December 23 facts for kids

December 23 is the 357th day of the year (358th in leap years) in the Gregorian calendar; eight days remain until the end of the year.

Events

Pre-1600

• 484 – The Arian Vandal Kingdom ceases its persecution of Nicene Christianity.
• 558 – Chlothar I is crowned King of the Franks.
• 583 – Maya queen Yohl Ik'nal is crowned ruler of Palenque.
• 962 – The Sack of Aleppo as part of the Arab–Byzantine wars: Under the future Emperor Nicephorus Phocas, Byzantine troops storm the city of Aleppo.
• 1598 – Arauco War: Governor of Chile Martín García Óñez de Loyola is killed in the Battle of Curalaba by Mapuches led by Pelantaru.

1601–1900

• 1688 – As part of the Glorious Revolution, King James II of England flees from England to Paris, France after being deposed in favor of his son-in-law and nephew, William of Orange and his daughter Mary.
• 1773 – Moscow State Academy of Choreography was founded under the reign of Catherine II. It is the second ballet school in Russia after Vaganova Academy of Russian Ballet.
• 1783 – George Washington resigns as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army at the Maryland State House in Annapolis, Maryland.
• 1793 – The Battle of Savenay: A decisive defeat of the royalist counter-revolutionaries in War in the Vendée during the French Revolution.
• 1815 – The novel Emma by Jane Austen is first published.
• 1876 – First day of the Constantinople Conference which resulted in agreement for political reforms in the Balkans.
• 1893 – The opera Hansel and Gretel by Engelbert Humperdinck is first performed.

1901–present

• 1905 – The Tampere conference, where Vladimir Lenin and Joseph Stalin meet for the first time, is held in Tampere, Finland.
• 1913 – The Federal Reserve Act is signed into law by President Woodrow Wilson, creating the Federal Reserve System.
• 1914 – World War I: Australian and New Zealand troops arrive in Cairo, Egypt.
• 1914 – World War I: During the Battle of Sarikamish, Ottoman forces mistook one another for Russian troops. The following friendly fire incident leaves 2,000 Ottomans dead and many more wounded.
• 1916 – World War I: Battle of Magdhaba: Allied forces defeat Turkish forces in the Sinai Peninsula.
• 1919 – Sex Disqualification (Removal) Act 1919 becomes law in the United Kingdom.
• 1936 – Colombia becomes a signatory to the Buenos Aires copyright treaty.
• 1936 – Spanish Civil War: The Spanish Republic legalizes the Regional Defence Council of Aragon.
• 1941 – World War II: After 15 days of fighting, the Imperial Japanese Army occupies Wake Island.
• 1947 – The transistor is first demonstrated at Bell Laboratories.
• 1950 – General Walton Walker dies in a jeep accident and is replaced by General Matthew Ridgway in the Eighth United States Army.
• 1954 – First successful kidney transplant is performed by J. Hartwell Harrison and Joseph Murray.
• 1955 – The first film adaptation of Väinö Linna's novel The Unknown Soldier, directed by Edvin Laine, premieres.
• 1968 – The 82 sailors from the USS Pueblo are released after eleven months of internment in North Korea.
• 1970 – The North Tower of the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York, New York is topped out at 417 metres (1,368 ft), making it the tallest building in the world.
• 1970 – The Democratic Republic of the Congo officially becomes a one-party state.
• 1972 – The Immaculate Reception is caught by Franco Harris to win the Pittsburgh Steelers their first ever playoff victory, after defeating the Oakland Raiders.
• 1972 – A 6.5 magnitude earthquake strikes the Nicaraguan capital of Managua killing more than 10,000.
• 1978 – Alitalia Flight 4128 crashes into the Tyrrhenian Sea while on approach to Falcone Borsellino Airport in Palermo, Italy, killing 108.
• 1979 – Soviet–Afghan War: Soviet Union forces occupy Kabul, the Afghan capital.
• 1984 – After experiencing an engine fire, Aeroflot Flight 3519 attempts to make an emergency landing at Krasnoyarsk International Airport but crashes, killing 110 of the 111 people on board.
• 1986 – Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, lands at Edwards Air Force Base in California becoming the first aircraft to fly non-stop around the world without aerial or ground refueling.
• 1990 – History of Slovenia: In a referendum, 88.5% of Slovenia's overall electorate vote for independence from Yugoslavia.
• 2002 – A U.S. MQ-1 Predator is shot down by an Iraqi MiG-25 in the first combat engagement between a drone and conventional aircraft.
• 2003 – An explosion at the PetroChina Chuandongbei natural gas field in Kai County, Chongqing, China, kills at least 234.
• 2007 – An agreement is made for the Kingdom of Nepal to be abolished and the country to become a federal republic with the Prime Minister becoming head of state.
• 2008 – A coup d'état occurs in Guinea hours after the death of President Lansana Conté.

Births

Pre-1600

• 968 – Emperor Zhenzong of Song, emperor of the Song Dynasty (d. 1022)
• 1173 – Louis I, duke of Bavaria (d. 1231)
• 1513 – Thomas Smith, English scholar and diplomat (d. 1577)
• 1525 – John Albert I, duke of Mecklenburg (d. 1576)
• 1573 – Giovanni Battista Crespi, Italian painter, sculptor and architect (d. 1632)
• 1582 – Severo Bonini, Italian organist and composer (d. 1663)
• 1544 – Anna of Saxony, only child and heiress of Maurice, Elector of Saxony (d. 1577)
• 1597 – Martin Opitz, German poet and composer (d. 1639)

1601–1900

• 1605 – Tianqi Emperor, Chinese emperor (d. 1627)
• 1613 – Carl Gustaf Wrangel, Swedish field marshal and politician, Lord High Constable of Sweden (d. 1676)
• 1621 – Heneage Finch, 1st Earl of Nottingham, English lawyer and politician, Lord Chancellor of England (d. 1682)
• 1621 – Edmund Berry Godfrey, English lawyer and judge (d. 1678)
• 1689 – Joseph Bodin de Boismortier, French composer (d. 1755)
• 1690 – Pamheiba, Indian emperor (d. 1751)
• 1713 – Maruyama Gondazaemon, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 3rd Yokozuna (d. 1749)
• 1732 – Richard Arkwright, English businessman and inventor, invented the Water frame and Spinning frame (d. 1792)
• 1750 – Frederick Augustus I of Saxony (d. 1827)
• 1758 – Nathan Wilson, American soldier and politician (d. 1834)
• 1766 – Wilhelm Hisinger, Swedish physicist and chemist (d. 1852)
• 1777 – Alexander I of Russia (d. 1825)
• 1782 – William Armstrong, American lawyer, civil servant, politician, and businessperson (d. 1865)
• 1790 – Jean-François Champollion, French philologist, orientalist, and scholar (d. 1832)
• 1793 – Dost Mohammad Khan, emir of Afghanistan (d. 1863)
• 1804 – Charles Augustin Sainte-Beuve, French author, critic, and academic (d. 1869)
• 1805 – Joseph Smith, American religious leader, founder of the Latter Day Saint movement (d. 1844)
• 1807 – Anthony Mary Claret, Spanish Roman Catholic archbishop and missionary (d. 1870)
• 1810 – Edward Blyth, English zoologist (d. 1873)
• 1810 – Karl Richard Lepsius, German Egyptologist (d. 1884)
• 1812 – Samuel Smiles, Scottish-English author (d. 1904)
• 1812 – Henri-Alexandre Wallon, French historian and statesman (d. 1904)
• 1819 – Jan Jakob Lodewijk ten Kate, Dutch pastor and poet (d. 1889)
• 1822 – Wilhelm Bauer, German engineer (d. 1875)
• 1828 – Mathilde Wesendonck, German poet and author (d. 1902)
• 1839 – János Murkovics, Slovene-Hungarian author and educator (d. 1917)
• 1843 – Richard Conner, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 1924)
• 1854 – Henry B. Guppy, English botanist and author (d. 1926)
• 1861 – Edgar P. Rucker, American lawyer, politician, and businessman (d. 1908)
• 1865 – James M. Canty, American educator, school administrator, and businessperson (d. 1964)
• 1867 – Madam C. J. Walker, American businesswoman and philanthropist (d. 1919)
• 1870 – John Marin, American painter (d. 1953)
• 1878 – Stephen Timoshenko, Ukrainian-American engineer and academic (d. 1972)
• 1885 – Pierre Brissaud, French illustrator, painter, and engraver (d. 1964)
• 1894 – Arthur Gilligan, English cricketer (d. 1976)
• 1895 – Nola Luxford, New Zealand-American actress and broadcaster (d. 1994)
• 1896 – Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa, Italian lieutenant and author (d. 1957)
• 1900 – Merle Barwis, American-Canadian supercentenarian (d. 2014)
• 1900 – Marie Bell, French actress and stage director (d. 1985)
• 1900 – Otto Soglow, American cartoonist (d. 1975)

1901–present

• 1902 – Norman Maclean, American author and academic (d. 1990)
• 1902 – Charan Singh, Indian lawyer and politician, 5th Prime Minister of India (d. 1987)
• 1907 – Manuel Lopes, Cape Verdean author and poet (d. 2005)
• 1907 – James Roosevelt, American general and politician (d. 1991)
• 1907 – Avraham Stern, Polish Zionist leader (d. 1942)
• 1908 – Gertrude Bancroft, American economist (d. 1985)
• 1908 – Yousuf Karsh, Armenian-Canadian photographer (d. 2002)
• 1910 – Kurt Meyer, German general (d. 1961)
• 1911 – James Gregory, American actor (d. 2002)
• 1911 – Niels Kaj Jerne, English-Danish physician and immunologist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1994)
• 1912 – Anna J. Harrison, American organic chemist and academic (d. 1998)
• 1916 – Dino Risi, Italian director and screenwriter (d. 2008)
• 1918 – José Greco, Italian-American dancer and choreographer (d. 2000)
• 1918 – Helmut Schmidt, German soldier, economist, and politician, 5th Chancellor of Germany (d. 2015)
• 1919 – Kenneth M. Taylor, American general and pilot (d. 2006)
• 1921 – Guy Beaulne, Canadian actor and director (d. 2001)
• 1922 – Micheline Ostermeyer, French discus thrower, shot putter, and pianist (d. 2001)
• 1923 – Onofre Marimón, Argentinian race car driver (d. 1954)
• 1923 – Günther Schifter, Austrian journalist and radio host (d. 2008)
• 1923 – James Stockdale, American admiral and pilot, Medal of Honor recipient (d. 2005)
• 1924 – Bob Kurland, American basketball player and politician (d. 2013)
• 1925 – Duncan Hallas, English author and politician (d. 2002)
• 1925 – Rayner Unwin, English publisher (d. 2000)
• 1926 – Robert Bly, American poet and essayist (d. 2021)
• 1926 – Harold Dorman, American singer-songwriter (d. 1988)
• 1929 – Chet Baker, American jazz trumpet player, flugelhorn player, and singer (d. 1988)
• 1929 – Dick Weber, American professional bowler (d. 2005)
• 1931 – Ronnie Schell, American comedian and actor
• 1932 – Richard Clark Barkley, American soldier, academic, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to East Germany (d. 2015)
• 1933 – Akihito, Japanese emperor
• 1933 – Noella Leduc, American baseball player (d. 2014)
• 1935 – Paul Hornung, American football player and sportscaster (d. 2020)
• 1935 – Johnny Kidd, English singer-songwriter (d. 1966)
• 1935 – Abdul Ghani Minhat, Malaysian footballer and manager (d. 2012)
• 1935 – Esther Phillips, American R&B singer (d. 1984)
• 1936 – Frederic Forrest, American actor (d. 2023)
• 1936 – Bobby Ross, American football player and coach
• 1936 – Willie Wood, American football player (d. 2020)
• 1937 – Barney Rosenzweig, American screenwriter and producer
• 1937 – Nelson Shanks, American painter, historian, and educator (d. 2015)
• 1938 – Bob Kahn, American computer scientist and engineer, co-developed the Transmission Control Protocol
• 1939 – Nancy Graves, American sculptor and painter (d. 1995)
• 1940 – Mamnoon Hussain, Pakistani businessman and politician, 12th President of Pakistan (d. 2021)
• 1940 – Jorma Kaukonen, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1940 – Robert Labine, Canadian politician (d. 2021)
• 1940 – Jeanie Lambe, Scottish jazz singer (d. 2020)
• 1940 – Kevin Longbottom, Australian rugby league player (d. 1986)
• 1940 – Eugene Record, American soul singer-songwriter (d. 2005)
• 1941 – Peter Davis, English businessman
• 1941 – Tim Hardin, American folk singer-songwriter and musician (d. 1980)
• 1942 – Quentin Bryce, Australian lawyer and politician, 25th Governor-General of Australia
• 1943 – Ron Allen, American baseball player
• 1943 – Mikhail Leonidovich Gromov, Russian-French mathematician and academic
• 1943 – Harry Shearer, American actor, voice artist, and comedian
• 1943 – Queen Silvia of Sweden
• 1944 – Wesley Clark, American general
• 1945 – Adly Mansour, Egyptian lawyer, judge, and politician, President of Egypt
• 1945 – Geoffrey Wheatcroft, English journalist and author
• 1946 – Robbie Dupree, American singer-songwriter
• 1946 – Edita Gruberová, Slovak soprano and actress (d. 2021)
• 1946 – Susan Lucci, American actress
• 1946 – John Sullivan, English screenwriter, producer, and composer (d. 2011)
• 1947 – Bill Rodgers, American runner
• 1948 – David Davis, English politician, Minister of State for Europe
• 1948 – Jim Ferguson, American guitarist, composer, and journalist
• 1948 – Jack Ham, American football player and sportscaster
• 1948 – Rick Wohlhuter, American runner
• 1949 – Adrian Belew, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1949 – Reinhold Weege, American screenwriter and producer (d. 2012)
• 1950 – Michael C. Burgess, American obstetrician and politician
• 1950 – Richard Dannatt, Baron Dannatt, English general
• 1950 – Vicente del Bosque, Spanish footballer and manager
• 1950 – Ilchi Lee, South Korean author and educator
• 1951 – Anthony Phillips, English guitarist and songwriter
• 1952 – William Kristol, American journalist, publisher, activist, and pundit
• 1953 – Andres Alver, Estonian architect and academic
• 1953 – Gerrit W. Gong, American religious leader and academic
• 1954 – Raivo Järvi, Estonian radio host and politician (d. 2012)
• 1954 – Brian Teacher, American tennis player
• 1955 – Carol Ann Duffy, Scottish poet and playwright
• 1955 – Grace Knight, English-Australian singer-songwriter
• 1956 – Michele Alboreto, Italian race car driver (d. 2001)
• 1956 – Dave Murray, English guitarist and songwriter
• 1957 – Dan Bigras, Canadian singer-songwriter
• 1957 – Peter Wynn, Australian rugby league player and businessman
• 1958 – Joan Severance, American actress
• 1958 – Victoria Williams, American singer-songwriter
• 1961 – Ezzat el Kamhawi, Egyptian journalist and author
• 1961 – Ketan J. Patel, Kenyan-English biologist and academic
• 1961 – Carol Smillie, Scottish model and actress
• 1961 – Lorna Tolentino, Filipino actress and producer
• 1962 – Bertrand Gachot, Belgian race car driver
• 1962 – Stefan Hell, Romanian-German physicist and chemist, Nobel Prize laureate
• 1962 – Kang Je-gyu, South Korean director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1962 – Keiji Mutoh, Japanese wrestler and actor
• 1963 – Jim Harbaugh, American football player and coach
• 1963 – Jess Harnell, American singer-songwriter and voice actor
• 1963 – Donna Tartt, American author
• 1963 – Ante Zelck, German businessman
• 1964 – Eddie Vedder, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1966 – Badi Assad, Brazilian singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1967 – Carla Bruni, Italian-French singer-songwriter and model
• 1967 – Otis Grant, Jamaican-Canadian boxer, coach, and manager
• 1968 – Karyn Bryant, American journalist, actress, producer, and screenwriter
• 1968 – Barry Kooser, American painter and animator
• 1968 – Manuel Rivera-Ortiz, Puerto Rican-American photographer
• 1968 – René Tretschok, German footballer and manager
• 1970 – Catriona LeMay Doan, Canadian speed skater and sportscaster
• 1970 – Raymont Harris, American football player
• 1970 – Karine Polwart, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1971 – Chris Cook, American race car driver
• 1971 – Corey Haim, Canadian actor (d. 2010)
• 1971 – Jo Johnson, English banker, journalist, and politician
• 1971 – Michalis Klokidis, Greek footballer
• 1971 – Tara Palmer-Tomkinson, English model, actress, and author (d. 2017)
• 1971 – Wim Vansevenant, Belgian cyclist
• 1971 – Masayoshi Yamazaki, Japanese singer-songwriter
• 1972 – Morgan, Italian singer-songwriter and composer
• 1972 – Christian Potenza, Canadian actor, voice actor and singer
• 1974 – Agustín Delgado, Ecuadorian footballer and politician
• 1974 – Mieszko Talarczyk, Polish-Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 2004)
• 1975 – Vadim Sharifijanov, Russian ice hockey player
• 1975 – Lady Starlight, American singer-songwriter
• 1976 – Joanna Hayes, American hurdler and coach
• 1976 – Brad Lidge, American baseball player
• 1976 – Dimitris Mavrogenidis, Uzbek-Greek footballer and manager
• 1976 – Jamie Noble, American wrestler and producer
• 1976 – Mikael Samuelsson, Swedish ice hockey player
• 1977 – Matt Baker, English television presenter
• 1977 – Alge Crumpler, American football player
• 1977 – Tore Johansen, Norwegian trumpeter and composer
• 1977 – Jari Mäenpää, Finnish singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1977 – Paul Shirley, American basketball player and blogger
• 1978 – Esthero, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and producer
• 1978 – Aleš Kotalík, Czech ice hockey player
• 1978 – Víctor Martínez, Venezuelan baseball player
• 1978 – Estella Warren, Canadian swimmer, model, and actress
• 1979 – Abraham Chebii, Kenyan runner
• 1979 – Johan Franzén, Swedish ice hockey player
• 1979 – Scott Gomez, American ice hockey player
• 1979 – Holly Madison, American model, television personality, and actress
• 1979 – Megan Mayhew Bergman, American author and educator
• 1979 – Kenny Miller, Scottish footballer
• 1979 – Yukifumi Murakami, Japanese javelin thrower
• 1980 – Cody Ross, American baseball player
• 1981 – Maritza Correia, Puerto Rican-American swimmer
• 1981 – Yuriorkis Gamboa, Cuban boxer
• 1981 – Hiro Fujiwara, Japanese manga artist
• 1981 – Agnes Milowka, Polish-Australian diver, explorer, photographer, and author (d. 2011)
• 1981 – Mario Santana, Argentine footballer
• 1982 – Zbyněk Michálek, Czech ice hockey player
• 1982 – Shaone Morrisonn, Canadian-Croatian ice hockey player
• 1982 – Thomas Rohregger, Austrian cyclist
• 1983 – Michael Chopra, English footballer
• 1983 – Lisa Dobriskey, English runner
• 1983 – Hanley Ramírez, Dominican baseball player
• 1984 – Dudu Aharon, Israeli singer-songwriter
• 1984 – Bernard Pollard, American football player
• 1984 – Josh Satin, American baseball player
• 1984 – Sebastian Werle, German rugby player
• 1985 – Harry Judd, English drummer and songwriter
• 1985 – Alison Sudol, American actress and singer-songwriter
• 1986 – Thomas Bourgin, French motorcycle racer (d. 2013)
• 1986 – Beau Champion, Australian rugby league player
• 1986 – Balázs Dzsudzsák, Hungarian footballer
• 1986 – T. J. Oshie, American ice hockey player
• 1987 – Tommaso Bellazzini, Italian footballer
• 1987 – Owen Franks, New Zealand rugby player
• 1987 – Jori Lehterä, Finnish ice hockey player
• 1988 – Mallory Hagan, American beauty queen, Miss America 2013
• 1989 – Liis Koger, Estonian painter and poet
• 1990 – Mitch Haniger, American baseball player
• 1990 – Anna Maria Perez de Tagle, American actress and singer
• 1991 – Kyren Wilson, English snooker player
• 1992 – Spencer Daniels, American actor
• 1992 – Jeff Schlupp, German footballer
• 1994 – Reed Alexander, American actor
• 1996 – Bartosz Kapustka, Polish footballer
• 1997 – Luka Jović, Serbian footballer
• 2000 – Sekou Doumbouya, Guinean-French basketball player
• 2002 – Finn Wolfhard, Canadian actor and musician

Deaths

Pre-1600

• 423 – Ming Yuan Di, ruler of Northern Wei (b. 392)
• 484 – Huneric, Vandal king
• 668 – Gabriel of Beth Qustan, bishop and saint (b. 594)
• 679 – Dagobert II, Frankish king (probable; b. 650)
• 761 – Gaubald, Frankish bishop (b. 700)
• 889 – Solomon II, bishop of Constance
• 910 – Naum of Preslav, Bulgarian missionary and scholar
• 918 – Conrad I, king of East Francia (b. 890)
• 940 – Ar-Radi, Abbasid caliph (b. 909)
• 1172 – Ugo Ventimiglia, Italian cardinal
• 1193 – Thorlak, patron saint of Iceland (b. 1133)
• 1230 – Berengaria of Navarre, queen of England (b. 1165)
• 1304 – Matilda of Habsburg, duchess regent of Bavaria (b. 1253)
• 1383 – Beatrice of Bourbon, Queen of Bohemia (b. 1320)
• 1384 – Thomas Preljubović, ruler of Epirus
• 1392 – Isabella of Castile, duchess of York (b. 1355)
• 1556 – Nicholas Udall, English cleric, playwright, and educator (b. 1504)
• 1572 – Johann Sylvan, German theologian (executed; date of birth unknown)
• 1575 – Akiyama Nobutomo, Japanese samurai (b. 1531)
• 1588 – Henry I, duke of Guise (b. 1550)

1601–1900

• 1631 – Michael Drayton, English poet and playwright (b. 1563)
• 1638 – Barbara Longhi, Italian painter (b. 1552)
• 1646 – François Maynard, French poet and academic (b. 1582)
• 1652 – John Cotton, English minister and theologian (b. 1585)
• 1675 – Caesar, duc de Choiseul, French general and diplomat (b. 1602)
• 1722 – Pierre Varignon, French mathematician and academic (b. 1654)
• 1761 – Alastair Ruadh MacDonnell, Scottish spy (b. 1725)
• 1771 – Marie-Marguerite d'Youville, Canadian nun and saint, founded Grey Nuns (b. 1701)
• 1779 – Augustus Hervey, 3rd Earl of Bristol, English admiral and politician, Chief Secretary for Ireland (b. 1724)
• 1789 – Charles-Michel de l'Épée, French priest and educator (b. 1712)
• 1795 – Henry Clinton, English general and politician (b. 1730)
• 1805 – Pehr Osbeck, Swedish explorer and author (b. 1723)
• 1834 – Thomas Robert Malthus, English economist and demographer (b. 1766)
• 1884 – John Chisum, American businessman and poker player (b. 1824)
• 1889 – Constance Naden, English poet and philosopher (b. 1858)
• 1892 – Frederick Tracy Dent, Brigadier General in the Regular United States Army, brother in law to President Ulysses S. Grant.

1901–present

• 1902 – Frederick Temple, English archbishop and academic (b. 1821)
• 1906 – Mdungazwe Ngungunyane Nxumalo, last emperor of the Gaza Empire (b. c.1850)
• 1912 – Otto Schoetensack, German anthropologist and academic (b. 1850)
• 1926 – Swami Shraddhanand, Indian monk, missionary, and educator (b. 1856)
• 1930 – Mustafa Fehmi Kubilay, Turkish lieutenant and educator (b. 1906)
• 1931 – Wilson Bentley, American meteorologist and photographer (b. 1865)
• 1939 – Anthony Fokker, Indonesia-born Dutch pilot and engineer, designed the Fokker Dr.I and Fokker D.VII (b. 1890)
• 1946 – John A. Sampson, American gynecologist and academic (b. 1873)
• 1948 – Akira Mutō, Japanese general (b. 1883)
• 1948 – Hideki Tojo, Japanese general and politician, 40th Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1884)
• 1948 – Seishirō Itagaki, Japanese general (b. 1885)
• 1948 – Heitarō Kimura, Japanese general (b. 1888)
• 1948 – Iwane Matsui, Japanese general (b. 1878)
• 1948 – Kenji Doihara, Japanese general (b. 1883)
• 1948 – Kōki Hirota, Japanese diplomat and politician, 32nd Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1878)
• 1950 – Vincenzo Tommasini, Italian composer (b. 1878)
• 1953 – Lavrentiy Beria, Soviet general and politician, head of the People's Commissariat for Internal Affairs (b. 1899)
• 1954 – René Iché, French soldier and sculptor (b. 1897)
• 1961 – Carolyn Sherwin Bailey, American author (b. 1875)
• 1961 – Kurt Meyer, German general (b. 1910)
• 1970 – Charles Ruggles, American actor (b. 1886)
• 1970 – Aleksander Warma, Estonian lieutenant and politician, Prime Minister of Estonia in exile (b. 1890)
• 1972 – Andrei Tupolev, Russian engineer, designed the Tupolev Tu-95 and Tupolev Tu-104 (b. 1888)
• 1973 – Irna Phillips, American screenwriter, created Guiding Light and As the World Turns (b. 1901)
• 1979 – Peggy Guggenheim, American-Italian art collector (b. 1898)
• 1982 – Jack Webb, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1920)
• 1983 – Colin Middleton, Irish painter and illustrator (b. 1910)
• 1984 – Joan Lindsay, Australian author and playwright (b. 1896)
• 1992 – Vincent Fourcade, French interior designer (b. 1934)
• 1994 – Sebastian Shaw, English actor, director, and playwright (b. 1905)
• 1995 – Patric Knowles, English actor (b. 1911)
• 1998 – Joe Orlando, Italian-American author and illustrator (b. 1927)
• 2000 – Billy Barty, American actor (b. 1924)
• 2000 – Victor Borge, Danish-American comedian, pianist, and conductor (b. 1909)
• 2001 – Bola Ige, Nigerian lawyer and politician, 3rd Governor of Oyo State (b. 1930)
• 2004 – P. V. Narasimha Rao, Indian lawyer and politician, 9th Prime Minister of India (b. 1921)
• 2005 – Lajos Baróti, Hungarian footballer and manager (b. 1914)
• 2005 – Yao Wenyuan, Chinese writer and politician, member of the Gang of Four (b. 1931)
• 2006 – Charlie Drake, English actor (b. 1925)
• 2006 – Timothy J. Tobias, American pianist and composer (b. 1952)
• 2006 – Johnny Vincent, English footballer (b. 1947)
• 2007 – William Francis Ganong, Jr., American physiologist and academic (b. 1924)
• 2007 – Michael Kidd, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1915)
• 2007 – Oscar Peterson, Canadian pianist and composer (b. 1925)
• 2009 – Robert L. Howard, American colonel, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1939)
• 2009 – Ngapoi Ngawang Jigme, Tibetan general and politician (b. 1910)
• 2009 – Edward Schillebeeckx, Belgian theologian and academic (b. 1914)
• 2010 – Fred Hargesheimer, American soldier and pilot (b. 1916)
• 2010 – K. Karunakaran, Indian lawyer and politician, 7th Chief Minister of Kerala (b. 1918)
• 2011 – Aydın Menderes, Turkish economist and politician (b. 1946)
• 2012 – Jean Harris, American educator and murderer (b. 1923)
• 2012 – Eduardo Maiorino, Brazilian mixed martial artist and kick-boxer (b. 1979)
• 2013 – Chryssa, Greek-American sculptor (b. 1933)
• 2013 – Mikhail Kalashnikov, Russian general and weapons designer, designed the AK-47 rifle (b. 1919)
• 2013 – Yusef Lateef, American saxophonist, composer, and educator (b. 1920)
• 2013 – Ricky Lawson, American drummer and composer (b. 1954)
• 2013 – G. S. Shivarudrappa, Indian poet and educator (b. 1926)
• 2013 – Robert W. Wilson, American philanthropist and art collector (b. 1928)
• 2014 – Edward Greenspan, Canadian lawyer and author (b. 1944)
• 2014 – Robert V. Hogg, American statistician and academic (b. 1924)
• 2015 – Alfred G. Gilman, American pharmacologist and biochemist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1941)
• 2015 – Don Howe, English footballer and manager (b. 1935)
• 2015 – Jean-Marie Pelt, French biologist, pharmacist, and academic (b. 1933)
• 2015 – Bülent Ulusu, Turkish admiral and politician, 18th Prime Minister of Turkey (b. 1923)
• 2017 – Maurice Hayes, Irish educator and politician (b. 1927)
• 2020 – Leslie West, American singer and guitarist (b. 1945)
• 2021 – Joan Didion, American writer (b. 1934)
• 2022 – Brandon Montrell, American TikTok personality and stand-up comedian (b. 1979)
• 2023 – William Pope.L, American performance artist (b. 1955)

Holidays and observances

• Birthday of the Queen Silvia, an official flag flying day (Sweden)
• Children's Day (South Sudan and Sudan)
• Christian Feast Day:
  • Abassad (Coptic Church)
  • Behnam, Sarah, and the Forty Martyrs (Coptic Church)
  • Dagobert II
  • John Cantius
  • O Emmanuel
  • Psote (Coptic Church)
  • Thorlac Thorhallsson, patron saint of Iceland; The last day of preparations before Christmas.
  • Victoria
  • December 23 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Day of all level operational control structures servicemen (Ukraine)
• Festivus, a secular holiday made popular by the sitcom Seinfeld
• HumanLight (Secular humanism in United States)
• Kisan Diwas (Uttar Pradesh, India)
• Night of the Radishes (Oaxaca City, Mexico)
• Tibb's Eve (Newfoundland and Labrador)
• Tom Bawcock's Eve (Mousehole, Cornwall)
• Victory Day (Egypt)

See also

In Spanish: 23 de diciembre para niños