December 23

 Holidays and Observances
(Alphabetical Order)

2026 Daily Holidays that fall on December 23, include:

• Festivus 
• Human Light Celebration 
• Metric Conversion Day
• National Pfeffernuesse Day 
• National Roots Day 

2026 Weekly Holidays that include December 23, are:

• Advent - November 29, 2026 - December 24, 2026
• Christmas Bird Count Week - December 14, 2026 - January 5, 2027
• Drive Sober or Get Pulled Over (Winter Enforcement) - December 16, 2026 - January 1, 2027
• Posadas - December 16-24
• Saturnalia - December 17-23 
• Tie One On For Safety Campaign - Runs November 26, 2026, through January 1, 2027 (Thanksgiving to New Years Day)

2026 Monthly Holidays that include December 23, are:

There are too many monthly holidays to include here, so please check out our December Holidays page to see all of the holidays that are celebrated the entire month of December.

NOTE:

1. A page on each holiday will be coming soon and linked above.
2. If a date is a moveable holiday, that is different every year, I'll include the year as well as the date rule above. Otherwise, the holiday falls on the same date each year.

Astrological Sign

The Astrological Sign for December 23 is Capricorn.

Birth Flower of the Month

The Birth Flower(s) for the Month for December are:

• Holly/Narcissus - Sweetness, Self-Esteem, Vanity, The Sweetness of whoever receives it

Birthstone

The Birthstone(s) for December is Tanzanite, Zircon, Turquoise.

Famous Birthdays

• 1732 - Richard Arkwright, English businessman and inventory who invented the Water Frame and Spinning frame for spinning thread or yard (d. 1792)
• 1805 - Joseph Smith, American religious leader and founder of Mormonism and the Latter-Day Saint movement (d. 1844)

Famous Deaths

• 1973 - Irna Phillips, American screenwriter who created the soap operas Guiding Light and As the World Turns (b. 1901)
• 2013 - Mikhail Kalashnikov, Russian General and weapons designer who designed the AK-47 rifle (b. 1919)

Famous Weddings and Divorces

• 1951 - MLB centerfielder Mickey Mantle marries author Merlyn Mantle 
• 1979 - American blues guitarist Stevie Ray Vaughan marries Lenora "Lenny" Bailey
• 2015 - American singer and songwriter Richard Marx marries American model and TV host Daisy Fuentes
  

Quote of the Day

Christmas waves a magic wand over this world, and behold, everything is softer and more beautiful.

~ Norman Vincent Peale

Healthy Diet Habit Tip of the Day 
or a Recipe of the Day

Info. to Come!

Season

December 23rd falls within the Winter Season in the Northern Hemisphere. 

Winter is one of the four seasons. It follows the Fall Season, and is before the Spring Season. It is the coldest and darkest season in the Northern Hemisphere. It also starts in one year, and ends in the next, so it straddles two different years. 

Check out our Winter Season page for information about Winter, Winter Dates, Major Winter Holidays and Observances, Major Winter Festivals, Fun Facts About Winter, Winter Food Tips, Winter Gardening, Winter Preparation, Winter Quotes, and Winter Weather Information.

Kerry has put together some great information and tips on winter foods: 

• Winter Foods
• Winter Weight Gain
• Winter Weight Loss Tips

If you live in the Southern Hemisphere, this day falls in the Summer Season. 

• Summer
• Summer Cooking 
• Summer Weight Loss Tips 

This Day in History

• 1783 - George Washington resigns as commander-in-chief of the Continental Army
• 1815 - The novel Emma by Jane Austen is first pubished
• 1913 - President Woodrow Wilson signs the Federal Reserve Act into law, creating the Federal Reserve System
• 1914 - During World War I, Australian and New Zealand troops arrive in Cairo, Egypt
• 1954 - J. Hartwell Harrison and Joseph Murray perform the first successful kidney transplant
• 1968 - After eleven months of internment in North Korea, 82 sailors from the USS pueblo are released
• 1970 - The North Tower of the World Trade Center in Manhattan, New York, reaches 1,368 feet making it the tallest building in the world
• 1972 - A 6.5 magnitude earthquake hits the Nicaraguan capital of Manague resulting in more than 10,000 deaths
• 1972 - After 73 days and resorting to cannibalism to survive, the 16 survivors of the Andes flight crash are rescued
• 1978 - While on approach to Falcone Borsellino Airport in Palermo, Italy, Alitalia Flight 4128 crashes into the Tyrrhenian Sea, killing 108 people
• 1979 - During the Soviet-Afghan War, the Soviet Union forces occupy Kabul, the Afghanistan capital
• 1984 - Aeroflot Flight 3519 attempts to make an emergency landing at Krasnoyarsk International Airport after experiencing an engine fire, but crashes killing 110 of the 111 people on board
• 1986 - Voyager, piloted by Dick Rutan and Jeana Yeager, becomes the first aircraft to fly non-stop around the world without aerial or ground refueling, lands safely at Edwards Air Force Base in California
• 2002 - A U.S. MQ-1 Predator drone is shot down by an Iraqi MiG-25

This Day in Music

• 1893 - The opera Hansel and Gretal is first performed by Engelbert Humperdinck
• 1959 - This Magic Moment is recorded by The Drifters 
• 1966 - The UFO club in London opens with Pink Floyd as the house band
• 1978 - Do You Think I'm Sexy by Rod Stewart is released in the U.S.

Video Above: O Holy Night by Hillsong Worship

This Day in Sports

• 1997 - Phil Jackson, the Chicago Bulls coach is the fastest to reach 500 wins (682 games)
• 1997 - Colorado Avalanche Jari Kurri is the 8th NHLer to score 600 career goals
• 2000 - New Zealand beats Australia by 4 runs in the Cricket Women's World Cup

Word of the Day from Wiktionary

Wishing You a Great Day Today!