Kamitaira, Toyama

Kamitaira (上平村; -mura) was a village located in Higashitonami District, Toyama, Japan. On November 1, 2004, Kamitaira joined 7 other villages and towns to create the city of Nanto, Toyama. As of 2003, the village had an estimated population of 956 and a density of 10.09 persons per km². The total area was 94.77 km².

External links

- [http://www.city.nanto.toyama.jp/webapps/www/english/index.html/ Nanto City official website (in English)] Toyama, Kamitaira ja:上平村

Villages of Japan

A village (村 mura or son) is a local administrative unit in Japan. It is a local public body along with prefecture (ken or other equivalents), city (shi), and town (cho). Geographically, a village's extent is contained within a prefecture. It is larger than an actual settlement, being in actuality a subdivision of a rural district, districts are subdivided into towns and villages, with no overlap, and no uncovered area.

Prefectures without villages

(As of January 16, 2005)
- Hyōgo
- Hiroshima
- Kagawa
- Shiga (the village of Kutsuki merged with several other towns to form the new city of Takashima on January 1, 2005)
- Ehime (several recent mergers, the last of which was on January 16, 2005)

Prefectures with only one village

(As of January 16, 2005)
- Kanagawa (Kiyokawa, Aikō District)
- Kyōto (Minamiyamashiro, Soraku District)
- Ōsaka (Chihayaakasaka, Minamikawachi District)
- Tottori (Hiezu, Saihaku District)
- Nagasaki (Ōshima, Kitamatsuura District)

Toyama Prefecture

Toyama Prefecture (富山県; Toyama-ken) is located in the Chubu region on Honshu island, Japan. The capital is the city of Toyama. Toyama is the leading industrial prefecture on the Japan-sea coast, and has the industrial advantage of cheap electricity. The Itai-itai disease occurred in Toyama around 1950.

History

Geography

Cities

- Himi
- Kurobe
- Namerikawa
- Nanto
- Oyabe
- Shinminato
- Takaoka
- Tonami
- Toyama (capital)
- Uozu

Towns and villages

These are the towns and villages in each district. The prefecture used to have a seventh district, Higashitonami, consisting of the towns of Fukona, Inami, Johana, and Shogawa and the villages of Inokuchi, Kamiataira, Taira, and Toga. All of these towns and villages except Shogawa participated in the merger that formed the city of Nanto. The former Shogawa town is now part of the city of Tonami.

Economy

The Kurobe dam generates hydroelectricity for Kansai Electric Power Company. It is located on the Kurobe River in Toyama Prefecture.

Demographics

Culture

Tourism

Regional dishes of Toyama include trout sushi and firefly squid. The region is traversed by the Hokuriku Line, with high speed rail access to Osaka via the Thunderbird train. The Shirasagi train allows for easy transfer to the Nagano shinkansen bullet-train line.

Prefectural symbols

Miscellaneous topics

External links

- [http://www.pref.toyama.jp/master/02guide/welcome/welcome_e.htm Official Toyama Prefecture homepage]
- Category:Chubu region ko:도야마 현 ja:富山県

November 1

November 1 is the 305th day of the year (306th in leap years) in the Gregorian Calendar, with 60 days remaining.

Events

- 996 - Emperor Otto III issues a deed to Gottschalk, Bishop of Freising, which is the oldest known document using the name Ostarrîchi (Austria in Old High German).
- 1512 - The ceiling of the Sistine Chapel, painted by Michelangelo, is exhibited to the public for the first time.
- 1520 - The Strait of Magellan, the passage immediately south of mainland South America, connecting the Pacific and the Atlantic Oceans, is first navigated by Ferdinand Magellan during his global circumnavigation voyage.
- 1530 - An approximated 400,000 die after the Netherlands' dikes fail.
- 1592 - At the Battle of Busan, the outnumbered Korean navy defeats a larger Japanese army.
- 1604 - William Shakespeare's tragedy Othello is presented for the first time, at Whitehall Palace in London.
- 1611 - William Shakespeare's romantic comedy The Tempest is presented for the first time, at Whitehall Palace in London.
- 1612 - (22 October O.S.) Time of Troubles in Russia: Moscow Kitai-gorod taken by Russian troops under command of Dmitry Pozharsky
- 1683 - The British crown colony of New York is subdivided into 12 counties.
- 1755 - Lisbon earthquake: In Portugal, Lisbon is destroyed by a massive earthquake and tsunami, killing between sixty and ninety thousand people.
- 1765 - The British Parliament enacts the Stamp Act on the 13 colonies in order to help pay for British military operations in North America.
- 1790 - Edmund Burke publishes Reflections on the Revolution in France, in which he predicts that the French Revolution will end in disaster.
- 1800 - US President John Adams becomes the first President of the United States to live in the Executive Mansion (later renamed the White House).
- 1848 - In Boston, Massachusetts, the first medical school for women, The Boston Female Medical School (which will later merge with Boston University School of Medicine), opens.
- 1859 - The current Cape Lookout, North Carolina, lighthouse is lighted for the first time. Its first-order Fresnel lens can be seen for 19 miles (30 kilometers).
- 1861 - American Civil War: US President Abraham Lincoln appoints George McClellan as commander of the Union Army, replacing the aged General Winfield Scott.
- 1870 - In the United States, the Weather Bureau (later renamed the National Weather Service) makes its first official meteorological forecast.
- 1871 - The Stamford to Bourne, Lincolnshire turnpike road was freed from tolls.
- 1876 - New Zealand's provincial government system is dissolved.
- 1894 - Nicholas II becomes the new Tsar of Russia after his father, Alexander III, dies.
- 1896 - A picture showing the naked breasts of a woman appears in National Geographic magazine for the first time.
- 1901 - Sigma Phi Epsilon, a national men's collegiate fraternity is established at Richmond College, in Richmond, VA.
- 1914 - World War I: the first British naval defeat of the war, the Battle of Coronel is fought off of the coast of Chile.
- 1918 - Malbone Street Wreck: the worst rapid transit accident in US history occurs under the intersection of Malbone Street and Flatbush Avenue, Brooklyn, New York City, with at least 93 dead. Western Ukraine gains independence from Austria-Hungary
- 1922 - The last sultan of the Ottoman Empire, Mehmed VI, abdicates.
- 1939 - The first rabbit born after artificial insemination is shown to the world.
- 1943 - World War II: Operation Goodtime launched - United States Marines invade Bougainville in the Solomon Islands.
- 1944 - World War II: Operation Infatuate launched - The British Army land at Walcheren in the Netherlands.
- 1945 - The official North Korean newspaper, Rodong Sinmun, is first published under the name Chongro.
- 1948 - Off southern Manchuria, 6,000 are killed as a Chinese merchant ship explodes and sinks.
- 1950 - Puerto Rican nationalists Griselio Torresola and Oscar Collazo attempt to assassinate US President Harry S. Truman at Blair House.
- 1950 - Pope Pius XII claims Papal Infallibility when he formally defines the dogma of the Assumption of Mary.
- 1951 - US soldiers are exposed to an atomic explosion for training purposes in Desert Rock, Nevada; participation was not voluntary.
- 1952 - Operation Ivy - The United States successfully detonates the first hydrogen bomb, codenamed "Mike" ["m" for megaton], at Eniwetok island in the Bikini atoll located in the Pacific Ocean.
- 1954 - The Front de Libération Nationale fires the first shots of the Algerian War of Independence.
- 1955 - A United Airlines DC-6B explodes in mid-air and crashes near Longmont, Colorado, killing 44 people
- 1956- Formation of the Indian state of Karnataka (1973), formerly known as Mysore State.
- 1956 - Formation of Kerala state in India.
- 1957 - The Mackinac Bridge, the world's longest suspension bridge between anchorages at the time, opens to traffic connecting Michigan's two peninsulas.
- 1960 - While campaigning for President of the United States, John F. Kennedy announces his idea of the Peace Corps.
- 1963 - The Arecibo Observatory in Arecibo, Puerto Rico, with the largest radio telescope ever constructed, officially opens.
- 1969 - After seven years off the top of the charts, Elvis Presley hits number one on the Billboard Hot 100 chart with his song "Suspicious Minds."
- 1970 - A fire at a dance hall in Saint-Laurent-du-Pont, France kills 144 young people.
- 1973 - Watergate Scandal: Leon Jaworski is appointed as the new Watergate Special Prosecutor.
- 1973 - Formation of Karnataka state in India.
- 1980 - Wayanad district formed in the state of Kerala, India.
- 1981 - Antigua and Barbuda gain independence from the United Kingdom.
- 1990 - A New York City civil jury awards Sandra Miller $100 for battery after an incident in which Mike Tyson grabbed her breasts and insulted her; the jury found Tyson's behavior "not outrageous".
- 1993 - The Maastricht Treaty takes effect, formally establishing the European Union.
- 1994 - George Lucas leaves the day-to-day operations of his filmmaking business and starts a sabbatical. While on sabbatical, he writes the prequel section of the Star Wars movies.
- 1994 - The Chijon Family is sentenced to death in South Korea for murdering and eating five people.
- 1998 - The European Court of Human Rights is instituted.
- 2004 - The Bank of Japan issues a new series of 1000, 5000, and 10,000 yen notes. Both old and the new series will circulate together.
- 2005 - ITV PLC's new digital channel, ITV4, lanches on Freeview, NTL digital, and Sky Digital.
- 2005 - Makybe Diva wins her third consecutive Melbourne Cup race.
- 2005 - First part of the Gomery Report, which discusses allegations of political money manipulation, is released in Canada.
- 2005 - The U.S. Senate enters a rare closed session to discuss the Plame affair and intelligence in the Iraq disarmament crisis.

Births

- 846 - Louis the Stammerer, King of West Francia (d. 879)
- 1339 - Duke Rudolf IV of Austria (d. 1365)
- 1351 - Duke Leopold III of Austria (d. 1386)
- 1500 - Benvenuto Cellini, Italian goldsmith, sculptor, and writer (d. 1571)
- 1530 - Étienne de La Boétie, French judge and writer (d. 1563)
- 1539 - Pierre Pithou, French lawyer and scholar (d. 1596)
- 1567 - Diego Sarmiento de Acuña, conde de Gondomar, Spanish diplomat (d. 1626)
- 1578 - Dmitry Pozharsky, Russian prince (d. 1642)
- 1585 - Jan Brożek, Polish mathematician, physician, and astronomer (d. 1652)
- 1607 - Georg Philipp Harsdorffer, German poet (d. 1658)
- 1611 - François-Marie, comte de Broglie, Italian-born French commander (d. 1656)
- 1636 - Nicolas Boileau-Despréaux, French poet and critic (d. 1711)
- 1643 - John Strype, English historian and biographer (d. 1737)
- 1661 - Florent Carton Dancourt, French dramatist and actor (d. 1725)
- 1704 - Paul Daniel Longolius, German encylopedist (d. 1779)
- 1720 - Toussaint-Guillaume Picquet de la Motte, French admiral (d. 1791)
- 1762 - Spencer Perceval, Prime Minister of Great Britain (d. 1812)
- 1778 - Gustav IV Adolf of Sweden (d. 1837)
- 1808 - John Taylor, American religious leader (d. 1887)
- 1860 - Boies Penrose, United States Senator from Pennsylvania (d. 1921)
- 1871 - Stephen Crane, American writer (d. 1900)
- 1877 - Roger Quilter, British composer (d. 1953)
- 1878 - Konrad Mägi, Estonian painter (d. 1925)
- 1878 - Carlos Saavedra Lamas, Argentine politician, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1959)
- 1880 - Sholom Asch, Polish-born American writer (d. 1957)
- 1880 - Grantland Rice, American sports writer (d. 1954)
- 1880 - Alfred Wegener, German meteorologist and geophysicist (d. 1930)
- 1886 - Hermann Broch, Austrian author (d. 1951)
- 1887 - L. S. Lowry, British painter of industrial scenes (d. 1976)
- 1889 - Philip Noel-Baker, Baron Noel-Baker, Canadian-born peace activist, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (d. 1982)
- 1892 - Alexander Alekhine, Russian-born many times World Champion chess player (d. 1946)
- 1902 - Eugen Jochum, German conductor (d. 1987)
- 1923 - Gordon R. Dickson, Canadian author (d. 2001)
- 1923 - Victoria de los Angeles, Catalan soprano (d. 2005)
- 1929 - Betsy Palmer, American actress
- 1929 - Nicholas Mavroules, United States Congressman from Massachusetts (d. 2003)
- 1934 - Umberto Agnelli, Swiss-born automobile executive (d. 2004)
- 1934 - William Mathias, British composer (d. 1992)
- 1935 - Gary Player, South African golfer
- 1935 - Edward Said, Palestinian-born literary critic (d. 2003)
- 1939 - Barbara Bosson, American actress
- 1940 - Ramesh Chandra Lahoti, Chief Justice of India
- 1942 - Larry Flynt, American magazine publisher
- 1942 - Ralph Klein, Premier of Alberta
- 1949 -Michael Griffin, NASA chief administrator
- 1950 - Robert B. Laughlin, American physicist, Nobel Prize laureate
- 1957 - Lyle Lovett, American singer
- 1957 - Carlos Paião, Portuguese singer (d. 1988)
- 1962 - Anthony Kiedis, American singer (Red Hot Chili Peppers)
- 1963 - Rick Allen, British drummer (Def Leppard)
- 1967 - Sophie B. Hawkins, American musician
- 1972 - Toni Collette, Australian actress
- 1972 - Paul Dickov, Scottish footballer
- 1973 - Aishwarya Rai, Indian actress
- 1974 - VVS Laxman, Indian cricketer
- 1976 - Matt Chapman, American cartoonist and voice actor
- 1978 - Manju Warrier, Indian actress

Deaths

- 1296 - Guillaume Durand, French writer
- 1391 - Amadeus VII of Savoy (b. 1360)
- 1399 - John V, Duke of Brittany (b. 1339)
- 1546 - Giulio Romano, Italian painter
- 1588 - Jean Daurat, French poet (b. 1508)
- 1596 - Pierre Pithou, French lawyer and scholar (b. 1539)
- 1642 - Jean Nicolet, French explorer (b. 1598)
- 1676 - Gisbertus Voetius, Dutch theologian (b. 1589)
- 1678 - William Coddington, first Governor of Rhode Island (b. 1601)
- 1700 - Charles II of Spain (b. 1661)
- 1888 - Nikolai Przhevalsky, Russian explorer (b. 1838)
- 1894 - Tsar Alexander III of Russia (b. 1845)
- 1903 - Theodor Mommsen, German writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1817)
- 1942 - Hugo Distler, German composer (b. 1908)
- 1972 - Ezra Pound, American poet (b. 1885)
- 1979 - Mamie Eisenhower, First Lady of the United States (b. 1896)
- 1982 - King Vidor, American film director (b. 1894)
- 1983 - Anthony van Hoboken, Dutch musicologist (b. 1887)
- 1985 - Phil Silvers, American actor and comedian (b. 1911)
- 1987 - René Lévesque, Premier of Quebec (b. 1922)
- 1993 - Severo Ochoa, Spanish–born biochemist, recipient of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine (b. 1905)
- 1999 - Walter Payton, American football player (b. 1954)
- 2004 - Mac Dre, American rap artist (b. 1970)
- 2005 - Skitch Henderson, English-born bandleader (b. 1918)
- 2005 - Michael Piller, American screenwriter (b. 1948)

Holidays and observances

- Roman festivals - last day of the Ludi Victoriae Sullanae.
- Catholicism - Holy Day of Obligation, All Saints Day. Holiday in Austria, Belgium, Croatia, France, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Lithuania, Mexico, The Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Seychelles, Slovenia, Spain.
- Also see November 1 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- Algeria - National day, commemorating the begin of the struggle for independence from France.
- Antigua and Barbuda - Independence Day] (from Britain, 1981)
- Ireland - Samhain the traditional first day of Winter
- Mexico - The Day of the Dead
- World Vegan Day
- Kickoff day for National Novel Writing Month

External links

- [http://news.bbc.co.uk/onthisday/hi/dates/stories/november/1 BBC: On This Day] ---- October 31 - November 2 - October 1 - December 1 - more historical anniversaries ko:11월 1일 ms:1 November ja:11月1日 simple:November 1 th:1 พฤศจิกายน

2004

2004 (MMIV) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. It was designated the:
- International Year of Rice (by the United Nations)
- International Year to Commemorate the Struggle against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO)
- 2004 World Health Day topic was Road Safety (by World Health Organization)
- Year of the Monkey (by the Chinese calendar) See the world in 2004 for a description of the state of the world in this year. See also Wikipedia's almanac of events for this year.
Events

January

- January 1 - Pervez Musharraf gets a vote of confidence from an electoral college consisting of Parliament and the provincial assemblies, confirming him as President of Pakistan until 2007.
- January 3 - Flash Airlines Flight 604 crashes into the Red Sea off the coast of Egypt, killing all 148 aboard.
- January 4 - Mikhail Saakashvili wins the presidential elections in Georgia.
- January 4 -NASA's MER-A (Spirit) lands on Mars.
- January 8 - Queen Elizabeth II christens the RMS Queen Mary 2 cruise liner, currently the largest ocean liner in the world.
- January 13 - An Uzbekistan Airways plane crashes in Uzbekistan's capital of Tashkent, killing 37.
- January 22 - The European Union bans the import of poultry from Thailand, as bird flu spreads throughout Southeast Asia.
- January 24 - NASA's MER-B (Opportunity) lands on Mars.
- January 27 - The British government narrowly wins a House of Commons vote on the proposed introduction of tuition top-up fees in British universities.
- January 28 - The findings of the Hutton Inquiry are published in London. The British Government is found not to have falsified information in the "sexed up dossier". The report criticises the BBC's role in the death of David Kelly, a weapons expert on Iraq.
- January 28 - At a hearing of the National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States, it is revealed that the September 11, 2001, terrorists used Mace (a brand of tear gas) or pepper spray in overpowering the flight crew of American Airlines Flight 11.
February

- February 1 - A hajj stampede in Mina, Saudi Arabia, kills 251 pilgrims.
- February 3 - The CIA admits that there was no imminent threat from weapons of mass destruction before the 2003 invasion of Iraq.
- February 6 - A suicide bomber kills 41 people on a metro car in Moscow.
- February 7 - Several leaders of Abnaa el-Balad arrested in Israel.
- February 10 - At least 50 people killed in a car bomb attack on a police recruitment centre south of Baghdad.
- February 10 - The French National Assembly votes to pass a law banning religious items and clothing from schools.
- February 12 - Same sex marriage in the United States: The City and County of San Francisco begins issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples as an act of civil disobedience.
- February 13 - Scientists in South Korea announce the cloning of 30 human embryos.
- February 14 - Riots break out between New South Wales Police and Aboriginal residents of Redfern, a suburb of Sydney, Australia.
- February 18 - A train carrying a convoy of petrol, fertiliser, and sulfur derails and explodes in Iran, killing 320 people.
- February 20 - Conservatives win a majority in the Iranian parliament election.
- February 24 - 6.5 Richter scale earthquake in Northern Morocco hits in the Rif mountains near the city of Al Hoceima - over 400 dead. Ait Kamara is destroyed. 517 dead.
- February 25- Ash Wednesday. Also, the religious docudrama, The Passion of the Christ was released.
- February 26 - The United States lifts a ban on travel to Libya, ending travel restrictions to the nation that had lasted for 23 years.
- February 26 - Macedonian President Boris Trajkovski is killed in a plane crash near Mostar, Bosnia and Herzegovina.
- February 29 - 2004 Haiti rebellion: Jean-Bertrand Aristide resigns as president of Haiti. The chief justice of the Haitian Supreme Court, Boniface Alexandre, is sworn in as interim president.
- February 29 - The film The Lord of the Rings: The Return of the King directed by Peter Jackson wins 11 Academy Awards in every category it was nominated.
March

- March 2 - John Kerry effectively clinches the 2004 U.S. Democratic Party presidential nomination by winning nine out of 10 "Super Tuesday" primaries and caucuses.
- March 2 - NASA announces that the Mars rover MER-B (Opportunity), has confirmed that the area of Mars they landed in was once drenched in water.
- March 10 - Five British men released from detention at Camp Delta, Guantanamo Bay land at RAF Brize Norton. Four are immediately arrested for questioning.
- March 11 - Simultaneous explosions on rush hour trains in Madrid kill 190 people.
- March 12 - Following the terrorist attacks in Madrid on March 11, millions of protesters take to the streets of Spanish cities against terrorism.
- March 14 - Two suicide bombers kill eleven Israeli civilians in Ashdod, Israel.
- March 14 - The Spanish parliamentary elections of 2004 take place. The incumbent government led by José María Aznar is defeated by the Socialist José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero.
- March 14 - Presidential elections in Russia are held. Vladimir Putin easily wins a second term.
- March 15 - A trio of astronomers announce they have discovered a large trans-Neptunian object, the largest object found in the solar system since Pluto was discovered in 1930. Initially designated 2003 VB₁₂, it was named 90377 Sedna in late September.
- March 15 - The new Spanish government announces that it will withdraw Spain's 1,300 troops in Iraq.
- March 17 - Organized violence breaks out over two days in Kosovo. Nineteen people are killed, 139 Serbian homes are burned, schools and businesses are vandalized, and over 30 orthodox monasteries and churches are burned and destroyed.
- March 19 - The UN launches a corruption investigation due to the scandal over its Iraqi Oil for Food program.
- March 20 - President Chen Shui-bian wins the Taiwanese presidential election by 0.2% of the vote. The day before, he and Vice President Annette Lu were 'shot'. Lien Chan refuses to concede and demands a recount. A controversial 'peace referendum' opposed by the People's Republic of China is invalidated.
- March 21 - The 2004 Malaysian general election takes place. The incumbent Barisan Nasional party wins 198 out of 219 seats in the Malaysian Parliament.
- March 21 - Tony Saca is elected President of El Salvador (inauguration June 1).
- March 22 - Palestinians protest in the streets after an Israeli helicopter gunship fires a missile at the entourage of Ahmed Yassin in Gaza City, killing Yassin and 7 others.
- March 25 - British Prime Minister Tony Blair visits Libyan leader Colonel Muammar al-Qaddafi, in return for the dismantling of Libya's WMD programme in December 2003 - the first time a major western leader has visited the nation in several decades.
- March 28 - In France, the government of Prime Minister Jean-Pierre Raffarin suffers a stunning and unprecedented defeat in regional elections. The first ever South Atlantic Hurricane makes landfall in South Brazil on the state of Santa Catarina, the Hurricane is dubbed Hurricane Catarina.
- March 29 - The Republic of Ireland bans smoking in all enclosed work places including: restaurants, pubs and bars.
- March 29 - Largest expansion of NATO to date, allowing Bulgaria, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania, Romania, Slovakia and Slovenia into the organization.
- March 31 - Four American private military contractors working for Blackwater USA, are killed and their bodies mutilated after being ambushed in Fallujah, Iraq.
April

- April 1 - Faroese Prime Minister's Office announces that from then on the Prime Minister and the Prime Minister's Office would use a new version of the Faroese Coat of Arms. The colours were inspired from the Merkið (flag) and yellow/gold was added. The new Coat of Arms depicts a Ram on a blue shield ready to defend. It can be used by the Government Ministries and by Faroese embassies, but some still use older versions of the Coat of Arms. Coat of Arms
- April 3 - A bomb explosion in a Madrid flat kills a Spanish policeman and five terrorists suspected of responsibility for the Madrid train bombings on March 11.
- April 4 - Serious fighting breaks out in Najaf, Sadr City, and Basra in Iraq as Shia insurgents supporting Muqtada al-Sadr rise against coalition forces.
- April 5 - Queen Elizabeth II begins a state visit to France to celebrate the 100th anniversary of the Entente Cordiale.
- April 8 - Darfur conflict: The Humanitarian Ceasefire Agreement is signed by the Sudanese government and two rebel groups.
- April 8 - Three Japanese citizens are taken hostage in Iraq.
- April 8 - Former Japanese famous economist, professor at Waseda University graduate school Kazuhide Uekusa was arrested on the escalator of JR Shinagawa Station because of trying to peep under high school girl's skirt with his hand mirror.
- April 16 - India defeats Pakistan in their first cricket tour in 14 years.
- April 17 - Israeli helicopters fire missiles at a convoy of vehicles in the Gaza Strip, killing the Gaza leader of Hamas, Abdel Aziz al-Rantissi.
- April 20 - In Iraq, 12 mortars were fired on Abu Ghraib Prison by insurgents. Twenty two detainees were killed and 92 wounded. [http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/iraq/2004-04-20-iraq_x.htm]
- April 21 - Mordechai Vanunu, who revealed an Israeli nuclear weapons programme in the 1980s, is released from prison in Israel after an 18 year term for treason.
- April 22 - Two trains carrying explosives and fuel collide in the North Korean town of Ryongchon, killing 161 people, injuring 1,300 and destroying thousands of homes.
- April 22 - The last coal mine in France closes, ending nearly 300 years of coal mining.
- April 25 - Referenda on a United Nations plan, which proposes to re-unite the island of Cyprus, take place in both the Greek and Turkish parts. Although the Turks vote in favour, the Greeks reject the proposal.
- April 28 - Abuse of prisoners at the Abu Ghraib prison in Iraq is revealed on the television show 60 Minutes II.
May

- May 1 - the largest expansion to date of the European Union takes place, extending the Union by 10 member-states: Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Slovenia, Hungary, Malta and Cyprus.
- May 6 - The final episode of Friends airs on NBC, drawing an estimated 52 million viewers in North America.
- May 8 - Would-be "Saudi Princess" "Antoinette Millard" surfaces in New York City and claims that muggers had stolen jewels worth of $262.000 from her (she later proves to be an impostor).
- May 9 - Chechen president Akhmad Kadyrov is killed by landmine placed under a VIP stage during a World War II memorial parade in Grozny.
- May 9 - Team of Canada won the World Ice Hockey Championship in Prague.
- May 10 - The 2004 Philippine presidential and legislative elections take place. Incumbent president Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo wins the presidency.
- May 11 - An explosion destroys a plastics factory in Glasgow, UK, killing nine people and injuring over a hundred.
- May 12 - An American civilian contractor in Iraq, Nick Berg, is shown being decapitated by a group allegedly linked to al-Qaida on a web-distributed video.
- May 13 - In India, the Congress Party wins a surprise victory in the elections to the Lok Sabha.
- May 14 - Frederik, Crown Prince of Denmark, marries Australian Mary Donaldson in Copenhagen.
- May 17 - Ezzedine Salim, holder of the rotating leadership of the Iraqi Governing Council, is killed in a bomb blast in Baghdad.
- May 17 - Massachusetts legalizes same-sex marriage in compliance with a ruling from the state's Supreme Judicial Court (Goodridge v. Department of Public Health).
- May 19 - Tony Blair is hit with a purple flour bomb in the chamber of the House of Commons during a session of Prime Minister's Questions.
- May 19 - Jeremy Sivits pleads guilty in a court-martial in connection with alleged abuse of Iraqi prisoners at Abu Ghraib prison in Baghdad.
- May 23 - A section of the ceiling in Terminal 2E at Paris's Charles de Gaulle International Airport collapses, claiming at least six lives.
- May 23 - Japanese prime minister Junichiro Koizumi visits North Korea to secure the release of the families of the nine abducted Japanese citizens returned earlier.
- May 26 - Terry Nichols is convicted by an Oklahoma state court on murder charges stemming from the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
- May 29 - Dedication of the National World War II Memorial takes place in Washington, DC.
- May 30 - Thousands of people in Hong Kong take to the streets to commemorate the 15th anniversary of the Tiananmen Square massacre.
June

- June 1 - Twelve-year-old Satomi Mitarai, a Japanese schoolgirl attending Okubo Elementary School in Sasebo, Japan is murdered. Her killer, an 11-year-old classmate identified by Japanese authorities as "Girl A", becomes the basis for the Nevada-tan Internet meme.
- June 4 - Marvin Heemeyer destroys many local buildings with a home-made tank in Grancby, Colorado
- June 5 - Former President of the United States, Ronald Reagan, dies at age 93.
- June 6 - The 60th anniversary of D-Day is remembered by world leaders.
- June 7 - Tampa Bay Lightning defeat Calgary Flames in 2004 Stanley Cup Finals.
- June 8 - The first transit of Venus since 1882 occurs; the next one will occur in 2012.
- June 8 - The G8 Summit takes place over the next 2 days on Sea Island, in Georgia, USA.
- June 8 - The pickled heart of Louis XVII of France is buried in the royal crypt at Saint-Denis.
- June 11 - Terry Nichols is spared the death penalty by an Oklahoma state court on murder charges stemming from the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing. The decision came on the third anniversary of the execution of his co-defendant, Timothy James McVeigh, in Terre Haute, Indiana.
- June 11 - After the first presidential state funeral since 1973, President Ronald Wilson Reagan is laid to rest at Simi Valley, California, at the site of the Reagan Presidential Library.
- June 12 - A 1.3 kg chondrite type meteorite struck a house in Ellerslie, New Zealand causing serious damage but no injuries.Ellerslie, New Zealand
- June 15 - The Detroit Pistons upset the heavily favored Los Angeles Lakers to win the 2004 NBA Finals, four games to one.
- June 16 - The National Commission on Terrorist Attacks Upon the United States (or "9/11 Commission") issues an initial report of its findings.
- June 21 - SpaceShipOne becomes the first privately-funded spaceplane to achieve spaceflight.
- June 28 - Union Pacific and Burlington Northern Santa Fe trains collided in a rural area outside of San Antonio, Texas. Forty cars were derailed, including one chlorine car, and three people died, another 50 people were hospitalized because of exposure to the gas.
- June 28 - The U.S.-led coalition occupying Iraq transfers sovereignty to an interim Iraqi government.
- June 28 - Canadian election: The Liberal Party, led by Paul Martin, is reduced to a minority government, after holding a majority since November 1993.
- June 30 - The preliminary hearings begin in Iraq in the trial of former president Saddam Hussein, for war crimes and crimes against humanity.
July

- July 1 - The Cassini-Huygens spacecraft arrives at Saturn.
- July 4 - Groundbreaking of Freedom Tower at Ground Zero in New York City.
- July 4 - The Euro 2004 final between Portugal and Greece takes place in Lisbon, Portugal. Greece wins the match 1:0.
- July 22 - The Old Bridge of Mostar in Bosnia-Herzegovina is reconstructed and reopened after being destroyed by Bosnian Croat forces on November 9, 1993.
- July 25 - Over 100,000 opponents to Israel's unilateral disengagement plan of 2004 participate in a human chain from Gush Katif, to the Western Wall, Jerusalem (90 kilometers).
- July 25 - Lance Armstrong of Austin, Texas wins an unprecedented 6th consecutive Tour de France cycling title.
August

- August 1 - Supermarket fire in Asunción, Paraguay, kills about 400 people and leaves over 100 missing.
- August 3 - Statue of Liberty reopens after security improvements.
- August 6 - A United Nations report that blames the government of Sudan for crimes against humanity in Darfur is released.
- August 12 - Singapore's prime minister Goh Chok Tong hands over his position to Lee Hsien Loong.
- August 13 - The 2004 Summer Olympics begin in Athens. They end on August 29.
- August 13 - Hurricane Charley kills 27 people in Florida after killing four in Cuba and one in Jamaica. Charley made landfall near Cayo Costa, FL as a Category 4 hurricane. Charley was the most intense hurricane to strike the United States since Hurricane Andrew in 1992.
- August 16 - Severe flooding in the village of Boscastle in Cornwall.
- August 18 - In Dublin, Ireland the Dublin Port Tunnel excavation works were completed and the final tunnel boring machine breakthrough ceremony took place.
- August 21 - A series of blasts rocks a rally of an opposition party in Dhaka, Bangladesh, killing at least 13 people.
- August 22 - Armed robbers steal Edvard Munch's The Scream, Madonna and other paintings from the Munch Museum in Oslo, Norway.
- August 24 - Two airliners in Russia, carrying a total of 89 passengers, crash within minutes of each other after flying out of Domodedovo International Airport, leaving no survivors. Authorities suspect suicide attacks by rebels from Chechnya to be the cause of the crashes.
- August 29 - Around 200,000 protesters demonstrate in New York City against President George W. Bush and his government, ahead of the 2004 Republican National Convention.
- August 31 - Two suicide attacks on buses in Beer Sheva, Israel, kill at least 16 people and injure at least 60. Hamas claims responsibility for the attacks.
- August 31 - A woman commits a suicide attack near a subway station in northern Moscow, Russia, killing at least 10 people and injuring at least 50. Authorities hold Chechen rebels responsible.
September

- September 1 - Chechen rebels take between 1,000 and 1,500 people hostage, mostly children, in a school in Beslan, Northern Ossetia. The hostage-takers demand the release of Chechen rebels imprisoned in neighbouring Ingushetia and the independence of Chechnya from Russia.
- September 2 - The United Nations Security Council adopts Resolution 1559 calling for the removal of all foreign troops from Lebanon. This measure is largely aimed at Syrian troops.
- September 3 - Russian forces end the siege at a school in Beslan, Northern Ossetia. At least 335 people (among which at least 32 of the approximately 40 hostage-takers) have been killed and at least 700 people have been injured.
- September 3 - Hurricane Frances makes landfall in Florida. After killing two people in the Bahamas, Hurricane Frances killed ten people in Florida, two in Georgia and one in South Carolina.
- September 7 - The Scottish Parliament meets in the new Scottish Parliament Building for the first time.
- September 7 - Hurricane Ivan passes directly over Grenada, killing 37 people. It passes over other Caribbean islands over the next two days, killing 5 people in Venezuela, 4 in the Dominican Republic, 1 in Tobago and 20 in Jamaica.
- September 8 - In the "Rathergate" affair, the first Internet posts appear pointing out that documents claimed by CBS News to be typewritten memos from the early 1970s appear instead to have been produced using modern word processing systems.
- September 9 - A bomb blast outside the Australian embassy in Jakarta, Indonesia, kills eleven people and injures up to 100 people.
- September 13 - The Assault Weapons Ban expires.
- September 15 - Davíð Oddsson prime minister of Iceland steps down after serving as prime minister since April 30 1991. Oddson becomes foreign minister as his foreign minister Halldór Ásgrímsson becomes prime minister.
- September 15 - Security at the Palace of Westminster is compromised when the House of Commons is stormed by a small group of protestors during a debate about fox hunting.
- September 15 - "Girl A" is sentenced to be institutionalized due to the murder of classmate Satomi Mitarai.
- September 16 - Hurricane Ivan strikes Gulf Shores, Alabama, as a Category 3 storm, killing 25 in Alabama and Florida.
- September 17 - 2004 Summer Paralympics commences in Athens, Greece.
- September 17 - Mexico and Japan finish the two year long negotiations and sign a Free Trade Agreement in Mexico City.
- September 23 - Mount St. Helens becomes active again.
- September 23 - Tropical Storm Ivan, having come around and reformed in the Gulf of Mexico, makes its final landfall near Cameron, Louisiana, to little effect. In total, the storm killed 92 people.
- September 25 - Hurricane Jeanne makes landfall near Hutchinson Island, FL. In all, Jeanne killed over 3,000, most in Haiti.
- September 29 - First Ansari X-Prize flight of SpaceShipOne.
October

- October 4 - Two car bombs kill at least 16 people and injure dozens more in Baghdad.
- October 5 - A fire breaks out on the Canadian submarine HMCS Chicoutimi leaving it stranded without power in the North Atlantic ocean, off the north coast of Ireland. One crewmember is killed.
- October 8 - Kenneth Bigley, the British hostage held by Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, an Iraqi insurgent, is killed after a failed escape attempt.
- October 8 - Suicide bombers detonate two bombs at the Red Sea resort of Taba, Egypt, killing 34 people, mainly Israeli tourists and Egyptian workers.
- October 9 - Queen Elizabeth II opens the new Scottish Parliament Building in a ceremony in Edinburgh
- October 9 - Incumbent Prime Minister of Australia John Howard leads the Liberal-National coalition to victory over the Labor Party led by Mark Latham in federal elections.
- October 9 - Direct elections for president held for the first time in Afghanistan. Interim president Hamid Karzai is eventually declared the winner.
- October 10 - Abdullahi Yusuf is chosen as the new transitional president of Somalia.
- October 14 - Prince Norodom Sihamoni is chosen as the new king of Cambodia.
- October 16 - The New York Yankees defeat the Boston Red Sox, 19-8 in Game 3 of Major League Baseball's American League Championship Series. The game, which pushed the Yankees to a 3 games to none series lead, sets a record for longest nine inning baseball game.
- October 17 - A referendum in Belarus approves the lifting of constitutional term limits for the presidency.
- October 18 - Three men attack Greek journalist Philippos Syrigos in Athens and seriously wound him
- October 19 - General Khin Nyunt is replaced by Lieutenant-General Soe Win as Prime Minister of Myanmar.
- October 20 - The Boston Red Sox defeat the New York Yankees in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series, completing an unprecedented comeback from three games to none down.
- October 20 - Corporate Airlines Flight 5966 crashes in Missouri, killing 13 people, and injuring 2.
- October 20 - Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono becomes the first directly-elected President of Indonesia.
- October 21 - The Ministry of Defence approves the deployment of the Black Watch regiment of the British Army to Baghdad, Iraq after a request for assistance by the U.S. government.
- October 24 - The bodies of 49 Iraqi soldiers discovered after being ambushed by insurgents.
- October 24 - Brazil successfully launches its first rocket into space.
- October 25 - Reverand Dr Martin Luther King, Jr and Coretta Scott King receive Congressional Gold Medal.
- October 26 - October 26The Cassini probe passes within 1,200km of Titan
- October 27 - Details of the discovery of a new, recent, species of fossil hominid, Homo floresiensis, from the island of Flores, Indonesia are published.
- October 27 - The Boston Red Sox sweep the St. Louis Cardinals to win the World Series championship for the first time since 1918.
- October 29 - A videotape of Osama Bin Laden speaking airs on Arabic TV, in which he threatens terrorist attacks on the United States, and taunts the president, George W. Bush, over the September 11 Terrorist attacks.
- October 29 - European heads of state signed in Rome the Treaty and Final Act establishing the first European Constitution.
- October 30 - A 163 metre high radio mast in Peterborough, UK collapsed at a fire
- October 31 - Leftist candidate Tabaré Vázquez is elected President of Uruguay.
November

- November 1 - a 16 year old Palestinian, a muslim, blew himself up in an outdoor market in Tel Aviv, killing three Israelis.
- November 2 - U.S. presidential election: President George W. Bush defeats Senator John Kerry. Republicans make gains in the common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar. It was designated the:
- International Year of Freshwater
- European Disability Year
- Blog Year See also Wikipedia's almanac of events for this year.
Events

January

- January 1 - Luíz Inácio Lula Da Silva becomes the 37th President of Brazil.
- January 1 - Pascal Couchepin becomes President of the Confederation in Switzerland.
- January 8 - US Airways flight 5481 crashes at Charlotte-Douglas International Airport in Charlotte, North Carolina killing all 21 people aboard.
- January 15 - The United States Supreme Court hands down its decision in Eldred v. Ashcroft allowing the extension of copyright terms in the U.S.
- January 24 - The new United States Department of Homeland Security officially begins operation.
- January 25 - Central Line train crashes into the tunnel wall at Chancery Lane station in London, injuring 34 people.
- January 25 - An international group of volunteers left London and headed for Baghdad to act as voluntary human shields, hoping to avert a U.S. invasion.
- January 30 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The leaders of Britain, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Hungary, Poland, Denmark, and the Czech Republic release a statement, the letter of the eight, demonstrating support for the United States' plans for an invasion of Iraq.
February
February
- February 1 - The Space Shuttle Columbia disintegrates over Texas upon reentry, killing all seven astronauts onboard.
- February 1 - In Northern Ireland, The Protestant UDA Belfast leader John Gregg is killed by a loyalist faction.
- February 3 - The worldwide movie premiere of Shanghai Knights was held at the El Capitan Theatre in Hollywood.
- February 5 - Iraq disarmament crisis: U.S. Secretary of State Colin Powell addresses the UN Security Council on Iraq.
- February 9 - Cricket World Cup begins in South Africa.
- February 15 - Global protests against Iraq war - more than ten million people protest in over 600 cities worldwide, the largest war protest to take place before the war occurred.
- February 17 - Antwerp Diamond Center in Belgium opens its vaults after weekend and discovers that unknown burglars had stolen diamonds worth $100 million - largest diamond theft so far.
- February 26 - An American businessman is admitted to the Vietnam France Hospital in Hanoi, Vietnam. WHO doctor Carlo Urbani reports the unusual highly contagious disease to WHO. Both the businessman and Carlo Urbani die of SARS in March.
March

- March 1 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The United Arab Emirates calls for Iraqi president Saddam Hussein to step down to avoid war. The sentiment is later echoed by Bahrain and Kuwait
- March 1 - The Turkish parliment vetos the access of the U.S troops to airbases in Turkey in order to attack Iraq from the north. The Bush administration starts working on the B Plan, namely attacking Iraq from the south, through the Persian Gulf.
- March 1 - The Federal Law Enforcement Training Center, the United States Customs Service, and the United States Secret Service moves to the United States Department of Homeland Security
- March 1 - Boxer Roy Jones Jr. beats John Ruiz to become WBA champion
- March 1 - War on Terrorism: Authorities in Pakistan capture Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, the suspected mastermind of the September 11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks along with money man Mustafa Ahmed al-Hawsawi.
- March 1 - Ohio celebrates its bicentennial statehood.
- March 5 - The Supreme Court of the United States by a 5-4 margin upholds California's "three strikes and you're out" law.
- March 11 - Iraq disarmament crisis: Iraqi fighters threaten two U.S. U-2 surveillance planes, flying missions for U.N. weapons inspectors, forcing them to abort their mission and return to base.
- March 12 - Serbian Prime Minister Zoran Đinđić assassinated in Belgrade
- March 12 - WHO issues a global alert on SARS.
- March 12 - Iraq disarmament crisis: British prime minister Tony Blair proposes an amendment to the possible 18th U.N. resolution, which would call for Iraq to meet certain benchmarks to prove that it was disarming. The amendment is immediately rejected by France, who promises to veto any new resolution.
- March 13 - Human evolution: The journal Nature reports that 350,000-year-old upright-walking human footprints had been found in Italy
- March 15 - Hu Jintao becomes president of the People's Republic of China, replacing Jiang Zemin.
- March 16 - Iraq disarmament crisis: The leaders of the United States, Britain, Portugal, and Spain meet at a summit in the Azores Islands. U.S. President Bush calls Monday, March 17th, the "moment of Truth", meaning that the "coalition of the willing" would make its final effort to extract a resolution from the U.N. Security Council that would give Iraq an ultimatum to disarm immediately or to be disarmed by force.
- March 17 - Iraq disarmament crisis: U.S. President George W. Bush gives an ultimatum: Iraqi leader Saddam Hussein and his sons must either leave Iraq, or face military action at a time of the U.S.'s choosing
- March 19 - First American bombs dropped on Baghdad, Iraq. President Saddam Hussein and his sons do not comply with President Bush's 48 hour mandate demanding their exit from Iraq.
- March 20 - 2003 Iraq war: Land troops from United States, United Kingdom,