October 31: Holidays, Historical Events, Famous Birthdays & Zodiac Sign
On October 31, 1517, a monk nailed 95 arguments to a church door in Wittenberg—and unwittingly split Western Christendom in two. Spooky, transformative, and endlessly fascinating, this date delivers.
About October 31
October 31 wears many masks. In Mexico, it marks the first day of Día de los Muertos, when families welcome back the spirits of loved ones with marigolds and sugar skulls. In Cornwall, they celebrate Allantide; on the Isle of Man, Hop-tu-Naa. The Gaels observe Samhain at sunset, while Neopagans across the Northern Hemisphere mark the Wheel of the Year's turn toward winter. And of course, Halloween itself—dressing up, carving pumpkins, and demanding candy—dominates the United States, Ireland, Canada, and the United Kingdom. Girl Scouts also honor their founder, Juliette Gordon Low, on this day.
Beneath the costumes and caramel apples lies a surprisingly profound historical date. Martin Luther's posting of the 95 Theses in 1517 ignited the Protestant Reformation, reshaping the religious and political map of Europe for centuries. The day also witnessed Nevada's admission as America's 36th state in 1864, Benito Mussolini's appointment as Italian Prime Minister in 1922, and the end of the Battle of Britain in 1940—forcing Germany to abandon plans to invade the British Isles.
More recent milestones are equally striking. In 2000, Soyuz TM-31 carried the first resident crew to the International Space Station, which has been continuously occupied ever since. In 2011, the United Nations recognized this as the Day of Seven Billion, when humanity's global population crossed that staggering threshold. And in 2020, Berlin Brandenburg Airport finally opened after nearly a decade of delays and construction scandals—a long-delayed arrival worthy of the season's spirit.
Holidays & Observances on October 31
- Día de la Canción Criolla (Peru)
- Earliest day on which All Saints Day can fall, while November 6 is the latest; celebrated on Saturday between October 31 and November 6 (Finland, Sweden)
- Halloween and related celebrations: Allantide (Cornwall)
- Halloween and related celebrations: Halloween (Ireland, Canada, United Kingdom, United States and other places)
- Halloween and related celebrations: Hop-tu-Naa (Isle of Man)
- Halloween and related celebrations: Samhain in the Northern Hemisphere, Beltane in the Southern Hemisphere; begins on sunset of October 31 (Gaels, Welsh people and Neopagan Wheel of the Year)
- Halloween and related celebrations: The first day of the Day of the Dead, celebrated until November 2 (Mexico)
- Girl Scouts Founders Day (United States)
Fun & National Days on October 31
- Carve a Pumpkin Day — Grab a knife, scoop out the guts, and transform an ordinary gourd into a glowing jack-o'-lantern masterpiece.
- Hug A Sheep Day — Find a friendly flock and give a woolly friend a gentle squeeze—just watch out for the hoof action.
- National Candy Apple Day — Crunch into that glossy red sugar shell and let the sweet-tart combo remind you why autumn exists.
- National Knock-Knock Jokes Day — Who's there? Your chance to torment everyone you know with the groan-inducing puns they secretly love.
- Books for Treats Day — Skip the sugar crash and hand out gently used books to trick-or-treaters instead—feed their minds, not their cavities.
- National Increase Your Psychic Powers Day — Perfect for Halloween: try predicting what candy the next trick-or-treater will pick from the bowl.
- Girl Scout Founder's Day
- National Caramel Apple Day
- National Doorbell Day
On This Day in History
- 475 — Romulus Augustulus, a teenage boy, is proclaimed Western Roman Emperor—though his reign would be brief and mark the final chapter of the Western Empire.
- 1517 — Martin Luther nails his 95 Theses to the Castle Church door in Wittenberg, launching the Protestant Reformation and transforming Western Christianity forever.
- 1587 — Leiden University Library officially opens its doors, twelve years after the institution's founding, establishing one of Europe's great scholarly collections.
- 1864 — Nevada becomes the 36th U.S. state, admitted during the Civil War and lending its silver wealth to the Union cause.
- 1913 — The Lincoln Highway is dedicated as the first transcontinental automobile highway across the United States, linking New York to San Francisco.
- 1917 — The Battle of Beersheba ends with the Australian Light Horse's dramatic mounted charge—often called the last successful cavalry charge in military history.
- 1922 — Benito Mussolini is appointed Prime Minister of Italy, beginning two decades of Fascist rule that would reshape and ultimately devastate the nation.
- 1940 — The Battle of Britain concludes with a decisive Royal Air Force victory, causing Germany to permanently cancel Operation Sea Lion, its planned invasion of Britain.
- 1961 — Soviet authorities remove Joseph Stalin's body from Lenin's Mausoleum and bury it beneath a simple white marker near the Kremlin Wall, quietly ending his cult of personality.
- 1973 — Three Provisional IRA members escape Dublin's Mountjoy Prison aboard a hijacked helicopter that swooped into the exercise yard—a audacious breakout that stunned authorities.
- 2000 — Soyuz TM-31 launches carrying the first resident crew to the International Space Station, beginning an era of continuous human habitation in orbit that continues to this day.
- 2011 — The global human population officially reaches seven billion, a milestone the United Nations now commemorates annually as the Day of Seven Billion.
Famous Birthdays on October 31
- 1760 — Katsushika Hokusai, The Japanese artist and printmaker behind "The Great Wave off Kanagawa," one of the most iconic images in art history.
- 1795 — John Keats, English Romantic poet who, despite dying at 25, produced masterpieces like "Ode to a Nightingale" and "To Autumn."
- 1860 — Juliette Gordon Low, American scout leader who founded the Girl Scouts of the United States in 1912, empowering generations of young women.
- 1887 — Chiang Kai-shek, Chinese military and political leader who served as the first President of the Republic of China and led the Nationalists during the Chinese Civil War.
- 1930 — Michael Collins, Apollo 11 astronaut who piloted the command module orbiting the Moon while Armstrong and Aldrin took their historic first steps on the lunar surface.
- 1931 — Dan Rather, Veteran American journalist and longtime anchor of the CBS Evening News who covered pivotal events from the Kennedy assassination to the Iraq War.
- 1950 — John Candy, Beloved Canadian actor and comedian whose warm, hilarious performances in "Planes, Trains and Automobiles" and "Uncle Buck" made him a comedy legend.
- 1961 — Peter Jackson, New Zealand filmmaker who transformed J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings" into an Academy Award-winning film trilogy, redefining epic cinema.
- 1963 — Rob Schneider, American actor and comedian who rose to fame on Saturday Night Live and became a staple of comedy films like "Deuce Bigalow" and "The Hot Chick."
- 1993 — Letitia Wright, Guyanese-British actress who gained global fame as Shuri in Marvel's "Black Panther" films, becoming a standout star of the franchise.