DAY 1096 RUSSIAN AGGRESSION
February 23 is celebrated as World Understanding and Peace Day, Tennis Day, Curling Day, and International Dog Biscuit Day.
Additionally, today marks Japan's National Holiday - Emperor Naruhito's Birthday, Engineer's Day in Iran, Women's Day in Iceland, Jamaican Patty Day in Toronto (Canada), National Banana Bread Day in the USA, the start of the Fallas Festival in Valencia (Spain), and the Mashramani Festival in Guyana.
Today, we commemorate the 570th anniversary of the publication of the 42-line Bible by Johannes Gutenberg in Mainz (1455), which serves as the traditional starting point for the history of printing in Europe.
The Orthodox Church observes the feast day of Saint Polycarp, the Holy Martyr.
World Understanding and Peace Day
This day marks the founding of the Rotary Club in 1905. The first Rotary Club aimed solely at uniting businesspeople for friendly and amicable relationships and cooperation.
Subsequently, a large global organization emerged - Rotary International, which positions itself as an open, non-political, charitable entity.
Rotary Club members, or Rotarians, are professionals and leaders in various business sectors who implement humanitarian projects, adhere to ethical standards in their professional conduct, and strive for mutual understanding and peace worldwide.
Curling Day
Curling is a team sport originating from Scotland, played on an ice surface, developed in the 1500s.
Diesel Engine Day
Every year on February 23, the world celebrates the Birthday of the Diesel Engine. The inventor of this device is German engineer Rudolf Diesel.
Tennis Day
The game of tennis originated in the 14th century in France, where it was actively enjoyed by clergy and nobility. Tennis arrived in Ukraine in 1890 and quickly gained popularity, with the first competitions held in 1913.
Emperor Naruhito's Birthday
Naruhito is the Emperor of Japan, the eldest son of the retired Emperor Akihito, born on February 23, 1960, in Tokyo. Today he turns 65 years old.
With Naruhito's ascension, Japan entered the "Reiwa" era. His coronation took place on October 22, 2019, in a ceremony attended by leaders from over 170 countries, where he officially proclaimed his ascension to the throne.
Notable Birthdays on This Day:
340 years since the birth of Georg Friedrich Handel (1685-1759), German composer and organist;
170 years since the birth of Edward Kharkevich (1855-1913), Ukrainian linguist and educational figure;
120 years since the birth of Ivan Demyanovich Momot (1905-1931), Ukrainian literary scholar and critic;
100 years since the birth of Elizabeth Ivanovna Chavdar (1925-1989), Ukrainian singer and educator.
Other Events on This Day:
1927 - U.S. President Calvin Coolidge signs a Congressional bill establishing the Federal Radio Commission (later replaced by the Federal Communications Commission), tasked with regulating radio frequency usage in the USA;
1927 - German theoretical physicist Werner Heisenberg describes his uncertainty principle for the first time in a letter to colleague Wolfgang Pauli;
1934 - Leopold III becomes King of Belgium.
1941 - Plutonium is first produced and isolated by Dr. Glenn Theodore Seaborg;
1945 - The American flag is raised over Iwo Jima;
1993 - Ukraine declares non-recognition of Russia as the sole successor of the USSR;
2010 - Unknown assailants dump over 2.5 million liters of diesel fuel and other hydrocarbons into the Lambro River in northern Italy, resulting in an ecological disaster;
2014 - Viktor Yanukovych flees to Russia;
Church Holiday:
Feast Day of Saint Polycarp, Bishop of Smyrna
Polycarp was born and lived in the 1st-2nd centuries in what is now Turkey. He was orphaned and raised by a Christian woman named Callista. Upon her death, Polycarp distributed his possessions to the poor and became an ascetic.
His teacher was the apostle John the Evangelist. Eventually, Polycarp became the most revered theologian in Asia Minor. He was first appointed as a deacon, then as the bishop of Smyrna, gathering many disciples around him.
Polycarp dedicated his life to serving God, producing the "Epistle to the Philippians." However, at the age of 86, he faced persecution against Christians - he was pressured to renounce Christ, and when he refused, the saint was burned alive.
Name Days: Demyan, Ivan, Mikhail, Nikolai, Alexander, Alexey, Sergey.