Notable Deaths on December 9

Naṣr ibn Sayyār al-Lāythi al-Kināni was an Arab general and the last Umayyad governor of Khurasan in 738–748. Nasr played a distinguished role in the wars against the Turgesh, although he failed to decisively confront the rebellion of al-Harith ibn Surayj in its early stages. Although respected as a soldier and a statesman, he owed his appointment as governor more to his obscure tribal background, which rendered him dependent on the caliph. His tenure was nevertheless successful, as Nasr introduced long-overdue tax reforms that alleviated social tension and largely restored and stabilized Umayyad control in Transoxiana, which had been greatly reduced under the Turgesh onslaught. His last years were occupied by inter-tribal rivalries and uprisings, however, as the Umayyad Caliphate itself descended into a period of civil war. In 746 Nasr was driven from his capital by Ibn Surayj and Juday al-Kirmani, but returned after the latter fell out among themselves, resulting in Ibn Surayj's death. Preoccupied with this conflict, Nasr was unable to stop the outbreak and spread of the Abbasid Revolution, whose leader, Abu Muslim, exploited the situation to his advantage. Evicted from his province in early 748, he fled to Persia pursued by the Abbasid forces, where he died on 9 December 748.

Abu Uqba al-Jarrah ibn Abdallah al-Hakami was an Arab nobleman and general of the Hakami tribe. During the course of the early 8th century, he was at various times governor of Basra, Sistan and Khurasan, Armenia and Adharbayjan. A legendary warrior already during his lifetime, he is best known for his campaigns against the Khazars on the Caucasus front, culminating in his death in the Battle of Marj Ardabil in 730.

Perry Gilbert Eddy Miller was an American intellectual historian and a co-founder of the field of American Studies. Miller specialized in the history of early America and took an active role in a revisionist view of the colonial Puritan theocracy that was cultivated at Harvard University beginning in the 1920s. Heavy drinking led to his premature death at the age of 58.

John Leonard Wilbur was an American professional football offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for the Dallas Cowboys, Los Angeles Rams and Washington Redskins. He also was a member of The Hawaiians in the World Football League (WFL). He played college football at Stanford University.

Jane Freilicher was an American representational painter of urban and country scenes from her homes in lower Manhattan and Water Mill, Long Island. She was a member of the informal New York School beginning in the 1950s, and a muse to several of its poets and writers.

Li Congrong, formally the Prince of Qin (秦王), was a son of Li Siyuan, the second emperor of the Chinese Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms period state Later Tang. During Li Siyuan's reign, he, as Li Siyuan's oldest surviving biological son, was commonly expected to be Li Siyuan's heir. When his father became deathly ill, however, he, worried that his father's officials might try to divert succession away from him, tried to seize power by force, but was then defeated and killed.

John Gordon Gabbert was an American judge. He was associate justice of the California Courts of Appeal appointed by Governor Ronald Reagan in May 1970. Before that, he was a Superior Court judge for Riverside County, California.

Gertrud of Brunswick was Countess of Katlenburg by marriage to Dietrich II, Count of Katlenburg, Margravine of Frisia by marriage to Henry, Margrave of Frisia, and Margravine of Meissen by marriage to margrave Henry I.

Hristu Cândroveanu was a Romanian editor, literary critic, poet, prose writer and translator of Aromanian ethnicity. He published several works related to the Aromanians, led several Aromanian magazines and was involved in some Aromanian organizations.

al-Hajj Mahmadu Lamine Drame, also known as Ma Lamine Demba Dibassi, was a nineteenth-century Tijani marabout who led a series of rebellions against the French colonial government in what is now Senegal.

Mary Diana Morgan was a Welsh playwright, screenwriter and novelist, mostly associated with her work for Ealing Studios as Diana Morgan. She was married to fellow screenwriter Robert MacDermot.

Elizabeth Shaughnessy Cohen was a Canadian politician who represented the riding of Windsor—St. Clair for the Liberal Party of Canada from 1993 until her death in 1998.

Sergius I of Constantinople was the Ecumenical Patriarch of Constantinople from 610 to 638. He is most famous for promoting Monothelitism Christianity, especially through the Ecthesis.

Richard le Gras was Lord Keeper of England and Abbot of Evesham in the 13th century.

Bohemond of Warnesberg was the Archbishop of Trier and a Prince Elector of the Holy Roman Empire from 1286 to his death.

William Watson was an English Roman Catholic priest and conspirator, executed for treason.

William Thornhill was a British Army officer of the Peninsular War and the Waterloo Campaign. His nephew was the politician William Pole Thornhill.

Stan Rice was an American professor, poet and artist. He was the husband of author Anne Rice.

Gordon Zahn was an American sociologist, pacifist, professor, and author.

Ibrahim Allotey Dossey was a Ghanaian professional football goalkeeper.

Riccardo Schicchi was an Italian pornographer.

Blagoje Paunović was a Serbian football defender and manager.