A Tupolev Tu-154 of the Russian Defence Ministry crashed into the Black Sea shortly after taking off from Sochi International Airport, killing all 92 people on board.
Aboard Northwest Airlines Flight 253, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab attempted to detonate plastic explosives hidden in his underwear.
A fire destroyed Longford's 19th-century St Mel's Cathedral, considered the "flagship cathedral" of the Irish midlands.
A tiger at the San Francisco Zoo escaped from its enclosure and attacked three patrons before it was shot and killed.
Russian president Vladimir Putin signed into law a bill officially adopting a new national anthem, with music by Alexander Vasilyevich Alexandrov originally composed for the anthem of the Soviet Union.
In a nationally televised speech, Mikhail Gorbachev (pictured) resigned as President of the Soviet Union.
British computer programmer Tim Berners-Lee introduced WorldWideWeb, the world's first web browser and WYSIWYG HTML editor.
Romanian Revolution: Communist dictator Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife Elena were condemned to death on a wide range of charges and executed.
In Tamil Nadu, India, families of striking Dalit workers were massacred by a gang, allegedly led by their landlords.
Four Scottish university students removed the Stone of Scone, used in the coronations of Scottish and British monarchs, from Westminster Abbey in London.
Second World War: The Japanese occupation of Hong Kong began when Mark Aitchison Young, the Governor of Hong Kong, surrendered the territory to Japan after 18 days of fierce fighting.
The Việt Nam Quốc Dân Đảng, a revolutionary socialist political party that sought Vietnamese independence from French colonial rule, was formed in Hanoi.
The Royal Navy armed trawler Night Hawk sank after striking a mine, with the loss of six of her crew.
A Baptist preacher named Samuel Sharpe began an unsuccessful eleven-day slave revolt in Jamaica.
American physician Ephraim McDowell performed the world's first removal of an ovarian tumor.
Based on predictions by Edmond Halley in 1705, Johann Georg Palitzsch observed a comet that was later named Halley's Comet .
Johann Sebastian Bach led the first performance of Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ, based on the Christmas hymn written by Martin Luther in 1524.
Baldwin I was crowned the first king of Jerusalem (depicted) in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.
Norman Conquest: William the Conqueror was crowned King of England at Westminster Abbey, but continued to face rebellions over the following years and was not secure on the throne until after 1072.
Henry III was crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Clement II.
After the death of Emperor Gongsun Shu of Chengjia, the empire was conquered by the Eastern Han dynasty.
Azerbaijan Airlines Flight 8243 crashes in Aktau, Kazakhstan, killing 38 of its occupants.
The James Webb Space Telescope is launched.
An explosion in Nashville, Tennessee, occurs, leaving three civilians in the hospital.
Twenty people are killed and thousands are left homeless by Typhoon Phanfone in the Philippines.
A Russian Defence Ministry Tupolev Tu-154 carrying members of the Alexandrov Ensemble crashes into the Black Sea shortly after takeoff, killing all 92 people on board.
An Antonov An-72 plane crashes close to the city of Shymkent, killing 27 people.
Air Bagan Flight 011, a Fokker 100, crashes on approach to Heho Airport in Heho, Myanmar, killing two people.
The Cassini orbiter releases Huygens probe which successfully landed on Saturn's moon Titan on January 14, 2005.
UTA Flight 141, a Boeing 727-223, crashes at the Cotonou Airport in Benin, killing 141 people.
The ill-fated Beagle 2 probe, released from the Mars Express spacecraft on December 19, stops transmitting shortly before its scheduled landing.
Cubana de Aviación Flight 310, a Yakovlev Yak-42, crashes near Bejuma, Carabobo State, Venezuela, killing 22 people.
The body of American child beauty queen JonBenét Ramsey was found in her family's Boulder, Colorado, home. Her murder remains unsolved.
Mikhail Gorbachev resigns as President of the Soviet Union (the union itself is dissolved the next day). Ukraine's referendum is finalized and Ukraine officially leaves the Soviet Union.
Romanian Revolution: Deposed President of Romania Nicolae Ceaușescu and his wife, Elena, are condemned to death and executed after a summary trial.
Iraqi Airways Flight 163, a Boeing 737-270C, is hijacked and crashes in Arar, Saudi Arabia, killing 63 people.
Israeli Prime Minister Menachem Begin meets in Egypt with its president Anwar Sadat.
EgyptAir Flight 864, a Boeing 707-366C, crashes on approach to Don Mueang International Airport, killing 71 people.
Apollo program: Apollo 8 performs the first successful Trans-Earth injection (TEI) maneuver, sending the crew and spacecraft on a trajectory back to Earth from Lunar orbit.
Kilvenmani massacre: Forty-four Dalits (untouchables) are burnt to death in Kizhavenmani village, Tamil Nadu, a retaliation for a campaign for higher wages by Dalit laborers.
Turkish Cypriot Bayrak Radio begins transmitting in Cyprus after Turkish Cypriots are forcibly excluded from Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation.
The Soviet Union conducts its final above-ground nuclear weapon test, in anticipation of the 1963 Partial Nuclear Test Ban Treaty.
A bomb explodes at the home of Harry T. Moore and Harriette V. S. Moore, early leaders of the Civil Rights Movement, killing Harry instantly and fatally wounding Harriette.
The Stone of Scone, traditional coronation stone of British monarchs, is taken from Westminster Abbey by Scottish nationalist students. It later turns up in Scotland on April 11, 1951.
The first European self-sustaining nuclear chain reaction is initiated within the Soviet Union's F-1 nuclear reactor.
Admiral Chester W. Nimitz, appointed commander of the U.S. Pacific Fleet on December 17, arrives at Pearl Harbor.
World War II: Battle of Hong Kong ends, beginning the Japanese occupation of Hong Kong.
Admiral Émile Muselier seizes the archipelago of Saint Pierre and Miquelon, which become the first part of France to be liberated by the Free French Forces.
A magnitude 7.6 earthquake in Gansu, China kills 275 people.
B. R. Ambedkar and his followers burn copies of the Manusmriti in Mahad, Maharashtra, to protest its treatment of Dalit people.
The National Protection War breaks out against the Empire of China, as military leaders Cai E and Tang Jiyao proclaim the independence of Yunnan and begin a campaign to restore the Republic.
World War I: A series of unofficial truces occur across the Western Front to celebrate Christmas.
Wagner's Siegfried Idyll is first performed.
Pardons for ex-Confederates: United States President Andrew Johnson grants an unconditional pardon to all Confederate veterans.
Second Seminole War: American general Zachary Taylor leads 1,100 troops against the Seminoles at the Battle of Lake Okeechobee.
The Great Jamaican Slave Revolt begins; up to 20% of Jamaica's slaves mobilize in an ultimately unsuccessful fight for freedom.
The Eggnog Riot at the United States Military Academy concludes after beginning the previous evening.
The Handel and Haydn Society, oldest continually performing arts organization in the United States, gives its first performance.
Rev. Samuel Marsden holds the first Christian service on land in New Zealand at Rangihoua Bay.
Dr. Ephraim McDowell performs the first ovariotomy, removing a 22-pound tumor.
Northwest Indian War: General "Mad Anthony" Wayne and a 300 man detachment identify the site of St. Clair's 1791 defeat by the large number of unburied human remains at modern Fort Recovery, Ohio.
American Revolutionary War: General George Washington and the Continental Army cross the Delaware River at night to attack Hessian forces serving Great Britain at Trenton, New Jersey, the next day.
Mapuches in Chile launch a series of surprise attacks against the Spanish starting the Mapuche uprising of 1766.
Halley's Comet is sighted by Johann Georg Palitzsch, confirming Edmund Halley's prediction of its passage. This was the first passage of a comet predicted ahead of time.
J. S. Bach leads the first performance of Gelobet seist du, Jesu Christ, BWV 91, in Leipzig, based on Luther's 1524 Christmas hymn.
Pope Pius IV is elected, four months after his predecessor's death.
Battle of Tucapel: Mapuche rebels under Lautaro defeat the Spanish conquistadors and executes the governor of Chile, Pedro de Valdivia.
The carrack Santa María, commanded by Christopher Columbus, runs onto a reef off Haiti due to an improper watch.
Eleven-year-old John IV Laskaris of the restored Eastern Roman Empire is deposed and blinded by orders of his co-ruler Michael VIII Palaiologos.
Count Roger II of Sicily is crowned the first king of Sicily.
Baldwin of Boulogne is crowned the first King of Jerusalem in the Church of the Nativity in Bethlehem.
Coronation of Bolesław II the Generous as king of Poland.
William the Conqueror, Duke of Normandy is crowned king of England, at Westminster Abbey, London.
Henry III is crowned Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Clement II.
Coronation of Mieszko II Lambert as king of Poland.
Sweyn Forkbeard takes control of the Danelaw and is proclaimed king of England.
The foundation of the Kingdom of Hungary: Hungary is established as a Christian kingdom by Stephen I of Hungary.
Eastern Emperor Leo V is murdered in a church of the Great Palace of Constantinople by followers of Michael II.
The coronation of Charlemagne as Holy Roman Emperor, in Rome.
Augustine of Canterbury and his fellow-labourers baptise in Kent more than 10,000 Anglo-Saxons.
Clovis I, king of the Franks, is baptized into the Catholic faith at Reims, by Saint Remigius.
Vetranio meets Constantius II at Naissus (Serbia) and is forced to abdicate his imperial title. Constantius allows him to live as a private citizen on a state pension.
First documentary sign of Christmas celebration in Rome.
Roman Emperor Constantine the Great elevates his youngest son Constans to the rank of Caesar.
A temple to Sol Invictus is dedicated in Rome by Emperor Aurelian.
Forces of Emperor Guangwu of the Eastern Han, under the command of Wu Han, conquer the separatist Chengjia empire, reuniting China.
Wilfried Singo, Ivorian footballer
Adut Akech, South Sudanese-Australian fashion model
Emiliano Buendía, Argentine footballer
Emi Takei, Japanese actress, fashion model and singer
Mitakeumi Hisashi, Japanese sumo wrestler
Avu-chan, Japanese musician, songwriter, actor, model and producer
Eric Gordon, American basketball player
Lukas Hinds-Johnson, German rugby player
Joãozinho, Brazilian footballer
Ceyhun Gülselam, Turkish footballer
Demaryius Thomas, American football player (died 2021)
Martin Mathathi, Kenyan runner
Rusev, Bulgarian-American professional wrestler
Perdita Weeks, Welsh actress
Chris Cahill, Samoan footballer
Alastair Cook, English cricketer
Jessica Origliasso, Australian singer, actress, and fashion designer
Lisa Origliasso, Australian singer, actress, and fashion designer
Chris Richard, American basketball player
Shawn Andrews, American football player
Rob Edwards, Welsh footballer
Ethan Kath, Canadian keyboard player, songwriter and producer
Chris Rene, American singer-songwriter and producer
Trenesha Biggers, American wrestler and model
Camille Herron, American ultramarathon runner
Christian Holst, Danish-Faroese footballer
Willy Taveras, Dominican baseball player
Laura Sadler, English actress (died 2003)
Marcus Trufant, American football player
Ferman Akgül, Turkish singer-songwriter
Laurent Bonnart, French footballer
Robert Huff, English race car driver
Hyun Young-min, South Korean footballer
Simon Jones, Welsh cricketer
Joel Porter, Australian footballer and manager
Jeremy Strong, American actor
Ali Tandoğan, Turkish footballer
Israel Vázquez, Mexican boxer (died 2024)
Tuomas Holopainen, Finnish keyboard player, songwriter, and producer
Atko Väikmeri, Estonian footballer
Armin van Buuren, Dutch DJ and record producer
Hideki Okajima, Japanese baseball player
Choi Sung-yong, South Korean footballer and manager
Marcus Trescothick, English cricketer
Robbie Elliott, English footballer and coach
Chris Harris, American wrestler
Daisuke Miura, Japanese baseball player and coach
Alexandre Trudeau, Canadian journalist and director
Mac Powell, American singer-songwriter and producer
Qu Yunxia, Chinese runner
Dido, English singer-songwriter
Noel Hogan, Irish musician and songwriter
Justin Trudeau, Canadian educator and politician, 23rd Prime Minister of Canada
Emmanuel Amunike, Nigerian footballer and manager
Rodney Dent, American basketball player
Nicolas Godin, French musician
Noel Goldthorpe, Australian rugby league player
Frederick Onyancha, Kenyan runner
Helena Christensen, Danish model and actress
Jim Dowd, American ice hockey player
Andreas Haitzer, Austrian politician
Jason Thirsk, American bass player (died 1996)
Toshi Arai, Japanese race car driver
Ed Davey, English politician, Leader of the Liberal Democrats
Dmitri Mironov, Russian ice hockey player
David Rath, Czech physician and politician
Ian Bostridge, English tenor
Gary McAllister, Scottish footballer and manager
Bob Stanley, British musician and writer
Francis Dunnery, English musician
Íngrid Betancourt, Colombian political scientist and politician
Michael P. Anderson, American colonel, pilot, and astronaut (died 2003)
Ramdas Athawale, Indian poet and politician
Cheryl Chase, American voice actress and singer
Rickey Henderson, American baseball player and coach (died 2024)
Konstantin Kinchev, Russian singer-songwriter and guitarist
Alannah Myles, Canadian singer-songwriter and actress
Mansoor Akhtar, Pakistani cricketer
Chris Kamara, English footballer and sportscaster
Shane MacGowan, English-Irish singer-songwriter (died 2023)
Annie Lennox, Scottish singer-songwriter and pianist
Kaarlo Maaninka, Finnish runner
Tolossa Kotu, Ethiopian runner and coach
CCH Pounder, Guyanese-American actress
Desireless, French singer and songwriter
Warren Robinett, American video game designer
Peter Boardman, English mountaineer and author (died 1982)
Karl Rove, American political strategist and activist
Manny Trillo, Venezuelan baseball player and manager
Simone Bittencourt de Oliveira, Brazilian singer
Nawaz Sharif, Pakistani politician, 12th Prime Minister of Pakistan
Sissy Spacek, American actress
Merry Clayton, American singer and actress
Kay Hymowitz, American sociologist and writer
Barbara Mandrell, American singer-songwriter and actress
Joel Santana, Brazilian footballer and manager
Jimmy Buffett, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, producer, and actor (died 2023)
Rick Berman, American screenwriter and producer
Mike Pringle, Zambian-Scottish lawyer and politician
Noel Redding, English singer-songwriter and bass player (died 2003)
Ken Stabler, American football player and sportscaster (died 2015)
Kenny Everett, British comedian and broadcaster (died 1995)
Jairzinho, Brazilian footballer
Sam Strahan, New Zealand rugby player (died 2019)
Wilson Fittipaldi Júnior, Brazilian race car driver and businessman (died 2024)
Ravish Malhotra, Indian pilot and military officer
Eve Pollard, English journalist and author
Hanna Schygulla, German actress
Jacqui McShee, English singer
Françoise Dürr, French tennis player and coach
Barbara Follett, English politician
Barry Goldberg, American keyboard player, songwriter, and producer (died 2025)
Enrique Morente, Spanish singer-songwriter (died 2010)
Kenneth Calman, Scottish physician and academic
Hilary Spurling, English journalist and author
Ghulam Ahmad Bilour, Pakistani businessman and politician
Bob James, American keyboard player, songwriter, and producer
Akong Rinpoche, Tibetan-Chinese spiritual leader (died 2013)
Duane Armstrong, American painter
Noel Picard, Canadian ice hockey player (died 2017)
Maung Aye, Burmese military officer
O'Kelly Isley Jr., American R&B/soul singer-songwriter (died 1986)
Princess Alexandra, The Honourable Lady Ogilvy
Ismail Merchant, Indian-English director and producer (died 2005)
Sadiq al-Mahdi, Sudanese politician, Prime Minister of Sudan (died 2020)
Stephen Barnett, American scholar and academic (died 2009)
Jeanne Hopkins Lucas, American educator and politician (died 2007)
Basil Heatley, English runner (died 2019)
Mabel King, American actress and singer (died 1999)
Emmanuel Agassi, Iranian-American boxer and coach (died 2021)
Armenak Alachachian, Armenian basketball player and coach (died 2017)
Mary Rose Tuitt, Montserrat politician (died 2005)
Christine M. Jones, American educator and politician (died 2013)
China Machado, Chinese-born Portuguese-American fashion model, editor and television producer (died 2016)
Chris Kenner, American singer and songwriter (died 1976)
Irish McCalla, American actress and model (died 2002)
Dick Miller, American actor, director, and screenwriter (died 2019)
Nellie Fox, American baseball player and coach (died 1975)
Ram Narayan, Indian sarangi player (died 2024)
Enrique Jorrín, Cuban violinist and composer (died 1987)
Carlos Castaneda, Peruvian-American anthropologist and author (died 1998)
Ned Garver, American baseball player (died 2017)
Sam Pollock, Canadian businessman (died 2007)
Rod Serling, American screenwriter and producer, created The Twilight Zone (died 1975)
Atal Bihari Vajpayee, Indian poet and politician, 10th Prime Minister of India (died 2018)
René Girard, French-American historian, philosopher, and critic (died 2015)
Louis Lane, American conductor and educator (died 2016)
William Demby, American author (died 2013)
Zaib-un-Nissa Hamidullah, Indian-Pakistani journalist and author (died 2000)
Steve Otto, Polish-Canadian lawyer and politician (died 1989)
Naushad Ali, Indian composer and director (died 2006)
Paul David, Canadian cardiologist and politician, founded the Montreal Heart Institute (died 1999)
Noele Gordon, English actress (died 1985)
Anwar Sadat, Egyptian lieutenant and politician, 3rd President of Egypt, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1981)
Arseny Mironov, Russian scientist, engineer, pilot, oldest active researcher in aircraft aerodynamics and flight testing (died 2019)
Lincoln Verduga Loor, Ecuadorian journalist and politician (died 2009)
Ahmed Ben Bella, Algerian soldier and politician, 1st President of Algeria (died 2012)
Pete Rugolo, Italian-American composer and producer (died 2011)
James Fletcher Jnr, New Zealand businessman (died 2007)
Oscar Lewis, American anthropologist of Latin America (died 1970)
Candy Candido, American singer, bass player, and voice actor (died 1999)
Tony Martin, American singer (died 2012)
Louise Bourgeois, French-American sculptor and painter (died 2010)
Zora Arkus-Duntov, Belgian-American engineer (died 1996)
Quentin Crisp, English author and illustrator (died 1999)
Ernest L. Massad, American general (died 1993)
Jo-Jo Moore, American baseball player (died 2001)
Cab Calloway, American singer-songwriter and bandleader (died 1994)
Mike Mazurki, Ukrainian-American wrestler and actor (died 1990)
Glenn McCarthy, American businessman, founded the Shamrock Hotel (died 1988)
Lew Grade, Baron Grade, Ukrainian-English film producer (died 1998)
Ernst Ruska, German physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1988)
Gerhard Herzberg, German-Canadian physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1999)
Philip Vera Cruz, Filipino-American labor leader and farmworker (died 1994)
Antiochos Evangelatos, Greek composer and conductor (died 1981)
William Bell, American tuba player and educator (died 1971)
Barton MacLane, American actor, playwright, and screenwriter (died 1969)
Princess Alice, Duchess of Gloucester (died 2004)
Humphrey Bogart, American actor (died 1957)
Kenneth Anderson, Indian-English general and politician, Governor of Gibraltar (died 1959)
Clarrie Grimmett, New Zealand-Australian cricketer (died 1980)
Noel Odell, English geologist and mountaineer (died 1987)
Lila Bell Wallace, American publisher and philanthropist, co-founded Reader's Digest (died 1984)
Conrad Hilton, American entrepreneur (died 1979)
Malak Hifni Nasif, Egyptian poet and activist (died 1918)
Kid Ory, American trombonist and bandleader (died 1973)
Samuel Berger, American boxer (died 1925)
Evelyn Nesbit, American model and actress (died 1967)
Hugo Bergmann, Czech-Israeli philosopher and academic (died 1975)
Hana Meisel, Belarusian-Israeli agronomist and politician (died 1972)
Louis Chevrolet, American race car driver and businessman, co-founded Chevrolet (died 1941)
Noël, Countess of Rothes, British philanthropist, social leader and heroine of Titanic disaster (died 1956)
Joseph M. Schenck, Russian-American film producer (died 1961)
Muhammad Ali Jinnah, Indian-Pakistani lawyer and politician, 1st Governor-General of Pakistan (died 1948)
Adolf Otto Reinhold Windaus, German chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1959)
Francis Aveling, Canadian psychologist and priest (died 1941)
Theodor Innitzer, Austrian cardinal (died 1955)
Lina Cavalieri, Italian soprano and actress (died 1944)
Otto Frederick Hunziker, Swiss-American agriculturalist and educator (died 1959)
Helena Rubinstein, Polish-American businesswoman and philanthropist (died 1965)
Charles Finger, English-American journalist and author (died 1941)
Evangeline Booth, English 4th General of The Salvation Army (died 1950)
Francis Henry Buzzacott, American hunter, explorer and army scout famous for writing Buzzacott's Masterpiece (died 1947)
Madan Mohan Malaviya, Indian educator, lawyer, and politician, President of the Indian National Congress (died 1946)
Pud Galvin, American baseball player and manager (died 1902)
Patrick Gilmore, Irish-American composer and bandleader (died 1892)
Stephen F. Chadwick, American lawyer and politician, 5th Governor of Oregon (died 1895)
Clara Barton, American nurse and humanitarian, founder of the American Red Cross (died 1912)
L. L. Langstroth, American apiarist, clergyman and teacher (died 1895)
Sydney, Lady Morgan, Irish author and poet (died 1859)
Dorothy Wordsworth, English diarist and poet (died 1855)
Christmas Evans, Welsh Nonconformist preacher (died 1838)
Benjamin Pierce, American general and politician, 17th Governor of New Hampshire (died 1839)
Chevalier de Saint-Georges, Caribbean-French violinist, composer, and conductor (died 1799)
Filippo Mazzei, Italian-American physician and philosopher (died 1816)
Johann Adam Hiller, German composer and conductor (died 1804)
Pope Pius VI (died 1799)
Johann Jakob Reiske, German physician and scholar (died 1774)
Jean-Joseph de Mondonville, French violinist and composer (died 1772)
Leopold II, Prince of Anhalt-Dessau (died 1758)
Giovanni Battista Somis, Italian violinist and composer (died 1763)
Thomas Halyburton, Scottish minister and theologian (died 1712)
Lady Grizel Baillie, Scottish-English poet and songwriter (died 1746)
Archibald Pitcairne, Scottish physician, anatomist, and scholar (died 1713)
Isaac Newton, English physicist and mathematician (died 1727)
Noël Coypel, French painter and educator (died 1707)
Ernest I, Duke of Saxe-Gotha (died 1675)
Margaret of Austria, Queen of Spain (died 1611)
Orlando Gibbons, English organist and composer (died 1625)
Johannes Buxtorf, German Calvinist theologian (died 1629)
Christine of Saxony, German noblewoman (died 1549)
Antoinette de Bourbon, French noblewoman (died 1583)
Francesco Marinoni, Italian Roman Catholic priest (died 1562)
Christina of Saxony, Queen consort of Denmark (died 1521)
Margaret Stewart, Dauphine of France (died 1445)
John Sutton, 1st Baron Dudley, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (died 1487)
Alice de Lacy, 4th Countess of Lincoln (died 1348)
John IV Laskaris, Byzantine emperor (died 1305)
Britt Allcroft, English writer (born 1943)
Bill Bergey, American football player (born 1945)
Jax Dane, American professional wrestler (born 1976)
M. T. Vasudevan Nair, Indian author and screenwriter (born 1933)
Osamu Suzuki, Japanese businessman (born 1930)
Jim Breaks, British wrestler (born 1940)
Fabián O'Neill, Uruguayan footballer (born 1973)
Wayne Thiebaud, American artist (born 1920)
K. C. Jones, American basketball player and coach (born 1932)
Ari Behn, Norwegian writer (born 1972)
Sulagitti Narasamma, Indian midwife (born 1920)
D. Herbert Lipson, American magazine publisher (Philadelphia, Boston) (born 1929)
Valery Khalilov, Russian military musician and composer (born 1952)
George Michael, British singer and songwriter (born 1963)
Vera Rubin, American astronomer (born 1928)
George Clayton Johnson, American author and screenwriter (born 1929)
Dorothy M. Murdock, American author and historian (born 1961)
Ricardo Porro, Cuban-French architect (born 1925)
Geoff Pullar, English cricketer (born 1935)
David Ryall, English actor (born 1935)
Anthony J. Bryant, American historian and author (born 1961)
David R. Harris, English geographer, anthropologist, archaeologist and academic (born 1930)
Wayne Harrison, English footballer (born 1967)
Mike Hegan, American baseball player and sportscaster (born 1942)
Lola Lange, Canadian rural feminist and appointee to the Royal Commission on the Status of Women (born 1922)
Mel Mathay, Filipino politician, 8th Mayor of Quezon City (born 1932)
Erico Aumentado, Filipino journalist, lawyer, and politician (born 1940)
Halfdan Hegtun, Norwegian radio host and politician (born 1918)
Joe Krivak, American football player and coach (born 1935)
Turki bin Sultan, Saudi Arabian politician (born 1959)
Şerafettin Elçi, Turkish lawyer, politician, government minister (born 1938)
Giorgio Bocca, Italian journalist (born 1920)
Jim Sherwood, American saxophonist (born 1942)
Simms Taback, American author and illustrator (born 1932)
Carlos Andrés Pérez, Venezuelan politician, 66th President of Venezuela (born 1922)
Vic Chesnutt, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (born 1964)
Eartha Kitt, American singer and actress (born 1927)
Des Barrick, English cricketer (born 1927)
Jim Beauchamp, American baseball player and coach (born 1939)
James Brown, American singer-songwriter (born 1933)
Derek Bailey, English guitarist (born 1930)
Robert Barbers, Filipino police officer, lawyer, and politician, 15th Secretary of the Interior and Local Government (born 1944)
Birgit Nilsson, Swedish operatic soprano (born 1918)
Joseph Pararajasingham, Sri Lankan journalist, businessman, and politician (born 1934)
Gennadi Strekalov, Russian engineer and astronaut (born 1940)
Nicholas Mavroules, American politician (born 1929)
Alfred A. Tomatis, French otolaryngologist and academic (born 1920)
Neil Hawke, Australian cricketer and footballer (born 1939)
Willard Van Orman Quine, American philosopher and academic (born 1908)
John Pulman, English snooker player (born 1923)
Anatoli Boukreev, Kazakh mountaineer and explorer (born 1958)
Denver Pyle, American actor (born 1920)
Bill Hewitt, Canadian sportscaster (born 1928)
Emmanuel Levinas, Lithuanian-French philosopher and academic (born 1906)
Dean Martin, American singer and actor (born 1917)
Chang Kee-ryo, Korean surgeon (born 1914)
Vincent Patriarca, Italian-American aviator and mercenary (born 1914)
Zail Singh, Indian politician, 7th President of India (born 1916)
Pierre Victor Auger, French physicist and academic (born 1899)
Monica Dickens, British-American nurse and author (born 1915)
Wilbur Snyder, American football player and wrestler (born 1929)
Benny Binion, American poker player and businessman (born 1904)
Elena Ceaușescu, Romanian politician, First Lady of Romania (born 1916)
Nicolae Ceaușescu, Romanian general and politician, 1st President of Romania (born 1918)
Betty Garde, American actress (born 1905)
Frederick F. Houser, American judge and politician, 34th Lieutenant Governor of California (born 1905)
Billy Martin, American baseball player and manager (born 1928)
Robert Pirosh, American director and screenwriter (born 1910)
Shōhei Ōoka, Japanese author and critic (born 1909)
Edward Pelham-Clinton, 10th Duke of Newcastle, English entomologist and lepidopterist (born 1920)
Joan Miró, Spanish painter and sculptor (born 1893)
Fred Emney, English actor and comedian (born 1900)
Joan Blondell, American actress and singer (born 1906)
Jordi Bonet, Canadian painter and sculptor (born 1932)
Charlie Chaplin, English actor and director (born 1889)
Gaston Gallimard, French publisher, founded Éditions Gallimard (born 1881)
Gunnar Kangro, Estonian mathematician and author (born 1913)
İsmet İnönü, Turkish general and politician, 2nd President of Turkey (born 1884)
Gabriel Voisin, French pilot and engineer (born 1880)
Michael Peto, Hungarian-English photographer and journalist (born 1908)
Tristan Tzara, Romanian-French poet, playwright, painter, and critic (born 1896)
Owen Brewster, American captain, lawyer, and politician, 54th Governor of Maine (born 1888)
Otto Loewi, German-American pharmacologist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1873)
Charles Pathé, French record producer, founded Pathé Records (born 1863)
Robert Walser, Swiss author and playwright (born 1878)
Patsy Donovan, Irish-American baseball player and manager (born 1865)
William Haselden, British cartoonist (born 1872)
Margrethe Mather, American photographer (born 1886)
Neil Francis Hawkins, English politician (born 1903)
Leon Schlesinger, American animator and producer, founded Warner Bros. Cartoons (born 1884)
Gaspar G. Bacon, American lawyer and politician, 51st Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts (born 1886)
W. C. Fields, American actor, comedian, juggler, and screenwriter (born 1880)
George Steer, South African-English journalist and author (born 1909)
Richard S. Aldrich, American lawyer and politician (born 1884)
Agnes Ayres, American actress (born 1898)
Karel Čapek, Czech author and playwright (born 1890)
Paul Bourget, French author and critic (born 1852)
Francesc Macià, Catalan colonel and politician, 122nd President of Catalonia (born 1859)
Jakob Mändmets, Estonian journalist and author (born 1871)
Miles Burke, American boxer (born 1885)
Emperor Taishō of Japan (born 1879)
Karl Abraham, German psychoanalyst and author (born 1877)
Vladimir Korolenko, Russian journalist, author, and activist (born 1853)
Albert Chmielowski, Polish saint, founded the Albertine Brothers (born 1845)
Fridolin Anderwert, Swiss lawyer and politician, President of the Swiss National Council (born 1828)
Young Tom Morris, Scottish golfer (born 1851)
Linus Yale, Jr., American engineer and businessman (born 1821)
Hayrullah Efendi, Ottoman physician, historian, and official (born 1818)
Barbara von Krüdener, German mystic and author (born 1764)
William Lawless, Irish revolutionary, later French Army general (born 1772)
Velu Nachiyar, Queen of Sivagangai (born 1730)
Yosa Buson, Japanese poet and painter (born 1716)
James Hervey, English priest and author (born 1714)
Henry Scott, 1st Earl of Deloraine, Scottish peer and general (born 1676)
Jørgen Thormøhlen, German-Norwegian merchant (born c.1640)
Kara Mustafa Pasha, Ottoman general and politician, 111th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (born 1634)
William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle, English soldier and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Nottinghamshire (born 1592)
Matthew Hale, English lawyer and jurist, Lord Chief Justice of England and Wales (born 1609)
Samuel de Champlain, French soldier, geographer, and explorer (born 1567)
Lettice Knollys, English noblewoman (born 1543)
Pedro de Valdivia, Spanish explorer and politician, 1st Royal Governor of Chile (born 1500)
George Grey, 2nd Earl of Kent, English politician (born 1454)
Henry III of Castile (born 1379)
Elisabeth, Countess of Neuchâtel, Swiss ruler
Mestwin II, Duke of Pomerania
Peter the Venerable, French abbot and saint (born 1092)
Sverker the Elder, king of Sweden
Guy II, Count of Ponthieu (born c. 1120)
Makan ibn Kaki, Iranian general
Zhang Jingda, general of Later Tang
Emperor Leo V
Pope Adrian I
Saint Anastasia
Children's Day (Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, Equatorial Guinea, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Gabon, Republic of Congo)
Christian feast day: Anastasia of Sirmium (Catholic Church)
Christian feast day: Stephen (Armenian Apostolic Church)
Christian feast day: December 25 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
Christmas Day, Christian festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. (Internationally observed)
Tulsi Pujan Diwas (India)
Constitution Day (Taiwan)
Good Governance Day (India)
Quaid-e-Azam's Day (Pakistan)
Takanakuy (Chumbivilcas Province, Peru)