December 21

It is the most common day for to end in the  and for  to end in the.

Events

 * - : Following, and ,  becomes the fourth  within a year.
 * - : and the   land on what is now known as  in.
 * - The commence business at their  in, starting the.
 * - : Public Resolution 82, containing a provision for a Navy Medal of Valor, is signed into law by President.
 * - is founded under the name of Phi Kappa Chi at Washington College (now ) in.
 * - : , commanded by Captain, sails from.
 * - The first Permanent Force cavalry and infantry regiments of the Canadian Army are formed: and
 * - The movie  premiered in.
 * - 's "word-cross", the first, is published in the .
 * -, a Japanese dairy industry company, is founded.
 * - First flight of the  bomber prototype.
 * - The film  is premiered at the in.
 * - : is elected  as his  party gain 78.5% of the vote.
 * - is established as 's first.
 * -, the first man to undergo a heart transplant, dies in Cape Town, South Africa, after living for 18 days.
 * - : , the first manned mission to the moon, is launched from the in . At 2h:50m:37s Mission elapsed time (MES), the crew performs the first ever manned  and become the first humans to leave the Earth's.
 * - meets with President  to discuss the.
 * - The flies for the first time.
 * - The chooses  to succeed  as.
 * - The on the  opens.
 * - : An independence agreement for is signed in  by, Sir , , , Bishop  and Dr S C Mundawarara.
 * - The passenger ferry  sinks after colliding with the oil tanker Vector 1 in the Tablas Strait in the, killing 1,565.
 * - A bomb explodes on board over, , Scotland, killing 270.
 * - is elected honorary president of the.
 * - A, flight , crashes at , killing 56 people.
 * - A homemade bomb goes off on the on  in.
 * - The city of passes from  to  control.
 * - The intercepts a van loaded with 950  of explosives that  intended to use to blow up  in.

Births

 * -, and  (d. )
 * -, Italian painter (d. )
 * -, Moldovan Orthodox Metropolitan Bishop of Kiev and Galicia (d. ) * - , English theologian and colonist (d. )
 * -, Canadian-born soldier (d. )
 * -, Danish politician (d. )
 * -, German historian (d. )
 * -, (d. )
 * -, British chemist (d. )
 * -, (d. )
 * - French painter and teacher (d. )
 * -, Queen of (d. )
 * -, American politician (d. )
 * -, Irish-born New Zealander poet (d. )
 * -, Bohemian composer (d. )
 * -, American politician, 34th (d. )
 * -, French poet (d. )
 * -, British actor (d. )
 * 1872  -, Italian composer (d. )
 * 1872  -, American author (d. )
 * -, Croatian composer (d. )
 * - (John Thomas Lang),  (d. )
 * -, Polish philosopher and mathematician (d. )
 * -, hockey player (d. )
 * -, American biologist (d. )
 * -, American geneticist and (d. )
 * -, American politician (d. )
 * -, American golfer (d. )
 * 1892  -, American writer (d. )
 * -, American composer (d. )
 * -, British author (d. )
 * -, American baseball player (d. )
 * -, Austro-Hungarian-born Croatian painter (d. )
 * -, member of the Trapp Family Singers (d. )
 * -, German writer and (d. )
 * 1917  -, American politician
 * -, American (d. )
 * 1918  -, Austrian  and  (d. )
 * -, Cuban ballerina
 * 1920  -, cartoonist
 * 1920  -, Canadian actor (d. )
 * - (Maila Nurmi), Finnish-born actress
 * 1921  -, American comics artist
 * -, American ventriloquist (d. )
 * -, writer and colomnist of
 * -, American football coach
 * -, American essayist
 * -, American film director
 * 1935  -  (Joseph Stephens), American activist (d. )
 * 1935  -, American talk show host
 * 1935  -, Canadian politician,
 * -, American actress
 * 1937  -, American politician
 * -, Canadian politician
 * -, American musician (d. )
 * 1940  -, American singer
 * 1942  -, German singer
 * 1942  -, American singer
 * - . Quebec radio host
 * -, American conductor
 * 1944  -, English footballer
 * -, American musician (d. )
 * 1946 -, American conductor (d. )
 * -, Spanish musician
 * 1947  -, Northern Irish footballer
 * -, American actor
 * 1948  -, Austrian musician
 * 1948  -, baseball player
 * -, American producer
 * 1950  -, Norwegian singer-songwriter
 * -, English musician
 * -, baseball player
 * -, American singer
 * -, American tennis player
 * -, American actress
 * 1955  -, Japanese musician
 * -, American country singer
 * -, American baseball player
 * 1957  -, Italian-American comedian
 * -, American sprinter (d. )
 * -, London-based pianist
 * 1960  -, Former Major League Baseball Pitcher
 * 1960  -, baseball player
 * -, Hong Kong actor
 * 1961  -, Japanese composer
 * -, English football manager
 * 1964  -, Argentine actress
 * -, American actor and comedian
 * 1965  -, German comedian
 * -, British-born Canadian actor
 * 1966  -, American actress
 * -, Soviet-born
 * -, French actress
 * 1969  -, Latvian footballer
 * -, English television presenter
 * -, French musician
 * 1971  -, Australian celebrity chef
 * 1971  -, American singer
 * -, baseball player
 * 1972  -, baseball player
 * -, German-born Slovenian singer
 * 1973  -, American football player
 * -, Australian golfer
 * -, Argentine ballet dancer
 * -, Greek javelin thrower
 * -, American actor
 * -, Manager of Network Operations for LATTV
 * -, Italian football player
 * 1981  -, Mexican singer
 * 1981  -, English cricketer
 * -, American basketball player
 * -, Irish footballer
 * -, American motorcycle racer
 * -, American motorcycle racer

Deaths

 * -, wife of (bc. )
 * - (b. )
 * -, Italian writer (b. )
 * -, German archbishop and elector (b. )
 * -, wife of (b. )
 * -, Spanish painter
 * -, Dutch Jesuit (b. )
 * -, English cleric and hymnist (b. )
 * -, English physician, geologist, paleontologist, and political activist (b. )
 * -, French explorer (b. )
 * -, German geologist (b. )
 * -, American political figure, 39th (b. )
 * -, Greenlandic polar explorer and anthropologist (b. )
 * -, German journalist and satirist (b. )
 * -, , recipient of the (b. )
 * -, American writer (b. )
 * -, U.S. general (b. )
 * -, English composer (b. )
 * -, German writer (b. )
 * -, Japanese , restaurateur and ceramicist (b. )
 * -, American writer and photographer (b. )
 * -, Quebec composer (b. )
 * -, American actor (b. )
 * -, British artist (b. )
 * 1974  -, American actor (b. )
 * -, Canadian-born American director and screenwriter (b. )
 * -, Belgian-born literary critic (b. )
 * -, founding member (b. )
 * -, Dutch ornithologist, recipient of the (b. )
 * -, American musician (b. )
 * 1992  -, Ukrainian violinist (b. )
 * -, American country music singer (b. )
 * -, Durham actor (b. )
 * -, Scottish singer (b )
 * -, American sports journalist (b. )
 * -, Spanish playboy and businessman (b. )
 * -, Indian medical scientist (b. )
 * -, American baseball player and coach (b. )
 * -, Australian jockey (b. )
 * 2006  -, President of Turkmenistan (b. )
 * 2006  -, President of Turkmenistan (b. )

Holidays and observances

 * - in honour of
 * -, Saint ; formerly feast day of
 * In the, the , sometimes known as , occurs on or very close to this date. In the Northern Hemisphere, it marks the first official day of Winter. In the , the summer occurs around this time. It is also an important festival in the.
 * , originally a religious holiday for Zoroastrians, is now a social holiday in.
 * The will end on December 21,.