2025 Tarasin landslide
A landslide in the Darfur region of Sudan kills over 1000 people.
What happened on August 31
32 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 8 observances. From 1218 to 2025.
Standout on August 31
2024
2024 Kamchatka Mil Mi-8 crash
A helicopter crashes in Kamchatka Krai in the Russian Far East, killing all 22 occupants.
About August 31
August 31 is the 243rd day of the year. These facts are computed from the calendar, not copied from anywhere.
- Day of the year
- Day 243 of 365 (244 in leap years)122 days left in the year (122 in leap years)
- Falls on
- Monday in 2026, Tuesday in 2027, Thursday in 2028, Friday in 2029, Saturday in 2030
- Week
- ISO week 36 of 2026 · Q3
- Zodiac sign
- ♍ Virgo (August 23 – September 22)
- Season
- Summer in the north · Winter in the south
- August birthstone
- Peridot / Spinel / Sardonyxstrength, good fortune and calm
- August birth flower
- Gladiolus / Poppystrength of character and remembrance
- Next occurrence
- In 308 days
- Roman numerals
- XXXI.VIIIday.month — see the Roman numeral date tool
Anniversaries in 2026
- 150thMurad V1876
- 40thAeroméxico Flight 4981986
- 30thJalen Brunson1996
- 30thSaddam Hussein1996
- 25thAmanda Anisimova2001
- 20thEdvard Munch2006
- 10thDilma Rousseff2016
- 5thFrancesco Morini2021
August 31 through the years
- 10 years ago2016
- Dilma Rousseff
- 25 years ago2001
- Amanda Anisimova
- 50 years ago1976
- Nothing recorded
- 100 years ago1926
- Nothing recorded
- 200 years ago1826
- Nothing recorded
Born on August 31 — ages this year
- 2004Jang Won-youngturns 22
- 2001Amanda Anisimovaturns 25
- 2000Sauce Gardnerturns 26
- 1998BossMan Dlowturns 28
- 1997Jaylen Barronturns 29
- 1996Jalen Brunsonturns 30
Historical events 32
A dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
2025 Kunar earthquake
An earthquake in eastern Afghanistan kills over 1400 people.
2024 Kamchatka Mil Mi-8 crash
A helicopter crashes in Kamchatka Krai in the Russian Far East, killing all 22 occupants.
2019 Alta helicopter crash
A sightseeing helicopter crashed in the mountains of Skoddevarre in Alta, Norway, killing all six people on board.
Dilma Rousseff
Brazil's President Dilma Rousseff is impeached and removed from office.
The Bill
The last episode of The Bill, the longest-running police drama in British television history, was broadcast.
Edvard Munch
Edvard Munch's famous painting, The Scream, stolen on August 22, 2004, is recovered in a raid by Norwegian police.
2005 Al-Aimmah Bridge disaster
The 2005 Al-Aaimmah bridge stampede in Baghdad kills 953 people.
Typhoon Rusa
Typhoon Rusa made landfall in Goheung as the most powerful typhoon to hit South Korea in 43 years, killing at least 236 people.
Líneas Aéreas Privadas Argentinas
A LAPA Boeing 737-200 crashes during takeoff from Jorge Newbury Airport in Buenos Aires, killing 65, including two on the ground.
1999 Russian apartment bombings
The first of a series of bombings in Moscow kills one person and wounds 40 others.
Diana, Princess of Wales
Diana, Princess of Wales (pictured), her partner Dodi Fayed, and their driver were killed in a car crash in Paris.
Saddam Hussein
Saddam Hussein's troops seize Irbil after the Kurdish Masoud Barzani appealed for help to defeat his Kurdish rival PUK.
Estonia
Russia completes removing its troops from Estonia.
Argentina
Argentina abolishes conscription after months of social backlash over the murder of a conscript.
Lithuania
Russia completes removing its troops from Lithuania.
Kyrgyzstan
Kyrgyzstan declares its independence from the Soviet Union.
Delta Air Lines Flight 1141
Delta Air Lines Flight 1141 crashes during takeoff from Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport, killing 14.
CAAC Flight 301
CAAC Flight 301 overshoots the runway at Kai Tak Airport and crashes into Kowloon Bay, killing seven people.
Thai Airways Flight 365
Thai Airways Flight 365 crashes into the ocean near Ko Phuket, Thailand, killing all 83 aboard.
Aeroméxico Flight 498
Aeroméxico Flight 498 collides with a Piper PA-28 Cherokee over Cerritos, California, killing 67 in the air and 15 on the ground.
Isle of Wight Festival 1969
On the final day of the Isle of Wight Festival 1969, attended by approximately 150,000 people over three days, Bob Dylan appeared in his first gig in three years.
Letter bomb
A parcel bomb sent by Ngô Đình Nhu (pictured), younger brother and chief adviser of South Vietnamese president Ngô Đình Diệm, failed to kill Norodom Sihanouk, Prime Minister of Cambodia.
1942 Matagorda hurricane
The Matagorda hurricane, the most intense and costliest tropical cyclone of the 1942 Atlantic hurricane season, dissipated after causing $26.5 million in damages and eight deaths.
World War II
World War II: A detachment of Chetniks captured the town of Loznica in German-occupied Serbia.
World War II
Second World War: Two Royal navy destroyers were lost to mines and two other vessels damaged off Texel, Netherlands, killing around 300 men.
Gleiwitz incident
Nazi forces, posing as Poles, staged an attack against the German radio station Sender Gleiwitz in Gleiwitz, Upper Silesia, Germany, creating an excuse to invade Poland the next day.
Thomas Edison
Thomas Edison was granted a patent for the Kinetoscope, a precursor to the modern movie projector.
1886 Charleston earthquake
The 7.0 Mw Charleston earthquake struck southeastern South Carolina with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme), killing 60 people and causing damage worth an estimated $5–6 million.
Murad V
Sultan Murad V of the Ottoman Empire was deposed after a reign of 93 days on grounds of mental illness.* 1888 – The body of Mary Ann Nichols, the alleged first victim of an unidentified serial killer known as Jack the Ripper (pictured), was found in Buck's Row, London.
War of 1812
War of 1812: American militia forces repelled a British force at the Battle of Caulk's Field, killing 41 people including Captain Peter Parker of the Royal Navy.
Al-Kamil
Al-Kamil became the fourth sultan of the Ayyubid dynasty of Egypt.
Births 20
A notable person born on this day. Each links to a person page with their dates and story.
Deaths 20
A notable person who died on this day.
Edward Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 3rd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu
Edward Douglas-Scott-Montagu, 3rd Baron Montagu of Beaulieu, English politician, founded the National Motor Museum (born 1926)
Ștefan Andrei
Ștefan Andrei, Romanian politician, 87th Romanian Minister of Foreign Affairs (born 1931)
Holidays & observances 8
A holiday, feast day, awareness day or national day observed every year on this date.
Baloch-Pashtun Unity Day
Baloch-Pakhtun Unity Day (Balochs and Pashtuns, International observance)
Cuthburh
Christian feast day: Cuthburh
Raymond Nonnatus
Christian feast day: Raymond Nonnatus
Nicodemus
Christian feast day: Nicodemus
Aidan of Lindisfarne
Christian feast day: Aidan of Lindisfarne
Aristides of Athens
Christian feast day: Aristides of Athens
Joseph of Arimathea
Christian feast day: Joseph of Arimathea
Paulinus of Trier
Christian feast day: Paulinus of Trier
Spread across the centuries
- 13th century1
- 19th century4
- 20th century36
- 21st century31
Earliest: Al-Kamil (1218). Most recent: 2025 Tarasin landslide (2025).
What the categories mean, and how the standout is chosen
- Historical events
- A dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
- Births
- A notable person born on this day. Each links to a person page with their dates and story.
- Deaths
- A notable person who died on this day.
- Milestones
- A first, a founding or a turning point our editors flagged as a landmark moment.
- Holidays & observances
- A holiday, feast day, awareness day or national day observed every year on this date.
- Standout / notable
- Editor-written entries come first, then entries covered by the most Wikipedia language editions. For the standout tile we prefer an entry that has a picture.
Nearby and related
Questions about August 31
What day of the year is August 31?
August 31 is the 243rd day of the year, with 122 days left after it.
What star sign is August 31?
August 31 falls under Virgo (August 23 – September 22), a earth sign ruled by Mercury. The birthstone for the month is Peridot or Spinel or Sardonyx.
How many things happened on August 31?
We record 80 entries for August 31: 32 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 8 observances. From 1218 to 2025.
Who was born on August 31?
Jang Won-young (2004) is among the notable births on August 31. The births section lists the rest.
How often is the August 31 page updated?
The day is filled the first time anyone opens it and then re-checked for new entries about every 90 days. Computed facts such as the weekday and the anniversaries update every year.
Get a daily entry like August 31
One short email a day from this calendar. Kept for this site only.
Text adapted from Wikipedia under CC BY-SA 4.0 and from Wikidata (CC0). Images come from Wikimedia Commons; credit and licence are shown with each image. Editorial entries are © What's On This Date. Sources & licensing · How this site works.