International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee bans Russia from competing at the 2018 Winter Olympics for doping at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
What happened on December 5
32 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 8 observances. From 1456 to 2025.
Standout on December 5
2017
International Olympic Committee
The International Olympic Committee bans Russia from competing at the 2018 Winter Olympics for doping at the 2014 Winter Olympics.
About December 5
December 5 is the 339th day of the year. These facts are computed from the calendar, not copied from anywhere.
- Day of the year
- Day 339 of 365 (340 in leap years)26 days left in the year (26 in leap years)
- Falls on
- Saturday in 2026, Sunday in 2027, Tuesday in 2028, Wednesday in 2029, Thursday in 2030
- Week
- ISO week 49 of 2026 · Q4
- Zodiac sign
- ♐ Sagittarius (November 22 – December 21)
- Season
- Autumn in the north · Spring in the south
- December birthstone
- Turquoise / Tanzanite / Zircongood fortune, wisdom and success
- December birth flower
- Narcissus / Holly / Poinsettiarespect, hope and good wishes
- Next occurrence
- In 39 days
- Roman numerals
- V.XIIday.month — see the Roman numeral date tool
Anniversaries in 2026
- 90th1936 Constitution of the Soviet Union1936
- 25thSpace Shuttle Endeavour2001
- 20thFrank Bainimarama2006
- 10thBig Syke2016
- 10thJ. Jayalalithaa2016
- 5thBob Dole2021
- 1stFrank Gehry2025
- 1stMichael Annett2025
December 5 through the years
- 10 years ago2016
- J. Jayalalithaa · Big Syke
- 25 years ago2001
- Space Shuttle Endeavour
- 50 years ago1976
- Nothing recorded
- 100 years ago1926
- Nothing recorded
- 200 years ago1826
- Nothing recorded
Born on December 5 — ages this year
- 2009Owen Cooperturns 17
- 2008Ediz Gürelturns 18
- 2000Soobin (singer)turns 26
- 1998Randal Kolo Muaniturns 28
- 1998Conan Grayturns 28
- 1997Quinnen Williamsturns 29
Historical events 32
A dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Exploration Flight Test-1
Exploration Flight Test-1, the first flight test of Orion, is launched.
2013 Yemeni Ministry of Defense attack
Militants attack a Defense Ministry compound in Sanaa, Yemen, killing at least 56 people and injuring 200 others.
Westroads Mall shooting
A gunman killed nine people at a shopping mall in Omaha, Nebraska.
Frank Bainimarama
Commodore Frank Bainimarama overthrows the government in Fiji.
Civil Partnership Act 2004
The Civil Partnership Act comes into effect in the United Kingdom, and the first civil partnership is registered there.
2005 Lake Tanganyika earthquake
The 6.8 Mw Lake Tanganyika earthquake shakes the eastern provinces of the Democratic Republic of the Congo with a maximum Mercalli intensity of X (Extreme), killing six people.
Space Shuttle Endeavour
Space Shuttle Endeavour launches on STS-108, carrying the Expedition 4 crew to the International Space Station.
Azerbaijan Airlines Flight A-56
Azerbaijan Airlines Flight A-56 crashes near Nakhchivan International Airport in Nakhchivan, Azerbaijan, killing 52 people.
Sri Lankan civil war
Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lanka's government announces the conquest of the Tamil stronghold of Jaffna.
Budapest Memorandum
The Budapest Memorandum is signed at the OSCE conference in Budapest, Hungary.
Leonid Kravchuk
Leonid Kravchuk is elected the first president of Ukraine.
National Reorganization Process
Dissolution of the Military Junta in Argentina.
Egypt
Egypt breaks diplomatic relations with Syria, Libya, Algeria, Iraq and South Yemen in retaliation to preventing President Anwar el-Sadat from pursuing negotiations with Israel at the Tripoli confer.
Gough Whitlam
Gough Whitlam took office as the 21st Prime Minister of Australia and formed a duumvirate with his deputy Lance Barnard, ending 23 years of Liberal–Country Party government.
Battle of Gazipur
Battle of Gazipur: Pakistani forces are defeated as India cedes Gazipur to Bangladesh.
Glasnost meeting
The "glasnost meeting" took place in Moscow, becoming the first demonstration in the Soviet Union after World War II and marking the beginning of the civil rights movement in the country.
Vietnam War
Vietnam War: For his heroism in battle earlier in the year, Captain Roger Donlon is awarded the first Medal of Honor of the war.
Lloyd J. Old
Lloyd J. Old discovers the first linkage between the major histocompatibility complex (MHC) and disease—mouse leukemia—opening the way for the recognition of the importance of the MHC in the immune response.
Controlled-access highway
Britain's first motorway, the Preston Bypass, opened to the public.
Subscriber trunk dialling
Subscriber Trunk Dialling (STD) is inaugurated in the United Kingdom by Queen Elizabeth II when she speaks to the Lord Provost in a call from Bristol to Edinburgh.
Preston Bypass
The Preston By-pass, the UK's first stretch of motorway, opens to traffic for the first time. (It is now part of the M6 and M55 motorways.)
American Federation of Labor
The American Federation of Labor and the Congress of Industrial Organizations merge and form the AFL–CIO.
Great Smog of London
The "Great Smog of London" (pictured) began and lasted for five days, causing 12,000 deaths and leading to the Clean Air Act 1956.
1936 Constitution of the Soviet Union
The 1936 Soviet constitution, also known as the "Stalin constitution", was adopted.
Sokol movement
National Guards and Sokol volunteers protested in Zagreb, leading to an armed clash with regiments of the Home Guard and former Common Army.
Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition
The Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition began in an attempt to make the first land crossing of Antarctica.
Napoleonic Wars
Napoleonic Wars: British ships began a raid on Griessie after the Dutch captain refused a British demand for surrender.
American Revolutionary War
American Revolutionary War: Continental Army colonel Henry Knox arrived at Fort Ticonderoga in New York to arrange the transport of 60 tons of artillery (depicted) to support the siege of Boston.
Seven Years' War
Seven Years' War: Prussian troops under Frederick the Great defeated Austrian forces at the Battle of Leuthen (pictured).
Pope Innocent VIII
Pope Innocent VIII issued the papal bull Summis desiderantes affectibus, which gave the Dominican inquisitor Heinrich Kramer the explicit authority to prosecute witchcraft in Germany.
1456 Central Italy earthquakes
The first of two major earthquakes struck the Kingdom of Naples, killing up to 70,000 people.
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.
J. Jayalalithaa
J. Jayalalithaa, Indian actress and Former Chief Minister of the Indian state of Tamil Nadu (born 1948)
Tibor Rubin
Tibor Rubin, Hungarian-American soldier, Medal of Honor recipient (born 1929)
Vic Eliason
Vic Eliason, American clergyman and radio host, founded VCY America (born 1936)
Chuck Williams (author)
Chuck Williams, American businessman and author, founded Williams Sonoma (born 1915)
Talât Sait Halman
Talât Sait Halman, Turkish poet, translator, and historian (born 1931)
Holidays & observances 8
A holiday, feast day, awareness day or national day observed every year on this date.
Sabbas the Sanctified
Christian feast day: Sabbas the Sanctified
Crispina of Numidia
Christian feast day: Crispina of Numidia
Pelinus
Christian feast day: Pelinus of Brindisi
John Almond (martyr)
Christian feast day: John Almond
Justinian of Ramsey Island
Christian feast day: Justinian of Ramsey Island
Nicetius
Christian feast day: Nicetius (Nizier)
Clement of Alexandria
Christian feast day: Clement of Alexandria (Episcopal Church)
Dalmatius of Pavia
Christian feast day: Dalmatius of Pavia
Spread across the centuries
- 15th century2
- 18th century2
- 19th century1
- 20th century37
- 21st century30
Earliest: 1456 Central Italy earthquakes (1456). Most recent: Frank Gehry (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 December 5
What day of the year is December 5?
December 5 is the 339th day of the year, with 26 days left after it.
What star sign is December 5?
December 5 falls under Sagittarius (November 22 – December 21), a fire sign ruled by Jupiter. The birthstone for the month is Turquoise or Tanzanite or Zircon.
How many things happened on December 5?
We record 80 entries for December 5: 32 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 8 observances. From 1456 to 2025.
Who was born on December 5?
Owen Cooper (2009) is among the notable births on December 5. The births section lists the rest.
How often is the December 5 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 December 5
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.