The Birthday Gazette

Born on February 15

February 15 birthdays & history

If you were born on February 15, you share a birthday with Galileo Galilei, Jeremy Bentham and Louis XV. February 15 babies are Aquarius, with amethyst as their birthstone and the violet as their birth flower. February 15 is the 46th day of the year in leap years.

Famous people born on February 15

  • 1564Galileo Galilei, Italian astronomer, physicist, and mathematician
  • 1748Jeremy Bentham, English jurist and philosopher
  • 1710Louis XV, King of France from 1715 to 1774
  • 1861Alfred North Whitehead, English mathematician and philosopher
  • 1820Susan B. Anthony, American suffragist and activist
  • 1861Charles Édouard Guillaume, Swiss-French physicist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate
  • 1874Ernest Shackleton, Anglo-Irish captain and explorer
  • 1910Irena Sendler, Polish nurse and humanitarian, Righteous Gentile
  • 1954Matt Groening, American animator, producer, and screenwriter
  • 1907Cesar Romero, American actor

What happened on February 15

  • 438The Codex Theodosianus, a compilation of the laws of the Roman Empire, was published.
  • 1493Christopher Columbus wrote a letter widely distributed upon his return to Portugal that announced the results of his first voyage to the Americas.
  • 1823James McBrien made the first official discovery of gold in Australia at Fish River in New South Wales.
  • 1835Serbia's Sretenje Constitution briefly comes into effect.
  • 1852The Helsinki Cathedral (known as St. Nicholas' Church at time) is officially inaugurated in Helsinki, Finland.
  • 1870Stevens Institute of Technology is founded in New Jersey, US, and offers the first Bachelor of Engineering degree in mechanical engineering.
  • 1872First issue of the Bulletin de la Fédération jurassienne, the first or one of the first anarchist newspapers.
  • 1879Women's rights: US President Rutherford B. Hayes signs a bill allowing female attorneys to argue cases before the Supreme Court of the United States.
  • 1906A team of Italian archaeologists led by Ernesto Schiaparelli discovered the tomb of Kha and Merit, an ancient Egyptian foreman and his wife, in the workmen's village of Deir el-Medina.
  • 1907Japan and the United States signed a gentleman's agreement whereby the former would not permit further emigration to the U.S., while the latter would not limit Japanese immigration.
  • 1940The official premiere of Paul Creston's Saxophone Sonata took place at the Carnegie Chamber Hall, with saxophonist Cecil Leeson, who commissioned the work, and Creston on piano.
  • 1965Canada adopted the Maple Leaf flag, replacing the Canadian Red Ensign.

Also observed on February 15

  • International Duties Memorial Day (Russia, regional)
  • John Frum Day (Vanuatu)
  • Liberation Day (Afghanistan)
  • National Flag of Canada Day (Canada)
  • Parinirvana Day, also celebrated on February 8. (Mahayana Buddhism)
  • Statehood Day (Serbia), also observed by the Republic of Srpska since 2025.

Questions, answered

What star sign is February 15?

People born on February 15 are Aquarius. Their birthstone is amethyst and their birth flower is the violet.

Which famous people were born on February 15?

Galileo Galilei (1564), Jeremy Bentham (1748), Louis XV (1710), Alfred North Whitehead (1861), Susan B. Anthony (1820), Charles Édouard Guillaume (1861) were all born on February 15.

What happened on February 15 in history?

Among other things: in 1907, Japan and the United States signed a gentleman's agreement whereby the former would not permit further emigration to the U.S., while the latter would not limit Japanese immigration; in 1940, The official premiere of Paul Creston's Saxophone Sonata took place at the Carnegie Chamber Hall, with saxophonist Cecil Leeson, who commissioned the work, and Creston on piano; in 1965, Canada adopted the Maple Leaf flag, replacing the Canadian Red Ensign.

Can I get a newspaper front page from February 15?

Yes. The Birthday Gazette makes a personalised vintage-style front page for any February 15 birth year, with their name in the headline, events, famous birthdays and typical US prices. The preview is free and the print files cost $9.

Events, birthdays and observances are adapted from Wikipedia contributors, “February 15”, English Wikipedia, under CC BY-SA 4.0 (shortened and filtered). Ranking uses Wikidata (CC0). Sources.