February 2

Events

506 – Alaric II, eighth king of the Visigoths promulgates the Breviary of Alaric (Breviarium Alaricianum or Lex Romana Visigothorum), a collection of "Roman law".

880 – Battle of Lüneburg Heath: King Louis III is defeated by the Norse Great Heathen Army at Lüneburg Heath in Saxony.

962 – Translatio imperii: Pope John XII crowns Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, the first Holy Roman Emperor in nearly 40 years.

1032 – Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor becomes king of Burgundy.

1141 – The Battle of Lincoln, at which Stephen, King of England is defeated and captured by the allies of Empress Matilda.

1207 – Terra Mariana, eventually comprising present-day Latvia and Estonia, is established.

1461 – Wars of the Roses: The Battle of Mortimer's Cross is fought in Herefordshire, England.

1536 – Spaniard Pedro de Mendoza founds Buenos Aires, Argentina.

1653 – New Amsterdam (later renamed The City of New York) is incorporated.

1709 – Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being shipwrecked on a desert island, inspiring Daniel Defoe's adventure book Robinson Crusoe.

1848 – Mexican–American War: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is signed.

1868 – Pro-Imperial forces captured Osaka Castle from the Tokugawa shogunate and burned it to the ground.

1876 – The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs of Major League Baseball is formed.

1887 – In Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania the first Groundhog Day is observed.

1899 – The Australian Premiers' Conference held in Melbourne decides to locate Australia's capital city, Canberra, between Sydney and Melbourne.

1901 – Funeral of Queen Victoria.

1913 – Grand Central Terminal is opened in New York City.

1920 – The Tartu Peace Treaty is signed between Estonia and Russia.

1920 – France occupies Memel.

1922 – Ulysses by James Joyce is published.

1925 – Serum run to Nome: Dog sleds reach Nome, Alaska with diphtheria serum, inspiring the Iditarod race.

1934 – The Export-Import Bank of the United States is incorporated.

1935 – Leonarde Keeler administers polygraph tests to two murder suspects, the first time polygraph evidence was admitted in U.S. courts.

1942 – The Osvald Group is responsible for the first, active event of anti-Nazi resistance in Norway, to protest the inauguration of Vidkun Quisling.

1943 – World War II: The Battle of Stalingrad comes to an end when Soviet troops accept the surrender of the last German troops in the city.

1966 – Pakistan suggests a six-point agenda with Kashmir after the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.

1971 – Idi Amin replaces President Milton Obote as leader of Uganda.

1971 – The international Ramsar Convention for the conservation and sustainable utilization of wetlands is signed in Ramsar, Mazandaran, Iran.

1980 – Reports surface that the FBI is targeting allegedly corrupt Congressmen in the Abscam operation.

1982 – Hama massacre: The government of Syria attacks the town of Hama.

1987 – After the 1986 People Power Revolution, the Philippines enacts a new constitution.

1989 – Soviet war in Afghanistan: The last Soviet armoured column leaves Kabul.

1990 – Apartheid: F. W. de Klerk announces the unbanning of the African National Congress and promises to release Nelson Mandela.

2000 – First digital cinema projection in Europe (Paris) realized by Philippe Binant with the DLP CINEMA technology developed by Texas Instruments.

2004 – Swiss tennis player Roger Federer becomes the No. 1 ranked men's singles player, a position he will hold for a record 237 weeks.

2005 – The Government of Canada introduces the Civil Marriage Act. This legislation would become law on July 20, 2005, legalizing same-sex marriage.

2012 – The ferry MV Rabaul Queen sinks off the coast of Papua New Guinea near the Finschhafen District, with an estimated 300 people missing.

Births

450 – Justin I, Byzantine emperor (d. 527)

1208 – James I of Aragon (d. 1276)

1282 – Maud Chaworth, Countess of Leicester.

1426 – Eleanor of Navarre, Queen regnant of Navarre (d. 1479)

1443 – Elisabeth of Bavaria, Electress of Saxony (d. 1486)

1455 – John, King of Denmark (d. 1513)

1457 – Peter Martyr d'Anghiera, Italian-Spanish historian and author (d. 1526)

1467 – Columba of Rieti, Italian Dominican sister (d. 1501)

1494 – Bona Sforza, queen of Sigismund I of Poland (d. 1557)

1502 – Damião de Góis, Portuguese philosopher and historian (d. 1574)

1506 – René de Birague, Italian-French cardinal and politician (d. 1583)

1509 – John of Leiden, Dutch Anabaptist leader (d. 1536)

1522 – Lodovico Ferrari, Italian mathematician and academic (d. 1565)

1600 – Gabriel Naudé, French librarian and scholar (d. 1653)

1613 – Noël Chabanel, French missionary and saint (d. 1649)

1621 – Johannes Schefferus, Swedish author and hymn-writer (d. 1679)

1650 – Pope Benedict XIII (d. 1730)

1650 – Nell Gwyn, English actress (d. 1687)

1669 – Louis Marchand, French organist and composer (d. 1732)

1695 – William Borlase, English geologist and archaeologist (d. 1772)

1700 – Johann Christoph Gottsched, German author and critic (d. 1766)

1711 – Wenzel Anton, Prince of Kaunitz-Rietberg (d. 1794)

1714 – Gottfried August Homilius, German organist and composer (d. 1785)

1717 – Ernst Gideon von Laudon, Austrian field marshal (d. 1790)

1754 – Charles Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, French general and politician, Prime Minister of France (d. 1838)

1782 – Henri de Rigny, French admiral and politician, French Minister of War (d. 1835)

1786 – Jacques Philippe Marie Binet, French mathematician, physicist, and astronomer (d. 1856)

1802 – Jean-Baptiste Boussingault, French chemist and academic (d. 1887)

1803 – Albert Sidney Johnston, American general (d. 1862)

1829 – Alfred Brehm, German zoologist and illustrator (d. 1884)

1829 – William Stanley, English engineer and philanthropist (d. 1909)

1841 – François-Alphonse Forel, Swiss limnologist and hydrologist (d. 1912)

1842 – Julian Sochocki, Polish-Russian mathematician and academic (d. 1927)

1849 – Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav, Slovak poet and playwright (d. 1921)

1851 – José Guadalupe Posada, Mexican illustrator and engraver (d. 1913)

1856 – Frederick William Vanderbilt, American railway magnate (d. 1938)

1856 – Makar Yekmalyan, Armenian composer (d. 1905)

1860 – Curtis Guild, Jr., American journalist and politician, 43rd Governor of Massachusetts (d. 1915)

1861 – Solomon R. Guggenheim, American businessman and philanthropist, founded the Solomon R. Guggenheim Museum (d. 1949)

1866 – Enrique Simonet, Spanish painter and academic (d. 1927)

1873 – Leo Fall, Austrian composer (d. 1925)

1873 – Konstantin von Neurath, German politician and diplomat, 13th German Minister of Foreign Affairs (d. 1956)

1875 – Fritz Kreisler, Austrian-American violinist and composer (d. 1962)

1881 – Orval Overall, American baseball player and manager (d. 1947)

1882 – James Joyce, Irish novelist, short story writer, and poet (d. 1941)

1883 – Johnston McCulley, American author and screenwriter, created Zorro (d. 1958)

1886 – William Rose Benét, American poet and author (d. 1950)

1887 – Ernst Hanfstaengl, German businessman (d. 1975)

1887 – Pat Sullivan, Australian-American animator and producer (d. 1933)

1889 – Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, French general (d. 1952)

1890 – Charles Correll, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1972)

1892 – Tochigiyama Moriya, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 27th Yokozuna (d. 1959)

1893 – Cornelius Lanczos, Hungarian mathematician and physicist (d. 1974)

1893 – Damdin Sükhbaatar, Mongolian soldier and politician (d. 1924)

1895 – George Halas, American football player and coach (d. 1983)

1895 – Robert Philipp, American painter (d. 1981)

1896 – Kazimierz Kuratowski, Polish mathematician and logician (d. 1980)

1897 – Howard Deering Johnson, American businessman, founded Howard Johnson's (d. 1972)

1897 – Gertrude Blanch, Russian-American mathematician (d. 1996)

1900 – Willie Kamm, American baseball player and manager (d. 1988)

1901 – Jascha Heifetz, Lithuanian-born American violinist and educator (d. 1987)

1902 – Newbold Morris, American lawyer and politician (d. 1966)

1905 – Ayn Rand, Russian-born American novelist and philosopher (d. 1982)

1908 – Wes Ferrell, American baseball player and manager (d. 1976)

1909 – Frank Albertson, American actor (d. 1964)

1912 – Burton Lane, American songwriter and composer (d. 1997)

1914 – Eric Kierans, Canadian economist and politician, 1st Canadian Minister of Communications (d. 2004)

1915 – Abba Eban, South African-Israeli politician and diplomat, 1st Israel Ambassador to the United Nations (d. 2002)

1915 – Stan Leonard, Canadian golfer (d. 2005)

1915 – Khushwant Singh, Indian journalist and author (d. 2014)

1917 – Đỗ Mười, Vietnamese politician, 5th Prime Minister of Vietnam

1919 – Georg Gawliczek, German footballer and manager (d. 1999)

1920 – George Hardwick, English footballer and coach (d. 2004)

1922 – James L. Usry, American politician, first African-American mayor of Atlantic City, New Jersey (d. 2002)

1922 – Stoyanka Mutafova, Bulgarian actress

1923 – Jean Babilée, French dancer and choreographer (d. 2014)

1923 – James Dickey, American poet and novelist (d. 1997)

1923 – Bonita Granville, American actress and producer (d. 1988)

1923 – Red Schoendienst, American baseball player, coach, and manager

1923 – Liz Smith, American journalist and author

1924 – Sonny Stitt, American saxophonist and composer (d. 1982)

1925 – Elaine Stritch, American actress and singer (d. 2014)

1926 – Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, French academic and politician, 20th President of France

1927 – Stan Getz, American saxophonist (d. 1991)

1927 – Doris Sams, American baseball player (d. 2012)

1928 – Jay Handlan, American basketball player and engineer (d. 2013)

1928 – A. Leon Higginbotham, Jr., American judge, author, and activist (d. 1998)

1929 – George Band, English engineer and mountaineer (d. 2011)

1929 – Věra Chytilová, Czech actress, director, and screenwriter (d. 2014)

1929 – John Henry Holland, American computer scientist and academic (d. 2015)

1931 – Dries van Agt, Dutch lawyer, jurist, and politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands

1931 – Les Dawson, English comedian and author (d. 1993)

1931 – John Paul Harney, Canadian educator and politician

1931 – Judith Viorst, American journalist and author

1932 – Arthur Lyman, American jazz vibraphone and marimba player (d. 2002)

1932 – Robert Mandan, American actor

1933 – M'el Dowd, American actress and singer (d. 2012)

1933 – Tony Jay, English-American actor (d. 2006)

1933 – Orlando "Cachaíto" López, Cuban bassist and composer (d. 2009)

1933 – Than Shwe, Burmese general and politician, 8th Prime Minister of Burma

1934 – Skip Battin, American singer-songwriter and bass player (d. 2003)

1935 – Pete Brown, American golfer (d. 2015)

1935 – Evgeny Velikhov, Russian physicist and academic

1936 – Metin Oktay, Turkish footballer and manager (d. 1991)

1937 – Don Buford, American baseball player and coach

1937 – Eric Arturo Delvalle, Panamanian lawyer and politician, President of Panama (d. 2015)

1937 – Anthony Haden-Guest, British journalist, poet, and critic

1937 – Tom Smothers, American comedian, actor, and activist

1938 – Norman Fowler, English journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Transport

1938 – Gene MacLellan, Canadian singer-songwriter (d. 1995)

1939 – Mary-Dell Chilton, American chemist and inventor and one of the founders of modern plant biotechnology

1939 – Dale T. Mortensen, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2014)

1940 – Alan Caddy, English guitarist and producer (d. 2000)

1940 – Thomas M. Disch, American author and poet (d. 2008)

1940 – Wayne Fontes, American football player and coach

1940 – David Jason, English actor, director, and producer

1942 – Graham Nash, English-American singer-songwriter and guitarist

1944 – Andrew Davis, English organist and conductor

1944 – Ursula Oppens, American pianist and educator

1945 – John Eatwell, Baron Eatwell, English economist and academic

1946 – John Armitt, English engineer and businessman

1946 – Alpha Oumar Konaré, Malian academic and politician, 3rd President of Mali

1946 – Constantine Papadakis, Greek-American businessman and academic (d. 2009)

1947 – Greg Antonacci, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter

1947 – Farrah Fawcett, American actress and producer (d. 2009)

1948 – Ina Garten, American chef and author

1948 – Al McKay, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer

1948 – Roger Williamson, English race car driver (d. 1973)

1949 – Duncan Bannatyne, Scottish businessman and philanthropist

1949 – Yasuko Namba, Japanese mountaineer (d. 1996)

1949 – Brent Spiner, American actor

1949 – Ross Valory, American rock bass player and songwriter

1950 – Libby Purves, British journalist and author

1950 – Genichiro Tenryu, Japanese wrestler

1951 – Vangelis Alexandris, Greek basketball player and coach

1952 – John Cornyn, American lawyer and politician, 49th Attorney General of Texas

1952 – Rick Dufay, French-American guitarist and songwriter

1952 – Park Geun-hye, South Korean politician, 11th President of South Korea

1952 – Ralph Merkle, American computer scientist and academic

1953 – Jerry Sisk, Jr., American gemologist, co-founded Jewelry Television (d. 2013)

1954 – Christie Brinkley, American actress, model, and businesswoman

1954 – John Tudor, American baseball player

1955 – Leszek Engelking, Polish poet and author

1955 – Kim Zimmer, American actress

1961 – Abraham Iyambo, Namibian politician (d. 2013)

1962 – Philippe Claudel, French author, director, and screenwriter

1963 – Eva Cassidy, American singer and guitarist (d. 1996)

1963 – Kjell Dahlin, Swedish ice hockey player

1963 – Andrej Kiska, Slovak entrepreneur and philanthropist, President of Slovakia

1963 – Stephen McGann, English actor

1965 – Carl Airey, English footballer

1966 – Andrei Chesnokov, Russian tennis player and coach

1966 – Robert DeLeo, American bass player, songwriter, and producer

1966 – Michael Misick, Caicos Islander politician, Premier of the Turks and Caicos Islands

1967 – Artūrs Irbe, Latvian ice hockey player and coach

1967 – Laurent Nkunda, Congolese general

1968 – Sean Elliott, American basketball player and sportscaster

1968 – Scott Erickson, American baseball player and coach

1969 – Valeri Karpin, Estonian-Russian footballer and manager

1970 – Jennifer Westfeldt, American actress and singer

1971 – Isaac Kungwane, South African footballer and sportscaster (d. 2014)

1971 – Jason Taylor, Australian rugby league player and coach

1971 – Hwang Seok-jeong, South Korean actress

1972 – Melvin Mora, Venezuelan baseball player

1973 – Andrei Luzgin, Estonian tennis player and coach

1973 – Marissa Jaret Winokur, American actress and singer

1975 – Todd Bertuzzi, Canadian ice hockey player

1975 – Donald Driver, American football player

1975 – Ieroklis Stoltidis, Greek footballer

1976 – Ryan Farquhar, Northern Irish motorcycle racer

1976 – James Hickman, English swimmer

1976 – Ana Roces, Filipino actress

1977 – Shakira, Colombian singer-songwriter, producer, and actress

1977 – Libor Sionko, Czech footballer

1978 – Eden Espinosa, American actress and singer

1978 – Annabel Ellwood, Australian tennis player

1978 – Barry Ferguson, Scottish footballer and manager

1979 – Urmo Aava, Estonian race car driver

1979 – Klaus Mainzer, German rugby player

1980 – Angela Finger-Erben, German journalist

1982 – Sergio Castaño Ortega, Spanish footballer

1982 – Kelly Mazzante, American basketball player

1982 – Kan Mi-youn, South Korean singer, model, and host

1983 – Ronny Cedeño, Venezuelan baseball player

1983 – Carolina Klüft, Swedish heptathlete and jumper

1983 – Jordin Tootoo, Canadian ice hockey player

1983 – Vladimir Voskoboinikov, Estonian footballer

1984 – Rudi Wulf, New Zealand rugby player

1985 – Silvestre Varela, Portuguese footballer

1986 – Gemma Arterton, English actress and singer

1987 – Anthony Fainga'a, Australian rugby player

1987 – Saia Fainga'a, Australian rugby player

1987 – Mimi Page, American singer-songwriter and composer

1987 – Gerard Piqué, Spanish footballer

1987 – Javon Ringer, American football player

1991 – Nathan Delfouneso, English footballer

1991 – Gregory Mertens, Belgian footballer (d. 2015)

1992 – Joonas Tamm, Estonian footballer

1993 – Ravel Morrison, English footballer

1995 – Paul Digby, English footballer

1995 – Aleksander Jagiełło, Polish footballer

Deaths

619 – Laurence of Canterbury, English archbishop and saint

880 – Bruno, duke of Saxony

1124 – Bořivoj II, Duke of Bohemia (b. 1064)

1154 – Viacheslav I of Kiev, prince of Smolensk (b. 1083)

1218 – Konstantin of Rostov (b. 1186)

1237 – Joan, Lady of Wales

1250 – Eric XI of Sweden (b. 1216)

1294 – Louis II, Duke of Bavaria (b. 1229)

1347 – Thomas Bek, Bishop of Lincoln, was the bishop of Lincoln (b. 1282)

1348 – Narymunt, Prince of Pinsk

1435 – Joan II of Naples, Queen of Naples (b. 1371)

1446 – Vittorino da Feltre, Italian humanist (b. 1378)

1448 – Ibn Hajar al-Asqalani, Egyptian jurist and scholar (b. 1372)

1461 – Owen Tudor, Welsh founder of the Tudor dynasty

1512 – Hatuey, Caribbean tribal chief

1529 – Baldassare Castiglione, Italian soldier and diplomat (b. 1478)

1580 – Bessho Nagaharu, Japanese daimyo (b. 1558)

1594 – Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, Italian composer and educator (b. 1525)

1648 – George Abbot, English author and politician (b. 1603)

1660 – Gaston, Duke of Orléans (b. 1608)

1660 – Govert Flinck, Dutch painter (b. 1615)

1661 – Lucas Holstenius, German geographer and historian (b. 1596)

1675 – Ivan Belostenec, Croatian linguist and lexicographer (b. 1594)

1688 – Abraham Duquesne, French admiral (b. 1610)

1704 – Guillaume de l'Hôpital, French mathematician and academic (b. 1661)

1712 – Martin Lister, English physician and geologist (b. 1639)

1714 – John Sharp, English archbishop (b. 1643)

1723 – Antonio Maria Valsalva, Italian anatomist and physician (b. 1666)

1768 – Robert Smith, English mathematician and theorist (b. 1689)

1769 – Pope Clement XIII (b. 1693)

1802 – Welbore Ellis, 1st Baron Mendip, English politician, Secretary of State for the Colonies (b. 1713)

1804 – George Walton, American lawyer and politician, Governor of Georgia (b. 1749)

1904 – Ernest Cashel, American-Canadian criminal (b. 1882)

1904 – William Collins Whitney, American financier and politician, 31st United States Secretary of the Navy (b. 1841)

1905 – Henri Germain, French banker and politician, founded Le Crédit Lyonnais (b. 1824)

1907 – Dmitri Mendeleev, Russian chemist and academic (b. 1834)

1909 – Carlo Acton, Italian pianist and composer (b. 1829)

1913 – Gustaf de Laval, Swedish engineer (b. 1845)

1918 – John L. Sullivan, American boxer (b. 1858)

1919 – Julius Kuperjanov, Estonian lieutenant (b. 1894)

1925 – Antti Aarne, Finnish historian and academic (b. 1867)

1925 – Jaap Eden, Dutch speed skater and cyclist (b. 1873)

1926 – Vladimir Sukhomlinov, Russian general and politician (b. 1848)

1932 – Agha Petros, Assyrian general and politician (b. 1880)

1939 – Bernhard Gregory, Estonian-German chess player (b. 1879)

1942 – Ado Birk, Estonian lawyer and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Estonia (b. 1883)

1942 – Daniil Kharms, Russian poet and playwright (b. 1905)

1945 – Alfred Delp, German priest and philosopher (b. 1907)

1945 – Carl Friedrich Goerdeler, German economist and politician (b. 1884)

1945 – Johannes Popitz, German lawyer and politician (b. 1884)

1948 – Thomas W. Lamont, American banker and philanthropist (b. 1870)

1948 – Bevil Rudd, South African runner and journalist (b. 1894)

1950 – Constantin Carathéodory, Greek mathematician and academic (b. 1873)

1952 – Callistratus of Georgia, Georgian patriarch (b. 1866)

1954 – Hella Wuolijoki, Estonian-Finnish author and politician (b. 1886)

1956 – Charley Grapewin, American actor (b. 1869)

1956 – Truxtun Hare, American football player and hammer thrower (b. 1878)

1956 – Pyotr Konchalovsky, Russian painter (b. 1876)

1957 – Grigory Landsberg, Russian physicist and academic (b. 1890)

1962 – Shlomo Hestrin, Canadian-Israeli biochemist and academic (b. 1914)

1968 – Tullio Serafin, Italian conductor and director (b. 1878)

1969 – Boris Karloff, English actor (b. 1887)

1970 – Bertrand Russell, English mathematician and philosopher, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1872)

1972 – Natalie Clifford Barney, American author, poet, and playwright (b. 1876)

1973 – Hendrik Elias, Belgian academic and politician, 9th Mayor of Ghent (b. 1902)

1974 – Imre Lakatos, Hungarian-English mathematician and philosopher (b. 1922)

1975 – Gustave Lanctot, Canadian historian and academic (b. 1883)

1979 – Jim Burke, Australian cricketer and sportscaster (b. 1930)

1979 – Sid Vicious, English singer and bass player (b. 1957)

1980 – William Howard Stein, American biochemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)

1983 – Sam Chatmon, American singer and guitarist (b. 1897)

1987 – Carlos José Castilho, Brazilian footballer and manager (b. 1927)

1987 – Alistair MacLean, Scottish novelist and screenwriter (b. 1922)

1988 – Marcel Bozzuffi, French actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1929)

1989 – Ondrej Nepela, Slovak figure skater and coach (b. 1951)

1989 – Arnold Nordmeyer, New Zealand minister and politician, 30th New Zealand Minister of Finance (b. 1901)

1990 – Joe Erskine, Welsh boxer (b. 1934)

1992 – Bert Parks, American actor, singer, television personality; Miss America telecast presenter (b. 1914)

1993 – François Reichenbach, French director and screenwriter (b. 1921)

1995 – Fred Perry, English-Australian tennis player (b. 1909)

1995 – Donald Pleasence, English-French actor (b. 1919)

1996 – Gene Kelly, American actor, singer, dancer, and director (b. 1912)

1997 – Sanford Meisner, American actor and coach (b. 1904)

1998 – Haroun Tazieff, German-French geologist and cinematographer (b. 1914)

1999 – David McComb, Australian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1962)

2003 – Lou Harrison, American composer and educator (b. 1917)

2004 – Bernard McEveety, American director and producer (b. 1924)

2005 – Max Schmeling, German boxer (b. 1905)

2008 – Barry Morse, Canadian actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1918)

2011 – Edward Amy, Canadian general (b. 1918)

2011 – Margaret John, Welsh actress (b. 1926)

2012 – Frederick William Danker, American lexicographer and scholar (b. 1920)

2012 – George Esper, American journalist and academic (b. 1932)

2012 – Dorothy Gilman, American author (b. 1923)

2012 – James F. Lloyd, American pilot and politician (b. 1922)

2013 – Abraham Iyambo, Namibian politician (b. 1961)

2013 – John Kerr, American actor and lawyer (b. 1931)

2013 – Chris Kyle, American soldier and sniper (b. 1974)

2013 – Lino Oviedo, Paraguayan general and politician (b. 1943)

2013 – Pepper Paire, American baseball player (b. 1924)

2014 – Gerd Albrecht, German conductor (b. 1935)

2014 – Nicholas Brooks, English historian (b. 1941)

2014 – Eduardo Coutinho, Brazilian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1933)

2014 – Philip Seymour Hoffman, American actor, director, and producer (b. 1967)

2014 – Werner Husemann, German soldier and pilot (b. 1919)

2015 – Joseph Alfidi, American pianist, composer, and conductor (b. 1949)

2015 – Dave Bergman, American baseball player (b. 1953)

2015 – Molade Okoya-Thomas, Nigerian businessman and philanthropist (b. 1935)

2016 – Bob Elliott, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter (b. 1923)

Holidays and observances

Anniversary of Treaty of Tartu (Estonia)

Christian Feast Day:

Cornelius the Centurion

Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity), and its related observances:

A quarter day in the Christian calendar (due to Candlemas). (Scotland)

Celebration of Yemanja (Candomblé)

Le Jour des Crêpes (France)

Our Lady of Navigators (Brazil)

Our Lady of the Candles (Filipino Catholics)

Virgin of Candelaria (Tenerife, Spain)

Earliest day on which Shrove Monday can fall, while March 8 is the latest; celebrated on Monday before Ash Wednesday (Christianity), and its related observances:

Bun Day (Iceland)

Fastelavn (Denmark/Norway)

Nickanan Night (Cornwall)

Rosenmontag (Germany)

February 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)

Constitution Day (Philippines)

Day of Military Honour: Victory of the Battle of Stalingrad (Russia)

Day of Youth (Azerbaijan)

Groundhog Day (United States and Canada), and its related observances:

Marmot Day (Alaska)

Inventor's Day (Thailand)

World Wetlands Day (International)