17 October

Events

Pre-1600

* 690 – Empress Wu Zetian establishes the Zhou Dynasty of China.
*1091 – London tornado of 1091: A tornado thought to be of strength T8/F4 strikes the heart of London.
*1346 – The English capture King David II of Scotland at Neville's Cross and imprison him for eleven years.
*1448 – An Ottoman army defeats a Hungarian army at the Second Battle of Kosovo.
*1456 – The University of Greifswald is established as the second oldest university in northern Europe.
*1534 – Anti-Catholic posters appear in Paris and other cities supporting Huldrych Zwingli's position on the Mass.
*1558 – Poczta Polska, the Polish postal service, is founded.

1601–1900

*1604 – Kepler's Supernova is observed in the constellation of Ophiuchus.
*1610 – French king Louis XIII is crowned in Reims Cathedral.
*1660 – The nine regicides who signed the death warrant of Charles I of England are hanged, drawn and quartered.
*1662 – Charles II of England sells Dunkirk to Louis XIV of France for 40,000 pounds.
*1713 – Great Northern War: Russia defeated Sweden in the Battle of Kostianvirta in Pälkäne.
*1771 – Premiere in Milan of the opera '' Ascanio in Alba'', composed by Mozart at age 15.
*1777 – American Revolutionary War: British General John Burgoyne surrenders his army at Saratoga, New York.
*1781 – American Revolutionary War: British General Charles, Earl Cornwallis surrenders at the Siege of Yorktown.
*1800 – War of the Second Coalition: Britain takes control of the Dutch colony of Curaçao.
*1806 – Former leader of the Haitian Revolution, Emperor Jacques I, is assassinated after an oppressive rule.
*1811 – The silver deposits of Agua Amarga are discovered in Chile becoming in the following years instrumental for the Patriots to finance the Chilean War of Independence.
*1814 – Eight people die in the London Beer Flood.
*1850 – Riots start, which lead to a massacre in Aleppo.
*1860 – First The Open Championship (referred to in North America as the ''British Open'').
*1861 – Aboriginal Australians kill nineteen Europeans in the Cullin-la-ringo massacre.

1901–present

*1907 – Marconi begins the first commercial transatlantic wireless service.
*1912 – Bulgaria, Greece and Serbia declare war on the Ottoman Empire, joining Montenegro in the First Balkan War.
*1919 – Leeds United F.C. founded at Salem Chapel, Holbeck after the winding up of Leeds City F.C. for making illegal payments to players during World War I
*1931 – Al Capone is convicted of income tax evasion.
*1933 – Albert Einstein flees Nazi Germany and moves to the United States.
*1940 – The body of Communist propagandist Willi Münzenberg is found in South France, starting a never-resolved mystery.
*1941 – World War II: The USS ''Kearny'' becomes the first U.S. Navy vessel to be torpedoed by a U-boat.
*1943 – The Burma Railway (Burma–Thailand Railway) is completed.
* 1943 – Nazi Holocaust in Poland: Sobibór extermination camp is closed.
*1945 – A massive demonstration in Buenos Aires, Argentina, demands Juan Perón's release.
*1952 – Indonesian Army elements surrounded the Merdeka Palace demanding President Sukarno disband the Provisional People's Representative Council.
*1956 – The first commercial nuclear power station is officially opened by Queen Elizabeth II in Sellafield, England.
*1961 – Directed by their chief Maurice Papon, Paris police massacre scores of Algerian protesters.
*1961 – The first attempt of the apartheid analogy by Ahmad Shukeiri.
*1965 – The 1964–65 New York World's Fair closes after two years and more than 51 million attendees.
*1966 – The 23rd Street Fire in New York City kills 12 firefighters.
*1969 – The Caravaggio painting ''Nativity with St. Francis and St. Lawrence'' is stolen from the Oratory of Saint Lawrence in Palermo.
*1970 – FLQ terrorists murder Quebec Vice-Premier and Minister of Labour Pierre Laporte.
*1973 – OPEC imposes an oil embargo against countries they deem to have helped Israel in the ''Yom Kippur War''.
*1977 – The hijacked Lufthansa Flight 181 lands in Mogadishu. The remaining hostages are later rescued.
*1979 – Mother Teresa is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize.
* 1979 – The Department of Education Organization Act creates the U.S. Department of Education.
*1980 – As part of the Holy See–United Kingdom relations a British monarch makes the first state visit to the Vatican.
*1988 – Uganda Airlines Flight 775 crashes at Rome–Fiumicino International Airport, in Rome, Italy, killing 33 people.
*1989 – The 6.9 Loma Prieta earthquake shakes the San Francisco Bay Area and the Central Coast, killing 63.
* 1989 – The East German Politburo votes to remove Erich Honecker from his role as General Secretary.
*1991 – 1991 Rudrapur bombings by Sikh separatists, who explode two bombs, during a Ramlila Hindu celebration in Rudrapur, Uttarakhand, killing 41 people.
*1992 – Having gone to the wrong house, Japanese student Yoshihiro Hattori is killed by the homeowner in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
*1994 – Russian journalist Dmitry Kholodov is assassinated while investigating corruption in the armed forces.
*2000 – The Hatfield rail crash leads to the collapse of Railtrack.
*2001 – Israeli tourism minister Rehavam Ze'evi becomes the first Israeli minister to be assassinated in a terrorist attack.
*2003 – Taipei 101, a 101-floor skyscraper in Taipei, becomes the world's tallest high-rise.
*2017 – Syrian civil war: The Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) capture the last foothold of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) in Raqqa, marking the end of the Battle of Raqqa.
*2018 – The recreational use of cannabis is legalized in Canada.
* 2018 – Kerch Polytechnic College attack in Crimea.
*2019 – Drug dealers in Culiacan, Sinaloa, Mexico force the government to back down on an arrest.
*2019 – The 17 October Revolution starts in Lebanon.

Births

Pre-1600

* 503 – Lý Nam Đế, first emperor of Vietnam (d. 548)
*1253 – Ivo of Kermartin, French priest and saint (d. 1303)
*1493 – Bartolommeo Bandinelli, Italian sculptor (d. 1560)
*1500 – Alonso de Orozco Mena, Spanish Roman Catholic priest (d. 1591)
*1538 – Irene di Spilimbergo, Italian Renaissance poet and painter (d. 1559)
*1577 – Cristofano Allori, Italian painter (d. 1621)
* 1577 – Dmitry Pozharsky, Russian prince (d. 1642)
*1582 – Johann Gerhard, German theologian and academic (d. 1637)
*1587 – Nathan Field, English dramatist and actor (d. 1620)

1601–1900

*1623 – Francis Turretin – Balthasar Charles, Prince of Asturias (d. 1646)
*1688 – Domenico Zipoli, Italian missionary and composer (d. 1726)
*1711 – Jupiter Hammon, American poet (d. 1806)
*1719 – Jacques Cazotte, French author and academic (d. 1792)
*1720 – Maria Teresa Agnesi Pinottini, Italian harpsichord player and composer (d. 1795)
*1725 – John Wilkes, English journalist and politician (d. 1797)
*1729 – Pierre-Alexandre Monsigny, French composer and academic (d. 1817)
*1735 – Franz Xaver Feuchtmayer the Younger, German Baroque artist (d. 1803)
*1759 – Andrey Voronikhin, Russian architect and painter (d. 1814)
*1760 – Claude Henri de Rouvroy, comte de Saint-Simon, French economist and philosopher (d. 1825)
*1768 – Sophie von Dönhoff, morganatic spouse by bigamy to King Frederick William II of Prussia (d. 1838)
*1779 – Louis Charles, French prince of the blood (d. 1808)
* 1779 – José Andrés Pacheco de Melo, Argentine statesman and priest (d. approx. 1820)
*1780 – Richard Mentor Johnson, American politician, ninth Vice President of the United States (d. 1850)
*1781 – Johann Friedrich Meckel, German anatomist (d. 1833)
*1784 – Fructuoso Rivera, first president of Uruguay (d. 1854)
*1785 – Christen Smith, Norwegian scientist (d. 1816)
*1792 – John Bowring, English polyglot and governor of Hong Kong (d. 1826)
*1797 – Juan Lavalle, Argentine politician (d.1841)
*1803 – Ferenc Deák, Hungarian politician (d. 1876)
*1810 – Adolphe-Félix Cals, French painter (d. 1880)
*1811 – Albertus van Raalte, Dutch-American pastor and educator (d. 1876)
*1813 – Georg Büchner, German-Swiss poet and playwright (d. 1837)
*1814 – Yakiv Holovatsky, Ukrainian historian, scholar, and poet (d. 1888)
*1817 – Syed Ahmad Khan, Indian philosopher and scholar (d. 1898)
*1821 – Alexander Gardner, Scottish photographer (d. 1882)
*1828 – Aureliano Maestre de San Juan, Spanish scientist (d. 1890)
*1833 – José E. Días, Paraguayan general (d. 1867)
*1835 – Louis-Léon Cugnot, French sculptor (d. 1894)
* 1835 – Paul Haenlein, German mechanical engineer (d.1905)
*1840 – André Gill, French caricaturist (d. 1885)
*1844 – Gustave Schlumberger, French historian (d. 1929)
*1845 – John J. Gardner, American politician (d. 1921)
*1853 – Grand Duchess Maria Alexandrovna of Russia (d. 1920)
*1859 – Childe Hassam, American painter and illustrator (d. 1935)
*1860 – Henry Campbell Black, founder of ''Black's Law Dictionary'' (d. 1927)
*1864 – Elinor Glyn, English author, screenwriter, and producer (d. 1943)
*1865 – James Rudolph Garfield, American lawyer and politician, 23rd United States Secretary of the Interior (d. 1950)
*1867 – Josep Puig i Cadafalch, Catalan architect who designed the Casa Martí (d. 1956)
*1871 – Segundo de Chomón, Spanish cinematographer, director, and screenwriter (d.1929)
*1876 – Hippolyte Aucouturier, French road cyclist (d. 1944)
*1878 – Jacobo Fitz-James Stuart, Spanish politician and 17th Duke of Alba (d. 1953)
*1880 – Jesús Reyes Ferreira, Mexican artist and art collector (d. 1977)
*1881 – Maria Dulęba, Polish actress (d. 1959)
*1882 – Haritina Korotkevich, Russian war heroine (d. 1904)
*1883 – Alexander Neill, Scottish educator (d. 1973)
* 1883 – Thaddeus Shideler, American hurdler (d. 1966)
*1886 – Spring Byington, American actress (d. 1971)
*1889 – Mikha'il Na'ima, Lebanese author (d. 1988)
*1890 – Roy Kilner, English cricketer (d. 1928)
*1892 – Theodor Eicke, German SS general (d. 1943)
* 1892 – Herbert Howells, English organist, composer, and educator (d. 1983)
*1893 – Raffaele Bendandi, Italian clockmaker and seismologist (d. 1979)
*1894 – Prince René, Italian Prince of Denmark (d. 1962)
* 1894 – Pablo de Rokha, Chilean poet (d. 1968)
*1895 – Miguel Ydígoras Fuentes, President of Guatemala (1958–1963) (d. 1982)
* 1895 – Doris Humphrey, American dancer and choreographer (d. 1958)
*1896 – Roman Petrovich, Russian prince (d. 1978)
*1898 – Shinichi Suzuki, Japanese violinist and educator (d. 1998)
* 1898 – Eileen Sedgwick, American actress (d. 1991)
* 1898 – Simon Vestdijk, Dutch author and poet (d. 1971)
*1900 – C. C. van Asch van Wijck, Dutch artist and sculptor (d. 1932)
* 1900 – Jean Arthur, American actress (d. 1991)
* 1900 – Yvor Winters, American critic and poet (d. 1968)

1901–present

*1901 – Emma Gamboa Alvarado, Costa Rican educator (d. 1973)
*1902 – Irene Ryan, American actress (d. 1973)
*1903 – Andrei Grechko, Soviet general (d. 1976)
* 1903 – Nathanael West, American author and screenwriter (d. 1940)
*1905 – Leopoldo Benites, Ecuadorian diplomat 28th president of the United Nations General Assembly (d. 1996)
*1906 – Andrey Tikhonov, Soviet and Russian mathematician (d. 1993)
* 1906 – Paul Derringer, American baseball player (d. 1987)
*1907 – John Marley, American actor (d. 1984)
*1908 – Hjördis Petterson, Swedish actress (d. 1988)
* 1908 – Wally Prigg, Australian rugby league player (d. 1980)
* 1908 – Red Rolfe, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1969)
* 1908 – Kenji Miyamoto, Japanese politician (d. 2007)
*1909 – Cozy Cole, American drummer (d. 1981)
* 1909 – Leopoldo Panero, Spanish poet (d. 1962)
* 1909 – Joaquín Satrústegui, Spanish lawyer and politician (d. 1992)
*1910 – Ester Wier, American author (d. 2000)
* 1910 – Marina Núñez del Prado, Bolivian sculptor (d. 1995)
*1912 – Pope John Paul I, Catholic pope from August 1978- September 1978 (d. 1978)
* 1912 – Theodore Marier, American composer and educator, founded the Boston Archdiocesan Choir School (d. 2001)
* 1912 – Jack Owens, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1982)
*1913 – Faik Türün, Turkish general (d. 2003)
* 1913 – Robert Lowery, American actor (d. 1971)
* 1913 – Marian Marsh, Trinidadian-American actress and environmentalist (d. 2006)
*1914 – Jerry Siegel, American author and illustrator (d. 1996)
*1915 – Arthur Miller, American playwright and screenwriter (d. 2005)
*1916 – José López Rega, Argentinean politician (d. 1989)
*1917 – Adele Stimmel Chase, American painter and sculptor (d. 2000)
* 1917 – Martin Donnelly, New Zealand cricketer (d. 1999)
* 1917 – Sumner Locke Elliott, Australian-American author and playwright (d. 1991)
* 1917 – Marsha Hunt, American actress and singer (d. 2022)
* 1917 – Aimo Koivunen, Finnish soldier and corporal (d. 1989)
* 1917 – Norman Leyden, American composer and conductor (d. 2014)
* 1917 – Alfred Benlloch Llorach, Spanish inventor (d. 2013)
*1918 – Rita Hayworth, American actress, singer and dancer (d. 1987)
* 1918 – Ralph Wilson, American businessman, founded the Buffalo Bills (d. 2014)
* 1918 – Luis Alberto Solari, Uruguayan artist (d. 1993)
*1919 – Isaak Khalatnikov, Ukrainian-Russian theoretical physicist and academic (d. 2021)
* 1919 – Violet Milstead, Canadian World War II aviator and bush pilot (d. 2014)
* 1919 – Zhao Ziyang, Chinese politician (d. 2005)
*1920 – Montgomery Clift, American actor (d. 1966)
* 1920 – Miguel Delibes, Spanish journalist and author (d. 2010)
* 1920 – Zully Moreno, Argentine actress (d. 1999)
*1921 – George Mackay Brown, Scottish author, poet, and playwright (d. 1996)
* 1921 – Priscilla Buckley, American journalist and author (d. 2012)
* 1921 – Maria Gorokhovskaya, Russian-Israeli gymnast (d. 2001)
* 1921 – Tom Poston, American actor and comedian (d. 2007)
*1922 – Luiz Bonfá, Brazilian guitarist and composer (d. 2001)
* 1922 – Pierre Juneau, Canadian broadcaster and politician, co-founded the Montreal World Film Festival (d. 2012)
*1923 – Barney Kessel, American guitarist and composer (d. 2004)
* 1923 – Charles McClendon, American football player and coach (d. 2001)
*1924 – Don Coryell, American football player and coach (d. 2010)
* 1924 – Anton Geiser, Croatian SS officer (d. 2012)
* 1924 – Giacomo Mari, Italian footballer (d. 1991)
* 1924 – Rolando Panerai, Italian baritone (d. 2019)
*1925 – Harry Carpenter, English sportscaster (d. 2010)
*1926 – Julie Adams, American actress (d. 2019)
* 1926 – Beverly Garland, American actress (d. 2008)
* 1926 – Roberto Lippi, Italian race car driver (d. 2011)
* 1928 – Santiago Stevenson, Panamanian singer and minister (d. 2007)
* 1928 – Alejandro Végh Villegas, Uruguayan politician (d. 2017)
*1929 – Mário Wilson, Mozambican footballer and manager (d. 2016)
*1930 – Ismail Akbay, Turkish physicist and engineer (d. 2003)
* 1930 – Robert Atkins, American physician and cardiologist, created the Atkins diet (d. 2003)
*1931 – Ernst Hinterberger, Austrian author and playwright (d. 2012)
* 1931 – José Alencar, Brazilian businessman and politician (d. 2011)
* 1931 – Anatoly Pristavkin, Russian writer (d. 2008)
* 1932 – Paul Anderson, American weightlifter (d. 1994)
*1933 – William Anders, Hong Kong-American general and astronaut
* 1933 – The Singing Nun, Belgian singer-songwriter, guitarist, and nun (d. 1985)
*1934 – Alan Garner, English author and playwright
* 1934 – Johnny Haynes, English-Scottish footballer (d. 2005)
* 1934 – Rico Rodriguez, Jamaican trombonist (d. 2015)
*1935 – Sydney Chapman, English architect and politician, Vice-Chamberlain of the Household (d. 2014)
* 1935 – Michael Eavis, English farmer, founded the Glastonbury Festival
* 1935 – Carlos Pairetti, Argetine racing driver (d. 2022)
*1936 – Sathima Bea Benjamin, South African singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
* 1936 – Hiroo Kanamori, Japanese-American seismologist and academic
* 1936 – Santiago Navarro, Spanish basketball player (d. 1993)
* 1936 – Bert Nievera, Filipino-American singer (d. 2018)
*1937 – Paxton Whitehead, English actor
* 1937 – José María Álvarez del Manzano, Spanish politician
* 1937 – Aida Navarro, Venezuelan mezzo-soprano
* 1937 – Renato Prada Oropeza, Bolivian-Mexican scientist (d. 2011)
*1938 – Evel Knievel, American motorcycle rider and stuntman (d. 2007)
* 1938 – Les Murray, Australian anthologist, poet, and critic (d. 2019)
* 1938 – António Calvário, Portuguese singer and artist
*1939 – Oliver Rackham, English botanist and academic (d. 2015)
*1940 – Stephen Kovacevich, American pianist and conductor
* 1940 – Jim Smith, English footballer and manager (d. 2019)
* 1940 – Peter Stringfellow, English businessman (d. 2018)
*1941 – Earl Thomas Conley, American country singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2019)
* 1941 – Jim Seals, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and violinist
* 1941 – Paul Ellison, American musician
*1942 – Steve Jones, American basketball player and sportscaster (d. 2017)
* 1942 – Gary Puckett, American pop singer-songwriter and guitarist
*1943 – Ignacio Rupérez, Spanish diplomat and journalist (d. 2015)
*1944 – Ángel Cristo, Spanish circus performer (d. 2010)
*1946 – Ronni Chasen, American publicist (d. 2010)
* 1946 – Michael Hossack, American drummer (d. 2012)
* 1946 – Cameron Mackintosh, English producer and manager
* 1946 – Adam Michnik, Polish journalist and historian
* 1946 – Drusilla Modjeska, English-Australian author and critic
* 1946 – Bob Seagren, American pole vaulter
* 1946 – Manuel "Flaco" Ibáñez, Mexican actor and comedian
* 1946 – Julio Miranda, Argentine politician (d. 2021)
* 1946 – Daniela Payssé, Uruguayan politician (d. 2018)
* 1946 – José Perramón, Spanish handball player
* 1946 – Jaime Ravinet, Chilean politician
* 1946 – Rüdiger Wittig, German geobotanist and ecologist
* 1946 – Akira Kushida, Japanese vocalist
*1947 – Gene Green, American lawyer and politician
* 1947 – Michael McKean, American singer-songwriter, actor, and director
* 1947 – Robert Post, American educator and academic
* 1947 – Omar Azziman, adviser to the King of Morocco
*1948 – Robert Jordan, American soldier and author (d. 2007)
* 1948 – Margot Kidder, Canadian-American actress (d. 2018)
* 1948 – George Wendt, American actor and comedian
* 1948 – Osvaldo Castro, Chilean footballer
*1949 – Owen Arthur, Barbadian economist and politician, 5th Prime Minister of Barbados (d. 2020)
* 1949 – Bill Hudson, American musician and actor
*1950 – Philippe Barbarin, French cardinal
* 1950 – Howard Rollins, American actor (d. 1996)
* 1950 – Sandra Reemer, Indo-Dutch singer (d. 2017)
*1951 – Annie Borckink, Dutch speed skater
* 1951 – Roger Pontare, Swedish singer
* 1951 – Shari Ulrich, American-Canadian singer-songwriter and violinist
* 1951 – Dirk Beheydt, Belgian footballer
*1953 – Joseph Bowie, American trombonist and bandleader
* 1953 – Domenico Penzo, Italian footballer
*1954 – Carlos Buhler, American mountaineer
*1955 – Georgios Alogoskoufis, Greek economist, academic, and politician, Greek Minister of Finance
* 1955 – Mike Bratz, American basketball player
*1956 – Fran Cosmo, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
* 1956 – Mae Jemison, American physician, academic, and astronaut
* 1956 – Pat McCrory, American businessman and politician, 74th Governor of North Carolina
* 1956 – Stephen Palumbi, American academic and author
*1957 – Lawrence Bender, American actor and producer
* 1957 – Steve McMichael, American football player, wrestler, and sportscaster
* 1957 – Vincent Van Patten, American tennis player and actor
* 1957 – Antonio Galdo, Italian journalist
* 1957 – Nelson Barrera, Mexican baseball player (d. 2002)
* 1957 – Pino Palladino, Welsh bassist
* 1957 – Eleftheria Arvanitaki, Greek folk singer
*1958 – Howard Alden, American guitarist
* 1958 – Alan Jackson, American singer-songwriter
* 1958 – Craig Murray, British diplomat
* 1958 – Sandra Mozarowsky, Spanish actress (d. 1977)
*1959 – Ron Drummond, American author and scholar
* 1959 – Francisco Flores Pérez, Salvadorian politician, President of El Salvador (d. 2016)
* 1959 – Russell Gilbert, Australian comedian, actor, and screenwriter
* 1959 – Norm Macdonald, Canadian actor, comedian, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2021)
* 1959 – Mark Peel, Australian historian and academic
* 1959 – Richard Roeper, American journalist and critic
* 1959 – Mustafa Aberchán, Spanish politician
* 1959 – Eugenio Hernández Flores, Mexican politician
*1960 – Guy Henry, English actor
* 1960 – Rob Marshall, American director, producer, and choreographer
* 1960 – Bernie Nolan, Irish singer (d. 2013)
* 1960 – Philippe Sands, American lawyer and academic
*1961 – David Means, American short story writer
*1962 – Glenn Braggs, American baseball player
* 1962 – Mike Judge, American animator, director, screenwriter, producer and actor
* 1962 – Jay Humphries, American basketball player
*1963 – Sergio Goycochea, Argentinian footballer and journalist
* 1963 – Toby Young, English journalist and academic
*1964 – Gregg Wallace, English television presenter
* 1964 – Margarita Liborio Arrazola, Mexican politician
*1965 – Aravinda de Silva, Sri Lankan cricketer
* 1965 – Rhys Muldoon, Australian actor
*1966 – Shaun Edwards, English rugby player and coach
* 1966 – Danny Ferry, American basketball player and manager
* 1966 – Mark Gatiss, English actor, screenwriter and novelist
* 1966 – Tommy Kendall, American race car driver and sportscaster
*1967 – Simon Segars, English businessman
* 1967 – Nathalie Tauziat, French tennis player
* 1967 – René Dif, Danish musician
* 1967 – Pedro González Vera, Chilean footballer
*1968 – Graeme Le Saux, English footballer and sportscaster
* 1968 – Ziggy Marley, Jamaican singer-songwriter, guitarist, and voice actor
* 1968 – David Robertson, Scottish footballer and manager
* 1968 – Alejandra Ávalos, Mexican artist
*1969 – Ernie Els, South African golfer and sportscaster
* 1969 – Jesús Ángel García, Spanish racewalker
* 1969 – Wyclef Jean, Haitian-American rapper, producer, and actor
* 1969 – Rick Mercer, Canadian comedian, actor, producer, and screenwriter
* 1969 – Wood Harris, American actor
*1970 – Anil Kumble, Indian cricketer
* 1970 – John Mabry, American baseball player, coach, and sportscaster
* 1970 – J. C. MacKenzie, Canadian actor
*1971 – Blues Saraceno, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
* 1971 – Chris Kirkpatrick, American singer-songwriter and dancer
* 1971 – Kim Ljung, Norwegian singer-songwriter and bass player
* 1971 – Martin Heinrich, American politician
* 1971 – Derrick Plourde, American drummer (d. 2005)
*1972 – Eminem, American rapper, producer, and actor
* 1972 – Tarkan, German-Turkish singer
* 1972 – Akio "Musashi" Mori, Japanese karateka and kickboxer
*1973 – Andrea Tarozzi, Italian footballer and coach
* 1973 – Rubén Garcés, Panamanian basketball player
*1974 – Ariel Levy, American journalist and author
* 1974 – Matthew Macfadyen, English actor
* 1974 – Obdulio Ávila Mayo, Mexican politician
* 1974 – Bárbara Paz, Brazilian actress
* 1974 – Janne Puurtinen, Finnish keyboard player
* 1974 – John Rocker, American baseball player
* 1974 – Darío Sala, Argentine footballer
* 1974 – Gabriel Silberstein, Chilean tennis player
* 1974 – Dhondup Wangchen, Chinese director and producer
*1975 – Francis Bouillon, American-Canadian ice hockey player
* 1975 – Jericó Abramo Masso, Mexican politician
* 1975 – Vina Morales, Filipino actress and singer
*1976 – Sebastián Abreu, Uruguayan footballer
* 1976 – Seth Etherton, American baseball player
* 1976 – Carlos Loret de Mola, Mexican journalist
* 1976 – Kevin Maher, English-Irish footballer and coach
*1977 – Dudu Aouate, Israeli footballer
* 1977 – Alimi Ballard, American actor and producer
* 1977 – Bryan Bertino, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
* 1977 – Walter Calderón, Ecuadorian footballer
* 1977 – Marko Antonio Cortés Mendoza, Mexican politician
* 1977 – Ryan McGinley, American photographer
* 1977 – André Villas-Boas, Portuguese footballer and manager
*1978 – Pablo Iglesias Turrión, Spanish politician
* 1978 – Jerry Flannery, Irish rugby player and coach
* 1978 – Erin Karpluk, Canadian actress
* 1978 – Chuka Umunna, English lawyer and politician
*1979 – Marcela Bovio, Mexican singer-songwriter and violinist
* 1979 – Alexandros Nikolaidis, Greek martial artist (d. 2022)
* 1979 – Kimi Räikkönen, Finnish race car driver
* 1979 – Kostas Tsartsaris, Greek basketball player
*1980 – Yekaterina Gamova, Russian volleyball player
* 1980 – Mohammad Hafeez, Pakistani cricketer
* 1980 – Isaac Mina, Ecuadorian footballer
* 1980 – Angel Parker, American actress
* 1980 – Alessandro Piccolo, Italian race car driver
* 1980 – Justin Shenkarow, American actor
*1981 – Horacio Cervantes, Mexican footballer
* 1981 – Kurumi Enomoto, Japanese singer-songwriter
* 1981 – Tsubasa Imai, Japanese singer, actor, and dancer
* 1981 – Ben Rothwell, American mixed-martial artist
*1982 – Rubén Ramírez, Argentine footballer
* 1982 – Nick Riewoldt, Australian footballer
* 1982 – Marion Rolland, alpine ski racer
*1983 – Michelle Ang, New Zealander actress
* 1983 – Milica Brozovic, Serbian-Russian figure skater
* 1983 – Felicity Jones, English actress
* 1983 – Toshihiro Matsushita, Japanese footballer
* 1983 – Riki Miura, Japanese actor
* 1983 – Junichi Miyashita, Japanese swimmer
* 1983 – Ivan Saenko, Russian footballer
* 1983 – Mitch Talbot, American baseball player
* 1983 – Vitali Teleš, Estonian footballer
*1984 – Chris Lowell, American actor
* 1984 – Giovanni Marchese, Italian footballer
* 1984 – Randall Munroe, American author and illustrator
* 1984 – Luke Rockhold, American mixed martial artist
* 1984 – Anja Eline Skybakmoen, Norwegian singer-songwriter and bandleader
* 1984 – Gottfrid Svartholm, Swedish computer specialist
* 1984 – Jared Tallent, Australian race walker
*1985 – Carlos González, Venezuelan baseball player
* 1985 – Max Irons, English-Irish actor
* 1985 – Collins John, Dutch footballer
* 1985 – Tomokazu Nagira, Japanese footballer
*1986 – Alexandre Bonnet, French footballer
* 1986 – Antoni Bou, Spanish motorcyclist
* 1986 – Aija Brumermane, Latvian basketball player
* 1986 – Constant Djakpa, Ivorian footballer
* 1986 – Yannick Ponsero, French figure skater
* 1986 – Nicolás Richotti, Argentine basketball player
*1987 – Bea Alonzo, Filipino actress and singer
* 1987 – Jarosław Fojut, Polish footballer
* 1987 – Elliot Grandin, French footballer
* 1987 – Hideto Takahashi, Japanese footballer
*1988 – Sergiy Gladyr, Ukrainian basketball player
* 1988 – Tori Matsuzaka, Japanese actor and model
* 1988 – Marina Salas, Spanish actress
*1989 – Débora García, Spanish footballer
* 1989 – Oleksandr Isakov, Ukrainian swimmer
* 1989 – Sophie Luck, Australian actress
* 1989 – Charles Oliveira, Brazilian mixed martial artist
* 1989 – David Timor, Spanish footballer
*1990 – Paolo Campinoti, Italian footballer
* 1990 – Maica García Godoy, Spanish water polo player
* 1990 – Ronald González Tabilo, Chilean footballer
* 1990 – Saki Kumagai, Japanese footballer
* 1990 – Patrick Lambie, South African rugby player
*1991 – Brenda Asnicar, Argentine actress
*1992 – Sam Concepcion, Filipino musician and dancer
* 1992 – Keerthy Suresh, Indian actress
*1993 – Kenneth Omeruo, Nigerian footballer
*2001 – Thomas Strudwick, British motorcycle road racer

Deaths

Pre-1600

*AD 33 – Agrippina the Elder, Roman wife of Germanicus (b. 14 BC)
* 532 – Pope Boniface II
* 866 – Al-Musta'in, Abbasid caliph (b. 836)
*1271 – Steinvör Sighvatsdóttir, Icelandic aristocrat and poet
*1277 – Beatrice of Falkenburg, German queen consort (b. c. 1254)
*1346 – John Randolph, 3rd Earl of Moray
*1346 – Maurice de Moravia, Earl of Strathearn
*1456 – Nicolas Grenon, French composer (b. 1375)
*1485 – John Scott of Scott's Hall, Warden of the Cinque Ports
*1552 – Andreas Osiander, German Protestant theologian (b. 1498)
*1575 – Gaspar Cervantes de Gaeta, Spanish cardinal (b. 1511)
*1586 – Philip Sidney, English courtier, poet, and general (b. 1554)
*1587 – Francesco I de' Medici, Grand Duke of Tuscany (b. 1541)

1601–1900

*1616 – John Pitts, English priest and scholar (b. 1560)
*1660 – Adrian Scrope, English colonel and politician (b. 1601)
*1673 – Thomas Clifford, 1st Baron Clifford of Chudleigh, English politician, Lord High Treasurer of England (b. 1630)
*1690 – Margaret Mary Alacoque, French mystic (b. 1647)
*1757 – René Antoine Ferchault de Réaumur, French entomologist and academic (b. 1683)
*1776 – Pierre François le Courayer, French-English theologian and author (b. 1681)
*1780 – William Cookworthy, English pharmacist and minister (b. 1705)
*1781 – Edward Hawke, 1st Baron Hawke, English admiral (b. 1705)
*1786 – Johann Ludwig Aberli, Swiss painter and illustrator (b. 1723)
*1806 – Jean-Jacques Dessalines, Haitian commander and politician, Governor-General of Haiti (b. 1758)
*1836 – Orest Kiprensky, Russian painter (b. 1782)
*1837 – Johann Nepomuk Hummel, Austrian pianist and composer (b. 1778)
*1849 – Frédéric Chopin, Polish pianist and composer (b. 1810)
*1868 – Laura Secord, Canadian War of 1812, war heroine (b. 1775)
*1887 – Gustav Kirchhoff, German physicist and chemist (b. 1824)
*1889 – Nikolay Chernyshevsky, Russian philosopher and critic (b. 1828)
*1893 – Patrice de MacMahon, Duke of Magenta, French general and politician, 3rd President of France (b. 1808)

1901–present

*1910 – Julia Ward Howe, American poet and songwriter (b. 1819)
*1918 – Malak Hifni Nasif, Egyptian poet and author (b. 1886)
*1920 – Michael Fitzgerald (Irish republican) died on Hunger Strike (b. 1881)
*1928 – Frank Dicksee, English painter and illustrator (b. 1853)
*1931 – Alfons Maria Jakob, German neurologist and academic (b. 1884)
*1937 – J. Bruce Ismay, English businessman (b. 1862)
*1938 – Karl Kautsky, Czech-German journalist, philosopher, and theoretician (b. 1854)
*1948 – Royal Cortissoz, American art critic (b. 1869)
*1955 – Dimitrios Maximos, Greek banker and politician (b. 1873)
*1956 – Anne Crawford, Israeli-English actress (b. 1920)
*1957 – Wilhelmina Hay Abbott, Scottish suffragist and feminist (b. 1884)
*1958 – Paul Outerbridge, American photographer (b. 1896)
* 1958 – Charlie Townsend, English cricketer and lawyer (b. 1876)
*1962 – Natalia Goncharova, Russian painter, costume designer, and set designer (b. 1882)
*1963 – Jacques Hadamard, French mathematician and academic (b. 1865)
*1965 – Bart King, American cricketer (b. 1873)
*1966 – Sidney Hatch, American runner and soldier (b. 1883)
* 1966 – Wieland Wagner, German director and manager (b. 1917)
*1967 – Puyi, Chinese emperor (b. 1906)
*1970 – Pierre Laporte, Canadian journalist, lawyer, and politician (b. 1921)
* 1970 – Vola Vale, American actress (b. 1897)
* 1970 – Quincy Wright, American political scientist and academic (b. 1890)
*1972 – Turk Broda, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (b. 1914)
* 1972 – George, Crown Prince of Serbia (b. 1887)
*1973 – Ingeborg Bachmann, Austrian author and poet (b. 1926)
*1978 – George Clark (racing driver), George Clark, American race car driver (b. 1890)
* 1978 – Giovanni Gronchi, Italian educator, soldier, and politician, 3rd President of the Italian Republic (b. 1887)
*1979 – S. J. Perelman, American humorist and screenwriter (b. 1904)
* 1979 – John Stuart (actor), John Stuart, Scottish-English actor (b. 1898)
* 1979 – Eugenio Mendoza, Venezuelan business tycoon (b. 1909)
*1981 – Kannadasan Indian author, poet, and songwriter (b. 1927)
* 1981 – Albert Cohen (novelist), Albert Cohen, Greek-Swiss civil servant and author (b. 1895)
* 1981 – Lina Tsaldari, Greek politician (b. 1887)
*1983 – Raymond Aron, French sociologist, political scientist, and philosopher (b. 1905)
*1987 – Abdul Malek Ukil, Bangladeshi lawyer and politician (b. 1925)
*1991 – Tennessee Ernie Ford, American singer and actor (b. 1919)
*1992 – Herman Johannes, Indonesian scientist, academic, and politician (b. 1912)
* 1992 – Orestis Laskos, Greek actor, director, and screenwriter (b. 1908)
*1993 – Criss Oliva, American guitarist and songwriter (b. 1963)
*1996 – Chris Acland, English musician and drummer of Lush (b. 1966)
*1997 – Larry Jennings, American magician and author (b. 1933)
*1998 – Joan Hickson, English actress (b. 1906)
* 1998 – Hakim Said, Pakistani scholar and politician, 20th Governor of Sindh (b. 1920)
*1999 – Nicholas Metropolis, Greek-American mathematician and physicist (b. 1915)
*2000 – Leo Nomellini, Italian-American football player and wrestler (b. 1924)
* 2000 – Joachim Nielsen, Norwegian singer-songwriter and poet (b. 1964)
*2001 – Jay Livingston, American singer-songwriter (b. 1915)
* 2001 – Micheline Ostermeyer, French shot putter, discus thrower, and pianist (b. 1922)
* 2001 – Rehavam Ze'evi, Israeli historian, general, and politician, Tourism Minister of Israel (b. 1926)
*2002 – Derek Bell (musician), Derek Bell, Irish harpist and composer (b. 1935)
*2004 – Uzi Hitman, Israeli singer-songwriter (b. 1952)
*2006 – Daniel Emilfork, Chilean-French actor (b. 1924)
* 2006 – Christopher Glenn, American journalist (b. 1938)
*2007 – Joey Bishop, American actor and talk show host (b. 1918)
* 2007 – Teresa Brewer, American singer (b. 1931)
* 2007 – Suzy Covey, American scholar and academic (b. 1939)
*2008 – Urmas Ott, Estonian journalist and author (b. 1955)
* 2008 – Levi Stubbs, American singer (b. 1936)
* 2008 – Ben Weider, Canadian businessman, co-founded the International Federation of BodyBuilding & Fitness (b. 1923)
*2009 – Norma Fox Mazer, American author and educator (b. 1931)
* 2009 – Vic Mizzy, American composer (b. 1916)
*2011 – Carl Lindner, Jr., American businessman (b. 1919)
*2012 – Milija Aleksic, English-South African footballer (b. 1951)
* 2012 – Émile Allais, French skier (b. 1912)
* 2012 – Henry Friedlander, German-American historian and author (b. 1930)
* 2012 – Stanford R. Ovshinsky, American scientist and businessman, co-founded Energy Conversion Devices (b. 1922)
* 2012 – Kōji Wakamatsu, Japanese director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1936)
*2013 – Mother Antonia, American-Mexican nun and activist (b. 1926)
* 2013 – Terry Fogerty, English rugby player and coach (b. 1944)
* 2013 – Arthur Maxwell House, Canadian neurologist and politician, 10th Lieutenant Governor of Newfoundland and Labrador (b. 1926)
* 2013 – Lou Scheimer, American animator, producer, and voice actor, co-founded the Filmation, Filmation Company (b. 1928)
* 2013 – Rene Simpson, Canadian-American tennis player (b. 1966)
*2014 – Edwards Barham, American farmer and politician (b. 1937)
* 2014 – Masaru Emoto, Japanese author and activist (b. 1943)
* 2014 – Tom Shaw (bishop), Tom Shaw, American bishop (b. 1945)
* 2014 – Berndt von Staden, German diplomat, German Ambassador to the United States (b. 1919)
*2015 – Danièle Delorme, French actress and producer (b. 1926)
* 2015 – Howard Kendall, English footballer and manager (b. 1946)
* 2015 – Anne-Marie Lizin, Belgian lawyer and politician (b. 1949)
* 2015 – Tom Smith (Pennsylvania politician), Tom Smith, American businessman and politician (b. 1947)
*2017 – Gord Downie, Canadian musician (b. 1964)
*2019 – Elijah Cummings, American politician and civil rights advocate (b. 1951)

Holidays and observances

*Christian feast day:
**Andrew of Crete (martyr), Andrew of Crete
**Anstrudis
**Catervus
**Æthelred and Æthelberht, Ethelred and Ethelberht
**Florentius of Orange
**François-Isidore Gagelin (one of Vietnamese Martyrs)
**Hosea
**Ignatius of Antioch
**John the Dwarf, John the Short (John Colobus)
**Marguerite Marie Alacoque (pre-1969 calendar, Visitadines)
**Nothhelm
**Saint Regulus, Rule of Andrew
**Richard Gwyn
**Victor of Capua
**October 17 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
*International Day for the Eradication of Poverty
*Loyalty Day (Argentina)
*National Police Day (Thailand)

References

External links

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{{DEFAULTSORT:October 17
Days of the year
October