Famous December Birthdays

In the United States, December is viewed as the month for shopping, eating, and holiday parties, but it wasn't always this way. Actually, it wasn't until recently that shopping became a large part of the holiday spirit.

December is another month that has 31 days, meaning there are more birthdays and well, more time for the winter parties (sorry Southern Hemisphere).

In the Northern Hemisphere, December is also the month with the shortest time of daylight. This means more time for night life. Yeah! (or maybe boo?)

The History and Common Holidays in December

December is the tenth month of the year. Wait, no, it is the twelfth! But the word means tenth month. Decade, december. Yeah. Anyway, it actually was the 10th month for a long, long period of time! It wasn't until the Roman's finally decided to split what was known as "the winter period" into the months of January and February. You see, back then, those two months didn't count. The period wasn't considered a month at all, it was simply a period of cold and darkness.

There are many holidays celebrated in December:

• Union Day of Romania – December 1
• World AIDS Day – December 1
• National Day of UAE – December 2
• Sinterklaas in the Netherlands – December 5
• Father's Day (King's Birthday) in Thailand – December 5
• Independence Day in Finland – December 6
• Constitution Day in Spain – December 6
• Saint Nicholas Day in Greece – December 6
• Pearl Harbor Day in the USA – December 7
• Mother's Day in Panama – December 8
• Day of the Mary Immaculate Conception – December 8
• Constitution Day in Romania – December 8
• Egil Skallagrimsson's Day in the atrreligion – December 9
• Human Rights Day – December 10
• Day of the Virgin of Guadalupe in Mexico – December 12
• Independence Day in Kenya – December 12
• Saint Lucy – December 13
• Bill of Rights Day in the USA – December 15
• Zamenhof Day – December 15
• Victory Day of Bangladesh – December 16
• Day of Reconciliation in South Africa – December 16
• The Emperor's Birthday in Japan – December 23
• Festivus – December 23
• Humanlight – December 23
• Christmas Eve – December 24
• Christmas – December 25
• Boxing Day – December 26
• Day o f Goodwill – December 26
• Kwanzaa – December 26 to January 1
• Proclamation Day in South Australia – December 28
• Rizal Day in the Philippines – December 30
• New Year's Eve – December 31
• Hannukah – Varies
• Eid al-Adha - Varies

Famous B-Days in December

December 1:

Bette Midler (1945)

Richard Pryor (1940)

Cyril Ritchard (1897)

December 2:

Britney Spears (1981)

Nelly Furtado (1978)

Monica Seles (1973)

Lucy Liu (1968)

Charles Ringling (1863)

Georges Seurat (1859)

December 3:

Brendan Fraser (1968)

Daryl Hannah (1960)

Julianne Moore (1960)

Ozzy Osbourne (1948)

Joseph Conrad (1857)

December 4:

Tyra Banks (1973)

Jay-Z (1970)

Jeff Bridges (1949)

Francisco Franco (1892)

December 5:

Little Richard (1932)

Otto Preminger (1906)

Walt Disney (1901)

George Armstrong Custer (1839)

Martin Van Buren (1782)

December 6:

Randy Rhoads (1956)

Steven Wright (1955)

Agnes Moorehead (1906)

Joyce Kilmer (1886)

December 7:

Larry Bird (1956)

Johnny Bench (1947)

Louis Prima (1910)

December 8:

Teri Hatcher (1964)

Jim Morrison (1943)

Sammy Davis, Jr. (1925)

Lee J. Cobb (1911)

Mary Queen of Scots (1542)

December 9:

Felicity Huffman (1962)

Donny Osmond (1957)

John Malkovich (1953)

Redd Foxx (1922)

Kirk Douglas (1916)

John Milton (1608)

December 10:

Bobby Flay (1964)

Emily Dickinson (1830)

December 11:

Mo'Nique (1967)

Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918)

Fiorello La Guardia (1882)

December 12:

Jennifer Connelly (1970)

Bob Barker (1923)

Joe Williams (1918)

Frank Sinatra (1915)

Edward G. Robinson (1893)

Edvard Munch (1863)

December 13:

Taylor Swift (1989)

Amy Lee (1981)

Jamie Foxx (1967)

Steve Buscemi (1957)

Ted Nugent (1948)

Dick Van Dyke (1925)

Archie Moore (1913)

Kenneth Patchen (1911)

December 14:

Don Hewitt (1922)

Nostradamus (1503)

December15:

Adam Brody (1979)

Don Johnson (1949)

Stan Kenton (1911)

J. Paul Getty (1892)

December 16:

Benjamin Bratt (1963)

Lesley Stahl (1941)

Arthur C. Clarke (1917)

Jane Austen (1775)

Ludwig van Beethoven (1770)

December 17:

Manny Pacquiao (1978)

Bill Pullman (1953)

Chris Matthews (1945)

Arthur Fiedler (1894)

December 18:

Christina Aguilera (1980)

Steve Austin (1964)

Brad Pitt (1963)

Steven Spielberg (1946)

Betty Grable (1916)

Ty Cobb (1886)

December 19:

Alyssa Milano (1972)

Jennifer Beals (1963)

Ralph Richardson (1902)

December 20:

David Cook (1982)

Peter Criss (1945)

Irene Dunne (1898)

December 21:

Kiefer Sutherland (1966)

Andy Dick (1965)

Ray Romano (1957)

Samuel L. Jackson (1948)

Frank Zappa (1940)

Jane Fonda (1937)

Phil Donahue (1935)

Joe Paterno (1926)

Joseph Stalin (1879)

December 22:

Steve Garvey (1948)

Diane Sawyer (1945)

Lady Bird Johnson (1912)

Giacomo Puccini (1858)

December 23:

Eddie Vedder (1964)

Jose Greco (1918)

Madame C. J. Walker (1867)

December 24:

Ryan Seacrest (1974)

Ricky Martin (1971)

Ava Gardner (1922)

Howard Hughes (1905)

Matthew Arnold (1822)

Kit Carson (1809)

December 25:

Rickey Henderson (1958)

Sissy Spacek (1949)

Jimmy Buffett (1946)

Rod Serling (1924)

Humphrey Bogart (1899)

Robert Ripley (1893)

Sir Isaac Newton (1642)

December 26:

Lars Ulrich (1963)

Ozzie Smith (1954)

Alan King (1927)

Steve Allen (1921)

Mao Tse-tung (1893)

Henry Miller (1891)

Charles Babbage (1791)

December 27:

Bill Goldberg (1966)

John Amos (1939)

Louis Pasteur (1822)

Johannes Kepler (1571)

December 28:

John Legend (1978)

Denzel Washington (1954)

Nichelle Nichols (1933)

Earl "Fatha" Hines (1905)

Woodrow Wilson (1856)

December 29:

Jude Law (1972)

Ed Autry (1954)

Jon Voight (1938)

Andrew Johnson (1808)

December 30:

LeBron James (1984)

Laila Ali (1977)

Tiger Woods (1975)

Tracey Ullman (1959)

Sandy Koufax (1935)

Rudyard Kipling (1865)

December 31:

Val Kilmer (1959)

John Denver (1943)

Ben Kingsley (1943)

Anthony Hopkins (1937)

George C. Marshall (1880)

Henri Matisse (1869)

Fun facts about the month

• December's birthstone is turquoise, zircon, lapis lazuli, topaz, or tanzanite depending on your preference and location.v

• The birth flower for December is holly or narcissus.
• The typical flower associated with December in North America is the poinsettia.
• December is one of seven months in the Gregorian calendar with 31 days.
• December has the shortest daylight hours in the Northern Hemisphere and the longest in the Southern Hemisphere.
• December starts on the same day of the week as September.
• December means tenth month, but after changes to the Roman calendar it turned to the twelfth.