December 8

### Up to 1975

- 395 – China: Later Yan is defeated by its former vassal of Northern Wei at the Battle of Canhe Slope.
- 757 – China: Du Fu returns to Chang'an as a member of Emperor Xuanzong of Tang's court, after having escaped the city during the An Lushan Rebellion.
- 1432 – First battle of the Lithuanian Civil War.
- 1626 – Ferdinand III, Holy Roman Emperor is crowned King of Hungary.
- 1660 – A woman appears on an English public stage for the first time, as Desdemona, in a production of William Shakespeare's Othello.
- 1792 – Frankfort becomes the capital city of Kentucky.
- 1813 – Ludwig van Beethoven's Seventh Symphony is performed for the first time.
- 1864 – The Clifton Suspension Bridge in England, designed by Isambard Kingdom Brunel, is opened.
- 1907 – Gustav V becomes King of Sweden.
- 1912 – Leaders of the German Empire hold an Imperial War Council to discuss the possibility of war breaking out.
- 1914 – World War I: A squadron of the UK's Royal Navy defeats a weaker squadron of the German High Seas Fleet in the Battle of the Falkland Islands in the South Atlantic Ocean.
- 1922 – Northern Ireland stops being part of the Irish Free State.
- 1941 – World War II: Japan invades Malaya, Thailand, Hong Kong and the Philippines, just after the Pearl Harbor attack. On the same day, the United States and the Republic of China declare war on Japan.
- 1953 – Dwight D. Eisenhower announces the start of the American 'Atoms for Peace' program.
- 1956 – The 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, Australia, end.
- 1962 – Workers at four US newspapers (later nine) go on strike for 114 days.
- 1963 – PanAm Flight 214, a Boeing 707, is struck by lightning in Maryland, killing all 81 people on board.
- 1966 – The ship SS _Heraklion_ sinks in a storm in the Aegean Sea, killing over 200 people.
- 1969 – An Olympic Airways Douglas DC–6 hits a mountain outside of Keratea, Greece, killing 90.
- 1971 – Indo-Pakistani War: The Indian Navy launches an attack on the Pakistani city of Karachi.
- 1972 – United Airlines Flight 553, a Boeing 737, crashes after abandoning its landing attempt at Chicago Midway International Airport, killing 45 people.
- 1974 – Greek voters reject a proposal to restore the Greek monarchy.

### From 1976

- 1980 – John Lennon is shot dead by Mark David Chapman outside the Dakota Apartment building in New York City.
- 1982 – December murders: In Suriname, 13 civilians and 2 military officers, opposed to the military regime of Desi Bouterse, are killed.
- 1987 – Frank Vitkovic shoots and kills 8 people at the Australia Post building in Melbourne, Australia, before committing suicide.
- 1987 – The entire Alianza Lima football team is killed in a plane crash.
- 1988 – A US Air Force A–10 Thunderbolt II crashes into an apartment complex in Remscheid, Germany, killing 5 people and injuring 50.
- 1991 – Romania's Constitution is adopted in a referendum.
- 1991 – Russia, Belarus and Ukraine sign an agreement dissolving the Soviet Union and forming the Commonwealth of Independent States.
- 1993 – The North American Free Trade Agreement is signed into law by Bill Clinton.
- 1994 – Ethiopia adopts a new Constitution.
- 1994 – SWAPO wins the most seats in the election to the Namibian parliament (53 out of 72).
- 1998 – 81 people are killed by armed groups in Algeria.
- 2003 – Zimbabwe leaves the Commonwealth of Nations.
- 2004 – Dimebag Darrell is shot dead in Columbus, Ohio by paranoid schizophrenic Nathan Gale.
- 2004 – The Cuzco Declaration is signed in Cuzco, Peru, creating the South American Community of Nations.
- 2007 – The office of Benazir Bhutto is stormed by gunmen. Three people are killed.
- 2009 – A bombing in Baghdad kills 127 people.
- 2012 – At the UN Climate Change Conference in Qatar, it is agreed that the Kyoto Protocol is to be extended until 2020.
- 2019 – A clothing factory fire in Delhi, India, kills at least 43 people.
- 2019 – Sanna Marin is elected as the new Prime Minister of Finland.

### Up to 1900

- 65 BC – Horace, Roman poet (d. 8 BC)
- 1542 – Mary, Queen of Scots (d. 1587)
- 1574 – Maria Anna of Bavaria, Holy Roman Empress (d. 1616)
- 1626 – Queen Christina of Sweden (d. 1689) (N.S. December 18 on Gregorian calendar)
- 1642 – Johann Christoph Bach, German composer (d. 1703)
- 1678 – Horatio Walpole, 1st Baron Walpole, English diplomat (d. 1757)
- 1685 – Johann Maria Farina, Italian perfume designer (d. 1766)
- 1699 – Maria Josepha of Austria, Queen of Poland (d. 1757)
- 1708 – Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1765)
- 1724 – Claude Balbastre, French composer (d. 1799)
- 1730 – Jan Ingenhousz, Dutch physiologist, biologist and chemist (d. 1799)
- 1756 – Archduke Maximilian Franz of Austria (d. 1801)
- 1765 – Eli Whitney, American inventor (d. 1825)
- 1790 – Augustus Meineke, German philologist (d. 1870)
- 1795 – Peter Andreas Hansen, Danish–German astronomer (d. 1874)
- 1817 – Christian Emil Krag-Juel-Vind-Frijs, 10th Prime Minister of Denmark (d. 1896)
- 1818 – Charles III, Prince of Monaco (d. 1889)
- 1831 – William Pitt Kellogg, Governor of Louisiana (d. 1918)
- 1832 – Bjornstjerne Bjornson, Norwegian writer (d. 1910)
- 1848 – Joel Chandler Harris, American journalist and writer (d. 1908)
- 1857 – Duke John Albert of Mecklenburg, German politician (d. 1920)
- 1861 – Aristide Maillol, French sculptor and painter (d. 1944)
- 1861 – William C. Durant, American businessman (d. 1947)
- 1864 – Camille Claudel, French graphic artist and sculptor (d. 1943)
- 1865 – Jacques Hadamard, French mathematician (d. 1963)
- 1865 – Jean Sibelius, Finnish composer (d. 1957)
- 1873 – William Watson, Baron Thankerton, Scottish judge and politician (d. 1948)
- 1875 – Wilfred Hudson Osgood, American zoologist (d. 1947)
- 1880 – Johannes Aavik, Estonian philologist (d. 1973)
- 1886 – Diego Rivera, Mexican painter (d. 1957)
- 1890 – Bohuslav Martinu, Czech composer (d. 1959)
- 1892 – E.C. Segar, American cartoonist (d. 1938)
- 1894 – Marthe Vinot, French actress (d. 1974)
- 1894 – Florbela Espanca, Portuguese poet (d. 1930)
- 1899 – John Qualen, Canadian actor (d. 1987)
- 1899 – Anselmo Alliegro y Mila, Cuban politician (d. 1961)
- 1900 – Ants Oras, Estonian writer (d. 1982)
- 1900 – Sun Li-jen, Chinese general (d. 1990)

### 1901 – 1950

- 1902 – Wifredo Lam, Cuban painter (d. 1982)
- 1908 – John A. Volpe, American politician (d. 1994)
- 1909 – Gratien Gelinas, Canadian author, actor and director (d. 1999)
- 1911 – Lee J. Cobb, American actor (d. 1976)
- 1913 – Delmore Schwartz, American poet (d. 1966)
- 1915 – Ernest Lehman, American screenwriter (d. 2005)
- 1916 – Richard Fleischer, American movie director (d. 2006)
- 1919 – Peter Tali Coleman, American politician, former Governor of American Samoa (d. 1997)
- 1922 – Lucian Freud, German–born British painter (d. 2011)
- 1922 – Jean Porter, American actress (d. 2018)
- 1922 – Jean Ritchie, American singer-songwriter (d. 2015)
- 1923 – Pio Taufinu'u, Samoan cardinal (d. 2006)
- 1923 – Rudolph Pariser, American chemist
- 1925 – Sammy Davis, Jr., American actor and singer (d. 1990)
- 1925 – Arnaldo Forlani, Italian politician, former Prime Minister of Italy
- 1926 – Joachim Fest, German historian (d. 2006)
- 1926 – Revaz Chkheidze, Georgian movie director (d. 2015)
- 1927 – Vladimir Shatalov, Soviet–Kazakhstani cosmonaut and general
- 1928 – Jimmy Smith, American musician (d. 2005)
- 1928 – Ulric Neisser, German–American psychologist (d. 2012)
- 1929 – Johnny Anderson, Scottish footballer (d. 2001)
- 1929 – Gérard de Villiers, French writer (d. 2013)
- 1930 – Maximilian Schell, Austrian–Swiss actor and director (d. 2014)
- 1931 – Bob Arum, American boxing promoter
- 1932 – Charly Gaul, Luxembourg cyclist (d. 2005)
- 1933 – Flip Wilson, American comedian and actor (d. 1998)
- 1935 – Dharmendra, Indian actor
- 1935 – Tatiana Zatulovskaya, Israeli chess player
- 1936 – David Carradine, American actor (d. 2009)
- 1936 – Ralph Brand, Scottish footballer
- 1937 – James MacArthur, American actor (d. 2010)
- 1938 – John Kufuor, former President of Ghana
- 1939 – James Galway, Northern Irish flautist
- 1939 – Jerry Butler, American singer-songwriter
- 1939 – Dariush Mehrjui, Iranian director, screenwriter and producer
- 1939 – Red Berenson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
- 1941 – Geoff Hurst, English footballer
- 1941 – Bobby Elliott, English drummer
- 1942 – Mario Savio, American activist (d. 1996)
- 1943 – Jim Morrison, American singer (The Doors) (d. 1971)
- 1943 – James Tate, American writer (d. 2015)
- 1944 – Ted Irvine, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1945 – John Banville, Irish author
- 1946 – John Rubinstein, American actor, composer and director
- 1947 – Thomas R. Cech, American chemist
- 1947 – Gregg Allman, American musician (d. 2017)
- 1948 – Luis Caffarelli, Argentine–American mathematician and academic
- 1950 – Dan Hartman, American singer-songwriter and producer (d. 1994)

### 1951 – 1975

- 1951 – Bill Bryson, American writer
- 1952 – Bobby McKean, Scottish footballer (d. 1978)
- 1953 – Kim Basinger, American actress
- 1953 – Norman Finkelstein, American academic, author and activist
- 1954 – Louis de Bernières, English writer
- 1955 – Martin Semmelrogge, German actor
- 1956 – Warren Cuccurullo, American guitarist
- 1956 – Andrius Kubilius, 9th Prime Minister of Lithuania
- 1956 – Pierre Pincemaille, French organist
- 1957 – James Cama, American martial arts teacher (d. 2014)
- 1957 – Phil Collen, English guitarist (Def Leppard)
- 1959 – Paul Rutherford, English singer
- 1959 – Jim Yong Kim, Korean–American former President of the World Bank
- 1960 – Lim Guam Eng, Malaysian politician
- 1960 – Aaron Allston, American author (d. 2014)
- 1961 – Ann Coulter, American political commentator
- 1962 – Marty Friedman, American guitarist
- 1963 – Greg Howe, American guitarist, composer and producer
- 1963 – Brian McClair, Scottish footballer
- 1964 – Teri Hatcher, American actress
- 1964 – Mike Ruiz, Canadian–American model, photographer and director
- 1964 – Richard David Precht, German philosopher
- 1965 – David Harewood, English actor
- 1966 – Les Ferdinand, English footballer
- 1966 – Sinéad O'Connor, Irish singer (d. 2023)
- 1966 – Hope Powell, English footballer and coach
- 1972 – Marco Abreu, Angolan footballer
- 1973 – Corey Taylor, American singer

### From 1976

- 1976 – Dominic Monaghan, English actor
- 1977 – Sébastien Chabal, French rugby player
- 1978 – Frédéric Piquionne, French footballer
- 1978 – Ian Somerhalder, American actor
- 1979 – Christian Wilhelmsson, Swedish footballer
- 1980 – Lisa Kelly, American trucker (Ice Road Truckers)
- 1982 – Halil Altintop, Turkish footballer
- 1982 – Hamit Altintop, Turkish footballer
- 1982 – Nicki Minaj, Trinidad and Tobago–born American singer
- 1982 – DeeDee Trotter, American athlete
- 1983 – Valéry Mézague, Cameroonian footballer (d. 2014)
- 1984 – Dustin Brown, Jamaican–German tennis player
- 1984 – Emma Green Tegaro, Swedish high jumper
- 1985 – Meagan Duhamel, Canadian ice skater
- 1985 – Dwight Howard, American basketball player
- 1986 – Amir Khan, English boxer
- 1986 – Kate Voegele, American musician
- 1987 – Susanne Riesch, German skier
- 1989 – Drew Doughty, Canadian ice hockey player
- 1992 – Katie Stevens, American singer and actress
- 1993 – AnnaSophia Robb, American actress
- 1994 – Raheem Sterling, English footballer
- 1995 – Jordon Ibe, English footballer
- 1996 – Teala Dunn, American actress
- 1996 – Scott McTominay, English–Scottish footballer

### Up to 1900

- 592 – Emperor Sushun of Japan
- 899 – Arnulf of Carinthia, King of East Francia (b. 850)
- 1495 – Alfonso II of Naples (b. 1448)
- 1691 – Richard Baxter, English clergyman (b. 1615)
- 1709 – Thomas Corneille, French dramatist (b. 1625)
- 1722 – Elisabeth Charlotte of the Palatinate (b. 1652)
- 1744 – Marie Anne de Mailly, mistress to Louis XV of France (b. 1711)
- 1793 – Madame du Barry, French mistress (b. 1743)
- 1830 – Benjamin Constant, Swiss–French writer (b. 1767)
- 1859 – Thomas De Quincey, English author (b. 1785)
- 1864 – George Boole, English mathematician and philosopher (b. 1815)
- 1869 – Narcisa de Jesus, Ecuadorean Catholic laywoman and saint (b. 1832)
- 1885 – William Henry Vanderbilt, American railroad executive and philanthropist (b. 1821)
- 1894 – Pafnuty Chebyshev, Russian mathematician (b. 1821)

### 1901 – 2000

- 1903 – Herbert Spencer, English philosopher and sociologist (b. 1820)
- 1907 – King Oscar II of Sweden (b. 1829)
- 1914 – Maximilian von Spee, German naval officer (b. 1861)
- 1930 – Florbela Espanca, Portuguese poet (b. 1894)
- 1933 – Yamamoto Gonnohyoe, Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1852)
- 1952 – Charles Lightoller, English officer on the RMS Titanic (b. 1874)
- 1955 – Hermann Weyl, German mathematician, physicist and philosopher (b. 1885)
- 1956 – Jimmie Angel, American pilot (b. 1899)
- 1963 – Sarit Thanarat, 11th Prime Minister of Thailand (b. 1908)
- 1967 – John Mills, Sr., American singer (b. 1889)
- 1971 – Ernst Krenkel, Soviet Arctic explorer and radio operator (b. 1903)
- 1975 – Gary Thain, New Zealand musician (Uriah Heep) (b. 1948)
- 1978 – Golda Meir, Prime Minister of Israel (b. 1898)
- 1980 – John Lennon, English singer, songwriter and musician (The Beatles) (b. 1940)
- 1981 – Ferruccio Parri, Italian politician (b. 1890)
- 1982 – Marty Robbins, American singer–songwriter and racing driver (b. 1925)
- 1982 – Bram Behr, Surinamese journalist (b. 1951)
- 1982 – Andre Kramperveen, Surinamese footballer and politician (b. 1924)
- 1983 – Slim Pickens, American actor (b. 1919)
- 1983 – Keith Holyoake, 26th Prime Minister of New Zealand (b. 1904)
- 1984 – Luther Adler, American actor (b. 1903)
- 1990 – Tadeusz Kantor, Polish theatre director (b. 1915)
- 1991 – Buck Clayton, American trumpeter (b. 1911)
- 1992 – William Shawn, American magazine editor (b. 1917)
- 1996 – Howard Rollins, American actor (b. 1950)
- 1996 – Kashiwado Tsuyoshi, Japanese sumo wrestler (b. 1938)
- 1997 – Laurean Rugambwa, Tanzanian cardinal (b. 1912)
- 1998 – Aaron Hopa, New Zealand rugby player (b. 1971)

### From 2001

- 2003 – Rubén González, Cuban pianist (Buena Vista Social Club) (b. 1919)
- 2004 – Dimebag Darrell, American guitarist (b. 1966)
- 2008 – Oliver Postgate, British animator, puppetteer and writer (b. 1925)
- 2011 – Zelman Cowen, 19th Governor-General of Australia (b. 1919)
- 2013 – John Cornforth, Australian chemist (b. 1917)
- 2014 – Nedunuri Krishnamurthy, Indian singer (b. 1927)
- 2014 – Knut Nystedt, Norwegian composer (b. 1915)
- 2014 – Russ Kemmerer, American baseball player (b. 1930)
- 2015 – Alan Hodgkinson, English footballer (b. 1936)
- 2015 – Elsie Tu, English–Hong Kong social activist (b. 1913)
- 2015 – Mattiwilda Dobbs, American coloratura soprano (b. 1925)
- 2015 – John Trudell, American activist and poet (b. 1946)
- 2015 – Bonnie Lou, American singer (b. 1924)
- 2015 – Douglas Tompkins, American businessman (b. 1943)
- 2016 – John Glenn, American astronaut and politician (b. 1921)
- 2016 – Joseph Mascolo, American actor (b. 1929)
- 2017 – Vladimir Curbet, Moldovan choreographer (b. 1930)
- 2017 – Sunny Murray, American jazz drummer (b. 1936)
- 2017 – Atsutoshi Nishida, Japanese businessman (b. 1943)
- 2018 – Lyudmila Alexeyeva, Russian activist (b. 1927)
- 2018 – Enrico Crispolti, Italian art critic and historian (b. 1933)
- 2018 – Pentti Tiusanen, Finnish politician (b. 1949)
- 2018 – David Weatherall, British physician and molecular geneticist (b. 1933)
- 2019 – René Auberjonois, American actor (b. 1940)
- 2019 – Hirokazu Kanazawa, Japanese karate practitioner and teacher (b. 1931)
- 2019 – Caroll Spinney, American actor and puppeteer (b. 1933)
- 2019 – Paul Volcker, American economist (b. 1927)
- 2019 – Zvonimir Vujin, Serbian boxer (b. 1943)
- 2019 – Juice Wrld, American rapper (b. 1998)

## Observances

- Roman Catholic Feast Day of the Immaculate Conception
- CARICOM–Cuba Day
- Constitution Day (Romania and Uzbekistan)
- Students' Day (Bulgaria)
- National Youth Day (Albania)
- Bodhi Day (Japan)