Shavuot begins at sundown on this day. Called the Feast of the Weeks in the Jewish calendar, Shavuot is a two-day holiday that was originally a harvest festival. It’s also a thanksgiving day to commemorate the Giving of the Law, the Torah, recalling when Moses and the Israelites received the Ten Commandments from God at Mount Sinai. Shavuot, which means weeks, always begins exactly seven weeks after Passover. Shavuot is known also as Yom Habikkurim, or “The Day of the First Fruits,” because Israel’s farmers would bring a bundle from their first harvest to the temple in Jerusalem as a token of thanksgiving to God. Spring harvests in Israel began with the barley crop at Passover. Each farmer would set aside the first of each type of fruit to ripen, tie it in ribbon, and all would be brought to the city, accompanied by a joyful, musical celebration.
Daily Calendar for Thursday, May 21, 2026
Daily Calendar
View daily calendar information including holidays, advice, and daily features.
Thursday, May 21, 2026
Born
- Albrecht Durer (painter) –
- Alexander Pope (poet) –
- Henri Rousseau (painter) –
- James Gladstone (first Canadian aboriginal senator) –
- Fats Waller (jazz pianist) –
- Raymond Burr (actor) –
- Richard Hatch (actor, writer, producer) –
- Mr. T (actor) –
- Ashlie Brillault (actress) –
Died
- Hernando de Soto (explorer) –
- Jane Addams (social worker) –
Events
- Windsor Agricultural Fair (North America’s oldest) founded, Nova Scotia –
- Cyrus McCormick’s reaper patented –
- American Red Cross founded –
- The first U.S. speed limit law for motor vehicles (12 mph in the city/15 mph in the country) passed in Connecticut –
- Aviator Charles Lindbergh completed the first nonstop solo flight across the Atlantic, New York to Paris –
- Amelia Earhart completed the first solo flight by a woman across the Atlantic –
- Robin Moor became the first U.S. merchant ship sunk by a U-boat –
- Humphrey Bogart and Lauren Bacall were married –
- World’s first nuclear powered light-house, Baltimore Light, went into operation, Chesapeake Bay –
- Patti Frustaci gave birth to the first septuplets in the United States –
- the National Gallery of Canada reopened in a new building in Ottawa, Ontario –
Weather
- 124 degrees F in Salton, California –
- Elkhart, Kansas, was struck by a dust storm –
- Sleet and snow fell in northern New England –
- An F2 tornado touched down in Hampton, New Hampshire –
- A whirlwind dubbed “Gustnado” touched down in Sayler Park in Cincinnati, Ohio. –