- 1032 Emperor Yingzong of China (d. 1067)
- 1075 Ordericus Vitalis, French monk/historian/poet
- 1222 Nichiren, Japan, Buddhist priest/saint
- 1497 Philipp Melanchthon, Germ, Protestant reformer (Augsburgse Confessie)
- 1519 Gaspard de Coligny, Huguenot leader/French admiral
- 1543 Kano Eitoku, Japanese painter (d. 1590)
- 1620 Frederick William, Great Elector, founder of Brandenburg-Prussia
- 1643 John Sharp, English Archbishop of York (1691-1714), born in Bradford, England (d. 1714)
- 1698 Pierre Bouguer, French mathematician (heliometer)
- 1727 Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin, Austrian scientist (d. 1817)
- 1740 Giambattista Bodoni, Saluzzo Italy, printer/typeface designer (Bodoni)
- 1746 Johann Heinse, German Sturm und Drang novelist/art critic
- 1761 Charles Pichegru, French general (d. 1804)
- 1786 Grand Duchess Maria Pavlovna of Russia (d. 1859)
- 1787 Andreas Schelfhout, Dutch painter/etcher/lithographer
- 1788 Juan van Halen, Dutch/Spanish officer/adventurer
- 1802 Phineas Parkhurst Quimby, American philosopher (d. 1866)
- 1804 Karl Theodor Ernst von Siebold, German physiologist (d. 1885)
- 1807 Lysander Cutler, American Brevet Major General (Union Army), born in Royalston, Massachusetts (d. 1866)
- 1812 Henry Wilson, (R) 18th VP (1873-75)
- 1813 Joseph Reid Anderson, Brigadier General (Confederate Army) (d. 1892)
- 1821 Heinrich Barth, geographer/explorer (Central Africa), born in Hamburg, Germany
- 1822 Francis Galton, British anthropologist and geneticist (eugenics), born in Birmingham, England (d. 1911)
- 1822 James Patton Anderson, Major General (Confederate Army), (d. 1872)
- 1823 John Daniel Imboden, Brigadier General (Confederate Army), (d. 1895)
- 1824 Peter Kozler, Slovenian cartographer and geographer (d. 1879)
- 1826 Joseph V von Scheffel, German writer (Gaudeamus)
- 1831 Nikolai Leskow, writer
- 1832 Camille Armand Jules Marie de Polignac, Mjr General (Confederate Army)
- 1834 Ernst Heinrich Haeckel, Potsdam Germ, biologist (Causes of Evolution)
- 1834 Ernst Haeckel, German philosopher (Social Darwinism), born in Potsdam, Prussia (d. 1919)
- 1838 Arnoldus Pannevis, South African ship's doctor/linguist
- 1838 Henry Adams, historian, writer (Education of Henry Adams), born in Boston, Massachusetts
- 1848 Hugo de Vries, Dutch botanist (How species emerge)
- 1850 Octave Mirbeau, French writer (Journal of a Lady's Maid)
- 1852 Charles Taze Russell, religion founder (Jehovah's Witnesses)
- 1852 William Scarborough, Macon Ga, linguist/author (Birds of Aristophanes)
- 1856 Rudolph Karstadt, German entrepreneur (d. 1944)
- 1858 Laurence "Lon" Myers, American track star (top US miler)
- 1868 Wilhelm Schmidt, German anthropologist/linguist (Anthropos)
- 1876 G. M. Trevelyan [George Macaulay Trevelyan], British historian and academic, born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire, England (d. 1962)
- 1881 Maurits H E Uyldert, Dutch poet/writer (Youth of a Poet)
- 1883 Elizabeth Craig, British writer (d. 1980)
- 1884 Robert Flaherty, Father of documentary film (Nanook of North), born in Iron Mountain, Michegan (d. 1957)
- 1886 Van Wyck Brooks, NJ, literary historian/writer (Ordeal of Mark Twain)
- 1891 Hans F. K. Günther, German eugenicist (d. 1967)
- 1893 Ivor Armstrong Richards, England, literary critic [OS]
- 1903 George-Henri Lévesque, Quebec priest and sociologist (d. 2000)
- 1904 George F Kennan, US ambassador (to Moscow), born in Milwaukee, Wisconsin
- 1905 Lord Franks, British ambassador (to US)
- 1909 Richard McDonald, American fast food pioneer (d. 1998)
- 1910 Michael Milne-Watson, CEO (BUPA)
- 1911 Hal Porter, Australia, writer (Tilted Cross, Paper Chase)
- 1912 Arthur Crook, British editor (Times Literary Supplement)
- 1912 Bob Tadema Sporry, Dutch (female) author
- 1912 Maitland Mackie, Lord Lt (Aberdeenshire)
- 1914 J Tobin, British anaesthetist
- 1920 Hubert van Herreweghen, Flemish writer/journalist
- 1920 Anna Mae Hays [McCabe], American military officer and US military's 1st female General, born in Buffalo, New York (d. 2018)
- 1921 Araucaria, British crossword compiler
- 1921 Esther Bubley, Phillips, Wisconsin, American photographer
Hua Guofeng
1921 Hua Guofeng, Chairman of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of China (1976-81) and Premier of the People's Republic of China (1976-80), born in Jiaocheng County, Shanxi (d. 2008)
Hua Guofeng
- 1922 Paul van 't Veer, Dutch journalist/writer (Het Vrije Volk)
- 1924 James Swaffield, director-general (Swaffield & Clerk to the GLC)
- 1924 Peter Webster, British High Court Judge
- 1925 David Emms, director (London Goodenough Trust for Overseas Graduates)
- 1925 PER Bailey, director (Gatwick & Stansted Airports)
- 1926 John Schlesinger, director (Midnight Cowboy, Darling), born in London, England
- 1926 Jack Levy, mechanical engineer
- 1929 Peter NF Porter, Australian/British author/poet (Chair of Babel)
- 1930 Frederick "Fred" Cuming, British painter, born in London
- 1931 Alfred Kolleritsch, Austrian writer, born in Eichfeld
- 1931 George E Sangmeister, (Rep-D-Illinois)
- 1932 Aharon Appelfeld, Israeli writer, born in Jadova Commune, Kingdom of Romania
- 1932 Nand Baert, Belgian radio/TV-host
- 1932 Ahmad Tejan Kabbah, President of Sierra Leone
- 1935 Robin Clark, chemist (FRS)
- 1935 Kenneth Price, ceramic artist and print maker (Hot Bottoms, Tamed), born in Los Angeles, California (d. 2012)
- 1936 Jill Kinmont, American skier
Carl Icahn
1936 Carl Icahn, American businessman (Icahn Enterprises), born in NYC, New York
Carl Icahn
Kim Jong-il
1942 Kim Jong-il, Supreme Leader of North Korea (1994-2011), born in Vyatskoye, Soviet Union [disputed birth place and birth date, 1941] (d. 2011)
Kim Jong-il
- 1943 J D Moore, headmaster (St Dunstan's College)
- 1943 James Beaton, British GC
- 1944 António Mascarenhas Monteiro, 2nd President of Cape Verde
- 1946 J R Farndon, British consultant surgeon
- 1947 Franz West, artist (Flause), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 2012)
- 1948 Eckhart Tolle, Author and spiritual teacher
- 1949 Dorus Vrede, Surinam poet (Otobanda; the Other Bank)
- 1950 Peter Hain, British MP
- 1952 James Ingram, American vocalist (Just Once), born in Akron, Ohio
- 1953 Roberta Williams, video game designer (Mystery House, Sierra Entertainment), born in La Verne, California
- 1954 Iain [Menzies] Banks, UK, sci-fi author (Wasp Factory), (d. 2013)
- 1955 Guy Gallo, writer (Under the Volcano), born in New Orleans, Louisiana
- 1958 Michael W. Burns, American politician, born in Baltimore, Maryland
- 1965 Adama Barrow, Gambian politician, President of Gambia (2017-), born in Mankamang Kunda, Gambia
- 1968 Warren Ellis, British comic book writer (Red), born in Essex, England
- 1970 D.J. Wallis, American fitness competitor
- 1977 Ian Clarke, Irish computer programmer
- 1998 Mr Jefferson, Virginia, 1st cloned calf
February in History
Ancient Dresden Reduced to Rubble
The blanket bombing of Dresden in East Germany which began on this day, cost thousands of lives and remains highly controversial.
February 13, 1945
Last Adventure of Captain Cook
Explorer James Cook was the first European to set foot on Hawaii, where he was thought to be a god. But he would never leave the island alive.
February 14, 1779
A Deadly Bite, Or King Tut's Revenge?
It was one of the most spectacular archaeological finds – but was the disturbed Tutankhamun a sleeping tiger?
February 16, 1923
Buried at Sea: The Casket That Carried JFK
John F. Kennedy's aides struggling to load the casket containing the slain President aboard Air Force One is an enduring image. But what happened to the casket?
February 18, 1966