January 31
Updated November 6, 2026 · Edited by the JanuaryCalendar.com team
January 31, the last day of the month, is Independence Day in Nauru, which became independent in 1968. The date also saw the launch of Explorer 1, the first US satellite, in 1958 and the United Kingdom's exit from the European Union in 2020.
January 31 is the 31st day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. 334 days remain in the year (335 in leap years). In 2027, January 31 falls on a Sunday.
- Day of year
- 31
- Days left
- 334 (335 in leap years)
- Zodiac sign
- Aquarius ♒︎
- Birthstone
- Garnet
- ISO week (2027)
- Week 4
- Weekday (2027)
- Sunday
Holidays and observances on January 31
- Public holiday Independence Day (Nauru) — Nauru became independent on January 31, 1968, ending UN trusteeship.
- Unofficial National Hot Chocolate Day (US) — A popular midwinter day for hot cocoa.
- Cultural Lunar New Year falls on January 31 in 2033 (Ox)
- Astronomy Full moon (Wolf Moon) on January 31 in 2037 (Eastern Time)
Events on January 31 in history
- 1865 – The US House of Representatives passed the Thirteenth Amendment, abolishing slavery, and sent it to the states for ratification.
- 1917 – Germany announced unrestricted submarine warfare, a move that helped bring the United States into World War I.
- 1943 – German Field Marshal Friedrich Paulus surrendered to Soviet forces at Stalingrad.
- 1950 – President Harry Truman announced that the United States would develop the hydrogen bomb.
- 1958 – The United States launched Explorer 1, its first satellite, from Cape Canaveral, Florida.
- 1961 – Ham the chimpanzee flew a suborbital Mercury-Redstone mission and returned safely.
- 1968 – Nauru became independent, ending a UN trusteeship administered by Australia.
- 1971 – Apollo 14 launched with Alan Shepard, Stuart Roosa and Edgar Mitchell, bound for the Moon.
- 1990 – The first McDonald's in the Soviet Union opened in Moscow's Pushkin Square.
- 2020 – The United Kingdom formally left the European Union at 11 p.m. GMT.
Famous birthdays on January 31
- 1797 – Franz Schubert, Austrian composer
- 1872 – Zane Grey, American author of Western novels
- 1902 – Tallulah Bankhead, American stage and film actress
- 1919 – Jackie Robinson, Broke baseball's major-league color barrier
- 1923 – Norman Mailer, American novelist and journalist
- 1935 – Kenzaburō Ōe, Japanese Nobel Prize-winning novelist
- 1938 – Beatrix, Queen of the Netherlands, 1980–2013
- 1947 – Nolan Ryan, American pitcher, all-time strikeout leader
- 1981 – Justin Timberlake, American singer and actor
What day is January 31?
Frequently asked questions
What holiday is January 31?
January 31 is Independence Day in Nauru, a public holiday marking the island nation's independence in 1968. In the US it is also the unofficial National Hot Chocolate Day.
What happened on January 31, 1958?
The United States launched Explorer 1, its first satellite. An instrument on board detected the Van Allen radiation belts around Earth.
What day of the week is January 31, 2027?
January 31, 2027 is a Sunday. In 2028 it falls on a Monday.
What zodiac sign is January 31?
People born on January 31 are Aquarians (January 20 – February 18) in Western astrology.