- Dec 1 Aleister Crowley, British occultist, founded the religion of Thelema, dies at 72
- Dec 1 G. H. Hardy, English mathematician (Hardy–Weinberg principle, A Mathematician's Apology), dies at 70
- Dec 7 Nicholas Murray Butler, American philosopher, diplomat (Nobel Peace Prize 1931), educator (Columbia University President), dies at 85
- Dec 7 Tristan Bernard, French playwright and novelist, dies at 81
- Dec 12 Huda Sha'arawi, Egyptian feminist and nationalist, founder of Egyptian Feminist Union, dies at 68
- Dec 13 Nicholas Roerich, Russian painter, dies at 73
- Dec 14 Franz Zorell, German lexicographer, dies at 84
Stanley Baldwin
Dec 14 Stanley Baldwin, British Prime Minister (Conservative: 1923-24, 1924-29, 1935-37), dies at 80
Victor Emmanuel III
Dec 28 Victor Emmanuel III, King of Italy (1900-46), dies of pulmonary edema at 78
- Dec 29 Joseph Cuvelier, Belgian historian and general archivist, dies at 78
- Dec 30 Han [Henricus Antonius] van Meegeren, Dutch painter and art forger (Vermeer), dies at 58
- Dec 30 Alfred North Whitehead, British mathematician and philosopher (Adventures of Ideas), dies at 86
- Dec 31 Franz X Ritter von Epp, German General (SW Africa), dies at 79