May 21 birthdays, facts & history
Everything about being born on May 21, from your sign and birth stone to who shares your birthday.
Zodiac sign
♊︎ Gemini
May 21 – Jun 20
Birth stone
Emerald
Birth flower
Lily of the valley
How common
#143 of 366
by US birth counts
Famous May 21 birthdays
Charles Albert Gobat · Swiss politician and lawyer1843
Louis Renault · French jurist1843
Henri Rousseau · French painter1844
Émile Verhaeren · Belgian poet1855
Willem Einthoven · Dutch physiologist1860
Lázaro Cárdenas · 51st President of Mexico1895
Fats Waller · American jazz pianist and composer1904
Romain Gary · French writer and diplomat1914
Harold Robbins · American novelist1916
Andrei Sakharov · Soviet nuclear physicist and human rights activist1921
Günter Blobel · German American biologist1936
Mengistu Haile Mariam · Former General Secretary of the Workers' Party of Ethiopia1937
Mary Robinson · Former President of Ireland and former United Nations High Commissioner1944
Mr. T · American actor and professional wrestler1952
Sergei Shoigu · Secretary of the Security Council of the Russian Federation since 20241955
Abdulla Yameen · President of the Maldives from 2013 to 20181959
Lisa Edelstein · American actress1966
The Notorious B.I.G. · American rapper1972
Mario Mandžukić · Croatian association football player1986
Masato Morishige · Japanese association football player1987
On this day in history
1851The Congress of Colombia passed a law abolishing slavery in the country, to take effect at the beginning of the new year.
1856A crowd of about 800 pro-slavery Americans ransacked the town of Lawrence, Kansas.
1864American Civil War: The inconclusive Battle of Spotsylvania Court House in Virginia ended with combined Union and Confederate casualties totaling around 31,000.
2005The world's tallest roller coaster, Kingda Ka, opened at Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey, U.S.
1934Oskaloosa, Iowa, becomes the first municipality in the United States to fingerprint all of its citizens.
1998Indonesian president Suharto resigned after a collapse of support for his presidency amid economic and political crises, ending 32 years in power.
2015Islamic State militants entered the ancient city of Palmyra.
2024The Greenfield tornado, estimated to have produced winds in excess of 309 miles per hour (497 km/h), moved across Iowa.
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