1922 CE
The Irish Civil War erupts between pro- and anti-Treaty forces after the creation of the Irish Free State, plunging Ireland into a brutal struggle; the March on Rome brings Benito Mussolini and the National Fascist Party to power in the Kingdom of Italy, launching fascist rule; the discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings by Howard Carter sparks worldwide fascination with ancient Egypt; the Burning of Smyrna devastates the city in the final phase of the Greco-Turkish War, causing massive destruction and a humanitarian crisis; the Washington Naval Treaty limits naval arms among leading powers to prevent another costly race; and the Treaty on the Creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics forms the Soviet Union, uniting multiple republics under one federal government.
In the 1920s, the 20th century.
1922 at a glance
- World population
- about 1.93 billion Our World in Data
- United States
- Warren G. Harding (President) Wikipedia rev. 1377869146
- United Kingdom
- George V (King); David Lloyd George, then Bonar Law (Prime minister) Wikipedia rev. 1377869146
- Soviet Union
- Joseph Stalin (General Secretary); Mikhail Kalinin (Chairman of the Central Executive Committee of the Congress of Soviets); Vladimir Lenin (Chairman of the Council of People's Commissars) Wikipedia rev. 1377869146
- Republic of China (1916–1949)
- Xu Shichang (President); Wang Zhengting (Acting Premier) Wikipedia rev. 1377869146
- French Third Republic
- Alexandre Millerand (President); Aristide Briand, then Raymond Poincaré (President of the Council of ministers) Wikipedia rev. 1377869146
- Weimar Republic of Germany
- Friedrich Ebert (President); Joseph Wirth, then Wilhelm Cuno (Chancellor) Wikipedia rev. 1377869146
- $1 in 1922
- $20.12 in September 2026 dollars BLS CPI-U
Who led every country in 1922 →Born in 1922? What it cost, who led, what was No. 1 →
Geopolitics & Diplomacy
- January 7 – Dáil Éireann, the parliament of the Irish Republic, ratifies the Anglo-Irish Treaty by 64–57 votes.source
- January 10 – Arthur Griffith is elected President of Dáil Éireann, the day after Éamon de Valera resigns.source
- January 15 – Michael Collins becomes Chairman of the Provisional Government of the Irish Free State.source
- 29 January – Portuguese legislative election, 1922.Portugalsource
- 2 February – Bethlen, and most of his Christian National Union Party (KNEP) joins the National Smallholders and Agricultural Labourers Party (OKGFP) and form the Christian Agricultural Labourers, Smallholders and Civic Party, commonly known as the Unity Party.Hungarysource
- February 6 – The Five Power Naval Disarmament Treaty is signed between the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, France and Italy. Japan returns some of its control over the Shandong Peninsula to China.source
- 6 February – Washington Naval Treaty is signed by United States, Britain, Japan, France and Italy.Francesource
- February 6 – Washington Naval Treaty signed between the United States, United Kingdom, Japan, France and Italy. Japan returns some of its control over the Shandong Peninsula to China.Japansource
- February 26 – Leser v. Garnett: The Supreme Court of the United States rebuffs a challenge to the Nineteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, which gave women the right to vote on the same terms as men.source
- February 28 – The Unilateral Declaration of Egyptian Independence by the United Kingdom ends its protectorate over Egypt, and grants the country nominal independence, reserving control of military and diplomatic matters.source
- 1 March - In the Brazilian presidential election, Artur Bernardes of the Mineiro Republican Party receives 56.0% of the vote.Brazilsource
- 1 March – A general election is held for the Chamber of Deputies and Senate, running until 11 March. The governing National Liberal Party retains power.Romaniasource
- March 15 – With Egypt having gained self-government from the United Kingdom, Fuad I becomes King of Egypt.source
- April 16 – The Treaty of Rapallo marks a rapprochement between the Weimar Republic and Bolshevik Russia.source
- June 9 – Åland's Regional Assembly convenes for its first plenary session in Mariehamn, Åland; the day will be celebrated as Self-Government Day of Åland.source
- June 26 – Louis Honoré Charles Antoine Grimaldi becomes Reigning Prince Louis II of Monaco.source
- June 28 – The Syrian Federation is constituted by arrêté of Henri Gouraud.source
- July 17 – The final signings of Treaty 11, an agreement between George V, King of Canada, and various Canadian First Nations, are conducted at Fort Liard.source
- July 20 – The German protectorate of Togoland is divided into the League of Nations mandates of French Togoland and British Togoland.source
- July 27 – The Cherkess (Adyghe) Autonomous Oblast is established within the Russian SFSR.source
- 18 September - W. T. Cosgrave introduces the Constitution of Saorstát Éireann Bill to enable the implementation of the Treaty between Great Britain and Ireland.Northern Irelandsource
- 22 September – Estonia joined the League of Nations.Estoniasource
- September 24 - The Latvia national football team and Estonia national football team played their first official international match.source
- October 25 – The 3rd Dáil enacts the Constitution of the Irish Free State.source
- October 27 – Southern Rhodesians reject union with South Africa in a referendum.source
- November 1 – The Ottoman Empire is abolished after 600 years, and its last sultan, Mehmed VI, abdicates, leaving for exile, initially in Malta, on November 17.source
- November 15 – In the 1922 United Kingdom general election forced by the Conservatives' withdrawal from the coalition government, the Conservative Party wins an overall majority. Labour for the first time becomes the main opposition party, winning more seats than the divided Liberals. A dining club of newly elected Conservative Members of Parliament evolves the following year into the 1922 Committee.source
- November 21 – Rebecca Felton of Georgia takes the oath of office, formally becoming the first woman United States Senator.source
- December 5 – The British Parliament enacts the Irish Free State Constitution Act, by which it legally sanctions the new Constitution of the Irish Free State.source
- December 6 – The Irish Free State officially comes into existence. George V becomes the Free State's monarch. Tim Healy is appointed first Governor-General of the Irish Free State, and W. T. Cosgrave becomes President of the Executive Council.source
- December 9 – Gabriel Narutowicz is elected the first president of Poland.source
- December 30 – Russia, Ukraine, Belarus and the Transcaucasian Republic (Armenia, Azerbaijan and Georgia) come together to form the Union of Soviet Socialist Republics.source
- 30 December – Treaty on the Creation of the Union of Soviet Socialist RepublicsSoviet Unionsource
Conflict & Security
- January 26 – Italian forces occupy Misrata, Libya; the reconquest of Libya begins.source
- February 8 – In the Russian Soviet Federative Socialist Republic, the Cheka becomes the Gosudarstvennoye Politicheskoye Upravlenie (GPU), a section of the NKVD.source
- February 15 – The inaugural session of the Permanent Court of International Justice (PCIJ) is held in The Hague.source
- March 16 – The Rand Rebellion, which began as a strike by white South African mine workers on 28 December 1921 and became open rebellion against the state, is suppressed.source
- 27 March – 2 April – 11th Congress of the Russian Communist Party (Bolsheviks)Soviet Unionsource
- May 8 – In Moscow, eight priests, two laymen and one woman are sentenced to death for opposition to the Soviet government's confiscation of church property.source
- June 1 – Bolshevik forces defeat Basmachi troops, under Enver Pasha.source
- 4 June - The British Army recaptures Belleek, County Fermanagh, from the Irish Republican Army.Northern Irelandsource
- June 16 — Chen Jiongming, warlord of Guangdong, launched a coup against Sun Yat-sen, Great President of the Government of the Republic of China in GuangzhouChinasource
- June 22 – Irish Republican Army agents assassinate British Army field marshal Sir Henry Wilson in London; the assassins are sentenced to death on July 18.source
- 24 June – Second West Hungarian Uprising, quickly suppressed by the government.Hungarysource
- June 28 – The Irish Civil War and Battle of Dublin begin when the Irish National Army, using artillery loaned by the British, begins to bombard the anti-Treaty Irish Republican Army forces occupying the Four Courts in Dublin. Fighting in Dublin lasts until July 5.source
- 5 July - The 18 of the Copacabana Fort revolt occurs in Rio de Janeiro, then Federal District of Brazil. It is the first revolt of the tenentista movement, in the context of the Brazilian Old Republic.Brazilsource
- 22 August – Fifth Palestine Arab Congress held in Nablus.Mandatory Palestinesource
- August 23 – Morocco revolts against the Spanish.source
- August 26 – A Turkish large-scale attack opens against Greek forces in Afyon; Turkish victory is achieved on August 30.source
- August 28 – Japan agrees to withdraw its troops from Siberia.source
- August 28 – Japan withdrew troops from the Siberian InterventionJapansource
- 1–3 August – The "anti-Fascist legalitarian strike" brings the country on the brink of civil war. The strike is called off on 2 August. Fights break out in Milan, Genova, and Ancona, which are occupied by Fascist militias. In Parma a series of battles, known as the Parma Barricades, between anti-fascist forces of the Arditi del Popolo and the Proletarian Defense Formations against the fascist Blackshirts take place from 2-6 August. On 6 August, the fascists passed control of public order to the army, pledging to withdraw, but the fascist siege of Parma persisted for three more months.Italysource
- September 9 – Turkish forces pursuing withdrawing Greek troops enter İzmir, effectively ending the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922).source
- September 24 (O. S. September 11) – 11 September 1922 Revolution in Greece.source
- October 11 – Greco-Turkish War of 1919-1922 ends in Turkish victory.source
- October 28 – The Red Army occupies Vladivostok.source
- October 28 – In Italy, the March on Rome brings the National Fascist Party and Benito Mussolini to power. Italy begins a period of dictatorship that lasts until the end of the Second World War.source
- November 15 – 1922 Guayaquil general strike: During a 3-day strike action in the city of Guayaquil, Ecuador, police and military fire into a crowd, killing at least 300.source
- During his first rebellion, Simko Shikak launched an attack on Mahabad in mid-May and July. In the ensuing fighting, Simko's forces captured Mahabad and killed a Persian commander.source
Exploration & Expansion
- January 12 — 1922 seamen's strike, Chinese sailors from Hong Kong and Guangzhou went on strike for higher wagesChinasource
- 1 April – SWA – Kolmanskop to Bogenfels, 74 mi.South Africasource
- 2 April – The founding of the agricultural settlement Giv'atayim by a group of 22 Second Aliyah pioneers led by David Schneiderman.Mandatory Palestinesource
- 6 April – In his Western tour, Bethlen asks for a loan from the Reparations Committee.Hungarysource
- October 9 – Prairie Bible College opens with eight students in Three Hills, AlbertaCanadasource
- 20 October – Kjell Bloch Sandved, author, lecturer and nature photographer.Norwaysource
- November 4 – Discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun: in Egypt, English archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to the pharaonic tomb of Tutankhamun in the Valley of the Kings.source
- 4 November – Discovery of the tomb of Tutankhamun in Egypt: English archaeologist Howard Carter and his men find the entrance to KV62, the tomb of Tutankhamun, a pharaoh of the Eighteenth Dynasty, in the Valley of the Kings. On 26 November, Carter and his sponsor Lord Carnarvon become the first people to see inside the tomb in over 3,000 years.United Kingdomsource
- Earl W. Bascom, rodeo cowboy and artist, designs and makes rodeo's first hornless bronc saddle at Lethbridge, Alberta, Canada.source
- 1922 New Zealand rugby union tour of New South WalesNew Zealandsource
Religion & Belief
- 9 January – Haj Amin al-Husseini, who had become the Mufti of Jerusalem the previous year, is elected head of the Muslim community (Rais al-'Ulama').Mandatory Palestinesource
- January–March - Two "Craig–Collins Pacts" fail to resolve sectarian differences between North and South.Northern Irelandsource
- February 6 – Pope Pius XI (Achille Ratti) succeeds Pope Benedict XV, to become the 259th pope.source
- 6 February – Pope Pius XI is elected on the Papal conclave's fourteenth ballot.Italysource
- April 22 – The Lambda chapter of the Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority (the first chapter of a black sorority in New York State) is chartered.United Statessource
- May 30 – In Washington, D.C., United States, the Lincoln Memorial is dedicated.source
- September 11 – The Mandate of Palestine is approved by the Council of the League of Nations.source
- 15 October – Ferdinand is crowned King of Romania at Coronation Cathedral, Alba Iulia.Romaniasource
- 2 November – William Watson appointed Lord Advocate, replacing Charles David Murray.Scotlandsource
- November 19 – Abdülmecid II, Crown Prince of the Ottoman Empire, is elected Caliph.source
- 21–23 June – The foundation stone for the Dante Column on Danttes Plads in Copenhagen is set.Denmarksource
- The Light of the East, a monthly review is founded at Calcutta.Indiasource
Economy & Finance
- 2 April – The founding of the agricultural settlement "Ahuza A – New York" (now Ra'anana), named after the founding company.Mandatory Palestinesource
- April 10 – Genoa Conference: The representatives of 34 countries convene to speak in Genoa, Italy about monetary economics, in the wake of World War I.source
- May 1 – Kinjōtei Bakery, as predecessor of Fuji Bakery was founded in Nagoya.Japansource
- July – Hyperinflation in Germany means that 563 marks are now needed to buy a single American dollar – more than double the 263 needed eight months before, dwarfing the mere 12 needed in April 1919, and even the 47 needed in December of that year.source
- Hyperinflation in Germany sees the value of the Papiermark against the dollar rise to 1,000.source
- October – 3,000 German marks are now needed to buy a single American dollar – triple the figure three months ago due to hyperinflation.source
- 30 November – The establishment of Norwegian government-owned alcoholic beverage retailer "Vinmonopolet".Norwaysource
- 1 December – The Aberdeen Press & Journal is first published under this title following a merger.Scotlandsource
- December – The year ends with hyperinflation showing no sign of slowing down in Germany, with 7,000 marks now needed to buy a single American dollar.source
- Wracked by rapid inflation and political assassinations, and motivated by hostility and arrogance as well, the Weimar Republic announces its inability to pay more, and proposes a moratorium on reparations for 3 years.source
- Johannes Becker (German People's Party (DVP)) – Economics MinisterGermanysource
- Heinrich Albert – Treasury Minister of Germany and Reconstruction Minister of GermanyGermanysource
- Heinrich Brauns (Z) – Labour MinisterGermanysource
- Andreas Hermes (German Centre Party (Z)) – Finance MinisterGermanysource
Technology & Infrastructure
- February 8 – President of the United States Warren G. Harding introduces the first radio in the White House.source
- March 2 – An ice mass breaks the Oder Dam in Breslau.source
- March 2 – The British Civil Aviation Authority is established.source
- March 20 – The USS Langley is commissioned as the first United States Navy aircraft carrier.source
- March 22 – Radio station WLW in Cincinnati begins broadcasting.source
- April 1 – South African Railways takes control of all railway operations in South West Africa.source
- 1 April – The SAR inherits seven former German Colonial narrow gauge and Cape gauge steam locomotive types in SWA.South Africasource
- April 24 – The first portion of the Imperial Wireless Chain, a strategic international wireless telegraphy network created to link the British Empire, is opened, from the UK to Egypt.source
- May - The Dom Vital Center is created.Brazilsource
- June 14 – President of the United States Warren G. Harding makes his first speech on the radio.source
- September 13 – The Gdynia Seaport Construction Act is passed by the Polish Parliament.source
- 11 October – The opening of Baishatun Station in Shinchiku Prefecture.Taiwansource
- 14 October - First Ulster Grand Prix motorcycle road race takes place on the Old Clady circuit.Northern Irelandsource
- October 18 – The British Broadcasting Company is formed.source
- 26–28 October – March on Rome, led by Italo Balbo, Michele Bianchi, Emilio De Bono and Cesare Maria De Vecchi (Quadrumviri del Fascismo). Fascist blackshirts converge on Rome from various regions of Italy, occupying prefectures and railway stations. Mussolini is in Milan, where he negotiates at a distance with the king and the government. Civilian authorities hand over power to the military authorities. King Victor Emmanuel III announces his intention to appoint Fascist leader Benito Mussolini as Prime Minister of Italy and refuses to sign a state of siege, proposed by Prime Minister Facta.Italysource
- November 1 – A broadcast receiving licence with a fee of ten shillings is introduced in the United Kingdom.source
- November 14 – The British Broadcasting Company (BBC) begins radio service in the United Kingdom, broadcasting from station 2LO in London.source
- November 26 – Howard Carter and Lord Carnarvon become the first people to see inside KV62, the tomb of Pharaoh Tutankhamun, in over 3,000 years.source
- December 27 – Japanese aircraft carrier Hōshō becomes the first purpose-designed aircraft carrier to be commissioned.source
- The Industrial Islamic orphanage school is established in the old city of Jerusalem.Mandatory Palestinesource
- Wilhelm Groener – Transport MinisterGermanysource
- 1922 New Zealand rugby league seasonNew Zealandsource
Science & Discovery
- February 14 – Baragoola, the last of the Binngarra class Manly ferries, is launched at Balmain, New South Wales.source
- February – The Ring boxing magazine is first published.United Statessource
- March 4 – The silent horror film Nosferatu is premièred at the Berlin Zoological Garden in Germany.source
- April 12 – The United Kingdom's Prince of Wales arrives in Yokohama aboard HMS Renown and rides by train to Tokyo, starting a one-month visit to Japan.source
- 24 June – Athletic Park, Wellington: drawn 1–1New Zealandsource
- September 17 – Dutch cyclist Piet Moeskops becomes world champion sprinter.source
- 21 September – A total solar eclipse occurs over Australia, allowing scientists to test Albert Einstein's general theory of relativity.Australiasource
- 10 October - Contralto Leila Megane makes the first recording of Sir Edward Elgar's Sea Pictures, with Elgar himself conducting.Walessource
- 6 December – First domestically designed 2d postage stamp issued depicting a map of Ireland and inscribed Éire.Irelandsource
- 10 December – Francis William Aston wins the Nobel Prize in Chemistry "for his discovery, by means of his mass spectrograph, of isotopes, in a large number of non-radioactive elements, and for his enunciation of the whole-number rule".United Kingdomsource
- Do Rio a São Paulo Para Casar, directed by José Medina and starring Waldemar MorenoBrazilsource
- New Zealand Trotting Cup – AgathosNew Zealandsource
Health & Medicine
- January 11 – The first successful insulin treatment of diabetes is made, by Frederick Banting in Toronto.source
- January 11 – The world's first insulin treatment is made at the Toronto General Hospital. The successful technique would later win a Nobel Prize for its creators, Frederick Banting and Charles Best.Canadasource
- 13 January – Flu epidemic has claimed 804 victims in Britain.United Kingdomsource
- January – The year begins with the British Empire at the largest extent of any empire in history, covering one-quarter of the world (33 million square miles) and ruling over one in four people on earth, a population of 423 million people.United Kingdomsource
- 28 May – Prohibition begins in Wick, Caithness.Scotlandsource
- Vegemite is invented by Australian entrepreneur Fred Walker.source
- 14–21 August – Loch Maree Hotel botulism poisoning, first recorded outbreak in the United Kingdom.Scotlandsource
- Ivor Novello stars in The Bohemian GirlWalessource
Crime & Justice
- 23 January – The Dealul Spirii Trial of members of the Communist Party commences.Romaniasource
- March 10 – Mahatma Gandhi is arrested in Bombay for sedition.source
- March 18 – In British India, Mahatma Gandhi is sentenced to six years in prison for sedition (he serves only two).source
- 18 March – Mohandas Gandhi is sentenced to six years in prison for sedition. He would serve only two years.Indiasource
- March 31 – Six die in the Hinterkaifeck murders north of Munich.source
- 1 April - Arnon Street killings: Members of the police force murder six Belfast Catholic civilians in a revenge attack for the previous killing of a police officer.Northern Irelandsource
- 12 May – Fascist concentration in Ferrara of 40,000 militants led by Italo Balbo and backed by the agrarian associations. The "fascist strike" of the workers is proclaimed. The aim of the event is to press on the Government to launch a plan for the construction of public works in the province.Italysource
- May 29 – British Liberal MP Horatio Bottomley is jailed for seven years for fraud.source
- The last hunted California grizzly bear is shot.source
- November 17 – Rand Rebellion strikers Samuel Long, Herbert Hull and David Lewis are hanged for murder.South Africasource
- December 11 – The trial of Edith Thompson and Frederick Bywaters ends at the Old Bailey in London, for the murder of Thompson's husband; both are found guilty and sentenced to hang.source
- December 20 – Antigone by Jean Cocteau appears on stage in Paris, with settings by Pablo Picasso, music by Arthur Honegger and costumes by Coco Chanel.source
- 11-18 February - Modern Art Week is held in São Paulo, marking the beginning of Brazilian Modernism.Brazilsource
- Rudolf Oeser (German Democratic Party (DDP)) – Interior MinisterGermanysource
- Men – Arthur Duncan (Wellington) (his ninth title)New Zealandsource
Disasters & Accidents
- January 28 – Snowfall from the Knickerbocker storm, the biggest-ever recorded snowstorm in Washington, D.C., causes the roof of the Knickerbocker Theatre to collapse, killing 98.United Statessource
- April 7 – 1922 Picardie mid-air collision: The first midair collision between airliners occurs, between a Daimler Airway de Havilland DH.18 and a Grands Express Aériens Farman Goliath over Poix-de-Picardie, Amiens, France.source
- 7 April – 1922 Picardie mid-air collision: World's first midair collision, between a Daimler Airway de Havilland DH.18 and a Compagnie des Grands Express Aériens Farman Goliath over Poix-de-Picardie, Amiens.Francesource
- 20 May – P&O liner SS Egypt sinks in the English Channel off Ushant after a collision with 44 passengers, 294 crew and £1 million in bullion and coin on board; 86 die.United Kingdomsource
- 1 August – Two trains carrying pilgrims from Moulins to Lourdes collide at Miélan killing at least 33.Francesource
- 5 September – An underground explosion at Haig Pit, Whitehaven, in the Cumberland Coalfield, kills 39 people.United Kingdomsource
- September 13–15 – The Great Fire of Smyrna destroys most of İzmir. Responsibility is disputed.source
- 10 December – anti-Treaty IRA men set fire to the home of Seán McGarry. His seven-year-old son, Emmet, is badly burned and dies.Irelandsource
- 23 December - Cargo ship Maid of Delos sinks in St George's Channel off Skomer with all 26 crew killed.Walessource
- Date unknown – Dissolution of the Allmänna Barnhuset.Swedensource
Climate & Environment
- February 3 – According to Railway Ministry of Japan official confirmed report, A surface avalanche hit a passenger train near by Katsuyama shelter in Utatonami (now Itoigawa), Niigata Prefecture. There were 90 fatalities and 40 people were hurt.Japansource
- August 2 – The 1922 Swatow typhoon hits Shantou, China, killing more than 5,000 people.source
- August 2 — The 1922 Shantou typhoon hits Shantou in Guangdong Province, killing more than 5,000 peopleChinasource
- August – The California grizzly bear is hunted to extinction.United Statessource
- 17 October – first Hunger March sets out, from Glasgow to London.Scotlandsource
- 11 November – 1922 Vallenar earthquakeChilesource
- 25 December – a 6.4 magnitude earthquake strikes Motunau on Christmas day, causing widespread damage in North Canterbury and ChristchurchNew Zealandsource
- The Barbary lion becomes extinct in the wild, with the last killed in Morocco, in the area of the Zelan and Beni Mguild Forests.source
- The Amur tiger becomes extinct in South Korea.source
Culture & Society
- February 10–17 – Modern Art Week in São Paulo marks the start of Modernism in Brazil.source
- 11 February – C.D. Once Lobos, a Salvadoran football club, was established.El Salvadorsource
- February 19 – First issue of Borba, the newsletter of the banned Yugoslav Communist Party, published in Zagreb.Croatiasource
- March 13 – Edward, Prince of Wales, inaugurates the Prince of Wales Royal Indian Military College in Dehradun, India, marking a capitulation of the Governor General and Secretary of State for India to growing pressure for Indianization of the officer cadre of the Indian Army.source
- 31 March – first issue of Jornal SportingPortugalsource
- 1 April – The opening of Shinchiku Prefectural Shinchiku High School in Shinchiku Prefecture.Taiwansource
- April 13 – The State of Massachusetts opens all public offices to women.source
- May 18 – Sergei Diaghilev, Igor Stravinsky, Pablo Picasso, Marcel Proust, James Joyce, Erik Satie and Clive Bell dine together at the Hotel Majestic in Paris, their only joint meeting.source
- May 19 – The All-Russian Young Pioneer Organisation is established.source
- June 1 – The first issue of the magazine Krestyanka is published in Russia.source
- 3 June – The Churchill White Paper is published endorsing the Balfour Declaration but weakening the plans for a Jewish homeland.Mandatory Palestinesource
- June 11 – Robert J. Flaherty's Nanook of the North, the first commercially successful feature-length documentary film, is premiered in the U.S.source
- July 11 – The Hollywood Bowl open-air music venue opens.source
- August 8 – Shogakukan was founded.Japansource
- 15 August – István Horthy joins the Order of Vitéz.Hungarysource
- September 3 – The Autodromo Nazionale di Monza, the world's third purpose-built motorsport race track, is officially opened at Monza in the Lombardy Region of Italy.source
- September 11 – The Sun News-Pictorial, a predecessor of the Melbourne, Australia, Herald Sun, is founded.source
- September 29 – Drums in the Night (Trommeln in der Nacht) becomes the first play by Bertolt Brecht to be staged, at the Munich Kammerspiele.source
- October 1 – G. I. Gurdjieff opens his Institute for the Harmonious Development of Man at Fontainebleau, France.source
- October 15 – T. S. Eliot establishes The Criterion magazine, containing the first publication of his poem The Waste Land. This first appears in the United States later this month in The Dial (dated November 1), and is first published complete with notes in book form, by Boni and Liveright in New York in December.source
- October 28 – Rose Bowl sports stadium officially opens in Pasadena, California.source
- November 12 – Sigma Gamma Rho (ΣΓΡ) Sorority, Incorporated is founded by seven educators in Indianapolis, Indiana. The group becomes an incorporated national collegiate sorority on December 30, 1929, when a charter is granted to the Alpha chapter at Butler University in Indianapolis.source
- 12 December - The Duke of Abercorn becomes first Governor of Northern Ireland, a post he will hold until 1945.Northern Irelandsource
- L'Action sénégalaise weekly newspaper is founded in Senegal.source
Births
- January 17 – Luis Echeverría, 50th President of Mexico (died 2022)source
- January 17 – Betty White, American actress, television personality and animal welfare activist (died 2021)source
- March 1 – Yitzhak Rabin, Prime Minister of Israel, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (died 1995)source
- 1 March – Yitzhak Rabin, Fifth Prime Minister of Israel, recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize (died 1995).Mandatory Palestinesource
- 7 March – Olga Ladyzhenskaya, mathematicianSoviet Unionsource
- March 12 – Jack Kerouac, American author (died 1969)source
- 31 March - Patrick Magee, actor (died 1982).Northern Irelandsource
- April 13 – Julius Nyerere, 1st President of Tanzania (died 1999)source
- May 14 – Franjo Tuđman, first President of Croatia (died 1999)source
- June 10 – Judy Garland, American singer, actress (died 1969)source
- July 2 – Pierre Cardin, Italian-born French fashion designer (died 2020)source
- July 19 – George McGovern, American politician, historian and author (died 2012)source
- August 9 – Philip Larkin, English poet (died 1985)source
- September 1 – Yvonne De Carlo, Canadian-born American actress, dancer and singer (died 2007)source
- October 31 – Norodom Sihanouk, King of Cambodia (died 2012)source
- November 11 – Kurt Vonnegut, American novelist (died 2007)source
- November 14 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali, Secretary-General of the United Nations (died 2016)Egyptsource
- December 28 – Stan Lee, American comics creator (died 2018)source
Deaths
- January 5 – Sir Ernest Shackleton, British explorer (born 1874)source
- February 25 – Henri Désiré Landru, French serial killer (executed) (born 1869)source
- April 1 – Emperor Charles I of Austria (born 1887)source
- April 23 – Vlaho Bukovac, painter (born 1855)Croatiasource
- May 4 – Viktor Kingissepp, Estonian Communist politician (born 1888; executed)Estoniasource
- June 4 – W. H. R. Rivers, English doctor (born 1864)source
- June 22 – Sir Henry Wilson, 1st Baronet, British field marshal and politician (born 1864)source
- June 24 – Weimar Republic foreign minister Walther Rathenau is assassinated; the murderers are captured on July 17.source
- August 2 – Alexander Graham Bell, Scottish-born Canadian-American inventor (born 1847)source
- August 4 – Enver Pasha, Ottoman military leader, Turkish revolutionary (born 1881)source
- August 22 – Irish Civil War: General Michael Collins is assassinated in West Cork.source
- August 22 – Michael Collins, Irish republican, revolutionary, and Chairman of the Provisional Government (assassinated) (born 1890)source
- October 3 – Rebecca Latimer Felton becomes the first female U.S. senator when Georgia's governor gives her a temporary appointment pending an election to replace Senator Thomas Watson, who has died suddenly.source
- November 24 – Erskine Childers, Irish novelist, nationalist (executed) (born 1870)source
- November 24 – Popular author and anti-Treaty Republican Erskine Childers is executed by firing squad in Dublin, after conviction by an Irish Free State military court for the unlawful possession of a gun, a weapon presented to him by Michael Collins in 1920 as a gift.source
- 8 December - Joe McKelvey, Irish Republican Army officer executed during the Irish Civil War.Northern Irelandsource
- December 16 – Gabriel Narutowicz, sworn on December 11 as first president of the Second Polish Republic, is assassinated by a right-wing sympathizer in Warsaw.source
- 16 December – Eliezer Ben-Yehuda (born 1858), Russian (Belarus)-born Jewish lexicographer and newspaper editor, the driving spirit behind the revival of the Hebrew language in the modern era.Mandatory Palestinesource