February 17th, 1872

Born on February 17th, 1872

Age in days, weeks and months
Wow, over 55,000 days old!

Why not celebrate an alternative birthday? In 413 days, exactly on June 14th, 2025, people who were born on February 17th, 1872 will be 56,000 days old!

... in seconds, minutes and hours

What happened on February 17th?

February 17th, 2011

Arab Spring: Bahraini security forces killed four protesters in a pre-dawn raid at the Pearl Roundabout in Manama, while the "Day of Rage" took place in Libya with nationwide protests against Muammar Gaddafi's government.

February 17th, 1978

The Troubles: The Provisional Irish Republican Army carried out a bombing of a restaurant near Belfast, Northern Ireland, killing twelve people and injuring thirty others.

February 17th, 1974

A U.S. Army soldier stole a Bell UH-1 helicopter (pictured) and landed it on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, D.C.

February 17th, 1964

Gabonese military officers overthrew President Léon M'ba, but French forces, honouring a 1960 treaty, forcibly reinstated him two days later.

February 17th, 1959

Vanguard 2 (model pictured), the first weather satellite, was launched to measure cloud cover distribution.

February 17th, 1944

World War II: The U.S. Navy began Operation Hailstone, a massive naval air and surface attack against the Japanese naval and air base at Chuuk Lagoon in the Caroline Islands.

February 17th, 1913

The Armory Show, the first large modern-art exhibition in the United States, opened at the 69th Regiment Armory in New York City.

February 17th, 1904

Italian composer Giacomo Puccini's Madama Butterfly premiered at La Scala in Milan to poor reviews, forcing him to revise the opera.

February 17th, 1894

Rudolf Diesel's first working diesel engine ran for one minute.

February 17th, 1859

Cochinchina campaign: French Navy forces captured the Citadel of Saigon, defended by 1,000 Vietnamese soldiers of the Nguyễn dynasty.

February 17th, 1838

Zulu impis massacred about 532 Voortrekkers, Khoekhoe, and Basuto near present-day Weenen, South Africa.

February 17th, 1815

The United States ratifies the Treaty of Ghent – signed in late 1814 – formally ending the War of 1812.

February 17th, 1621

Myles Standish was elected the first commander of the militia of Plymouth Colony.

February 17th, 2016

Military vehicles explode outside a Turkish Armed Forces barracks in Ankara, Turkey, killing at least 29 people and injuring 61 others.

February 17th, 2011

Arab Spring: In Bahrain, security forces launch a deadly pre-dawn raid on protesters in Pearl Roundabout in Manama; the day is locally known as Bloody Thursday.

Birthdays
... of famous people, actors, celebrities and stars on February 17th

Born on February 17th, 1872

152

Wilhelm Kaufmann

German gymnast (1872-?)

*February 17th, 1872, Speyer

Same Day
Who's birthday is on February 17th?

62

Sarah Wollaston

British Liberal Democrat politician

*February 17th, 1962, Woking

41

Bao Chunlai

Chinese badminton player

*February 17th, 1983, Changsha

68

Lars Brygmann

Danish actor

*November 30th, 1955, Copenhagen

37

Megan Sweeney

American luger

*February 17th, 1987, Portland

61

Michael Jordan

American basketball player and businessman (born 1963)

*February 17th, 1963, Brooklyn

87

Rita Süssmuth

German politician

*February 17th, 1937, Wuppertal

47

Wong Choong Hann

Badminton player

*February 17th, 1977, Kuala Lumpur

24

Freja Ravn

Danish badminton player

*February 17th, 2000, Copenhagen

72

Jovan Dučić

Bosnian Serb writer and diplomat

*February 17th, 1871, Trebinje †April 7th, 1943, Gary

81

Otto Stern

German-American physicist (1888–1969)

*February 17th, 1888, Żory †August 17th, 1969, Berkeley

64

Misbun Sidek

Badminton player

*February 17th, 1960, Banting

96

Ásmundur Bjarnason

Icelandic sprinter

*February 17th, 1927, Húsavík †February 1st, 2024, Húsavík

40

Magnus Sahlberg

Badminton player

*February 17th, 1984, Gothenburg

75

Arthur Kennedy

American actor (1914–1990)

*February 17th, 1914, Worcester †January 5th, 1990, Branford

95

Hal Holbrook

American actor (1925–2021)

*February 17th, 1925, Cleveland †January 23rd, 2021, Beverly Hills

26

Soh Wooi Yik

Malaysian badminton player

*February 17th, 1998, Kuala Lumpur

69

Mo Yan

Chinese novelist and screenwriter

*February 17th, 1955, Gaomi

72

Ronald Fisher

British statistician, evolutionary biologist and geneticist (1890–1962)

*February 17th, 1890, London †July 29th, 1962, Adelaide

69

Alan Bates

British actor

*February 17th, 1934, Allestree †December 27th, 2003, City of Westminster

62

Lou Diamond Phillips

American film, television, and stage actor

*February 17th, 1962, Naval Base Subic Bay

Same year
Born in 1872

55

Roald Amundsen

Norwegian explorer; first person to reach the South Pole

*July 16th, 1872, Borge Municipality †June 18th, 1928, Arctic Ocean

59

Herbert Baddeley

Tennis and badminton player

*January 11th, 1872, London Borough of Bromley †July 20th, 1931, Cannes

57

Wilfred Baddeley

Tennis player and sports administrator

*January 11th, 1872, London Borough of Bromley †January 24th, 1929, Menton

89

Max Pohlenz

German classical philologist

*July 30th, 1872, Kolkwitz †January 5th, 1962, Göttingen

60

Calvin Coolidge

President of the United States from 1923 to 1929

*July 4th, 1872, Plymouth Notch †January 5th, 1933, Northampton

97

Bertrand Russell

British philosopher and logician (1872–1970)

*May 18th, 1872, Trellech †February 2nd, 1970, Plas Penrhyn

33

Paul Laurence Dunbar

American poet, novelist, and short story writer of the late 19th and early 20th centuries

*June 27th, 1872, Dayton †February 9th, 1906, Dayton

46

Anna Held

Broadway stage performer (1872–1918)

*March 19th, 1872, Warsaw †August 12th, 1918, New York City

92

Helena Rubinstein

Polish-American businesswoman, art collector, and philanthropist

*December 25th, 1872, Kraków †April 1st, 1965, New York City

79

Alexandra Kollontai

Soviet diplomat (1872-1952)

*March 31st, 1872, Saint Petersburg †March 9th, 1952, Moscow

80

Cicely Hamilton

British actress and writer

*June 15th, 1872, Paddington †December 5th, 1952, Chelsea

83

Pio Baroja

Spanish writer (1872-1956)

*December 28th, 1872, San Sebastián †October 30th, 1956, Madrid

74

Paul Langevin

French physicist, philosopher of science and pedagogue

*January 23rd, 1872, Paris †December 19th, 1946, Paris

69

Richard Willstätter

German chemist (1872–1942)

*August 13th, 1872, Karlsruhe †August 3rd, 1942, Muralto

77

Léon Blum

French politician (1872–1950)

*April 9th, 1872, Paris †March 30th, 1950, Jouy-en-Josas

94

Norman Angell

British politician (1872-1967)

*December 26th, 1872, Holbeach †October 7th, 1967, Croydon

78

Aurobindo Ghosh

Indian Bengali philosopher, yogi, maharishi, poet and nationalist (1872–1950)

*August 15th, 1872, Sri Aurobindo Bhawan †December 5th, 1950, Pondicherry

101

Charles Greeley Abbot

American astrophysicist and the 5th Secretary of the Smithsonian

*May 31st, 1872, Wilton †December 17th, 1973, Washington, D.C.

71

Piet Mondrian

Dutch painter (1872–1944)

*March 7th, 1872, Amersfoort †February 1st, 1944, New York City

80

Carlo Sforza

Italian politician (1872-1952)

*January 23rd, 1872, Montignoso †September 4th, 1952, Rome

Birthdays of famous people

Public holidays on February 17th

Fixed holidays (Christian feast day) which are celebrated on February 17th.

Date as a Roman numeral / digit

Leap year

Yes: 1872 is a leap year, therefore has a 29th of February with an additional leap day and a total of 366 days (instead of the usual 365 days in a normal year).

Calendar
February 1872