Did you know
He came to power in 1150 after overthrowing and murdering his predecessor, Emperor Xizong, in a coup d'état
Notable Deaths on December 15
86 people
933 – 2025
December 15 has seen 86 notable figures pass away throughout recorded history — from 933 – 2025. Below are the most significant names who died on this date.
By thisDay.info Editorial Team · — Wikipedia
1161 — Wanyan Liang
Chinese emperor (born 1122)
Did you know
In 1161, after the Jin dynasty lost the Battle of Caishi against the Southern Song dynasty, Digunai's subordinates rebelled against him and assassinated him
Did you know
After his death, even though he ruled as an emperor during his lifetime, he was posthumously demoted to the status of a prince – "Prince Yang of Hailing" (海陵煬王) – in 1162 by his successor, Emperor Shizong
Did you know
However, in 1181, Emperor Shizong further posthumously demoted him to the status of a commoner, hence he is also known as the "Commoner of Hailing" (海陵庶人).
Did you know
Digunai, also known by his sinicised name Wanyan Liang and his formal title Prince of Hailing, was the fourth emperor of the Jurchen-led Jin dynasty of China
933
1025
Turkish sultan (born 1029)
Alp Arslan was the second sultan of the Seljuk Empire and great-grandson of Seljuk, the eponymous founder of the dynasty and the empire. He reigned from 1063 until his assassination in 1072.
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1072
1230
1283
Chopanid prince (born c. 1319)
Hasan Kuchak or Ḥasan-i Kūchik was a Chupanid prince during the 14th century. He is credited with setting up a nearly independent Chupanid state in Iran during the struggles taking place in the aftermath of the…
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1343
archbishop and regent of Sweden (born 1417)
Jöns Bengtsson (Oxenstierna), in Latin known as Johannes Benedicti de Salista, was a Swedish clergyman, canon law scholar and statesman who served as Archbishop of Uppsala (1448–1467). He was also the regent of Sweden…
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1467
1574
Lord of Saint-Aldegonde, Dutch nobleman (born 1540)
Philips of Marnix, Lord of Saint-Aldegonde, Lord of West-Souburg was a Flemish and Dutch writer and statesman, and the probable author of the text of the Dutch national anthem, the Wilhelmus.
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1598
duc de Luynes, French courtier, Constable of France (born 1578)
Charles d'Albert, 1st Duke of Luynes was a French courtier and a favourite of Louis XIII. In 1619, the king made him Duke of Luynes and a Peer of France, and in 1621, Constable of France. Luynes died of scarlet fever…
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1621
Duchess of Newcastle-upon-Tyne, English noblewoman (born 1623)
Margaret Cavendish, Duchess of Newcastle-upon-Tyne was an English philosopher, poet, scientist, fiction writer, and playwright. She was a prolific writer, publishing over 12 original texts under her name at a time when…
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1673
Dutch painter and educator (born 1632)
Johannes Vermeer was a Dutch painter who specialized in domestic interior scenes of middle-class life. He is considered one of the greatest painters of the Dutch Golden Age. During his lifetime, he was a moderately…
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1675
English author (born 1593)
Izaak Walton was an English writer. Best known as the author of The Compleat Angler (1653), he also wrote a number of short biographies including one of his friend John Donne. They have been collected under the title of…
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1683
Dutch lawyer and politician (born 1634)
Gaspar Fagel was a Dutch politician, jurist, and diplomat who authored correspondence from and on behalf of William III, Prince of Orange, during the English Revolution of 1688.
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1688
French nobleman (born 1636)
Louis Victor de Rochechouart, 2nd Duke of Mortemart and Duke of Vivonne was a French military officer and nobleman who was a member of the ancient House of Rochechouart. His father, Gabriel de Rochechouart de Mortemart,…
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1698
1715
3rd Earl of Burlington, English architect and politician, designed Chiswick House (born 1694)
Richard Boyle, 3rd Earl of Burlington was a British architect and politician often called the "Apollo of the Arts" and the "Architect Earl". The son of the 2nd Earl of Burlington and 3rd Earl of Cork, Burlington never…
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1753
Swedish pianist, violinist, and composer (born 1756)
Joseph Martin Kraus, was a German-Swedish composer in the Classical era who was born in Miltenberg am Main, Holy Roman Empire. He moved to Sweden at age 21, and died at the age of 36 in Stockholm. He has been referred…
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1792
Russian rabbi, author and founder of Chabad (born 1745)
Shneur Zalman of Liadi, commonly known as the Alter Rebbe or Baal Hatanya, was a rabbi and the founder and first Rebbe of Chabad, a branch of Hasidic Judaism. He wrote many works and is best known for Shulchan Aruch…
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1812
astronomer, director of the Astronomical Observatory of Naples (born 1783)
Federigo, Vincenzo Antonio, Ludovico Zuccari was an Italian astronomer, professor of Astronomy at the Naples University, professor of Mathematical Geography at the Military Academy of Naples and director of the…
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1817
Scottish chemist and physician (born 1749)
Daniel Rutherford was a British physician, chemist and botanist who is known for the isolation of nitrogen in 1772.
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1819
French mathematician and academic (born 1803)
Jacques Charles François Sturm was a French mathematician, who made a significant addition to equation theory with his work, Sturm's theorem.
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1855
English chemist and businessman, invented baking powder (born 1811)
Alfred Bird was an English food manufacturer and chemist. He was born in Nympsfield, Gloucestershire, England in 1811 and was later a pupil at King Edward's School, Birmingham. He was the inventor of a series of food…
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1878
Hunkpapa Lakota tribal chief (born 1831)
Sitting Bull was a Hunkpapa Lakota leader who led his people during years of resistance against United States government policies. Sitting Bull was killed by Indian agency police accompanied by U.S. officers and…
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1890
American singer-songwriter and pianist (born 1904)
Thomas Wright "Fats" Waller was an American jazz pianist, organist, composer, and singer. His innovations in the Harlem stride style laid much of the basis for modern jazz piano. A widely popular star in the jazz and…
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1943
American bandleader and composer (born 1904)
Alton Glen "Glenn" Miller was an American big band conductor, arranger, composer, trombonist, and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the US Army Air Forces. His civilian band,…
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1944
Welsh journalist and author (born 1863)
Arthur Llewellyn Jones, known by his pen name Arthur Machen, was a Welsh author and mystic of the late 19th and early 20th centuries. He is best known for his influential supernatural, fantasy and horror fiction. His…
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1947
Australian politician, 27th Premier of South Australia (born 1874)
Crawford Vaughan was an Australian politician, and the Premier of South Australia from 1915 to 1917. He was a member of the South Australian House of Assembly from 1905 to 1918, representing Torrens (1905–1915) and…
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1947
Indian lawyer and politician, 1st Deputy Prime Minister of India (born 1875)
Vallabhbhai Jhaverbhai Patel, commonly known as Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, was a Gandhian Indian independence activist, lawyer and statesman who served as the first Deputy Prime Minister and Home Minister of India from…
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1950
Austrian-Swiss physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (born 1900)
Wolfgang Ernst Pauli was an Austrian–Swiss theoretical physicist and a pioneer of quantum mechanics. In 1945, after having been nominated by Albert Einstein, Pauli received the Nobel Prize in Physics "for the discovery…
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1958
English-American actor, director, and producer (born 1899)
Charles Laughton was an English actor and director. Over his career he received an Academy Award and a Grammy Award as well as nominations for two BAFTAs and a Golden Globe. He earned a motion picture star on the…
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1962
Sri Lankan journalist, lawyer, and politician (born 1903)
Murugesu Balasundaram was a Ceylon Tamil lawyer, politician and Member of Parliament.
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1965
15th Viscount of Arbuthnott, Indian-Scottish general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Kincardineshire (born 1897)
Major-General Robert Keith Arbuthnott, 15th Viscount of Arbuthnott, was a senior British Army officer who served in both the First World War and the Second World War.
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1966
American animator, director, producer, and screenwriter, co-founded The Walt Disney Company (born 1901)
Walter Elias Disney was an American animator, film producer, voice actor, and entrepreneur. A pioneer of the American animation industry, he introduced several developments in the production of cartoons. As a film…
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1966
Canadian politician, 18th Premier of Quebec (born 1899)
Antonio J. Barrette was a Canadian politician born in Joliette, Quebec, Canada, who served as the 18th premier of Quebec.
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1968
American boxer and actor (born 1881)
Jess Myron Willard was an American world heavyweight boxing champion billed as the Pottawatomie Giant. He won the world heavyweight title in 1915 by knocking out Jack Johnson.
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1968
German lawyer and politician, 12th Mayor of Marburg (born 1898)
Karl Theodor Bleek was a liberal German politician.
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1969
1971
Russian-American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1902)
Anatoly Mikhailovich Litvak OBE, commonly known as Anatole Litvak, was a Russian-American filmmaker.
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1974
English 7th General of The Salvation Army (born 1893)
Wilfred Kitching CBE was a British Salvation Army officer who was their seventh General between 1954 and 1963.
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1977
American actor (born 1903)
Theodore Childress "Chill" Wills was an American actor and a singer in the Avalon Boys quartet.
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1978
American race car driver (born 1940)
Peter Holden Gregg was an American race car driver during the golden age of the Trans-Am Series and a five-time winner of the 24 Hours of Daytona. He was also the owner of Brumos, a Jacksonville, Florida, car dealership…
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1980
American tenor and actor (born 1904)
Jan Peerce was an American operatic tenor. Peerce was an accomplished performer on the operatic and Broadway concert stages, in solo recitals, and as a recording artist. He is the father of film director Larry Peerce.
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1984
Mauritian physician and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Mauritius (born 1900)
Sir Seewoosagur Ramgoolam, often referred to as Chacha "Uncle" Ramgoolam or SSR, was a Mauritian physician, politician, and statesman. He served as the island's only chief minister, first prime minister, and fifth…
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1985
Russian-French ballet dancer and choreographer (born 1905)
Serge Lifar was a Ukrainian dancer. Lifar was also a choreographer, director, writer, theoretician about dance, and collector.
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1986
English actor and jockey (born 1908)
Charles Edward Underdown was an English theatre, cinema and television actor.
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1989
Russian captain (born 1915)
Vasily Grigoryevich Zaitsev was a Soviet sniper who served in World War II.
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1991
American chemist and engineer (born 1925)
William Dale Phillips was an American chemist, nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopist, federal science policy advisor and member of the National Academy of Sciences.
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1993
Bosnian-Serbian basketball player (born 1974)
Haris Brkić was a Yugoslavian basketball player. He achieved greatest results in Partizan and he is still remembered by fans for his great contribution to the club.
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2000
Maltese sculptor (born 1909)
Vincent Apap, OBE was a Maltese sculptor who is well known for designing various public monuments and church statues, most notably the Triton Fountain in Valletta. He has been called "one of Malta's foremost sculptors…
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2003
2003
Canadian ice hockey player and coach (born 1947)
Keith Arlen Magnuson was a Canadian professional ice hockey defenceman from Wadena, Saskatchewan who played in the National Hockey League (NHL) between 1969 and 1979.
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2003
Nauruan educator and politician, Speaker of the Nauru Parliament (born 1943)
Vassal Abago Bagobagan Gadoengin was a political figure from the Pacific nation of Nauru.
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2004
Austrian physician and psychiatrist (born 1914)
Heinrich Gross was an Austrian psychiatrist, medical doctor and neurologist, a reputed expert as a leading court-appointed psychiatrist, known for his proven involvement in the killing of at least nine children with…
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2005
Canadian golfer (born 1915)
Stan Leonard was a Canadian professional golfer who played on the PGA Tour in the 1950s and 1960s. Leonard won three PGA Tour events, eight Canadian PGA Championships, and 16 other significant events in Canada. He is a…
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2005
American soldier, journalist, and politician (born 1915)
Edward William Proxmire was an American politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as a United States senator from Wisconsin from 1957 to 1989. He holds the record for being the longest-serving senator from…
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2005
American football player (born 1976)
Darrell Anthony Russell Jr. was an American professional football player who was a defensive tackle for the Oakland Raiders and Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL). He died in a car crash near Los…
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2005
Swiss race car driver (born 1939)
Gianclaudio Giuseppe "Clay" Regazzoni was a Swiss racing driver and broadcaster, who competed in Formula One from 1970 to 1980. Regazzoni was runner-up in the Formula One World Drivers' Championship in 1974 with…
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2006
American journalist and author (born 1920)
Mary Stolz was an American writer of fiction for children and young adults. She received the 1953 Child Study Association of America's Children's Book Award for In a Mirror, Newbery Honors in 1962 for Belling the Tiger…
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2006
American lawyer and politician (born 1938)
Julia May Carson was an American politician who served as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Indiana's 7th congressional district from 1997 until she died in 2007. Carson was the first woman and…
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2007
Ecuadorian engineer and politician, 46th President of Ecuador (born 1931)
León Esteban Febres-Cordero Ribadeneyra, known in the Ecuadorian media as LFC or more simply Febres-Cordero, was an Ecuadorian politician who was the 35th President of Ecuador, serving a four-year term from 10 August…
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2008
American librarian (born 1909)
Eliza Atkins Gleason was the first African American to receive a doctorate in Library Science at the University of Chicago Graduate Library School in 1940. In 1941, she established and became the first Dean of the…
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2009
American evangelist, founded the Oral Roberts Evangelistic Association (born 1918)
Granville Oral Roberts was an American Charismatic Christian televangelist, who was one of the first to propagate Prosperity Gospel Theology. He was ordained in the Pentecostal Holiness Church from 1936 until his…
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2009
American director, producer, and screenwriter (born 1922)
Blake Edwards was an American filmmaker, producer, and screenwriter. Often thought of as primarily a director of comedies, he also directed several drama, musical, and detective films. Late in his career, he took up…
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2010
American baseball player and sportscaster (born 1918)
Robert William Andrew Feller, nicknamed "the Heater from Van Meter", "Bullet Bob", and "Rapid Robert", was an American baseball player who was a pitcher for 18 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cleveland…
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2010
American psychoanalyst and theorist (born 1940)
Eugene Victor Wolfenstein was an American social theorist, practicing psychoanalyst, and a professor of political science at University of California, Los Angeles.
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2010
American trombone player and composer (born 1929)
Robert Edward "Bob" Brookmeyer was an American jazz valve trombonist, pianist, arranger, and composer. Born in Kansas City, Missouri, Brookmeyer first gained widespread public attention as a member of Gerry Mulligan's…
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2011
English-American essayist, literary critic, and journalist (born 1949)
Christopher Eric Hitchens was a British and American author and journalist. Known as one of the "Four Horsemen" of New Atheism, he gained prominence as a columnist and speaker. His epistemological razor, which states…
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2011
Nigerian general (born 1952)
Owoye Andrew Azazi GSS DSS MSS CMH was a Nigerian army general who served as National Security Adviser to President Goodluck Jonathan, was Chief of Defence Staff (CDS) of Nigeria, and Chief of Army Staff (COAS). Before…
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2012
Nigerian politician, 18th Governor of Kaduna State (born 1948)
Patrick Ibrahim Yakowa
(1 December 1948 – 15 December 2012) was a Nigerian politician who served as governor of Kaduna State from 2010 to 2012. He was appointed deputy governor of Kaduna State in July 2005, following…
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2012
Argentinian actress (born 1929)
Olga Zubarry was an Argentine actress who appeared in film between 1943 and 1997. She made over 60 appearances in film, spanning six decades of Argentine cinema, but is best known for her work during the Golden Age of…
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2012
American evangelist, author, radio host (born 1921)
Harold Egbert Camping was an American Christian radio broadcaster and evangelist. Beginning in 1958, he served as president of Family Radio, a California-based radio station group that, at its peak, broadcast to more…
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2013
British-American actress (born 1917)
Joan de Beauvoir de Havilland, known professionally as Joan Fontaine, was a British-American actress best known for her roles in Hollywood films during the Golden Age of Hollywood. Fontaine appeared in more than 45…
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2013
2013
Australian physiologist and immunologist (born 1929)
Donald Metcalf AC FRS FAA was an Australian medical researcher who spent most of his career at the Walter and Eliza Hall Institute of Medical Research in Melbourne. In 1954 he received the Carden Fellowship from the…
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2014
Mexican journalist, lawyer, and politician, Governor of San Luis Potosí (born 1940)
Fausto Zapata Loredo was a Mexican lawyer, politician, diplomat, journalist and television presenter. A member of the Institutional Revolutionary Party (PRI), he briefly served as governor of San Luis Potosí in 1991…
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2014
English-Israeli physicist and engineer (born 1917)
Harry Zvi Tabor was an Israeli physicist. He is known as the father of Israeli solar energy. He is generally credited with having brought Israel's solar energy program to international prominence.
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2015
American sports journalist (born 1951)
Craig Graham Sager was an American sports reporter who covered an array of sports for CNN and its sister stations TBS and TNT, from 1981 until his death in late 2016.
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2016
scientist and TV presenter (born 1928)
Heinz Siegfried Wolff, was a German-born British scientist as well as a television and radio presenter. He was best known for the BBC television series The Great Egg Race.
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2017
academic (born 1953)
Calestous Juma was a Kenyan scientist and academic, specializing in sustainable development. He was named one of the most influential 100 Africans in 2012, 2013 and 2014 by the New African magazine. He was Professor of…
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2017
2018
President of Ethiopia (born 1924)
Girma Wolde-Giorgis was an Ethiopian politician who was the president of Ethiopia from 2001 to 2013. He was the second person to hold the office of president since the founding of the Federal Democratic Republic of…
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2018
Tuvaluan politician, 8th Prime Minister of Tuvalu (born 1952)
Saufatu Sopoanga was a Tuvaluan politician who served as the eighth prime minister of Tuvalu from 2 August 2002 to 27 August 2004. He drew international attention for his speeches warning about the effects of the rising…
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2020
Indian tabla player, musical producer, film actor and composer (born 1951)
Ustad Zakir Hussain Qureshi was an Indian tabla player, composer, arranger, percussionist, music producer and film actor who was based for much of his career in the San Francisco Bay Area. The eldest son of esteemed…
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2024
senior United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago and previously a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, (born 1926)
William Joseph Bauer was an American judge who was a senior circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit in Chicago from 1974 until his death, having been nominated to the position by…
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2025
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Notable deaths
Who died on December 15?
Wanyan Liang — Emperor of Jin from 1150 to 1161
FeaturedWanyan Liang
Death year1161
Known forHe was the second son of Wanyan Zonggan, the eldest son of the dynastic founder Wanyan Aguda
Deaths on this date86 (933 – 2025)
Explore December 15
Jump between the main pages for this date to compare events, people, and the daily quiz.
Also on December 15 in History
2017
A 6.5Mw earthquake strikes the Indonesian island of Java in the city of Tasikmalaya, resulting in four deaths. Wikipedia →
2014
Gunman Man Haron Monis takes 18 hostages inside a café in Martin Place for 16 hours in Sydney. Monis and two hostages are killed when police raid the café the following morning. Wikipedia →
2013
See all events on December 15
The South Sudanese Civil War begins when opposition leaders Dr. Riek Machar, Pagan Amum and Rebecca Nyandeng vote to boycott the meeting of the National Liberation Council at Nyakuron. Wikipedia →
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