On this day: 8 December

Selected events and births on 8 December, from Wikipedia’s “On this day”.

Events

• 1504 – Ahmad ibn Abi Jum'ah wrote his Oran fatwa, arguing for the relaxation of Islamic law for forcibly converted Muslims in Spain. Read more: Ahmad ibn Abi Jum'ah Oran fatwa Fiqh
• 1660 – Margaret Hughes appeared professionally on the English stage; she is thought to have been the first woman to do so. Read more: Margaret Hughes
• 1854 – Pope Pius IX promulgated the apostolic constitution Ineffabilis Deus, proclaiming the dogmatic definition of the Immaculate Conception, which holds that the Virgin Mary was conceived free of original sin. Read more: Pope Pius IX Apostolic constitution Ineffabilis Deus
• 1880 – At an assembly of 10,000 Boers, Paul Kruger announced the fulfilment of the decision to restore the government and volksraad of the South African Republic. Read more: Boers Paul Kruger Volksraad (South African Republic)
• 1991 – Belarusian, Russian and Ukrainian leaders signed the Belovezh Accords, agreeing to dissolve the Soviet Union and establish the Commonwealth of Independent States. Read more: Belovezha Accords Dissolution of the Soviet Union Commonwealth of Independent States
• 1998 – The Australian Cricket Board's cover-up of Shane Warne and Mark Waugh's involvement with bookmakers was revealed. Read more: Cricket Australia Shane Warne Mark Waugh
• 2010 – The Japanese experimental spacecraft IKAROS flew by Venus at a distance of 80,800 km (50,200 mi), completing its planned mission to demonstrate solar-sail technology. Read more: IKAROS Solar sail
• 2013 – Metallica played a concert in Antarctica, becoming the first band to perform on all seven continents. Read more: Metallica Freeze 'Em All

Born on this day

• 1931 – Bob Arum, American boxing promoter, founded Top Rank Read more: Bob Arum Top Rank
• 1947 – Thomas Cech, American chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate Read more: Thomas Cech Nobel Prize in Chemistry
• 1951 – Richard Desmond, English publisher and businessman, founded Northern & Shell Read more: Richard Desmond Northern & Shell
• 1952 – Khaw Boon Wan, Malayan-Singaporean politician, Singaporean Minister of Health Read more: Khaw Boon Wan Ministry of Health (Singapore)
• 1956 – Andrius Kubilius, Lithuanian academic and politician, 9th Prime Minister of Lithuania Read more: Andrius Kubilius Prime Minister of Lithuania
• 1993 – Cara Mund, American model, Miss America 2018 Read more: Cara Mund Miss America 2018
• 2000 – DeMario Douglas, American football player Read more: DeMario Douglas
• 2000 – Bayron Matos, Dominican American football player Read more: Bayron Matos
• 2001 – Josh Christopher, American basketball player Read more: Josh Christopher
• 2002 – Sunghoon, South Korean singer Read more: Sunghoon (singer, born 2002)
• 2004 – Billie Starkz, American professional wrestler Read more: Billie Starkz
• 2004 – Momoe Mori, Japanese entertainer Read more: Momoe Mori

Text from Wikipedia: Selected anniversaries / December 8 and the linked articles, via the Wikimedia “On this day” feed, under CC BY-SA 4.0. We leave out entries about wars, violence and disasters to keep this page family-friendly.