WORLD HISTORY · 2020 日本語
Events of 2020Reiwa 2 (Japan) · Year of the Rat
What happened in 2020?
In March 2020, the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics were postponed, and in April Japan declared a state of emergency as COVID-19 spread. In July, heavy rains caused disaster in Kumamoto Prefecture, and in August Prime Minister Abe Shinzo announced his resignation.
- COVID-19 triggers a global stock market plungeNorth America
- WHO declares COVID-19 a pandemicEurope
- Tokyo Olympics, Paralympics postponed one yearAsia
- State of emergency declared in seven prefecturesAsia
- National security law takes effect in Hong KongAsia
- Heavy rain floods Kuma River in KumamotoAsia
- Prime Minister Abe announces resignationAsia
- Biden projected winner of presidential electionNorth America
Tap an event to jump to it in the timeline below.
2020 at a glance
| Japanese era | Reiwa 2 |
|---|---|
| Chinese zodiac | Year of the Rat |
| Age of people born in 2020 | Turn 6 in 2026 |
| Previous / next year | 2019 (Heisei 31 / Reiwa 1) ／ 2021 (Reiwa 3) |
| Events | 102 |
| AP World History | Unit 9 (Globalization) |
| AP U.S. History | Period 9 |
Events of 2020 (timeline · 102)
Tip: the PC view is best for studying
On a computer, each region has its own vertical line, so you can follow the flow of events and see what was happening in different parts of the world at the same time.
Iranian General Qasem Soleimani is killed by an American airstrike near Baghdad International Airport, igniting global concerns of a potential armed conflict.
The 6.4Mw 2019–20 Puerto Rico earthquakes kill four and injure nine in southern Puerto Rico.
Ukraine International Airlines Flight 752 crashes immediately after takeoff at Tehran Imam Khomeini International Airport; all 176 on board are killed. The plane was shot down by an Iranian anti-aircraft missile.
COVID-19 pandemic in Hubei: Municipal health officials in Wuhan announce the first recorded death from COVID-19.
The Thai Ministry of Public Health confirms the first case of COVID-19 outside China.
The Japanese Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare confirms the first case of COVID-19 in Japan.
The United States Senate ratifies the United States–Mexico–Canada Agreement as a replacement for NAFTA.
The first impeachment of Donald Trump formally moves into its trial phase in the United States Senate.
A Sikorsky S-76B flying from John Wayne Airport to Camarillo Airport crashes in Calabasas, 30 miles west of Los Angeles, killing all nine people on board, including five-time NBA champion Kobe Bryant and his daughter Gianna Bryant.
The World Health Organization declares the COVID-19 pandemic to be a Public Health Emergency of International Concern.
The United Kingdom's membership within the European Union ceases in accordance with Article 50, after 47 years of being a member state.
Pegasus Airlines Flight 2193 overshoots the runway at Sabiha Gökçen International Airport and crashes, killing three people and injuring 179.
United States President Donald Trump is acquitted by the United States Senate in his first impeachment trial.
A soldier opens fire in a military camp and a shopping center in Nakhon Ratchasima, Thailand, killing 29 people and injuring 58 others before being shot dead by police the next day. It is considered the deadliest mass shooting in the country's history.
Salvadoran President Nayib Bukele has the army soldiers enter the Legislative Assembly to assist in pushing for the approval for a better government security plan, causing a brief political crisis.
COVID-19 pandemic: The World Health Organization officially names the coronavirus outbreak as COVID-19, with the virus being designated SARS-CoV-2.
At least 22 people are killed in an attack on a village in Northwest Region, Cameroon.
Nine people are killed in two domestic terrorist shootings in Hanau, Hesse, Germany.
Ahmaud Arbery, a 25-year-old African-American citizen, is shot and murdered by three white men after visiting a house under construction while jogging at a neighborhood in Satilla Shores near Brunswick in Glynn County, Georgia.
Mahathir Mohamad resigns as Prime Minister of Malaysia following an attempt to replace the Pakatan Harapan government, which triggered the 2020-2022 Malaysian political crisis.
During a demonstration, pro-government colectivos shoot at disputed President and Speaker of the National Assembly Juan Guaidó and his supporters in Barquisimeto, Venezuela, leaving five injured.
Muhyiddin Yassin is appointed as the 8th Prime Minister of Malaysia, amid the 2020 Malaysian political crisis.
Luxembourg becomes the first country in the world to render public transport free nationwide.
The United States and the Taliban sign the Doha Agreement for bringing peace to Afghanistan.
Nik Wallenda becomes the first person to walk over the Masaya Volcano in Nicaragua.
32 people are killed and 82 are injured when gunmen open fire on a ceremony in Kabul, Afghanistan. The Islamic State claims responsibility for the attack.
Giuseppe Conte, Prime Minister of Italy, announces in a televised address and signs the decree imposing the first nationwide COVID-19 lockdown in the world.
The World Health Organization (WHO) declares the COVID-19 virus epidemic a pandemic.
Breonna Taylor is killed by police officers who were forcibly entering her home in Louisville, Kentucky; her death sparked extensive protests against racism and police brutality.
President Donald Trump declares the COVID-19 pandemic to be a national emergency in the United States.
Katerina Sakellaropoulou is sworn in as the first female President of Greece amid strict COVID-19 measures.
The Dow Jones Industrial Average falls by 2,997.10, the single largest point drop in history and the second-largest percentage drop ever at 12.93%, an even greater crash than Black Monday (1929). This follows the U.S. Federal Reserve announcing that it will cut its target interest rate to 0–0.25%.
Greek Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis announces a national lockdown and the country's first ever self-imposed curfew, in an effort to fight the spread of COVID-19.
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi announces the country's largest ever self-imposed curfew, in an effort to fight the spread of COVID-19.
Prime Minister Boris Johnson puts the United Kingdom into its first national lockdown in response to COVID-19.
The region of Uusimaa (with the capital city Helsinki) is temporarily isolated from the rest of Finland due to increased COVID-19 infections.
China holds a national day of mourning for martyrs who died in the fight against the novel coronavirus disease outbreak.
COVID-19 pandemic: Acting Secretary of the Navy Thomas Modly resigns for his handling of the COVID-19 pandemic on USS Theodore Roosevelt and the dismissal of Brett Crozier.
Bernie Sanders ends his presidential campaign, leaving Joe Biden as the Democratic Party's nominee.
Soyuz MS-16 is launched from the Baikonur Cosmodrome, carrying the Expedition 62/63 crew to the International Space Station.
A killing spree in Nova Scotia, Canada, leaves 22 people and the perpetrator dead, making it the deadliest rampage in the country's history.
For the first time in history, oil prices drop below zero, an effect of the 2020 Russia-Saudi Arabia oil price war.
Four police officers are killed after being struck by a truck on the Eastern Freeway in Melbourne while speaking to a speeding driver, marking the largest loss of police lives in Victoria Police history.
The COVID-19 recession causes the U.S. unemployment rate to hit 14.9 percent, its worst rate since the Great Depression.
Pakistan International Airlines Flight 8303 crashes in Model Colony near Jinnah International Airport in Karachi, Pakistan, killing 98 people.
Protests triggered by the murder of George Floyd erupt in Minneapolis–Saint Paul, later becoming widespread across the United States and around the world.
Crew Dragon Demo-2 launches from Kennedy Space Center, becoming the first crewed orbital spacecraft to launch from the United States since 2011 and the first commercial flight to the International Space Station.
Death of Giovanni López: Protests over the death of Giovanni López Ramírez, who had died on 4 May while in custody, begin in Jalisco following the release of a video of his arrest going viral on social media, and inspired by the George Floyd protests. Later, these spread across Mexico.
Animal rights advocate Regan Russell is run over and killed by a transport truck outside of a pig slaughterhouse in Burlington, Ontario.
The Hong Kong National Security Law is passed by the Standing Committee of the National People's Congress and immediately comes into effect after gazettal.
After a five-day search, the body of American actress and singer Naya Rivera is recovered from Lake Piru in California, where she had drowned.
NASA's Mars 2020 mission is launched on an Atlas V rocket from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station.
A De Havilland Canada DHC-2 Beaver and Piper PA-12 Super Cruiser collide over Soldotna, Alaska, killing all seven people on board both aircraft, including state representative Gary Knopp.
Beirut Port explosion: At least 220 people are killed and over 5,000 are wounded when 2,700 tons of ammonium nitrate explodes in Beirut, Lebanon.
Air India Express Flight 1344 overshoots the runway at Calicut International Airport in the Malappuram district of Kerala, India, and crashes, killing 21 of the 190 people on board.
Joe Biden gives his acceptance speech virtually for the 2020 Democratic presidential nomination at the 2020 Democratic National Convention.
Pope Benedict XVI becomes the longest-lived pope, 93 years, four months, 16 days, surpassing Pope Leo XIII, who died in 1903.
Signing of the Bahrain–Israel normalization agreement occurs in Washington, D.C., normalizing relations between Israel and two Arab nations, the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain.
A grand jury in Kentucky declines to indict three police officers for the shooting death of Breonna Taylor in a drug raid gone wrong, leading to nationwide protests in the U.S.
Second Nagorno-Karabakh War: Azerbaijan launches an offensive against the self-proclaimed Republic of Artsakh in the Nagorno-Karabakh region, inhabited predominantly by ethnic Armenians.
Second Nagorno-Karabakh War: Azerbaijan twice deliberately targeted the Church of the Holy Savior Ghazanchetsots of Shusha.
Second Libyan Civil War: The Second Libyan Civil War comes to an end as all parties to the 5+5 Joint Libyan Military Commission agree to a ceasefire.
Jeremy Corbyn, former Leader of the Labour Party and of the Opposition in the United Kingdom is suspended from the Labour Party following his response to findings from the EHRC on the issue of antisemitism within the party.
A magnitude 7.0 earthquake strikes the Aegean Sea between Greece and Turkey, triggering a tsunami. At least 119 people die mainly due to collapsed buildings.
Berlin Brandenburg Airport opens its doors after nearly 10 years of delays due to construction issues and project corruption.
In Vienna's Innere Stadt district, an ISIL sympathizer shoots and kills four people and injures 23 more, before being shot and killed by the police.
The 2020 United States presidential election takes place between Democratic Joe Biden and Republican incumbent President Donald Trump. On November 7, Biden was declared the winner.
The Tigray War begins with Tigrayan rebels launching attacks on Ethiopian command centers.
Joe Biden is confirmed elected as the 46th president of the United States, defeating incumbent Donald Trump.
Myanmar holds the 2020 general election, re-electing a government led by the National League for Democracy, which is deposed by the Burmese military the following February during the 2021 Myanmar coup d'état.
Second Nagorno-Karabakh War: An armistice agreement is signed by Armenia, Azerbaijan and Russia.
Armenia and Azerbaijan sign a ceasefire agreement, ending the Second Nagorno-Karabakh War, and prompting protests in Armenia.
Typhoon Vamco makes landfall in Luzon and several offshore islands, killing 67 people. The storm causes the worst floods in the region since Typhoon Ketsana in 2009.
Lewis Hamilton wins the Turkish Grand Prix and secures his seventh drivers' title, equalling the all-time record held by Michael Schumacher.
The Utah monolith, built sometime in 2016 is discovered by state biologists of the Utah Division of Wildlife Resources.
Days after the announcement of its discovery, the Utah monolith is removed by recreationists.
Over seven hundred civilians are massacred by the Ethiopian National Defense Force and Eritrean Army in Aksum, Ethiopia.
Cannabis is removed from the list of most dangerous drugs of the international drug control treaty by the UN Commission on Narcotic Drugs.
The Food and Drug Administration issues an Emergency Use Authorization on the Pfizer–BioNTech COVID-19 vaccine, the first COVID-19 vaccine to be approved by the agency.
A total solar eclipse is visible from parts of the South Pacific Ocean, southern South America, and the South Atlantic Ocean.
A great conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn occurs, with the two planets separated in the sky by 0.1 degrees. This is the closest conjunction between the two planets since 1623.
An explosion in Nashville, Tennessee, occurs, leaving three civilians in the hospital.
A magnitude 6.4 earthquake hits near the town of Petrinja in Sisak-Moslavina County, Croatia, killing seven people.
A large explosion at the airport in the southern Yemeni city of Aden kills at least 22 people and wounds 50.
The World Health Organization issues its first emergency use validation for a COVID-19 vaccine.
Source: Wikipedia date pages ("January 1" … "December 31") / CC BY-SA 4.0. Regions are assigned by the site editors.
FAQ
What year was 2020 in the Japanese calendar?
2020 was Reiwa 2 in the Japanese era system.
What Chinese zodiac animal is 2020?
2020 is the Year of the Rat.
How old is someone born in 2020?
They turn 6 on their birthday in 2026.
What happened in 2020?
In March 2020, the Tokyo Olympics and Paralympics were postponed, and in April Japan declared a state of emergency as COVID-19 spread. In July, heavy rains caused disaster in Kumamoto Prefecture, and in August Prime Minister Abe Shinzo announced his resignation.
Dates and events are based on Wikipedia and other references. Summaries and regions are written by the site editors.