January 19
Updated November 6, 2026 · Edited by the JanuaryCalendar.com team
January 19 is Theophany for Orthodox churches that follow the Julian calendar, and Ethiopia usually celebrates Timkat on this date. It is also the birthday of Edgar Allan Poe and Dolly Parton, and the anniversary of the 2006 launch of NASA's New Horizons probe to Pluto.
January 19 is the 19th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar. 346 days remain in the year (347 in leap years). In 2027, January 19 falls on a Tuesday.
- Day of year
- 19
- Days left
- 346 (347 in leap years)
- Zodiac sign
- Capricorn ♑︎
- Birthstone
- Garnet
- ISO week (2027)
- Week 3
- Weekday (2027)
- Tuesday
Holidays and observances on January 19
- Religious Theophany (Orthodox Epiphany) (Julian-calendar Orthodox churches) — January 6 on the Julian calendar; marks the baptism of Jesus.
- Religious Timkat (Ethiopia) — Ethiopian Orthodox Epiphany, usually January 19; a public holiday.
- Unofficial National Popcorn Day (US) — An informal food day celebrating popcorn.
- US federal Martin Luther King Jr. Day falls on January 19 in 2026, 2032, 2037 (third Monday of January)
- Astronomy Full moon (Wolf Moon) on January 19 in 2030 (Eastern Time)
Events on January 19 in history
- 1839 – British East India Company forces captured the port of Aden on the Arabian Peninsula.
- 1853 – Giuseppe Verdi's opera Il trovatore premiered at the Teatro Apollo in Rome.
- 1861 – Georgia became the fifth state to secede from the Union before the American Civil War.
- 1915 – German Zeppelins carried out the first Zeppelin raid on Britain, bombing Great Yarmouth and King's Lynn.
- 1966 – Indira Gandhi won the Congress Party leadership vote, clearing her path to become India's first woman prime minister.
- 1977 – Snow flurries fell in Miami, Florida, for the first time on record.
- 1981 – The United States and Iran signed the Algiers Accords, clearing the way for the release of American hostages.
- 1983 – Apple announced the Lisa, one of the first personal computers with a graphical interface and a mouse.
- 2006 – NASA launched the New Horizons spacecraft on its mission to Pluto.
Famous birthdays on January 19
- 1798 – Auguste Comte, French philosopher, founder of positivism
- 1807 – Robert E. Lee, Commander of the Confederate Army of Northern Virginia
- 1809 – Edgar Allan Poe, American poet and short-story writer
- 1813 – Henry Bessemer, English inventor of a steelmaking process
- 1839 – Paul Cézanne, French Post-Impressionist painter
- 1943 – Janis Joplin, American rock and blues singer
- 1946 – Dolly Parton, American country singer and songwriter
- 1949 – Robert Palmer, English singer of Addicted to Love
- 1955 – Simon Rattle, English orchestral conductor
What day is January 19?
Frequently asked questions
Why do some Orthodox churches celebrate Epiphany on January 19?
Churches that still use the Julian calendar, including the Russian and Serbian Orthodox churches, celebrate Theophany on January 6 by that calendar, which currently falls on January 19 in the Gregorian calendar. Western churches mark Epiphany on January 6, and the same 13-day gap explains Orthodox Christmas on January 7.
What is Timkat?
Timkat is the Ethiopian Orthodox celebration of Epiphany, usually held on January 19 and sometimes on January 20. It features processions carrying tabots, replicas of the Ark of the Covenant, and is a public holiday in Ethiopia.
Which famous writer was born on January 19?
Edgar Allan Poe was born in Boston on January 19, 1809. The date is also the birthday of painter Paul Cézanne (1839) and singer Dolly Parton (1946).
What day of the week is January 19, 2027?
January 19, 2027 is a Tuesday. In 2028 it falls on a Wednesday.
What zodiac sign is January 19?
People born on January 19 are Capricorns (December 22 – January 19) in Western astrology. Because the Sun's move into Aquarius can shift by a day, birthdays on January 19 or 20 are sometimes called the Capricorn–Aquarius cusp.