2018 Inter-Continental Hotel Kabul attack
A group of four or five gunmen attack The Inter-Continental Hotel in Kabul, Afghanistan, sparking a 12-hour battle. The attack kills 40 people and injures many others.
What happened on January 20
33 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 8 observances. From 1156 to 2025.
Standout on January 20
2018
Taliban
A group of Taliban gunmen attacked and took hostages at the Hotel Inter-Continental Kabul, Afghanistan, sparking a 12-hour battle that left at least 21 people dead.
About January 20
January 20 is the 20th day of the year. These facts are computed from the calendar, not copied from anywhere.
- Day of the year
- Day 20 of 365 (20 in leap years)345 days left in the year (346 in leap years)
- Falls on
- Tuesday in 2026, Wednesday in 2027, Thursday in 2028, Saturday in 2029, Sunday in 2030
- Week
- ISO week 4 of 2026 · Q1
- Zodiac sign
- ♒ Aquarius (January 20 – February 18)Cusp date — the exact boundary shifts by a day in some years.
- Season
- Winter in the north · Summer in the south
- January birthstone
- Garnetprotection, friendship and trust
- January birth flower
- Carnation / Snowdroplove, devotion and hope
- Next occurrence
- In 85 days
- Roman numerals
- XX.Iday.month — see the Roman numeral date tool
Anniversaries in 2026
- 300thJohann Sebastian Bach1726
- 40thLeabua Jonathan1986
- 40thMartin Luther King Jr. Day1986
- 25thPresident of the Philippines2001
- 10thEdmonde Charles-Roux2016
- 10thMykolas Burokevičius2016
- 5thMira Furlan2021
- 5thSibusiso Moyo (politician)2021
January 20 through the years
- 10 years ago2016
- Edmonde Charles-Roux · Mykolas Burokevičius
- 25 years ago2001
- President of the Philippines
- 50 years ago1976
- Nothing recorded
- 100 years ago1926
- Nothing recorded
- 200 years ago1826
- Nothing recorded
Born on January 20 — ages this year
- 2003J. J. McCarthyturns 23
- 2003Antonia Ružićturns 23
- 2002Arnaud Kalimuendoturns 24
- 2000Tyler Herroturns 26
- 1995Joey Badassturns 31
- 1995Calum Chambersturns 31
Historical events 33
A dated happening — a battle, treaty, launch, discovery, disaster or decision — recorded on this calendar day.
Taliban
A group of Taliban gunmen attacked and took hostages at the Hotel Inter-Continental Kabul, Afghanistan, sparking a 12-hour battle that left at least 21 people dead.
Syrian civil war
Syrian civil war: The Government of Turkey announces the initiation of the Afrin offensive and begins shelling Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) positions in Afrin Region.
2008–2011 Icelandic financial crisis
During a national financial crisis, thousands of people protested (pictured) at the Icelandic parliament in Reykjavík.
Iceland
A protest movement in Iceland culminates as the 2009 Icelandic financial crisis protests start.
First inauguration of Barack Obama
In Washington, D.C., Barack Obama was inaugurated as the first African-American president of the United States.
President of the Philippines
President of the Philippines Joseph Estrada is ousted in a nonviolent four-day revolution, and is succeeded by Gloria Macapagal Arroyo.
Air Inter Flight 148
Air Inter Flight 148, an Airbus A320-111, crashes into a mountain near Strasbourg, France, killing 87 of the 96 people on board.
Sudan
Sudan's government imposes Islamic law nationwide, worsening the civil war between the country's Muslim north and Christian south.
Red Army
The Soviet Red Army violently cracked down on Azeri pro-independence demonstrations in Baku, Azerbaijan SSR.
Black January
Protests in Azerbaijan, part of the Dissolution of the Soviet Union.
Leabua Jonathan
Leabua Jonathan, Prime Minister of Lesotho, is ousted from power in a coup d'état led by General Justin Lekhanya.
Martin Luther King Jr. Day
In the United States, Martin Luther King Jr. Day is celebrated as a federal holiday for the first time.
Ronald Reagan
Twenty minutes after Ronald Reagan is inaugurated as the 40th President of the United States of America, Iran releases 52 American hostages.
Paracel Islands
China gains control over all the Paracel Islands after a military engagement between the naval forces of China and South Vietnam.
Amílcar Cabral
Amílcar Cabral, leader of the independence movement in Guinea-Bissau and Cape Verde, is assassinated in Conakry, Guinea.
Pakistan and weapons of mass destruction
Pakistan launches its nuclear weapons program, a few weeks after its defeat in the Bangladesh Liberation War, as well as the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
Amanullah Asaduzzaman
Bengali student activist Amanullah Asaduzzaman was shot and killed by East Pakistani police, an event that led to the Bangladesh Liberation War.
Houston Cougars men's basketball
The Houston Cougars upset the UCLA Bruins in what became known as the "Game of the Century" (pictured), ending the Bruins' 47-game winning streak and establishing college basketball as a sports commodity on American television.
National Negro Network
In the United States, the National Negro Network is established with 40 charter member radio stations.
Béla Miklós
World War II: The provisional government of Béla Miklós in Hungary agrees to an armistice with the Allies.
Nazi Germany
World War II: Germany begins the evacuation of 1.8 million people from East Prussia, a task which will take nearly two months.
World War II
World War II: In an operation that took nearly two months to complete, Germany began the evacuation of at least 1.8 million people from East Prussia in anticipation of the advancing Soviet Red Army.
World War II
World War II: At the Wannsee Conference held in the Berlin suburb of Wannsee, senior Nazi German officials discuss the implementation of the "Final Solution to the Jewish question".
The Holocaust
The Holocaust: Reinhard Heydrich and other senior Nazi officials met at the Wannsee Conference near Berlin to discuss the implementation of the "Final Solution to the Jewish Question".
Bucharest
A German officer is killed in Bucharest, Romania, sparking a rebellion and pogrom by the Iron Guard, killing 125 Jews and 30 soldiers.
Irish Civil War
During the Irish Civil War the Irish Free State Army executes 11 members of the anti-treaty Irish Republican Army
HMS K5
The British K-class submarine HMS K5 sinks in the English Channel; all 56 on board die.
Honório Hermeto Carneiro Leão, Marquis of Paraná
Honório Hermeto Carneiro Leão, Marquis of Paraná, became the de facto first prime minister of the Empire of Brazil.
Johann Sebastian Bach
J. S. Bach led the first performance of his cantata Meine Seufzer, meine Tränen on the second Sunday after the Epiphany.
Edward Balliol
Edward Balliol, whose father John was briefly King of Scotland, gave up his claim to the throne in exchange for an English pension.
Simon de Montfort, 6th Earl of Leicester
Simon de Montfort summoned local representatives to the Palace of Westminster to attend a parliament, now considered to be the forerunner of the House of Commons of England.
Lalli
According to legend, Lalli slew Bishop Henry of Finland with an axe on the ice of Lake Köyliönjärvi in Köyliö.
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.
Cecile Richards
Cecile Richards, American activist and former Planned Parenthood president (born 1957)
Sibusiso Moyo (politician)
Sibusiso Moyo, Zimbabwean politician, army general (born 1960)
Tom Railsback
Tom Fisher Railsback, American politician, member of the Illinois and U.S. House of Representatives (born 1932)
Naomi Parker Fraley
Naomi Parker Fraley, American naval machiner, considered the model for the "We Can Do It!" posters of World War II (born 1921)
Mykolas Burokevičius
Mykolas Burokevičius, Lithuanian carpenter and politician (born 1927)
Ioannis Kefalogiannis
Ioannis Kefalogiannis, Greek politician, Greek Minister of the Interior (born 1933)
Holidays & observances 8
A holiday, feast day, awareness day or national day observed every year on this date.
Beatification
Christian feast day: Blessed Basil Moreau
Pope Fabian
Christian feast day: Fabian
Eustochia Smeralda Calafato
Christian feast day: Eustochia Smeralda Calafato
Public holidays in Mali
Armed Forces Day (Mali)
Armed Forces Day
Army Day (Laos)
Manchán of Lemanaghan
Christian feast day: Manchán of Lemanaghan
Euthymius the Great
Christian feast day: Euthymius the Great
Synaxaire Arabe-Jacobite
Christian feast day: Abadios
Spread across the centuries
- 12th century1
- 13th century1
- 14th century1
- 18th century1
- 19th century1
- 20th century38
- 21st century30
Earliest: Lalli (1156). Most recent: Cecile Richards (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 January 20
What day of the year is January 20?
January 20 is the 20th day of the year, with 345 days left after it.
What star sign is January 20?
January 20 falls under Aquarius (January 20 – February 18), a air sign ruled by Uranus (traditionally Saturn). The birthstone for the month is Garnet.
How many things happened on January 20?
We record 81 entries for January 20: 33 events · 20 births · 20 deaths · 8 observances. From 1156 to 2025.
Who was born on January 20?
J. J. McCarthy (2003) is among the notable births on January 20. The births section lists the rest.
How often is the January 20 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 January 20
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.