Date·Lore

On This Day · The 3rd day of the year

January 3

January 3 carries an unusually long memory — its events reach back as far as 250. Most of the weight falls in the 20th century, where conflict is a recurring thread.

♑ZodiacCapricorn ◈BirthstoneGarnet ❀Birth flowerCarnation

Capricorn is the sign for January 3 — read more on the Capricorn page, or see January's birthstone & birth flower.

Compiled & reviewed by · Last reviewed September 6, 2026

What happened on January 3?

January 3 is the 3rd day of the year. It marks 10 notable events in history, dated between 250 and 2026. Famous people born on January 3 include J. R. R. Tolkien, Cicero and Michael Schumacher.

Released on January 3

Movies, games, albums & shows

2023

  • TV Will Trent

2022

  • TV The Cleaning Lady

Release data from TMDB & IGDB.

Events

10 notable moments
  1. 250

    Decius

  2. 1521

    Pope Leo X

  3. 1749

    Berlingske

  4. 1777

    American Revolutionary War

  5. 1911

    Siege of Sidney Street

  6. 1944

    World War II

  7. 1961

    Aero Flight 311

  8. 1990

    United States invasion of Panama

  9. 2004

    Flash Airlines Flight 604

  10. 2026

    United States

Famous birthday twins

Born on January 3

J. R. R. Tolkien

b. 1892

Cicero

b. -106

Michael Schumacher

b. 1969

Ikechi Anya

b. 1988

Pietro Metastasio

b. 1698

Jonny Evans

b. 1988

August Macke

b. 1887

Mel Gibson

b. 1956

Deaths

  • 2008Choi Yo-sam
  • 1956Joseph Wirth
  • 1927Carl Runge
  • 1923Jaroslav Hašek
  • 1322Philip V of France
  • 323Emperor Yuan of Jin

Holidays & observances

  • —Christian feast day: Daniel of Padua
  • —Christian feast day: Genevieve
  • —Christian feast day: Holy Name of Jesus
  • —Christian feast day: Kuriakose Elias Chavara (Syro-Malabar Catholic Church)
  • —Christian feast day: Pope Anterus
  • —Christian feast day: January 3 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
  • —Tamaseseri Festival (Hakozaki Shrine, Fukuoka, Japan)
  • —The tenth of the Twelve Days of Christmas (Western Christianity)

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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