May 12th is the day we officially celebrate Nutty Fudge Day and Limerick Day.
Welcome to the 133rd day of the year! We’re gradually getting through the year, but we still have another 233 days left in 2024.
May 12 has a special place in history for advancing humankind, but was also a tragic day that suffered war and devastating disasters. Here you can find interesting facts and historical events that happened on this day.
Did you know that on this day in 1902, 140,000 miners went on strike in Pennsylvania? The miners received a 10% raise and work day reduction from 10 to 9 hours a day.
Keep reading for more fun & interesting facts about May 12th in history!
Events
What memorable events happened on May 12 in history? Keep reading to find out!
1965
The Soviet Union’s Luna 5 uncrewed spacecraft crash-landed on the Moon.
Luna 5’s launch on May 9, 1965, went off about as smoothly as Soviet spacecraft launches could at the time, and there were high hopes for it to become the first spacecraft in history to make a soft landing on the Moon. Failures in its guidance system during flight and errors from the ground team during landing led to Luna 5 becoming the second Soviet spacecraft to impact the Moon’s surface.
1551
The first university in the New World, the National University of San Marcos, was founded in Lima, Peru.
At its founding, the university was simply called The University of Lima and was entirely run by Dominican friars. So not only was it the first university to be officially opened in the Americas, but it’s also the oldest continuously running university there too!
Famous Births
Is today your birthday? If so, you share the same birthday with Tony Hawk. Here are a few other famous people born on this day.
1968
Tony Hawk
American
Skateboarder
Age:
56 years old
Born In:
California, USA
1981
Rami Malek
American
Actor
Age:
43 years old
Born In:
California, USA
1992
Malcolm David Kelley
American
Rapper
Age:
32 years old
Born In:
California, USA
1966
Stephen Baldwin
American
Actor
Age:
58 years old
Born In:
New York, USA
Quotes
Every day brings a new quote – here are the most renowned quotes spoken or written on May 12th in history.
1904
There are so many things some old man should tell one about while one is little; for when one has grown up, knowing them would be a matter of course.
Rainer Maria Rilke
Austrian Poet
Special Holidays
If you’re looking to try something new today, here are some special holidays that might just give you an idea.
National Nutty Fudge Day
Yeah, alright, so fudge is pretty good, but have you ever stuffed yourself full of nutty fudge before? National Nutty Fudge Day was created to celebrate this deliciously enhanced fudge, and there’s no more perfect way to celebrate it than to try to make some yourself!
National Limerick Day
Limerick Day was created in honor of limericks and also celebrates the birthday of English poet Edward Lear, who helped popularize them. Celebrate today by reading some of Edward Lear’s books, like the Book of Nonsense, or try writing your own limerick!
THe Fact Site’s
Fun Fact Of The Day
The Postal Service got its name based on the fact that they originally used USPS to send each other music tracks because of conflicting schedules.
Birthday & Zodiac
If you were born on May 12th, your zodiac sign is Taurus.
Taurus is the second astrological sign in the modern zodiac. It’s an earth sign represented by the bull.
All those born in May have the Emerald birthstone. The emerald has always been a highly treasured gemstone. The ancient Romans believed Emerald represented Venus, the Goddess of beauty and love.
People born on May 12 were likely conceived on or around August 19 in the previous year.
A baby conceived on May 12th, 2024, will likely be due around February 2nd, 2025.