January 1: Day of the Week
January 1, 2019 was the 1st day of the year 2019 in the Gregorian calendar. There were 364 days remaining until the end of the year. The day of the week was Tuesday.
If you are trying to learn Spanish then this day of the week in Spanish is martes.
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Here’s the January calendar. You can also browse the full year monthly calendar.
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Zodiac & Birthstone
Capricorn is the zodiac sign of a person born on this day. Garnet is the modern birthstone for this month. Emerald is the mystical birthstone from Tibetan origin that dates back over a thousand years.
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January 1: This Day in History
The preceding day is December 31 of the previous year.
During the Middle Ages under the influence of the Christian Church, many countries moved the start of the year to one of several important Christian festivals — December 25 (the Nativity of Jesus), March 1, March 25 (the Annunciation), or even Easter. Eastern European countries (most of them with populations showing allegiance to the Orthodox Church) began their numbered year on September 1 from about 988.
In England, January 1 was celebrated as the New Year festival, but from the 12th century to 1752 the year in England began on March 25 (Lady Day). So, for example, the Parliamentary record records the execution of Charles I occurring in 1648 (as the year did not end until March 24), although modern histories adjust the start of the year to January 1 and record the execution as occurring in 1649.
Most western European countries changed the start of the year to January 1 before they adopted the Gregorian calendar. For example, Scotland changed the start of the Scottish New Year to January 1 in 1600. England, Ireland and the British colonies changed the start of the year to January 1 in 1752. Later that year in September, the Gregorian calendar was introduced throughout Britain and the British colonies. These two reforms were implemented by the Calendar (New Style) Act 1750.
January 1 became the official start of the year as follows:
- 1522 The Republic of Venice
- 1544 Holy Roman Empire (Germany)
- 1556 Spain, Portugal
- 1559 Prussia, Sweden
- 1564 France
- 1576 Southern Netherlands
- 1579 Lorraine
- 1583 United Provinces of the Netherlands (northern)
- 1600 Scotland
- 1700 Russia
- 1721 Tuscany
- 1752 Great Britain (excluding Scotland) and its colonies
January 1 Historical Event(s)
- 153 BCRoman consuls begin their year in office.
- 414Galla Placidia, half-sister of Emperor Honorius, is married to the Visigothic king Ataulf at Narbonne. The wedding is celebrated with Roman festivities and magnificent gifts from the Gothic booty.
- 1877Queen Victoria of the United Kingdom is proclaimed Empress of India.
- 1898New York, New York annexes land from surrounding counties, creating the City of Greater New York. The four initial boroughs, Manhattan, Brooklyn, Queens, and The Bronx, are joined on January 25 by Staten Island to create the modern city of five boroughs.
- 1916German troops abandon Yaoundé and their Kamerun colony to British forces and begin the long march to Spanish Guinea.
- 1962Western Samoa achieves independence from New Zealand; its name is changed to the Independent State of Western Samoa.
- 1970Unix time begins at 00:00:00 UTC/GMT.
- 1979Formal diplomatic relations are established between the China and the United States.
- 1988The Evangelical Lutheran Church in America comes into existence, creating the largest Lutheran denomination in the United States.
- 1995The World Trade Organization goes into effect.
Who were born on January 1?
- 1833Robert Lawson, New Zealand architect (d. 1902)
- 1864Qi Baishi, Chinese painter (d. 1957)
- 1927Calum MacKay, Canadian hockey player (d. 2001)
- 1946Rick Hurst, American actor
- 1953Lynn Jones, American baseball player
- 1963Jean-Marc Gounon, French race car driver
- 1970Kimberly Page, American manager and actress
- 1972Neve McIntosh, Scottish actress
- 1982David Nalbandian, Argentinian tennis player
- 1986James Davis, American football player
Now try another date like anniversaries, birthdays of someone you know or any other date that is special to you. Don’t forget to share the info to your friends, loved ones or social media followers. Who knows, they might appreciate and thank you for it.