What are the important events that happened on December 23? Here are historical events, facts, and some myths about this day.
December 23: Facts & Myths About This Day
December 23 is the 358th day of the year 2024 in the Gregorian calendar. There are 8 days remaining until the end of this year. The day of the week is Monday.
Under the Julian calendar, this day is December 10, 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, 481,920 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 ‘trihectapentacontaoctagon’ day.
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Capricorn is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Turquoise is the modern birthstone for this month. Onyx is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
According to the lunisolar Chinese calendar, there are 37 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 4,385 days since this fabled cataclysmic event.
Do people and celebrities interest you? Discover all the December 23 famous birthdays who share your special day. Learn some fun facts about your birthday!
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December 23 Historical Events
- 1783 –George Washington resigns as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, Maryland.
- 1823 –A Visit from St. Nicholas, also known as The Night Before Christmas, is published anonymously.
- 1914 –World War I: Australian and New Zealand troops arrive in Cairo, Egypt.
- 1916 –World War I: Battle of Magdhaba – Allied forces defeat Turkish forces in Egypt’s Sinai peninsula.
- 1938 –Discovery of the first modern coelacanth in South Africa.
- 1941 –World War II: After 15 days of fighting, the Japanese Imperial Army occupies Wake Island.
- 1948 –Seven Japanese convicted of war crimes by the International Military Tribunal for the Far East are executed at Sugamo Prison in Tokyo.
- 1972 –A 6.5 magnitude earthquake strikes the Nicaraguan capital of Managua killing more than 10,000.
- 1979 –Soviet war in Afghanistan: Soviet forces occupy Kabul, the Afghan capital.
- 1982 –The United States Environmental Protection Agency announces it has identified dangerous levels of dioxin in the soil of Times Beach, Missouri.
Who were born on December 23?
- 245 –Zenobia, Queen of Palmyra
- 1923 –James Stockdale, American admiral and Medal of Honor recipient (d. 2005)
- 1926 –Robert Bly, American poet
- 1953 –Grand Duchess Maria Vladimirovna of Russia
- 1958 –Joan Severance, American actress
- 1963 –Jim Harbaugh, American football player
- 1969 –Martha Byrne, American actress
- 1978 –Andra Davis, American football player
- 1985 –Luke O'Loughlin, Australian actor
- 1987 –Owen Franks, New Zealand All Black rugby player
Who died on December 23?
- 910 –Naum of Preslav, Bulgarian scholar
- 1556 –Nicholas Udall, English playwright (b. 1504)
- 1631 –Michael Drayton, English poet (b. 1563)
- 1795 –Sir Henry Clinton, British general (b. 1730)
- 1834 –Thomas Malthus, English demographer and economist (b. 1766)
- 1846 –Jean Baptiste Bory de Saint-Vincent, French naturalist (b. 1780)
- 1931 –Wilson Bentley, American scientist (b. 1865)
- 1994 –Sebastian Shaw, English actor (b. 1905)
- 2005 –Lajos Baróti, Hungarian footballer and coach (b. 1914)
- 2007 –Michael Kidd, American film and stage choreographer (b. 1915)
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