Date·Lore

On This Day · The 48th day of the year

February 17

February 17's record stretches 390 years, from 1621 to 2011. Its center of gravity is the 20th century, and conflict is a recurring thread.

♒ZodiacAquarius ◈BirthstoneAmethyst ❀Birth flowerViolet

Aquarius is the sign for February 17 — read more on the Aquarius page, or see February's birthstone & birth flower.

Compiled & reviewed by · Last reviewed September 6, 2026

What happened on February 17?

February 17 is the 48th day of the year. It marks 10 notable events in history, dated between 1621 and 2011. Famous people born on February 17 include Mo Yan, Wu Zetian and François, Duke of Guise.

Released on February 17

Movies, games, albums & shows

2026

  • Game Under the Island
  • Game Aerial_Knight's DropShot

2023

  • Game Birth
  • Game The Last Haven
  • Game The Settlers: New Allies

2022

  • Game Total War: Warhammer III
  • Game Pokémon Trading Card Game Live
  • TV Severance

Release data from TMDB & IGDB.

Events

10 notable moments
  1. 1621

    Myles Standish

  2. 1859

    Cochinchina campaign

  3. 1863

    Geneva

  4. 1913

    Armory Show

  5. 1944

    World War II

  6. 1978

    The Troubles

  7. 1980

    Mount Everest

  8. 1996

    1996 Biak earthquake

  9. 2011

    Arab Spring

  10. 2011

    Bahrain

Famous birthday twins

Born on February 17

Mo Yan

b. 1955

Wu Zetian

b. 624

François, Duke of Guise

b. 1519

Madison Keys

b. 1995

Marc Márquez

b. 1993

Michael Jordan

b. 1963

Ed Sheeran

b. 1991

Paris Hilton

b. 1981

Deaths

  • 1909Geronimo
  • 1874Adolphe Quetelet
  • 1856Heinrich Heine
  • 1673Molière
  • 1600Giordano Bruno
  • 364Jovian (emperor)

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Seven Founders of the Servite Order Alexis Falconieri
  • —Christian feast day: Constabilis
  • —Christian feast day: Donatus, Romulus, Secundian, and Companions
  • —Christian feast day: Evermode of Ratzeburg
  • —Christian feast day: Fintan of Clonenagh
  • —Christian feast day: Janani Luwum (Anglican Communion)
  • —Christian feast day: Lommán of Trim
  • —Christian feast day: Mesrop Mashtots

The factual record above — event titles, dates, names, and observances — is drawn from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike (CC BY-SA) license. DateLore adds curation, structure, and original editorial commentary. DateLore is not affiliated with the Wikimedia Foundation.

About the author

Roman Tailor compiles and reviews every date on DateLore. He's the writer and editor behind the site's editorial essays and the day-by-day almanac. Corrections and questions are welcome — read more about DateLore or get in touch.

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