Is there a day of any given year that is least special?

inspxtr@lemmy.world to No Stupid Questions@lemmy.world – 54 points –

As in, no events, no holidays whatsoever in any place in the world. Or maybe the least eventful day of a year.

Maybe statistically, Feb 29 would be the one. But other than that, what else?

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If there were, it would be special for being the Least Special Day.

(I suspect it's in August.)

yeah I had the same thought lol, I guess another way to define the least special day would be the one that has the exact average # of events.

1 more...

Well we'd need to establish some rules, before anything else. First off, what counts as a holiday? Obviously I think religious ones like the winter holidays should count, but what about the "Hallmark holidays" like Mother's Day and Father's Day? What about government-recognized holidays? What about social awareness holidays like Earth Day? Should famous birthdays count? If so, where is the line drawn on how famous that person needs to be? Jesus' birthday is kind of a big one, but how about Elvis' birthday?

Questions like these keep me up at night.

I would argue that February 29th is the most special, since it only ever happens every 4 years. It's the most unique day you can have.

I think the best way to figure this out would be to do research on world holidays and start putting together a calendar. I can see a really interesting and informative video about this.

Hey VSauce! Michael here!

Wikipedia has an "on this day" template for every day of the year (the one included in their front page) - just go through and find the shortest one

January 1 is special for being new year's day. And if any days after January 1 are not special, then the earliest of them would be the first non-special day of the year, which is special in it's own right, giving a contradiction. Therefore, there are no non-special days. They are all special, so make the most of each one.

Hmm, I have a calendar somewhere that includes holidays and events from around the world. There are actually quite a few days with no events or holidays, so it's not unheard of. My guess is that a good candidate is likely somewhat distanced from seasonal constants like the equinox.

Would love to see it if you can ever find it!

The first is 18th January with the next being 30th January, at least in 2024.

https://www.officeholidays.com/calendars/2024/01

You have to remember, some religious holidays follow calendars other than the normal one, e.g. Easter follows the lunar calendar, so changes each year, so what might be a special day this year, isn't next year.

Other days with no national holidays in 2024 are:

7th March, 3rd April, 11th May, 8th June, 23rd August, 22nd October, 13th November, 27th November, 14th December, 28th December

Would the least special day actually be forgotten by the comments? It's left to be see...

I know I've heard of the least special day in history before, though I don't remember when it was. In the early 1900s I think.

For me it's honestly my birthday, February 14 aka Valentine's day.

I don't really have anyone else to celebrate with other than close family, so it's never really meant anything to me other than adding a number.

Oh! I know this one! It’s the dot above the i in Jeremy Bearimy. It’s Tuesday, July, and sometimes never. It’s the moment when nothing never happens.