January 23
Updated November 6, 2026 · Edited by the JanuaryCalendar.com team
January 23 is National Handwriting Day, chosen for John Hancock's birthday, and India marks Parakram Diwas for Subhas Chandra Bose. On this date in 1849, Elizabeth Blackwell became the first woman to earn a medical degree in the US, and in 1960 the Trieste reached the deepest point of the ocean.
January 23 is the 23rd day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. 342 days remain in the year (343 in leap years). In 2027, January 23 falls on a Saturday.
- Day of year
- 23
- Days left
- 342 (343 in leap years)
- Zodiac sign
- Aquarius ♒︎
- Birthstone
- Garnet
- ISO week (2027)
- Week 3
- Weekday (2027)
- Saturday
Holidays and observances on January 23
- Unofficial National Handwriting Day (US) — Held on John Hancock's birthday.
- Unofficial National Pie Day (US) — An informal food day celebrating pie.
- Official Parakram Diwas (India) — Subhas Chandra Bose's birth anniversary; named in 2021.
- Cultural Lunar New Year falls on January 23 in 2031 (Pig)
- Astronomy Full moon (Wolf Moon) on January 23 in 2035 (Eastern Time)
Events on January 23 in history
- 1849 – Elizabeth Blackwell graduated from Geneva Medical College, becoming the first woman to earn a medical degree in the US.
- 1943 – Britain's Eighth Army captured Tripoli, Libya, from Axis forces.
- 1958 – Venezuelan dictator Marcos Pérez Jiménez fled the country after a popular uprising and military revolt.
- 1960 – Jacques Piccard and Don Walsh piloted the bathyscaphe Trieste to the bottom of the Challenger Deep.
- 1964 – The 24th Amendment, banning poll taxes in US federal elections, was ratified.
- 1968 – North Korea seized the US Navy intelligence ship USS Pueblo and its crew.
- 1973 – The Eldfell volcano erupted on Iceland's Heimaey island, forcing the evacuation of its town.
- 1986 – The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inducted its first members, including Elvis Presley and Chuck Berry.
- 1997 – Madeleine Albright was sworn in as the first female US secretary of state.
Famous birthdays on January 23
- 1737 – John Hancock, President of the Continental Congress
- 1783 – Stendhal, French novelist of The Red and the Black
- 1832 – Édouard Manet, French painter
- 1862 – David Hilbert, German mathematician
- 1897 – Subhas Chandra Bose, Indian independence leader
- 1907 – Hideki Yukawa, Physicist, Japan's first Nobel laureate
- 1910 – Django Reinhardt, Belgian-born jazz guitarist
- 1930 – Derek Walcott, Saint Lucian poet and Nobel laureate
- 1957 – Princess Caroline of Monaco, Member of Monaco's princely family
- 1964 – Mariska Hargitay, American actress of Law & Order: SVU
What day is January 23?
Frequently asked questions
Why is National Handwriting Day on January 23?
It falls on the birthday of John Hancock, whose large signature on the Declaration of Independence made his name a byword for a signature. Hancock was born in Massachusetts on January 23, 1737 (New Style).
Who was the first woman to earn a medical degree in the US?
Elizabeth Blackwell received her medical degree from Geneva Medical College in New York on January 23, 1849, becoming the first woman in the United States to do so.
What is Parakram Diwas?
Parakram Diwas, or Day of Valor, is India's January 23 observance of the birth anniversary of independence leader Subhas Chandra Bose, born in 1897. The Government of India designated the day in 2021.
What day of the week is January 23, 2027?
January 23, 2027 is a Saturday. In 2028 it falls on a Sunday.
What zodiac sign is January 23?
People born on January 23 are Aquarians (January 20 – February 18) in Western astrology.