Bergur Sigurbjörnsson, Icelandic politician (d. 2005)
- 1918 –Edward B. Lewis, American geneticist, Nobel laureate (d. 2004)
- 1919 –George Gobel, American comedian (d. 1991)
- 1919 –Gerhard Barkhorn, German fighter pilot (d. 1983)
- 1938 –Marinella, Greek singer and actress
- 1944 –Boudewijn de Groot, Dutch singer
- 1980 –Austin Kearns, American baseball player
- 1981 –Morgan Knabe, Canadian swimmer
Who died on May 20?
- 1834 –Gilbert du Motier, French statesman (b. 1757)
- 1880 –Ana Néri, Brazilian nurse (b. 1814)
- 1947 –Philipp Lenard, German physicist, Nobel laureate (b. 1862)
- 1989 –Gilda Radner, American comedian and actress (b. 1946)
- 1992 –Roger Keith Coleman, American convict (b. 1958)
- 1996 –Jon Pertwee, British actor (b. 1919)
- 2000 –Jean-Pierre Rampal, French flutist (b. 1922)
- 2000 –Malik Sealy, American basketball player (b. 1970)
- 2007 –Norman Von Nida, Australian golfer (b. 1914)
- 2011 –Randy Savage, American Pro-Wrestler (b. 1952)
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