December 20

Pre-1600

• AD 69 – Antonius Primus enters Rome to claim the title of Emperor for Nero's former general Vespasian.^[1]
• 1192 – Richard I of England is captured and imprisoned by Leopold V of Austria on his way home to England after the Third Crusade.^[2]
• 1334 – Cardinal Jacques Fournier, a Cistercian monk, is elected Pope Benedict XII.^[3]

1601–1900

• 1803 – The Louisiana Purchase is completed at a ceremony in New Orleans.^[4]
• 1808 – Peninsular War: The Siege of Zaragoza begins.
• 1832 – HMS Clio under the command of Captain Onslow arrives at Port Egmont under orders to take possession of the Falkland Islands.^[5]
• 1848 – French presidential election: Having won the popular vote in a landslide, Louis Napoleon Bonaparte is inaugurated in the chamber of the National Assembly as the first (and only) president of the French Second Republic.^[6]
• 1860 – South Carolina becomes the first state to attempt to secede from the United States with the South Carolina Declaration of Secession.^[7]

1901–present

• 1915 – World War I: The last Australian troops are evacuated from Gallipoli.
• 1917 – Cheka, the first Soviet secret police force, is founded.
• 1924 – Adolf Hitler is released from Landsberg Prison.^[8]
• 1940 – Captain America Comics #1, containing the first appearance of the superhero Captain America, is published.^[9]
• 1941 – World War II: First battle of the American Volunteer Group, better known as the "Flying Tigers", in Kunming, China.
• 1942 – World War II: Japanese air forces bomb Calcutta, India.
• 1946 – It's a Wonderful Life premieres at the Globe Theatre in New York to mixed reviews. [1]
• 1946 – An earthquake in Nankaidō, Japan causes a tsunami which kills at least one thousand people and destroys 36,000 homes.^[10]
• 1948 – Indonesian National Revolution: The Dutch military captures Yogyakarta, the temporary capital of the newly formed Republic of Indonesia.
• 1951 – The EBR-1 in Arco, Idaho becomes the first nuclear power plant to generate electricity. The electricity powered four light bulbs.
• 1952 – A United States Air Force C-124 crashes and burns in Moses Lake, Washington, killing 87 of the 115 people on board.^[11]
• 1955 – Cardiff is proclaimed the capital city of Wales, United Kingdom.^[12]
• 1957 – The initial production version of the Boeing 707 makes its first flight.
• 1960 – Vietnam War: The National Liberation Front of South Vietnam, popularly known as the Viet Cong, is formally established in Tân Lập village, present day Tây Ninh province.^[13]
• 1967 – A Pennsylvania Railroad Budd Metroliner exceeds 249 kilometres per hour (155 mph) on their New York Division, also present-day Amtrak's Northeast Corridor.
• 1968 – The Zodiac Killer murders his first two officially confirmed victims, David Arthur Faraday and Betty Lou Jensen, on Lake Herman Road in Benicia, California, United States.^[14]
• 1970 – Koza riot: After a series of hit-and-runs and other vehicular incidents involving American service personnel, roughly 5,000 Okinawans take to the streets, clashing with American law enforcement in protest against the U.S. occupation of Okinawa.^[15]
• 1973 – Assassination of Luis Carrero Blanco: A car bomb planted by ETA in Madrid kills three people, including the Prime Minister of Spain, Admiral Luis Carrero Blanco.^[16]
• 1977 – With the approval of the State Council, China’s two largest newspapers, the People’s Daily and the Guangming Daily, publish in full for the first time the Second Chinese Character Simplification Scheme.^[17]
• 1984 – The Summit Tunnel fire, one of the largest transportation tunnel fires in history, burns after a freight train carrying over one million liters of gasoline derails near the town of Todmorden, England, in the Pennines.
• 1984 – Disappearance of Jonelle Matthews from Greeley, Colorado. Her remains were discovered on July 23, 2019, located about 24 km (15 mi) southeast of Jonelle's home.^[18][19] The cause of death "was a gunshot wound to the head."^[20]
• 1985 – Pope John Paul II announces the institution of World Youth Day.
• 1987 – In the worst peacetime sea disaster, the passenger ferry Doña Paz sinks after colliding with the oil tanker MT Vector in the Tablas Strait of the Philippines, killing an estimated 4,000 people (1,749 official).
• 1988 – War on drugs: The United Nations agrees upon and promulgates the United Nations Convention Against Illicit Traffic in Narcotic Drugs and Psychotropic Substances, one of three major drug control treaties currently in force.^[21]
• 1989 – The United States invasion of Panama deposes Manuel Noriega.
• 1991 – A Missouri court sentences the Palestinian militant Zein Isa and his wife Maria to death for the honor killing of their daughter Palestina.
• 1995 – NATO begins peacekeeping in Bosnia.
• 1995 – American Airlines Flight 965, a Boeing 757, crashes into a mountain 50 km north of Cali, Colombia, killing 159 of the 163 people on board.^[22]
• 1999 – Macau is handed over to China by Portugal.
• 2004 – A gang of thieves steal £26.5 million worth of currency from the Donegall Square West headquarters of Northern Bank in Belfast, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, one of the largest bank robberies in British history.
• 2007 – Elizabeth II becomes the oldest monarch in the history of the United Kingdom, surpassing Queen Victoria, who lived for 81 years and 243 days.^[23]
• 2007 – The Portrait of Suzanne Bloch (1904), by the Spanish artist Pablo Picasso, and O Lavrador de Café by Brazilian modernist painter Cândido Portinari, are stolen from the São Paulo Museum of Art in Brazil. Both will be recovered a few weeks later.^[24]
• 2019 – The United States Space Force becomes the first new branch of the United States Armed Forces since 1947.^[25]

Pre-1600

• 1494 – Oronce Finé, French mathematician and cartographer (d. 1555)
• 1496 – Joseph ha-Kohen, historian and physician (d. 1575)
• 1537 – John III, king of Sweden (d. 1592)^[26]
• 1576 – John Sarkander, Moravian priest and saint (d. 1620)

1601–1900

• 1626 – Veit Ludwig von Seckendorff, German scholar and politician (d. 1692)
• 1629 – Pieter de Hooch, Dutch painter (d. 1684)^[27]
• 1641 – Urban Hjärne, Swedish chemist, geologist, and physician (d. 1724)^[28]
• 1740 – Arthur Lee, American physician and diplomat (d. 1792)
• 1786 – Pietro Raimondi, Italian composer (d. 1853)
• 1792 – Nicolas Toussaint Charlet, French painter and educator (d. 1845)
• 1806 – Martín Carrera, Mexican general and president (1855) (d. 1871)^[29]
• 1812 – Laura M. Hawley Thurston, American poet and educator (d. 1842)^[30]
• 1838 – Edwin Abbott Abbott, English theologian, author, and educator (d. 1926)
• 1841 – Ferdinand Buisson, French academic and politician, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1932)
• 1851 – Knut Wicksell, Swedish economist (d. 1926)^[31]
• 1861 – Ferdinand Bonn, German actor (d. 1933)
• 1861 – Ivana Kobilca, Slovenian painter (d. 1926)
• 1865 – Elsie de Wolfe, American actress and interior decorator (d. 1950)
• 1868 – Harvey Samuel Firestone, American businessman, founded the Firestone Tire and Rubber Company (d. 1938)^[32]
• 1869 – Charley Grapewin, American actor (d. 1956)^[33]
• 1871 – Henry Kimball Hadley, American composer and conductor (d. 1937)^[34]
• 1873 – Kan'ichi Asakawa, Japanese historian, author, and academic (d. 1948)
• 1873 – Mehmet Akif Ersoy, Turkish poet, academic, and politician (d. 1936)
• 1881 – Branch Rickey, American baseball player and manager (d. 1965)
• 1884 – Ruhana Kuddus, Indonesian activist and journalist (d.1972)^[35]
• 1886 – Hazel Hotchkiss Wightman, American tennis player and businessman (d. 1974)^[36]
• 1888 – Yitzhak Baer, German-Israeli historian and academic (d. 1980)
• 1888 – Fred Merkle, American baseball player and manager (d. 1956)
• 1890 – Yvonne Arnaud, French pianist, actress and singer (d. 1958)
• 1890 – Jaroslav Heyrovský, Czech chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1967)
• 1891 – Erik Almlöf, Swedish triple jumper (d. 1971)
• 1894 – Robert Menzies, Australian lawyer and politician, 12th Prime Minister of Australia (d. 1978)
• 1898 – Konstantinos Dovas, Greek general and politician, 156th Prime Minister of Greece (d. 1973)
• 1898 – Irene Dunne, American actress and singer (d. 1990)
• 1899 – Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Welsh preacher and physician (d. 1981)
• 1900 – Lissy Arna, German actress (d. 1964)
• 1900 – Gabby Hartnett, American baseball player and manager (d. 1972)^[37]

1901–present

• 1901 – Robert J. Van de Graaff, American physicist and academic, invented the Van de Graaff generator (d. 1967)^[38]
• 1902 – Prince George, Duke of Kent (d. 1942)
• 1902 – Sidney Hook, American philosopher and author (d. 1989)
• 1904 – Spud Davis, American baseball player, coach, and manager (d. 1984)
• 1904 – Yevgenia Ginzburg, Russian author (d. 1977)
• 1905 – Bill O'Reilly, Australian cricketer and sportscaster (d. 1992)
• 1907 – Paul Francis Webster, American soldier and songwriter (d. 1984)
• 1908 – Dennis Morgan, American actor and singer (d. 1994)
• 1909 – Vakkom Majeed, Indian journalist and politician (d. 2000)
• 1911 – Hortense Calisher, American author (d. 2009)
• 1914 – Harry F. Byrd Jr., American lieutenant, publisher, and politician (d. 2013)
• 1915 – Aziz Nesin, Turkish author and poet (d. 1995)
• 1916 – Michel Chartrand, Canadian trade union leader and activist (d. 2010)
• 1917 – David Bohm, American-English physicist, neuropsychologist, and philosopher (d. 1992)
• 1917 – Cahit Külebi, Turkish poet and author (d. 1997)
• 1917 – Audrey Totter, American actress (d. 2013)
• 1918 – Jean Marchand, Canadian trade union leader and politician, 43rd Secretary of State for Canada (d. 1988)
• 1920 – Väinö Linna, Finnish author (d. 1992)^[39]
• 1921 – George Roy Hill, American director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2002)^[40]
• 1922 – Beverly Pepper, American sculptor and painter (d. 2020)
• 1922 – William Soeryadjaya, Chinese-Indonesian businessman and co-founder of Astra International (d. 2010)^[41]
• 1924 – Charlie Callas, American actor and comedian (d. 2011)
• 1924 – Judy LaMarsh, Canadian soldier, lawyer, and politician, 42nd Secretary of State for Canada (d. 1980)^[42]
• 1925 – Benito Lorenzi, Italian footballer (d. 2007)
• 1926 – Geoffrey Howe, Welsh lawyer and politician, Deputy Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (d. 2015)
• 1926 – Otto Graf Lambsdorff, German lawyer and politician, German Federal Minister of Economics (d. 2009)
• 1927 – Michael Beaumont, 22nd Seigneur of Sark, English engineer and politician (d. 2016)
• 1927 – Jim Simpson, American sportscaster (d. 2016)^[43]
• 1927 – Kim Young-sam, South Korean soldier and politician, 7th President of South Korea (d. 2015)
• 1928 – John Menkes, Austrian-American pediatric and writer (d. 2008)^[44]
• 1929 – Don Sunderlage, American basketball player (d. 1961)^[45]
• 1931 – Mala Powers, American actress (d. 2007)
• 1932 – John Hillerman, American actor (d. 2017)^[46]
• 1933 – Olavi Salonen, Finnish runner
• 1933 – Rik Van Looy, Belgian cyclist
• 1935 – Khalid Ibadulla, Pakistani cricketer and sportscaster
• 1939 – Kathryn Joosten, American actress (d. 2012)
• 1939 – Kim Weston, American soul singer
• 1942 – Rana Bhagwandas, Pakistani lawyer and judge, Chief Justice of Pakistan (d. 2015)
• 1942 – Bob Hayes, American sprinter and football player (d. 2002)^[47]
• 1942 – Jean-Claude Trichet, French banker and economist
• 1944 – Ray Martin, Australian television host and journalist
• 1945 – Peter Criss, American singer-songwriter, drummer, and producer^[48]
• 1945 – Sivakant Tiwari, Indian-Singaporean lawyer and author (d. 2010)
• 1946 – Uri Geller, Israeli-English magician and psychic^[48]
• 1946 – Bill Hosket Jr., American basketball player^[49]
• 1946 – Sonny Perdue, American politician, 31st United States Secretary of Agriculture, 81st Governor of Georgia^[50]
• 1946 – Dick Wolf, American director, producer, and screenwriter^[48]
• 1947 – Gigliola Cinquetti, Italian singer-songwriter^[51]
• 1948 – Alan Parsons, English keyboard player and producer^[52]
• 1948 – Mitsuko Uchida, Japanese pianist^[53]
• 1949 – Soumaïla Cissé, Malian engineer and politician
• 1949 – Cecil Cooper, American baseball player and manager^[54]
• 1950 – Arturo Márquez, Mexican-American composer
• 1951 – Nuala O'Loan, Baroness O'Loan, Northern Irish academic and police ombudsman
• 1951 – Marta Russell, American author and activist (d. 2013)
• 1952 – Jenny Agutter, English actress^[48]
• 1954 – Michael Badalucco, American actor^[48]
• 1954 – Sandra Cisneros, American author and poet
• 1955 – David Breashears, American mountaineer, director, and producer
• 1955 – Martin Schulz, German politician
• 1955 – Binali Yıldırım, Turkish lawyer and politician, Turkish Minister of Transport
• 1956 – Mohamed Ould Abdel Aziz, Mauritanian general and politician, President of Mauritania
• 1956 – Guy Babylon, American keyboard player and songwriter (d. 2009)
• 1956 – Blanche Baker, American actress and screenwriter^[48]
• 1956 – Junji Hirata, Japanese wrestler
• 1956 – Andrew Mackenzie, Scottish geologist and businessman
• 1956 – Anita Ward, American disco/R&B singer
• 1957 – Billy Bragg, English singer-songwriter and guitarist^[48]
• 1957 – Anna Vissi, Cypriot singer-songwriter and actress
• 1957 – Mike Watt, American singer-songwriter and bass player^[55]
• 1958 – Doug Nordquist, American high jumper
• 1958 – James Thomson, American biologist and academic
• 1959 – George Coupland, Scottish scientist
• 1959 – Hildegard Körner, German runner
• 1959 – Jackie Fox, American bass player
• 1959 – Kazimierz Marcinkiewicz, Polish physicist and politician, 12th Prime Minister of Poland
• 1959 – Trent Tucker, American basketball player and sportscaster
• 1960 – Nalo Hopkinson, Jamaican-Canadian author and educator
• 1960 – Kim Ki-duk, South Korean director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2020)^[56]
• 1961 – Mohammad Fouad, Egyptian singer-songwriter and actor
• 1961 – Mike Keneally, American singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1961 – Freddie Spencer, American motorcycle racer
• 1963 – Joel Gretsch, American actor^[48]
• 1964 – Mark Coleman, American mixed martial artist and wrestler
• 1965 – Rich Gannon, American football player and sportscaster
• 1966 – Matt Neal, English racing driver
• 1966 – Veronica Pershina, Russian-American figure skater and coach
• 1966 – Chris Robinson, American singer-songwriter and guitarist^[48]
• 1968 – Joe Cornish, English actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1968 – Karl Wendlinger, Austrian racing driver
• 1969 – Alain de Botton, Swiss-English philosopher and author
• 1969 – Zahra Ouaziz, Moroccan runner
• 1970 – Nicole de Boer, Canadian actress^[48]
• 1970 – Grant Flower, Zimbabwean cricketer and coach
• 1970 – Jörg Schmidt, German footballer
• 1972 – Jan Čaloun, Czech ice hockey player^[57]
• 1972 – Anders Odden, Norwegian guitarist, songwriter, and producer
• 1972 – Anja Rücker, German sprinter
• 1973 – David Nedohin, Canadian curler and sportscaster
• 1974 – Die, Japanese guitarist, songwriter, and producer
• 1975 – Bartosz Bosacki, Polish footballer
• 1976 – Nenad Vučković, Croatian footballer
• 1978 – Yoon Kye-sang, South Korean singer
• 1978 – Andrei Markov, Russian-Canadian ice hockey player
• 1978 – Geremi Njitap, Cameroon footballer^[58]
• 1978 – Bouabdellah Tahri, French runner^[59]
• 1979 – Michael Rogers, Australian cyclist^[60]
• 1980 – Israel Castro, Mexican footballer
• 1980 – Ashley Cole, English footballer
• 1980 – Anthony da Silva, French-Portuguese footballer
• 1980 – Martín Demichelis, Argentine footballer
• 1981 – Royal Ivey, American basketball player and coach^[61]
• 1981 – James Shields, American baseball player^[62]
• 1982 – Mohammad Asif, Pakistani cricketer
• 1982 – David Cook, American singer-songwriter^[48]
• 1982 – Kasper Klausen, Danish footballer
• 1982 – David Wright, American baseball player^[63]
• 1983 – Jonah Hill, American actor, producer, and screenwriter^[48]
• 1984 – Bob Morley, Australian actor^[48]
• 1984 – David Tavaré, Spanish singer and DJ^[64]
• 1986 – Chay Genoway, Canadian ice hockey player^[65]
• 1987 – Malcolm Jenkins, American football player^[66]
• 1990 – JoJo, American singer and actress^[67]
• 1990 – Marta Xargay, Spanish basketball player^[68]
• 1991 – Rachael Boyle, Scottish footballer^[69]
• 1991 – Jorginho, Brazilian footballer^[70]
• 1991 – Jillian Rose Reed, American actress^[46]
• 1991 – Fabian Schär, Swiss footballer ^[71]
• 1992 – Ksenia Makarova, Russian-American figure skater
• 1993 – Robeisy Ramírez, Cuban boxer^[72]
• 1994 – Calvin Ridley, American football player^[73]
• 1995 – Anžejs Pasečņiks, Latvian basketball player^[74]
• 1995 – Christian Wilkins, American football player^[75]
• 1997 – De'Aaron Fox, American basketball player^[76]
• 1997 – Suzuka Nakamoto, Japanese singer
• 1998 – Kylian Mbappé, French footballer^[77]
• 2001 – Facundo Pellistri, Uruguayan footballer^[78]
• 2002 – Marcelo Pitaluga, Brazilian footballer^[79]

Pre-1600

• 69 – Titus Flavius Sabinus, a Roman politician and soldier^[80]
• 217 – Zephyrinus, pope of the Catholic Church
• 910 – Alfonso III, king of Asturias
• 977 – Fujiwara no Kanemichi, Japanese statesman (b. 925)
• 1295 – Margaret of Provence, French queen (b. 1221)
• 1326 – Peter of Moscow, Russian metropolitan bishop
• 1340 – John I, duke of Bavaria (b. 1329)
• 1355 – Stefan Dušan, emperor of Serbia (b. 1308)
• 1539 – Johannes Lupi, Flemish composer (b. 1506)
• 1552 – Katharina von Bora, wife of Martin Luther (b. 1499)
• 1590 – Ambroise Paré, French physician and surgeon (b. 1510)

1601–1900

• 1658 – Jean Jannon, French designer and typefounder (b. 1580)
• 1722 – Kangxi, emperor of the Qing Dynasty (b. 1654)
• 1723 – Augustus Quirinus Rivinus, German physician and botanist (b. 1652)
• 1740 – Richard Boyle, 2nd Viscount Shannon, English field marshal and politician, Governor of Portsmouth (b. 1675)
• 1765 – Louis, dauphin of France (b. 1729)
• 1768 – Carlo Innocenzo Frugoni, Italian poet and academic (b. 1692)
• 1783 – Antonio Soler, Spanish priest and composer (b. 1729)
• 1812 – Sacagawea, American explorer (b. 1788)
• 1820 – John Bell, American farmer (b. 1750)
• 1856 – Francesco Bentivegna, Italian activist (b. 1820)
• 1862 – Robert Knox, Scottish surgeon and zoologist (b. 1791)^[81]
• 1880 – Gaspar Tochman, Polish-American colonel and lawyer (b. 1797)
• 1893 – George C. Magoun, American businessman (b. 1840)

1901–present

• 1915 – Upendrakishore Ray, Indian painter and composer (b. 1863)
• 1916 – Arthur Morgan, Australian politician, 16th Premier of Queensland (b. 1856)
• 1917 – Lucien Petit-Breton, French-Argentinian cyclist (b. 1882)
• 1919 – Philip Fysh, English-Australian politician, 12th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1835)^[82]
• 1920 – Linton Hope, English sailor and architect (b. 1863)
• 1921 – Julius Richard Petri, German microbiologist (b. 1852)^[83]
• 1925 – João Ferreira Sardo, the founder of Gafanha da Nazaré, also known as Prior Sardo (b. 1873).^[84]
• 1927 – Frederick Semple, American golfer and tennis player (b. 1872)^[85]
• 1929 – Émile Loubet, French lawyer and politician, 8th President of France (b. 1838)
• 1935 – Martin O'Meara, Irish-Australian sergeant, Victoria Cross recipient (b. 1882)
• 1937 – Erich Ludendorff, German general (b. 1865)
• 1938 – Annie Armstrong, American missionary (b. 1850)
• 1938 – Lida Howell, American archer (b. 1859)
• 1939 – Hans Langsdorff, German captain (b. 1894)
• 1941 – Igor Severyanin, Russian-Estonian poet and author (b. 1887)
• 1950 – Enrico Mizzi, Maltese lawyer and politician, 6th Prime Minister of Malta (b. 1885)
• 1954 – James Hilton, English-American author and screenwriter (b. 1900)
• 1956 – Ramón Carrillo, Argentinian neurologist and physician (b. 1906)
• 1959 – Juhan Simm, Estonian composer and conductor (b. 1885)
• 1961 – Moss Hart, American director and playwright (b. 1904)
• 1961 – Earle Page, Australian soldier and politician, 11th Prime Minister of Australia (b. 1880)
• 1968 – John Steinbeck, American novelist and short story writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1902)
• 1971 – Roy O. Disney, American banker and businessman, co-founded The Walt Disney Company (b. 1893)
• 1972 – Adolfo Orsi, Italian businessman (b. 1888)
• 1973 – Luis Carrero Blanco, Spanish admiral and politician, 69th President of the Government of Spain (b. 1904; assassinated)^[86]
• 1973 – Bobby Darin, American singer-songwriter and actor (b. 1936)^[87]
• 1974 – Rajani Palme Dutt, English journalist and politician (b. 1896)
• 1974 – André Jolivet, French composer and conductor (b. 1905)
• 1976 – Richard J. Daley, American lawyer and politician, 48th Mayor of Chicago (b. 1902)
• 1976 – Soetardjo Kartohadikusumo, Indonesian politician, 1st Governor of West Java (b. 1890)^[88]
• 1981 – Dimitris Rontiris, Greek actor and director (b. 1899)
• 1982 – Arthur Rubinstein, Polish-American pianist and composer (b. 1887)
• 1984 – Stanley Milgram, American psychologist and academic (b. 1933)
• 1984 – Dmitry Ustinov, Minister of Defence of the Soviet Union (1976-84) (b. 1908)^[89]
• 1986 – Joe DeSa, American baseball player (b. 1959)
• 1991 – Simone Beck, French chef and author (b. 1904)^[90]
• 1991 – Sam Rabin, English wrestler, singer, and sculptor (b. 1903)
• 1991 – Albert Van Vlierberghe, Belgian cyclist (b. 1942)
• 1993 – W. Edwards Deming, American statistician, author, and academic (b. 1900)
• 1993 – Nazife Güran, Turkish composer and educator (b. 1921)
• 1994 – Dean Rusk, American lawyer, and politician, 54th United States Secretary of State (b. 1909)
• 1995 – Madge Sinclair, Jamaican-American actress (b. 1938)
• 1996 – Carl Sagan, American astronomer, astrophysicist, and cosmologist (b. 1934)^[91]
• 1997 – Denise Levertov, English-American poet and translator (b. 1923)
• 1997 – Dick Spooner, English cricketer (b. 1919)
• 1997 – Dawn Steel, American film producer (b. 1946)
• 1998 – Alan Lloyd Hodgkin, English physiologist and biophysicist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1916)
• 1999 – Riccardo Freda, Egyptian-Italian director and screenwriter (b. 1909)
• 1999 – Hank Snow, Canadian-American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1914)
• 2001 – Léopold Sédar Senghor, Senegalese poet and politician, 1st President of Senegal (b. 1906)
• 2005 – Raoul Bott, Hungarian-American mathematician and academic (b. 1923)
• 2006 – Anne Rogers Clark, American dog breeder and trainer (b. 1929)
• 2008 – Adrian Mitchell, English author, poet, and playwright (b. 1932)
• 2008 – Robert Mulligan, American director and producer (b. 1925)^[92]
• 2008 – Igor Troubetzkoy, Russian aristocrat and racing driver (b. 1912)
• 2009 – Brittany Murphy, American actress and singer (b. 1977)
• 2009 – Arnold Stang, American actor (b. 1918)
• 2010 – K. P. Ratnam, Sri Lankan academic and politician (b. 1914)
• 2011 – Barry Reckord, Jamaican playwright and screenwriter (b. 1926)
• 2012 – Stan Charlton, English footballer and manager (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Robert Juniper, Australian painter and sculptor (b. 1929)
• 2012 – Victor Merzhanov, Russian pianist and educator (b. 1919)
• 2013 – Pyotr Bolotnikov, Russian runner (b. 1930)
• 2014 – Per-Ingvar Brånemark, Swedish surgeon and academic (b. 1929)
• 2014 – John Freeman, English lawyer, politician, and diplomat, British Ambassador to the United States (b. 1915)
• 2020 – Fanny Waterman, British pianist (b. 1920)^[93]
• 2020 – Ezra Vogel, American sociologist (b. 1930)^[94]
• 2022 – Franco Harris, American football player (b. 1950)^[95]

• Abolition of Slavery Day, also known as Fête des Cafres (Réunion, French Guiana)
• Bo Aung Kyaw Day (Myanmar)
• Christian feast day:
  • Dominic of Silos
  • O Clavis
  • Ursicinus of Saint-Ursanne
  • Katharina von Bora (Lutheran)
  • December 20 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Earliest date for Winter solstice's eve (Northern Hemisphere), and its related observances:
  • Yaldā (Iran)
• International Human Solidarity Day (International)^[96]
• Macau Special Administrative Region Establishment Day (Macau)

Wikimedia Commons has media related to December 20.

• BBC: On This Day
• The New York Times: On This Day
• Historical Events on December 20