Google doodles

[9A]

16 October 2010

Double Ninth Festival 2010





The Double Ninth Festival, observed on the ninth day of the ninth month in the Chinese calendar, is a traditional Chinese holiday, mentioned in writings since before the Eastern Han period [before AD 25].

[9A]

26 October 2020

Dolores Cacuango's 139th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates the 139th birthday of Ecuadorian civil rights pioneer Dolores Cacuango, who spent decades fighting fiercely for the rights of the country’s Indigenous people. Cacuango was a dedicated advocate for accessible education and instrumental in establishing Ecuador’s first bilingual schools, which practiced in Spanish and the Indigenous language of Quichua.

Dolores Cacuango was born on this day in 1881 in the Pesillo hacienda in the northern canton of Cayambe, Ecuador. Like many Indigenous people before her, she began to work at a young age, and at 15 years old was forced to relocate to the Ecuadorian capital of Quito to become a servant. With new insight into the troubling racism and class inequality facing her people, Cacuango returned home committed to the struggle for change.

Back in Pesillo, she became a leader in the movement against the exploitative hacienda system, and through her dynamic speeches, she advocated for causes like land rights, economic justice, and education for the Indigenous community. In 1926, she helped lead the people of Cayambe in challenging the sale of their community land, setting a strong example for future movements. Some two decades later in 1944, she also contributed to the establishment of the groundbreaking Ecuadorian Federation of Indians, which united Indigenous people around economic and cultural issues. She spent the rest of her life advocating for indigenous rights for current and future generations.

Today, Cacuango’s legacy is remembered with a street named in her honor in northern Quito.

[9A]

26 October 2016

Children's Day 2016 [Australia]

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19 Oct 2016

Kamma Rahbek’s 241st birthday




In Kamma Rahbek's famous salons, the great minds of the Danish Golden Age gathered to discuss and share poetry. Some of Denmark's most celebrated Romantic poets frequented these salons, including Bernhard Severin Ingemann, Adam Oehlenschläger, and Hans Christian Andersen. Here, they encouraged each other in developing works around the history of Denmark and its relationship to nature and the human experience. Rahbek also carried on a rich written correspondence with the great writers and philosophers of the time, including the historian and author Christian Molbech as well as the bishop Jacob Peter Mynster.

Though Rahbek grew up when few women had access to education, she studied a multitude of subjects, from botany to astronomy to languages. This cultivated a deep intellectual curiosity that led her to host the salons and later, cemented her position at the center of Copenhagen's literary circle.

Today's Doodle celebrates Rahbek's 241st birthday and her famous salons, by portraying her in her most beloved setting: at a desk in her parlor, surrounded by good company, and stimulating conversation.

[9A]

14 Oct 2016

Celebrating Mary Seacole





Today we celebrate Mary Seacole, the Jamaican/Scottish nurse widely known to the British Army as “Mother Seacole.” She learned the ways of herbal medicine from her mother, a “doctress” well-versed in traditional Caribbean and African herbal remedies. Despite the challenges she faced as a woman of mixed race in the 1850s, she began experimenting with medicine under her mother’s guidance at one of the best facilities in Kingston, Jamaica. She moved to Gorgona, where she briefly ran a women’s-only hotel before she set off on a journey that would cement her place in history.

When the Crimean War broke out, Mary’s application to assist was refused despite her nursing experience. Determined to help, she used her own limited resources to travel and set up a hotel behind the lines in Crimea. Here, she tirelessly tended to the curing and comforting of wounded soldiers coming off the battlefield and people from all walks in need: “The grateful words and smiles which rewarded me for binding up a wound or giving a cooling drink was a pleasure worth risking life for at any time.”

Here’s to Mary’s legacy as an empowered healer and humanitarian, which will continue to live on and inspire.

[9A]

14 October 2013

Katherine Mansfield's 125th Birthday




Kathleen Mansfield Murry was a New Zealand writer, essayist and journalist, widely considered one of the most influential and important authors of the modernist movement. Her works are celebrated across the world, and have been published in 25 languages.

[9A]

14 October 2014

Stella Maria Sarah Miles Franklin's 135th Birthday





Sybylla from the novel My Brilliant Career gazes upon her grandmother's house in our doodle in Australia for writer Miles Franklin's 135th Birthday. Franklin made a lasting impact on Australian literature and captivated readers with her tales of life in the rural countryside.

[9A]

14 October 2019

Joseph Plateau’s 218th Birthday






Today’s Doodle celebrates the Belgian physicist Joseph Antoine Ferdinand Plateau, whose research on visual perception inspired him to invent a device he called the phénakistiscope, which led to the birth of cinema by creating the illusion of a moving image. Inspired by the mesmerizing animated discs, the animated Doodle art was made to reflect Plateau’s style, with different imagery and themes in them on different device platforms.

Born in Brussels on this day in 1801, Plateau was the son of an accomplished artist who specialized in painting flowers. After studying law, young Plateau became one of the best-known Belgian scientists of the nineteenth century, remembered for his study of physiological optics, particularly the effect of light and color on the human retina.

Plateau’s doctoral dissertation detailed how images form on the retina, noting their exact duration, color, and intensity. Based on these conclusions, he was able to create a stroboscopic device in 1832, fitted with two discs that rotated in opposite directions. One disc was filled with small windows, evenly spaced in a circle, while the other had a series of pictures of a dancer. When both discs turned at exactly the right speed, the images seemed to merge, creating the illusion of a dancer in motion.

Though Plateau lost his vision later in life, he continued to have a productive career in science even after becoming blind, working as a professor of experimental physics at Ghent University with the help of colleagues that included his son Felix Plateau and his son-in-law Gustaaf Van der Mensbrugghe.

Happy Birthday, Joseph Plateau!

[9A]

16 October 2012

Hisashige Tanaka's 213th Birthday

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Hisashige Tanaka was a great inventor, born in what is today called Fukuoka Prefecture in Japan on October 16th, 1799. Tanaka’s prolific career began in his youth, when he famously engineered a set of handmade karakuri dolls; small, mechanized figurines capable of performing simple tasks, such as shooting a bow and arrow, receiving an empty teacup and returning with a filled one, and writing calligraphy with a miniature brush and inkstone. I was immediately taken by the elegance of the karakuri, and set about developing a sketch in which the calligraphy writing doll completes the Google logo by painting an ‘o’ upon his canvas.

It soon became clear that in order to illustrate the fine motor movement of the doll, a bit of animation on the homepage would not go amiss. I then separated each element of the drawing into layers, which I used to create a animatable, digital puppet.

Though the karakuri dolls are only one facet of a truly inspiring career, it was truly an honor to have the opportunity to celebrate Tanaka's 213th Birthday.

Posted by Kevin Laughlin, Doodler

[9A]

16 October 2018

Lachhu Maharaj’s 74th Birthday




Born on this day in 1944 to a family of musicians, Lachhu Maharaj [born as Lakshmi Narayan Singh], was one of the most celebrated tabla players of his time. Maharaj trained under his father, Vasudev Maharaj, and started performing at an early age. As a child, his gifts caught the attention oflegendary tabla player Ahmed Jaan Thirakwa, who was deeply impressed by Maharaj’s performance at just eight years old.

Lachhu Maharaj was best known for his inherent sense of rhythm which was best exemplified in his solo performances. Even though he played alongside nearly all the greatest tabla players of his time, his solo performance are the most remembered. Girija Devi, whom he often collaborated with, claimed that “he would play for hours without repeating himself, new gats, tukras and parans, leaving his audiences awestruck.”

Happy Birthday Lachhu Maharaj!

Doodle by guest artist Sajid Shaikh.

[9A]

15 October 2020

Dr Zohra Begum Kazi’s 108th Birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the 108th birthday of Indian-born physician, professor, and social reformer Dr. Zohra Begum Kazi, a 20th-century pioneer for women in medicine on the Indian subcontinent. At a time when the medical field was reserved primarily for men, Dr. Kazi broke barriers with an unwavering dedication to patient care and fierce advocacy for female education.

Zohra Begum Kazi was born into an aristocratic medical family on this day in 1912 in Rajnandgaon, British India. Her father was a physician who encouraged his daughters to break from cultural norms by pursuing careers in medicine. A brilliant student, Kazi graduated in 1935 with a bachelor’s degree in medicine and surgery from Delhi’s Lady Hardinge Medical College for Women.

Over the following 13 years, Dr. Kazi developed her expertise as an assistant surgeon in various hospitals across British India. In the wake of India’s partition in 1947, she relocated to Dhaka, present-day Bangladesh, where she joined the Medical College and Hospital as a resident surgeon. Following post-graduate studies, she rose to the top of her field, becoming a professor and head of the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology. Dr. Kazi worked to redefine women’s attitudes towards medicine, providing door-to-door care to countless women who were previously intimidated by the male-dominated world of medical care.

Throughout her life, Dr. Kazi committed herself to charitable and educational causes and through her pioneering example helped inspire future generations of women to become doctors, just like her.

Happy Birthday, Dr. Zohra Begum Kazi!

[9A]

15 Oct 2020

Celebrating Kyu Sakamoto





Today’s Doodle celebrates Japanese singer and actor Kyu Sakamoto, on the 59th anniversary of the release of the record including his iconic song “Ue o Muite Aruko” [“Let’s Look Up As We Walk”, 1961]. Following its release in English markets under the title “Sukiyaki,” the emotional song became the first Japanese track to sell a million copies as well as the first by an Asian recording artist to top the American Billboard Chart.

Kyu Sakamoto was born Hisashi Oshima on December 10th, 1941 in Kawasaki, Japan. His father’s ninth child, he was nicknamed “Kyu,” an alternate reading of his first name [九], which translates to the number nine. Sakamoto began his career at age 16 as a back-up vocalist before he decided to take his chances as a solo artist. The move quickly paid off when he was signed to a record label the following year.

Sakamoto saw success in Japan, touting multiple pop hits and appearances in movies and TV shows. After a jazz cover of “Ue o Muite Aruko” became a hit in the U.K., Sakamoto’s original was released in the U.S. under the name “Sukiyaki,” catapulting him to international stardom. A testament to its out-of-this-world success, an instrumental version of “Sukiyaki” became one of the first songs sent over the radio to astronauts in space in 1965!

Intent to use his fame for good, Sakamoto helped raise funds for children with disabilities throughout his career, including holding a concert to benefit the 1964 Tokyo Paralympics.

Here’s to you, Kyu!

[9A]

15 October 2011

Italo Calvino's 88th Birthday





I was overjoyed to be able to celebrate one of my favorite authors, Italo Calvino. Ostensibly a science fiction writer, Calvino is more of a fabulist, using scientific notions as a jumping-off point for whimsical, delightfully far-fetched, extremely warm and compassionate little tales. The first work of Calvino's that I read was Invisible Cities, an imagined dialogue between Marco Polo and Kublai Khan that meditates on the different ways of conceptualizing cities.

For this doodle, however, I decided to illustrate the first story from my favorite Calvino collection, Cosmicomics. Cosmicomics is an audacious series of myths and legends that covers everything from the creation of the universe, to the evolution of land vertebrates, to the social lives of dinosaurs.

In this story, The Distance of the Moon, the protagonist tells of time when the moon orbited so close to the Earth that it was possible to row out into the middle of the ocean and climb onto the surface of the Moon with a ladder. Once on the moon, the protagonists and his friends would frolic and cartwheel while the Moon's gravity gently pulled jellyfish and crabs up out of the sea. It's a fantastic image, and hopefully one that's very evocative to readers of Calvino.

If you haven't yet, please consider investigating his work!

Posted by Sophia Foster-Dimino

[9A]

12 October 2021

Paulette Nardal's 125th birthday





Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Amsterdam, Netherlands-based guest artist Jessica Coppet, celebrates the 125th birthday of Martinican-French author Paulette Nardal. She is widely considered one of the founders of Négritude, an intellectual movement produced by Black artists and writers who joined in solidarity to champion their cultural heritage and carve out space in the prevailing literary world for Black voices.

Born on this day in 1896 in Saint-Pierre, a French colonial town on the Caribbean island of Martinique, Félix Jeanne Paulette Nardal was the daughter of one of Martinique’s first Black engineers in the Department of Public Works. Nardal followed suit and established a trailblazing legacy of her own when she arrived in Paris in 1920 and became the first Black woman from Martinique to enroll at the city’s prestigious university, La Sorbonne, earning a master’s degree in English.

In the 1920s, members of the French Black community, many being West Indian immigrants like Nardal, often faced intense racial discrimination. Paulette Nardal and her sister Jane opened a Paris salon called Le Salon de Clamart in 1929 as an intellectual meeting ground to reflect on the Black condition. Known for its hospitality and elegance, the well-appointed salon allowed Nardal to gather intellectuals for conversation and mutual support. Scholars credit this salon as the birthplace of the Négritude movement, which Nardal helped initiate by authoring social commentary articles in the review journal “La Revue du monde noir” [“The Review of the Black World”].

Another significant moment of her life occurred at the beginning of World War II. Nardal left Martinique for France but suffered a lifelong injury when a submarine attacked her ship. Her demand for France to recognize her as a civilian war victim and survivor highlights the convergence of race, gender, disability, and citizenship. This event eventually inspired Nardal to establish organizations and newspapers encouraging educated women to channel their energies into social improvement and suffrage.

Nardal rose to prominence through her writings and fostered an international community of Black women who broke down barriers across race, class, and educational status. In recognition of her unifying work, Nardal was elected as a delegate to the United Nations in 1946 and was awarded the Knight of the Legion of Honour in 1976, the nation’s highest honor. There is the Promenade Jane-et-Paulette Nardal located on 100 rue Didot in Paris, and a plaque honors Nardal’s legacy in the Paris suburb of Clamart, where her salon catalyzed an international movement.

Happy Birthday, Paulette Nardal!

[9A]

12 October 2021

Helena Modrzejewska's 181st birthday




Widely regarded as one of the best actors in Polish history and one of the late-19th century’s greatest Shakespearean stage performers in America, Helena Modrzejewska [known professionally as Helena Modjeska] portrayed nearly 300 different roles in over 6,000 plays—both in Polish and English. Her theatrical career took center stage in over 300 cities worldwide spanning 46 years and has yet to be eclipsed by any other Polish artist. Today’s Doodle celebrates Modrzejewska’s prolific life and legacy on her 181st birthday.

Helena Modrzejewska was born as Jadwiga Benda on this day in 1840 in Krakow, Poland and was soon renamed Helena Opid. She made her theatrical debut in 1861 in a one-act comedy “The White Camellia,” performing under the stage name Modrzejewska.

Modrzejewska’s performances in Poland’s major cities were well received by critics, but she felt her talent surpassed the scope of the nation’s small venues. In 1877, she debuted in America—the new stage for her ambitious career. Renowned for Shakespearean roles, she livened up theater productions across America, sometimes touring for up to 30 weeks while performing 8 to 9 productions each week. If this grueling schedule wasn’t challenging enough, she toured not just as a lead actor but also as a director, producer, costume designer, and publicist!

Modrzejewska’s longest-lasting role was Lady Macbeth which she played a staggering 520 times. Plus, she still found time to pursue her love of nature as a botany enthusiast and gardener.

Happy birthday, Helena Modrzejewska—here’s to one tough act to follow!

[9A]

15 Oct 2021

Celebrating Che Zahara binte Noor Mohamed




Today’s Doodle celebrates Singaporean activist Che Zahara binte Noor Mohamed, a lifelong champion of women’s and children’s rights who founded Singapore’s first Muslim women’s welfare organization—the Malay Women’s Welfare Association [MWWA]. In protest of restrictive measures instituted by the 1950 Marriage Bill, Che Zahara held a large rally on this day in 1950 that achieved significant progress for women’s rights across the country.

Che Zahara binte Noor Mohamed was born in 1907 in Singapore. She married a businessman deeply involved in social welfare. He encouraged her to pursue a career advocating for economically challenged women and orphaned children.

In the aftermath of World War II, many children and women were left without homes, so Che Zahara opened her home to provide them with shelter, education, and basic care. She requested a $500,000 donation from the government in an appeal that led to the establishment of the MWWA at her home in 1947. Known for her unyielding determination to help those in need, she earned the nickname “Che Zahara Kaum Ibu,” which loosely translates to “Che Zahara who protected women and children.”

Che Zahara’s lifelong work was built upon the belief that education could empower people and lift them out of poverty. She educated hundreds of women and orphans from all walks of life. In 1961, she helped pass the Women’s Charter of Singapore, a legislative landmark that continues to protect the rights of Singaporean women and girls to this day.

Here’s to you, Che Zahara binte Noor Mohamed!

[9A]

10 November 2019

Friedrich von Schiller’s 260th Birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the birthday of German dramatist, poet, historian, and philosopher Friedrich von Schiller, widely regarded as the country’s most important playwright and one of the leading lights of German literature. Schiller's theories of aesthetics influenced the thinking of great European philosophers such as Jung, Nietzsche, and Hegel, while his 1785 hymn An die Freude [“Ode to Joy”] inspired Beethoven's famous Symphony No. 9 in D minor, which was later adopted as the official anthem of the European Union.

Born in the town of Marbach on this day in 1759, Johann Christoph Friedrich Schiller was the son of an army officer and attended a strict military academy in Stuttgart. He spent his free time reading the works of Rousseau, Seneca, and Shakespeare while writing his first play, Die Räuber [“The Robbers”], which he self-published in 1781. He managed to get the play produced at a Mannheim theater, delighting audiences, but angering the local Duke with its critical view of authority.

The dramatic Sturm und Drang [“Storm and Stress”] of Schiller’s early work eventually gave way to a mature style in Don Carlos, his first play in blank verse. Taking a break from drama and poetry, he focused on philosophy, working towards his belief that art’s true purpose was not just to delight readers, but to edify and uplift them.

In 1794, Schiller developed a friendship with the prominent writer Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, who recommended him to become a professor of history at the University of Jena. The horrors of the 30 Years’ War served as the backdrop for Schiller’s masterpiece of the Wallenstein trilogy, which was soon followed by his popular historical drama Maria Stuart, based on the life of Mary, Queen of Scots.

Made a nobleman in the early 1800s, von Schiller is considered a national icon. His stature in German literature comparable to Shakespeare’s in English literature.

Alles Gute zum Geburtstag, Friedrich von Schiller!

[9A]

9 Nov 2019

Celebrating the Edmonton Grads





The Edmonton Commercial Graduates Basketball Club, better known as “The Grads,” started as a high school girls basketball team and became a sports dynasty. Today’s Doodle celebrates The Grads’ induction into Canada’s Sports Hall of Fame on this day in 2017. It was a fitting honor for a team that holds arguably one of the best winning percentages in North America—approximately 95 percent over 25 years—in any sport.. With outstanding sportsmanship and determination, The Grads also defeated stereotypes that had discouraged women from participating in competitive sports.

Teacher Percy Page started the team in 1914 as a physical education program for the 60 girls at McDougall Commercial High School in the Canadian city of Edmonton. In their first season, they won the provincial championship, and when some of the graduating seniors indicated that they’d like to continue playing, Page was inspired to set up The Grads after they graduated in 1915.

During the next quarter century, The Grads went on to win 23 of 24 Provincial Championships and racked up stats that would be the envy of any team, including earning winning streaks of 147 and 78 games, separated by just a single loss. They went undefeated in the Western Canadian Championships from 1926 to 1940 and won 29 of 31 games in the Canadian Championships, never losing a series. After the Grads won the Underwood International tournament, also known as the “North American championship,” for 17 years straight, tournament organizers decided to let them keep the trophy permanently.

The Grads additionally won seven of nine games against men's teams and went unbeaten in 27 exhibition games at four Olympic Games—though they never won a medal since women’s basketball was not yet an Olympic sport.

When The Grads first started, basketball was a fairly new sport, having been invented in 1891 by Canadian James Naismith. He would later recognize the Grads as “the finest basketball team that ever stepped out on a floor.”

[9A]

4 Nov 2019

Virginia Gutiérrez de Pineda’s 98th Birthday





Today’s Doodle celebrates Virginia Gutiérrez de Pineda, the acclaimed Colombian anthropologist and educator whose pioneering research reshaped traditional family structures and folk culture of Colombia.

Born in the town of El Socorro on this day in 1921, she was among the first generation of Colombian women allowed to pursue higher education. After studying at Bogotá’s Universidad Pedagógica Nacional, Gutiérrez then traveled to attend the University of California, Berkeley, where she earned a master's degree in Social and Medical Anthropology before returning home to Colombia to complete her Doctorate of Social and Economic Sciences.

Making the most of her educational opportunities, Gutiérrez went on to author a dozen book-length studies that laid out a fundamental understanding of the lives of Colombia’s people, including women and children of lower social and economic status. Her study of the street children of Medellín led to an interest in solving social problems by focusing on the family unit.

In books like La familia en Colombia, Gutiérrez explored different cultural nuances within the various communities of the Andean, Santandereano, Antioqueño, and coastal-mining regions. She also undertook academic surveys of popular medicine in Colombia and traditional remedies known as curanderismo.

Other than studying families, Gutiérrez also raised a family of her own after marrying fellow anthropologist Roberto Pineda Giraldo, whom she met at university. For her invaluable contributions to Colombian society, Gutiérrez was awarded Colombia’s Woman of the Year award in 1967, as well as the 1983 Gold Medal for Scientific Merit from the Inter-American Family Congress.

[9A]

4 Nov 2019

Will Rogers’ 140th Birthday





In honor of Native American Indian Heritage Month, today’s animated Doodle celebrates the plainspoken American Indian actor, humorist, author, filmmaker, and public personality Will Rogers, who famously remarked, “I never met a man I didn’t like.” Born on this day in 1879 at Rogers Ranch in Oologah, Cherokee Territory, the entertainer became known as “America's Cowboy Philosopher.”

The son of a Cherokee senator who raised Texas longhorns on his ranch, Rogers grew up roping and riding. “A man that don’t love a horse,” he once said, ”there is something the matter with him.” He became so good at fancy rope tricks that he toured the world as “The Cherokee Kid,” a circus performer who ended up on Broadway in the Ziegfeld Follies.

Rogers produced and starred in a 1922 film called The Ropin’ Fool, moving onto speaking roles in motion pictures like A Connecticut Yankee and State Fair. By 1934, he was considered one of the most popular actors in Hollywood. He also hosted a highly rated radio show and authored bestselling books and newspaper columns. When the Great Depression hit America, Rogers emerged as a notable commentator expressing popular opinion on many issues of the time.

No matter how successful he became, Rogers always remained proud of his Cherokee heritage. While never hesitating to offer his humorous homespun wisdom about current events and politics, though apart from a brief stint as honorary mayor of Beverly Hills, Rogers resisted efforts to be drafted into public service.

Rogers’ childhood home near Oologah, Oklahoma is now a museum open to the public. His life and times also inspired a musical called The Will Rogers Follies. His legacy lives on through the Will Rogers Memorial Museum in Claremore, Oklahoma and the Will Rogers State Historic Park in Pacific Palisades, California. To learn more, visit willrogers.com.

[9A]

31 Oct 2019

Carlos Drummond de Andrade’s 117th Birthday




“What now, José?” asked Brazilian writer Carlos Drummond de Andrade in a popular poem from his 1942 anthology, Poesias. Today’s Doodle celebrates an individual whom many consider one of the greatest poets in modern Brazilian literature. Born in the mining town of Itabira on this day in 1902, Drummond composed poems that broke formal rules in verse and expressed the stresses of modern life. He also worked as a literary critic and journalist, writing short semi-fictional newspaper essays, known as crônicas, about the lives of ordinary people, including children and the poor.

After co-founding the literary journal A Revista in 1925, Drummond spent years on his poetry collection Alguma Poesia, emerging as a leading figure in Brazilian modernism. Having earned his degree in pharmacy, he went on to work for Brazil’s Ministry of Education as well as the National Historical and Artistic Heritage Service of Brazil. Throughout his career, he published over a dozen volumes of poetry and a handful of collections of crônicas. His 1986 collection Traveling in the Family: Selected Poems includes English translations by prominent poets Elizabeth Bishop and Mark Strand.

Drummond has received many awards—including the Brazilian Union of Writers Prize—and has become a fixture of Brazilian popular culture. His “Canção Amiga” [“Friendly Song”] was printed on Brazilian currency, and a statue of the poet stands near the ocean in Rio de Janeiro.

[9A]

27 Oct 2019

Argentina Elections 2019

[9A]

25 Oct 2019

Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti’s 119th Birthday



“As for the charges against me, I am unconcerned,” said Funmilayo Ransome-Kuti, the Nigerian educator and activist who fearlessly campaigned for women’s rights and the liberation of Africa from colonial rule. Today’s Doodle, illustrated by Nigerian-Italian guest artist Diana Ejaita, celebrates a formidable leader who founded what many refer to as one of the most important social movements of the twentieth century.​

Born on this day in 1900 in Abeokuta, the current capital of Nigeria’s Ogun state, the former Frances Abigail Olufunmilayo Thomas grew up witnessing Great Britain consolidating control over Nigeria. As the grandchild of a slave, she became one of the first girls to enroll in Abeokuta Grammar School, before traveling to Cheshire in England to continue her education. By the time she returned home, she’d dropped her birth names and preferred to speak Yoruba.

In 1932, Ransome-Kuti established the Abeokuta Ladies Club [ALC], fostering unity between educated women and poor market workers and setting up the first adult education programs for Nigerian women. Renamed the Abeokuta Women’s Union in 1946, the organization boasted a membership of some 20,000 and pushed for healthcare, social services, and economic opportunity. Imprisoned in 1947 for protesting against unfair treatment towards women, Ransome-Kuti and her followers also led the charge to abdicate a corrupt local leader.

A trailblazer in many ways, Ransome-Kuti was also the first Nigerian woman to drive a car. She was also the only woman in Nigeria’s 1947 delegation to London, which lodged a protest and set the nation on the path toward self-government. As one of the few women elected to Nigeria’s house of chiefs, she was recognized for her advocacy work on behalf of women's rights and education, and revered as the “Lioness of Lisabi” and the “Mother of Africa.”

Her daughter—Dolupo—and three sons—Beko, Olikoye, and Fela—likewise became leaders in education, healthcare, and music, continuing their mother’s legacy of activism and advocacy.

[9A]

18 Oct 2019

Kita Kusunose’s 183rd Birthday




“It is strange that despite paying taxes, I do not have the right to vote because I am a woman,” wrote Kita Kusunose in her famous 1878 letter to Japanese officials. “If I don’t have the right to vote then I won’t pay my taxes.” Today’s Doodle celebrates the birth of a self-described “common woman” who’s now fondly remembered as Minken Baasan, “the people’s rights granny.”

Born in Kōchi Prefecture on the island of Shikoku on this day in 1836, Kita married at age 21 and took over as the head of her household after her husband’s passing. Denied the right to vote in local elections just because she was a woman, she refused to pay her property tax with the belief that duty and rights should coexist, and sent a letter to the prefectural governor explaining her decision. As the first public petition written by a Japanese woman, Kita’s letter caused quite a stir. When her argument was dismissed by local authorities she took her case to Japan’s national ministry, after which it was reprinted in newspapers.

During the Meiji Era [1868 to 1912], Japanese society was undergoing a period of great transition under Emperor Mutsuhito. Kita’s letter sparked a national debate about women’s rights that led to changes in voting laws for parts of her home prefecture, allowing some women to vote for the first time in 1880. Although the rights were denied four years later, Kita is remembered as a pioneer for women’s suffrage, which was finally extended nationwide in Japan in 1946.

Kita was also an advocate for education and is honored at the Kochi Liberty and Peoples’ Rights Museum, which opened in her hometown in 1990.

[9A]

7 September 2019

Celebrating Marcelle Ferron




“My aim has always been modest. I wanted to transform the arranged marriage [of art and architecture] into a love match.” ​—Marcelle Ferron


Today’s Doodle celebrates the life and work of the renowned Canadian painter, sculptor, and glassmaker, whose famous installation in Montreal’s Vendôme station was unveiled on this day in 1981. Marcelle Ferron’s striking design combined colorful stained glass with a spiraling stainless steel sculpture, a unique style that inspired the Doodle’s art.

Born in 1924, Ferron studied at the École des beaux-arts de Québec, but left upon realizing she was unable to find answers to her questions about modern art. Upon meeting Québec abstract painter Paul-Émile Borduas, she joined his Automatiste group and became one of the youngest artists to sign their 1948 manifesto Refus global. Ferron went on to spend 13 years painting in Paris, exhibiting her work at the 1961 São Paulo Biennial in Brazil, where she won a silver medal.

Her meeting with glassmaker Michel Blum sparked an interest in glass as an art medium. Over time, she devised her own methods, building “walls of light” connected by invisible joints that allowed her to create large planes of color. These innovative techniques can be seen in her mural for Expo 67 and public commissions in the Champ-de-Mars train station, Sainte-Justine Hospital, and the Granby courthouse.

Throughout her 50-year career, Ferron became one of Canada’s most important contemporary artists and was made a Knight of the National Order of Québec in 1985, then promoted to Grand Officer in 2000. This restless visionary’s achievements blazed a trail for women aspiring to make a mark in what was a traditionally male-dominated space.

[9A]

7 September 2022

Louise 'Miss Lou' Bennett-Coverley's 103rd birthday





Today's Doodle, illustrated by Jamaican guest artist Robyn Smith, celebrates Louise “Miss Lou” Bennett-Coverley’s 103rd birthday. The Jamaican poet, folklorist, activist and entertainer empowered the country to take pride in its language and culture. Known by many Jamaicans as “Miss Lou,” Bennett's social commentary and sense of humor made her a popular personality in the country.

Bennett was born on September 7, 1919 in Kingston, Jamaica. She developed a passion for literature and Jamaican folklore in school and began writing poetry. Fascinated by her native language, Bennett wrote in the local dialect. Her first public appearance was her recital of a poem in Jamaican patois at a concert.

Soon, Bennett was given a weekly column in The Gleaner, the island’s newspaper at the time, though they originally rejected Bennett’s poems. The majority of Jamaicans speak patois, but critics denounced it as an inferior and improper language. Her column, which captured the experiences of Jamaicans in their own language, gained support across the country.

In 1942, Bennett published her first book of poetry, Dialect Verses. It earned her a British Council scholarship to attend the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art in London. As the school's first Black student, Bennett worked for the British Broadcasting Commission [BBC] where she hosted the radio program Caribbean Carnival. After completing her degree, she hosted other programs like West Indian Guest Night and acted in theater companies.

Returning to Jamaica in 1956, Bennett worked as a Drama Officer and later Director of the Jamaica Social Welfare Commission. On behalf of the commission, she moved around the country to train village instructors and regional officers with workshops like playmaking, improvisation and mime. She gave lectures on Jamaican folklore in the United States and England. Bennett also hosted radio programs like Laugh with Louise and Miss Lou's Views, and Ring Ding, a beloved Saturday morning children’s TV show airing on Jamaica Broadcasting Commission [JBC].

In 1998, the Jamaican government appointed Bennett as the country’s Cultural Ambassador at Large. She was also inducted into the Order of Merit by Queen Elizabeth II. Bennett was a champion of her country’s language and culture, inspiring Jamaicans to take pride in both.

Happy Birthday, Miss Lou!

[9A]

8 Sept 2022

Dr Bhupen Hazarika's 96th birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the 96th birthday of Dr. Bhupen Hazarika, an acclaimed Assamese-Indian singer, composer and filmmaker who created music for hundreds of films. He was also one of northeast India’s leading socio-cultural reformers, whose creations and compositions united people from all walks of life. Illustrated by Mumbai-based guest artist Rutuja Mali, the artwork celebrates Hazarika’s work to popularize Assamese cinema and folk music.

Hazarika was born on this day in 1926 in northeastern India. His home state, Assam, is a region that has always been home to different tribes and several indigenous groups—such as the Bodo, Karbi, Mising and Sonowal-Kacharis. As a child, Hazarika grew up surrounded by songs and folk tales about life along the mighty Brahmaputra river.

At a young age, Hazarika’s musical talents attracted the attention of renowned Assamese lyricist, Jyotiprasad Agarwala, and filmmaker, Bishnu Prasad Rabha—both doyens of Assam’s rich cultural history. They helped Hazarika record his first song, which launched his music career at 10 years old. By age 12, Hazarika was writing and recording songs for two films: Indramalati: Kaxote Kolosi Loi, and Biswo Bijoyi Naujawan. Over time, Hazarika created numerous compositions, having a penchant for telling people’s stories through songs—stories about happiness and grief, of unity and courage, romance and loneliness, and even strife and determination.

Hazarika was not only a child music prodigy, he was also an intellectual. He graduated with a master’s in political science from Banaras Hindu University in 1946, and went on to earn a PhD in mass communications from Columbia University in 1952.

After completing his studies in America, he returned to India to continue working on songs and films that popularized Assamese culture on both a national and global scale. Over the course of a six-decade career, Hazarika won several prestigious prizes like the ​​Sangeet Natak Akademi Award, the Dadasaheb Phalke Award, Padma Shri and Padma Bhushan, for his outstanding contribution to music and culture. He was honored posthumously with the Bharat Ratna, India’s highest civilian award, in 2019.

He went on to serve as chairman and director of numerous boards and associations, including the Indian government’s National Film Development Corporation.

Happy birthday, Bhupen Hazarika! Your songs and films continue to command respect for Assam’s rich culture.

[9A]

8 September 2015

First Day of School 2015 [Canada]

[9A]

8 September 2014

Ludovico Ariosto's 540th Birthday




Ludovico Ariosto was an Italian poet.

Ruggiero from Ludovico Ariosto's epic poem Orlando Furioso saves princess Angelica from a sea-dwelling orc [sounds terrifying] on our homepage in Italy today. Happy 540th birthday to Ariosto!

[9A]

8 September 2014

Mid Autumn Festival 2014





In some stories, cows jump over the moon. In China, rabbits get that claim to fame -- specifically the Jade Rabbit, who lives on the moon with the goddess Chang'e according to Chinese folklore. Our homepage in Hong Kong and Taiwan features the Jade Rabbit for the Mid Autumn Festival.

[9A]

8 Sept 2014

Feliza Bursztyn's 81st Birthday



Our doodle in Colombia is inspired by the work of sculptor Feliza Bursztyn to mark what would have been her 81st birthday.

[9A]

8 September 2012

Macedonia Independence Day 2012



North Macedonia [Macedonia before February 2019], officially the Republic of North Macedonia, is a country in Southeast Europe. It gained independence in 1991 as one of the successor states of Yugoslavia.

[9A]

10 Sept 2012

Teachers' Day 2012 [China]

[9A]

14 November 2019

321st Anniversary of the First Lighting of Eddystone Lighthouse




Situated near the mouth of the English channel, the Eddystone reef is among the world’s most hazardous stretches of water, infamously known for causing numerous shipwrecks over the years. Today’s Doodle celebrates the first lighting of Eddystone Lighthouse, the first lighthouse built on those infamous rocks on this day in 1698.

It was English merchant Henry Winstanley, who’d invested in ships that sunk at Eddystone, who accepted the daunting challenge of building a much-needed lighthouse essentially in the wide open sea, 14 miles from the coast of Plymouth.

Work began in 1696 but was delayed when a French vessel arrived and took Winstanley prisoner. Although England and France were at war, the French king Louis XIV released Winstanley, saying that “France was at war with England, not with humanity." It was clear that the importance of the lighthouse transcended international conflicts.

Rising some 80 feet above the rock, the Eddystone Lighthouse was surmounted by a weather vane and domed cupola containing 60 candles and a “great hanging lamp” to warn navigators to steer clear of danger. Requiring extensive repairs after withstanding its first punishing North Atlantic winter, the lighthouse was substantially redesigned before its official completion in 1699.

Although Winstanley believed that the lighthouse could withstand "the greatest storm that ever was," it was destroyed during the historic Great Storm of 1703. Nevertheless, Winstanley had proved it was not just necessary but also possible and vitally important to build a lighthouse on this treacherous site, despite the extreme difficulties and dangers. A series of lighthouses have been erected in the same place since then, all of them safeguarding the lives of maritime travelers for more than three centuries.

[9A]

14 November 2021

Fanny Hensel's 216th birthday




Today’s Doodle celebrates the 216th birthday of virtuosic German pianist and composer Fanny Hensel, who is widely considered one of the most important woman composers of the 19th century.

Fanny Hensel was born Fanny Zippora Mendelssohn on this day in 1805 in Hamburg, Germany into an upper-class family. Her mother, herself taught by a student of Johann Sebastian Bach, first taught her piano. At 13, Hensel astonished a private audience in Berlin with a memorized performance of 24 preludes from Bach’s masterpiece “The Well-Tempered Clavier” [1722-1742]. Despite her prodigious talent, her ability to foster a musical career was hindered by restrictive societal conventions.

Hensel remained musically engaged, and around 1820, she began working as an integral part of Mendelssohn family Sunday Concerts, a semi-public exhibition where she shined for decades as a hostess, organizer, conductor, and pianist free to explore the depths of her creativity. Although her public image was overshadowed by her brother Felix’s career, she devoted herself to developing the Mendelssohnian style in over 450 compositions, which reflected her veneration of Bach and Beethoven and an innovative musical approach.

At age 41, she published Opus 1, the first original work published in her name and among the first published compositions by a woman, paving the way for women to pursue a classical tradition historically dominated by men. In 2010, musicologists uncovered the Easter Sonata, a masterful, solo piano piece written by Hensel when she was 22 years old that had been mistakenly attributed to her brother. The piece was performed under her name for the first time in 2017, nearly 190 years after its composition.

Happy birthday, Fanny Hensel!

[9A]

13 Nov 2021

Celebrating fairy bread




Today’s Doodle celebrates Fairy bread, a nostalgic childhood treat popular in Australia and New Zealand, on the birthday of Scottish author Robert Louis Stevenson, whom linguistic scholars believe first coined the term in his 1885 poem “Fairy Bread” in “A Child’s Garden of Verses.” Traditional Fairy bread unifies three simple ingredients—triangularly sliced white bread slathered in butter and topped with rainbow sprinkles [known colloquially as “hundreds and thousands”]. But its origin story isn’t as simple as its recipe.

Although some believe the tasty treat might have been inspired by hagelslag—Dutch toast covered in chocolate sprinkles—both Australia and New Zealand claim to have originally invented Fairy bread all on their own. New Zealanders have brightened confections with rainbow sprinkles for over a century, but a 1929 article published in a Tasmanian newspaper claims to be the first to reference Fairy bread with the ingredients it's known for today.

While the country of origin [and who can make it the best] remains a friendly point of contention between the neighboring nations, Aussies and Kiwis alike can agree that this treat is a staple of children’s birthday celebrations that satisfies not just the sweet tooth but also the mature nostalgic palate. If you decide to whip up some Fairy bread of your own, keep in mind that to many, removing the crust means you’ve removed the dish's authenticity.

Here’s to Fairy bread—a tasty treat that’s as easy as one, two, three!

[9A]

13 November 2015

Dorothea Christiane Erxleben's 300th Birthday



Throughout her life, Dorothea Christiane Erxleben advocated for women's rights and maintained the unwavering conviction that women should be allowed to—and ought to—pursue an education. After receiving a dispensation from Frederick the Great, Erxleben earned her M.D. from University of Halle in 1754, the first woman in Germany’s history to do so!

Happy 300th birthday, Dr. Erxleben!

[9A]

13 November 2014

Mokhtar Dahari's 61st Birthday



Dato' Mohd Mokhtar bin Dahari DSSA DIMP AMN PJK was a Malaysian football player from Setapak, Kuala Lumpur, he played for F.A. Selangor for most of his life. He is considered a legendary footballer in Malaysian football history, especially with F.A. Selangor. A prolific forward, he was nicknamed Supermokh due to his playing skills and strength.

[9A]

7 Nov 2014

Cecília Meireles's 113th Birthday

[9A]

3 Nov 2014

Panama Independence Day 2014



Panama’s national bird, the Harpy Eagle, is perched on our homepage for the country’s Independence Day.

[9A]

3 Nov 2014

114th anniversary of the premiere of The Tale of Tsar Saltan




Our doodle in Russia today depicts a scene from the 20th century opera, The Tale of Tsar Saltan, for the libretto’s 114th anniversary.

[9A]

3 Nov 2011

Oodgeroo Noonuccal's 91st Birthday




Oodgeroo Noonuccal [born Kathleen Jean Mary Ruska, later Kath Walker] was an Aboriginal Australian political activist, artist and educator, who campaigned for Aboriginal rights. Noonuccal was best known for her poetry, and was the first Aboriginal Australian to publish a book of verse.

[9A]

3 November 2009

Melbourne Cup 2009





The Melbourne Cup is Australia's most famous annual Thoroughbred horse race. It is a 3200-metre race for three-year-olds and over, conducted by the Victoria Racing Club on the Flemington Racecourse in Melbourne, Victoria as part of the Melbourne Spring Racing Carnival. It is the richest "two-mile" handicap in the world and one of the richest turf races. The event starts at 3:00 pm on the first Tuesday of November and is known locally as "the race that stops the nation".

The Melbourne Cup has a long tradition, with the first race held in 1861.

[9A]

3 November 2011

Andre Malraux's 110th Birthday



Georges André Malraux was a French novelist, art theorist, and minister of cultural affairs. Malraux's novel La Condition Humaine [Man's Fate][1933] won the Prix Goncourt. He was appointed by President Charles de Gaulle as information minister [1945–46] and subsequently as France's first cultural affairs minister during de Gaulle's presidency [1959–1969].

[9A]

1 Nov 2017

Abdul Qavi Desnavi’s 87th Birthday





On this day in the year 1930, Urdu author and literary critic Abdul Qavi Desnavi was born in the village of Desna in Bihar. In the course of a literary career that spanned five decades, he authored a vast body of Urdu works covering fiction, biographies, poetry, and anthologies. His most famous works include ‘Sat Tahriren,’ ‘Motala-E-Khotoot Ghalib,’ ‘Talash-E-Azad,’ and his magnum opus, the biographical ‘Hayat-e-Abul Kalam Azad,’ celebrating the life of freedom fighter Maulana Abul Kalam Azad.

As the head of the Urdu Department at Bhopal’s Saifia College and a member of several regional and national literary bodies, he exerted a powerful influence on the evolution of Urdu literature and academic thought in India. At a personal level, he mentored some of India’s finest Urdu poets and writers such as Javed Akhtar and Iqbal Masood.

Today’s Doodle depicts Abdul Qavi Desnavi at his work, the logo stylized in Urdu-style script. Guest artist Prabha Mallya tried a few concepts before landing on the final design.

[9A]

21 Oct 2017

Nain Singh Rawat’s 187th Birthday





For much of the 19th century, Europe played the Great Game. Explorers vied with each other to map the geographical vastness of Central Asia and understand its people and customs. Knowledge was essential to political success, but Europeans were not welcome everywhere.

A thirst for knowledge and the need for secrecy led to the creation of pandits, a select group of highly educated and brave local men trained in geographical exploration.

Prominent among these was Nain Singh Rawat, the first man to survey Tibet, determining the exact location and altitude of Lhasa, mapping the Tsangpo, and describing in mesmerizing detail fabled sites such as the gold mines of Thok Jalung.

Disguised as a Tibetan monk, he walked from his home region of Kumaon to places as far as Kathmandu, Lhasa, and Tawang. He maintained a precisely measured pace, covering one mile in 2000 steps, and measured those steps using a rosary. He hid a compass in his prayer wheel and mercury in cowrie shells and even disguised travel records as prayers.

Today’s Doodle by Hari & Deepti Panicker is a silhouette diorama illustration, portraying Nain Singh Rawat as he might have looked on his travels — solitary and courageous, looking back over the distances he had walked, rosary beads in hand, and staff by his side. Oh, the wonders he must have seen!

[9A]

21 October 2009

Rampo Edogawa's Birthday



Tarō Hirai, better known by the pen name Edogawa Ranpo was a Japanese author and critic who played a major role in the development of Japanese mystery and thriller fiction. Many of his novels involve the detective hero Kogoro Akechi, who in later books was the leader of a group of boy detectives known as the "Boy Detectives Club" .

Ranpo was an admirer of Western mystery writers, and especially of Edgar Allan Poe. His pen name is a rendering of Poe's name. Other authors who were special influences on him were Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, whom he attempted to translate into Japanese during his days as a student at Waseda University, and the Japanese mystery writer Ruikō Kuroiwa.

[9A]

21 October 2012

Jonas Maciulis-Maironis' 150th Birthday



Maironis was a Lithuanian Roman Catholic priest and the greatest and most-known Lithuanian poet, especially of the period of the Lithuanian press ban. He was called the Bard of Lithuanian National Revival. Maironis was active in public life. However, the Lithuanian literary historian Juozas Brazaitis writes that Maironis was not.

In his poetry, he expressed the national aspirations of the Lithuanian National Revival and was highly influential in Lithuanian society and poetry. The Maironian school in Lithuanian literature was named after him.

[9A]

25 October 2021

Galina Vishnevskaya's 95th birthday






Today’s Doodle, illustrated guest artist Darya Shnykina, celebrates the 95th birthday of one of the greatest Russian opera singers of the 20th century—Galina Vishnevskaya.

Galina Pavlovna Ivanova was born on this day in 1926 in Leningrad, Russia [modern-day St. Petersburg] and became enthralled with opera at 10 years old after hearing Tchaikovsky’s epic “Eugene Onegin.” While walking the streets of Leningrad in the early 1950s, Vishnevskaya stumbled upon an invitation to audition for the Bolshoi Theater—Russia’s most prestigious opera hall. She blew the judges away with her audition, earning a spot as the year’s only auditioner accepted into the Bolshoi troupe.

In 1953, her childhood dreams were realized at the Bolshoi as she portrayed the lead character Tatyana in “Eugene Onegin” with a fresh interpretation of a classic character that became her signature role. This marked the genesis of a virtuosic opera career that took Vishnevskaya to venues around the world—often with her beloved dachshund Pooks in tow—from New York’s Metropolitan Opera to Helsinki’s Finnish National Opera. It was at the latter venue that she gave her final performance of Tatyana before retiring in 1982.

As a devoted humanitarian, Vishnevskaya founded the non-profit children’s welfare organization Rostropovich-Vishnevskaya Foundation in 1991 alongside her husband, the world-class cellist Maestro Rostropovich. She also founded the Galina Vishnevskaya Opera Centre in 2002 to provide a home for aspiring opera singers. Both organizations carry on her legacy of helping and inspiring others to this day.

Happy birthday, Galina Vishnevskaya!

[9A]

25 October 2002


Pablo Picasso's 121st Birthday





Pablo Ruiz Picasso was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist and theatre designer who spent most of his adult life in France. One of the most influential artists of the 20th century, he is known for co-founding the Cubist movement, the invention of constructed sculpture, the co-invention of collage, and for the wide variety of styles that he helped develop and explore. Among his most famous works are the proto-Cubist Les Demoiselles d'Avignon [1907], and the anti-war painting Guernica [1937], a dramatic portrayal of the bombing of Guernica by German and Italian air forces during the Spanish Civil War.