✦ DateLore

On This Day · The 362nd day of the year

December 28

A look at December 28 through the almanac — historic events, famous birthdays including Seth Meyers and Markus Weinzierl, and the day's notable deaths and observances.

♑ZodiacCapricorn ◈BirthstoneTurquoise ❀Birth flowerHolly
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Events

10 notable moments
  1. 2014

    MS Norman Atlantic

    Nine people die and another 19 are reported missing, when the MS Norman Atlantic catches fire in the Strait of Otranto, in the Adriatic Sea, in Italian waters.

    Italian passenger ferry; caught
  2. 2014

    Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501

    Indonesia AirAsia Flight 8501 crashes into the Karimata Strait en route from Surabaya to Singapore, killing all 162 people aboard.

    2014 aviation accident in
  3. 2009

    2009 Karachi bombing

    Forty-three people die in a suicide bombing in Karachi, Pakistan, where Shia Muslims are observing the Day of Ashura.

    Bombing in Pakistan
  4. 2006

    War in Somalia (2006–2009)

    War in Somalia: The militaries of Somalia's Transitional Federal Government and Ethiopian troops capture Mogadishu unopposed.

    Ethiopian military invasion and
  5. 1967

    Muriel Siebert

    American businesswoman Muriel Siebert becomes the first woman to own a seat on the New York Stock Exchange.

    American businesswoman
  6. 1941

    World War II

    World War II: Operation Anthropoid, the plot to assassinate high-ranking Nazi officer Reinhard Heydrich, commences.

    1939–1945 global conflict
  7. 1908

    1908 Messina earthquake

    The 7.1 Mw Messina earthquake shakes Southern Italy with a maximum Mercalli intensity of XI (Extreme), killing between about 80,000.

    Earthquake in southern Italy
  8. 1768

    Taksin

    King Taksin's coronation achieved through conquest as a king of Thailand and established Thonburi as a capital.

    King of Siam from
  9. 893

    893 Dvin earthquake

    An earthquake destroys the city of Dvin, Armenia.

    Earthquake in Armenia
  10. 484

    Alaric II

    Alaric II succeeds his father Euric and becomes king of the Visigoths. He establishes his capital at Aire-sur-l'Adour (Southern Gaul).

    King of the Visigoths
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Famous birthday twins

Born on December 28

Seth Meyers

b. 1973

American actor, producer, screenwriter, and talk show host

Markus Weinzierl

b. 1974

German footballer and manager

John von Neumann

b. 1903

Hungarian-American mathematician and physicist

Ben Tune

b. 1976

Australian rugby player

Linus Torvalds

b. 1969

Finnish-American computer programmer, developed Linux kernel

Woodrow Wilson

b. 1856

American historian and politician, 28th President of the United States, Nobel Prize laureate

Liu Xiaobo

b. 1955

Chinese author, academic, and activist, Nobel Prize laureate

Denzel Washington

b. 1954

American actor, director, and producer

Deaths

  • 2025Brigitte Bardot, French actress, singer and activist
  • 2021Igor and Grichka Bogdanoff, French television presenter and scientific essayist
  • 1984Sam Peckinpah, American director, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1959Ante Pavelić, Croatian fascist dictator during World War II
  • 1937Maurice Ravel, French pianist and composer
  • 1913Ahmet Mithat, Efendi, Turkish journalist and translator

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Abel (Coptic Church)
  • —Christian feast day: Caterina Volpicelli
  • —Christian feast day: Feast of the Holy Innocents or Childermas; in Spain and Latin American countries the festival is celebrated with pranks (inocentadas), similar to April Fools' Day (Catholic Church, Church of England, Lutheran Church), and its related observances: Els Enfarinats (Ibi, Spain)
  • —Christian feast day: Simon the Athonite
  • —Christian feast day: December 28 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • —King Taksin Memorial Day (Thailand)
  • —Proclamation Day (South Australia), celebration started on the day following Christmas (South Australia)
  • —Republic Day (South Sudan)

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