On This Day December 5th

 OTD

December 5th is the 339th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar; 26 days remain until the end of the year.


 Events

1033 – The Jordan Rift Valley earthquake destroys multiple cities across the Levant, triggers a tsunami, and kills many.

1578 – Sir Francis Drake, after sailing through the Strait of Magellan, raids Valparaiso.

1766 – In London, auctioneer James Christie holds his first sale.

1775 – At Fort Ticonderoga, Henry Knox begins his historic artillery transport to Cambridge, Massachusetts.

1831 – Former U.S. President John Quincy Adams takes his seat in the House of Representatives.

1848 – California Gold Rush: In a message to the United States Congress, U.S. President James K. Polk confirms that large amounts of gold had been discovered in California.

1933 – The Twenty-first Amendment to the United States Constitution is ratified.

1952 – Beginning of the Great Smog in London. A cold fog combines with air pollution, bringing the city to a standstill for four days. Later, a Ministry of Health report estimated 4,000 fatalities as a result of it.

2014 – Exploration Flight Test-1, the first flight test of Orion, is launched.


 Birthdays

1470 – Willibald Pirckheimer, German lawyer and author (d. 1530)

1782 – Martin Van Buren, American lawyer and politician, 8th President of the United States (d. 1862)

1784 – George Shepherd, English illustrator and painter (d. 1862)

1839 – George Armstrong Custer, American general (d. 1876)

1890 – Fritz Lang, Austrian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1976)

1901 – Walt Disney, an American animator, director, producer, and screenwriter, co-founded The Walt Disney Company (d. 1966)

1912 – Sonny Boy Williamson II, American singer-songwriter and harmonica player (d. 1965)

1932 – Little Richard, American singer-songwriter, pianist, and actor (d. 2020)

1947 – Jim Plunkett, American football player and radio host

1975 – Ronnie O'Sullivan, English snooker player and radio host

1985 – Frankie Muniz, American actor, drummer, and race car driver

 

Holiday Spotlight.

  Krampusnacht

  Krampusnacht is celebrated every year on December 5, the night before the Feast of St. Nicholas celebration. This holiday is mainly celebrated in Germany, Austria, Croatia, and other European countries. It is also popular in Australia, and over the years, Krampusnacht’s popularity has grown in North America.

 Krampusnacht is a celebration of the devil Krampus, who is believed to be a creature that is half-man, half-goat. He is depicted as being hairy with large horns, a goat’s cloven hooves, red eyes, and fangs. However, the depictions of the Krampus vary from region to region. In some depictions, the Krampus is shown wearing chains, and the people wearing Krampus costumes often thrash around in the chains for maximum effect. The chains represent the Devil's binding by Jesus Christ in Christian mythology.

 The Krampus carries bundles of ‘ruten’ or twigs he uses to swat misbehaving children. For the celebrations, these bundles are handed to families so children remember the threat of the Krampus throughout the year and behave themselves. In countries where Krampusnacht is celebrated, St. Nicholas gives gifts to the children, but if they misbehave, Krampus arrives to take the gifts away and provide the children with coal and run instead. Throughout the night on December 5, men dress up as the Krampus, drink alcohol, and celebrate on the streets.

 While the origins of the Krampus are unclear, the idea of a horned demonic entity is pre-Christian. Such a pagan entity may have been absorbed into the seasonal traditions to become part of the celebrations leading up to Christmas.

 

 Other Include

AFL-CIO Day

Bathtub Party Day

Columbian International Day of the Reef

Day of the Ninja

Discovery Day (Haiti)

International Volunteer Day for Economic and Social Development

International Volunteers Day

Krampusnacht

National Blue Jeans Day

National Communicate with Your Kids Day

National Commute With Your Baby Day

National Sachertorte Day

Repeal of Prohibition Day

World Soil Day

World Trick Shot Day - December 5, 2023 (First Tuesday in December

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