What are the important events that happened on May 21? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.

May 21: Facts & Myths About This Day

May 21 is the 141^st day of the year 2025 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 224 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Wednesday.

Under the Julian calendar, this day is May 8, 2025 – a Wednesday. Both day of the week are the same but did you notice the difference with the Gregorian calendar?

When this day started, 485,496 hours 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.

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 272 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 4,534 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.

May 21 Historical Events

• 996 –
  Sixteen-year-old Otto III is crowned Holy Roman Emperor.
• 1863 –
  Organization of the Seventh-day Adventist Church in Battle Creek, Michigan.
• 1864 –
  Russia declares an end to the Russian-Circassian War and many Circassians are forced into exile. The day is designated the Circassian Day of Mourning.
• 1879 –
  War of the Pacific: Two Chilean ships blocking the harbor of Iquique (then belonging to Peru) battle two Peruvian vessels in the Battle of Iquique.
• 1937 –
  A Soviet station becomes the first scientific research settlement to operate on the drift ice of the Arctic Ocean.
• 1979 –
  White Night riots in San Francisco following the manslaughter conviction of Dan White for the assassinations of George Moscone and Harvey Milk.
• 1981 –
  The Italian government releases the membership list of Propaganda Due, an illegal pseudo-Masonic lodge that was implicated in numerous Italian crimes and mysteries.
• 1996 –
  The Trappist Martyrs of Atlas are executed.
• 2003 –
  An earthquake hits northern Algeria killing more than 2,000 people.
• 2005 –
  The tallest roller coaster in the world, Kingda Ka opens at Six Flags Great Adventure.

Who were born on May 21?

• 1755 –
  Alfred Moore, American judge (d. 1810)
• 1901 –
  Manfred Aschner, German-born Israeli microbiologist (d. 1989)
• 1901 –
  Suzanne Lilar, Belgian essayist and playwright (d. 1992)
• 1907 –
  John C. Allen, American roller coaster designer (d. 1979)
• 1955 –
  Paul Barber, British field hockey player
• 1970 –
  Dorsey Levens, American football player
• 1973 –
  Noel Fielding, British comedian
• 1979 –
  James Clancy Phelan, Australian novelist
• 1982 –
  Brian Klemm, American guitarist and vocalist (Suburban Legends)
• 1984 –
  Sara Goller, German beach volleyball player

Who died on May 21?

• 1607 –
  John Rainolds, English scholar (b. 1549)
• 1639 –
  Tommaso Campanella, Italian theologian (b. 1568)
• 1647 –
  Pieter Corneliszoon Hooft, Dutch poet (b. 1581)
• 1650 –
  James Graham, 1st Marquess of Montrose, Scottish royalist (b. 1612)
• 1664 –
  Elizabeth Poole, English-born Puritan settler and founder of Taunton, Massachusetts (b. 1588)
• 1919 –
  Yevgraf Fyodorov, Russian mathematician (b. 1853)
• 1929 –
  Archibald Primrose, Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (b. 1847)
• 1965 –
  Geoffrey de Havilland, British aircraft designer (b. 1882)
• 1984 –
  Ann Little, American actress (b. 1891)
• 2005 –
  Howard Morris, American comic actor and director (b. 1919)