1983 Facts for Kids

Millennium:	2nd millennium
Centuries:	19th century – 20th century – 21st century
Decades:	1950s 1960s 1970s – 1980s – 1990s 2000s 2010s
Years:	1980 1981 1982 – 1983 – 1984 1985 1986

1983 was a year that started on a Saturday in the Gregorian calendar. It was a time of many important events around the world, from new technologies changing how we listen to music to big moments in space and politics.

Major Events of 1983
- January to June: Early Year Highlights
- July to December: Later Year Highlights
Culture and Entertainment in 1983
Famous People Born in 1983
Notable People Who Died in 1983
Images for kids
See also

Major Events of 1983

January to June: Early Year Highlights

January 3 – The Kilauea volcano in Hawaii started erupting. This eruption continued for a very long time!
February 16 – Large bushfires, which are like huge forest fires, swept through Victoria and South Australia in Australia. These fires caused a lot of damage.
February 28 – The very popular TV show, M*A*S*H, aired its final episode. An amazing 125 million people watched it, making it one of the most-watched TV finales ever!
April 25 – A young schoolgirl from Maine, Samantha Smith, was invited to visit the Soviet Union. She had written a letter to the Soviet leader, Yuri Andropov, sharing her worries about a possible nuclear war.
May 6 – A magazine called Stern published what they claimed were the diaries of Adolf Hitler. However, it was later discovered that these "Hitler Diaries" were completely fake!
May 26 – A strong earthquake and a tsunami (a giant ocean wave) hit Honshū, Japan. Sadly, 104 people lost their lives.
June 9 – In the United Kingdom, Margaret Thatcher's Conservative Party won a huge election victory. This meant her party gained many more seats than the Labour Party, led by Michael Foot.
June 18 – Sally Ride made history by becoming the first American woman to travel into space. This was a big step for space exploration!

July to December: Later Year Highlights

July 1 – A North Korean Ilyushin II-62 jet crashed in Guinea-Bissau.
August 4 – Thomas Sankara took control in Upper Volta. Exactly one year later, he renamed the country Burkina Faso.
August 21 – Benigno Aquino, a leader who was against the government in the Philippines, was sadly killed.
September 1 – Korean Air Flight 007 was shot down by the Soviet Union. The plane had flown off course over Sakhalin Island. All 269 people on board died.
September 19 – The islands of St. Kitts and Nevis became an independent country. This meant they were now in charge of themselves.
September 27 – The GNU Project, which is a big project to create free computer software, was announced to the public.
October 19 – In Grenada, the prime minister, Maurice Bishop, and 40 other people were killed in a sudden change of government called a coup.
November 11 – Ronald Reagan, who was the President of the United States, gave a speech to the Japanese Diet, which is Japan's national law-making body.
December 10 – Military rule, where the army controls the government, ended in Argentina.
December 31 – Brunei became an independent nation.

Culture and Entertainment in 1983

New Technologies and Music

Compact discs (CDs) were introduced. These new digital discs quickly became popular for music, and sales of old vinyl records started to drop a lot.
The band Phish formed.
The famous tennis player Billie Jean King retired from playing professional tennis.
The band Social Distortion released their first album, Mommy's Little Monster. Many people think it's one of the best hardcore punk albums ever made.