Today is January 20: Discover the significance of this date in history and the celebrations associated with it.

January 20 – Day of Remembrance for the Defenders of Donetsk Airport and Day of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea. Today marks the inauguration of U.S. President Donald Trump. This date in 1990 became known in the history of the USSR and Azerbaijan as "Black January." In 1946, Charles de Gaulle resigned as head of the Provisional Government of France. In 1918, surgeon Alexander Shalimov was born, whose life is closely linked to Kharkiv. In 1841, the British occupied Hong Kong. In 1320, the first king of Poland was crowned.

Holidays and Significant Dates on January 20

January 20 in Ukraine – Day of Remembrance for the Defenders of Donetsk Airport and Day of the Autonomous Republic of Crimea.

Worldwide: Blue Monday (the third Monday of January is considered the most depressing day of the year), International Day of Acceptance, Penguin Awareness Day, Cheese Lovers Day, Camera Day, Martin Luther King Jr. Day (observed on the third Monday of January).

January 20 is the day when newly elected U.S. presidents take office. Today, that will be Donald Trump. Although the date of the U.S. presidential inauguration seems fixed now, it was actually established in the 20th century. The 20th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution, which pertains to this matter, came into effect on January 23, 1933. A key excerpt from its text states: "The terms of the President and Vice President shall end at noon on January 20, and the terms of Senators and Representatives shall end at noon on January 3 in the years in which their terms would have expired if this amendment had not been ratified. At the same time, the terms of their successors shall begin."

Prior to this, newly elected presidents took office on March 4. The elections were held at the same time as they are today. Initially, when the inauguration date was simply set for March 4, it was justified. The counting of votes was done manually and took much longer than it does now. The gradual automation of processes has shortened the time between the election of a president and his actual assumption of power in the country. This was particularly important when the head of the White House was changing, rather than serving a second term. From the time of the election until the inauguration, the outgoing U.S. president still holds all powers but loses political weight. In American politics and journalism, such a head of state is referred to as a "lame duck." The practical implications of this can be observed in recent months. Following the recent elections in the fall, Donald Trump's statements on social media and his still-virtual appointments have garnered much more public interest than Joseph Biden's actions.

Interesting Facts about the U.S. Presidential Inauguration is provided by the Council on Foreign Relations.

🔹 Donald Trump will be the second president in U.S. history to serve non-consecutive terms. The first was Grover Cleveland (the 22nd and 24th president, who led the country at the end of the 19th century). Trump was sworn in as the 45th president in 2017.

🔹 Joe Biden does not plan to emulate Trump. He will attend the inauguration of his successor. Trump skipped Biden's swearing-in in 2021, as he did not recognize the election results and considered himself the winner. Trump became the first U.S. president in 150 years to do so. In the entire history of the country, only four presidents have behaved similarly: father and son — presidents John Adams and John Quincy Adams both refused to concede to their election opponents; Andrew Johnson was the first to be impeached in the U.S. and he detested his successor Ulysses Grant – and the feeling was mutual; the only one whose motivation remains unknown to this day is Martin Van Buren.

🔹 Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 47th president of the United States. However, he will deliver the inaugural address as the 40th president. The discrepancy arose due to vice presidents who ascended to the presidency following the resignation or death of the head of state. They did not win elections, so they did not deliver speeches.

🔹 The text of the U.S. presidential oath is prescribed in the Constitution. It consists of only 35 words.

🔹 More U.S. presidents have taken their oaths in March than in January – 37 out of 47.

🔹 The only president who took office neither in January nor March is the first U.S. president George Washington. His inauguration took place on April 30, 1789.

🔹 Lyndon Johnson was the first president to ask his wife to hold the Bible during the oath. This practice has since been adopted by all successors. It is expected that Melania Trump will hold the Bible at today's inauguration, just as she did eight years ago.

🔹 Trump's inauguration will be only the second in history to fall on Martin Luther King Jr. Day. The first time this occurred was in 1997 when Bill Clinton was inaugurated for his second term.

🔹 The shortest inaugural address by a U.S. president was delivered by George Washington when he began his second term. It consisted of 135 words.

January 20 in History

January 20, 1320 saw the first coronation of a king of Poland. It was Władysław I Łokietek. Learn more.

January 20, 1841 the British occupied Hong Kong. Learn more.

January 20, 1918 surgeon Alexander Shalimov was born – one of the founders of the Ukrainian surgical school, who spent a significant part of his life working in Kharkiv. Learn more.

January 20, 1946 Charles de Gaulle resigned as head of the Provisional Government of France. Learn more.

January 20, 1990 became known in the history of the USSR and Azerbaijan as "Black January." On the night of January 19-20, by order of Soviet President Mikhail Gorbachev, the Soviet army invaded Baku to suppress protests and unrest. Learn more..

January 20, 1991 a nationwide referendum on the restoration of the Crimean ASSR took place in the Crimean region of the Ukrainian SSR, the results of which were recognized by Ukraine. Until that moment, Crimea had not been autonomous since 1945. Learn more..

Church Holiday on January 20

Feast of St. Euthymius the Great. Learn more.

Folk Omens

If the weather is clear and cold, summer will be dry.

If it snows on January 20, it will snow until Maslenitsa.

If the sun is bright at noon, spring will come early.

What Not to Do on January 20

Do not argue, gossip, or slander.

Do not offend anyone – neither people nor animals.

Do not be lazy.