February 1

Air Force Day (Nicaragua)
Anniversary of the Abolition of Slavery (Mauritius)
Federal Territory Day (Kuala Lumpur, Labuan and Putrajaya, Malaysia)
Heroes Day (Rwanda)
Memorial Day of the Republic (Hungary)
National Freedom Day (United States)
The start of Black History Month (United States and Canada)
The start of LGBT History Month (United Kingdom)
The start of National Bird-Feeding Month (United States)

Events February 1
1709 – Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being shipwrecked on a desert island, inspiring the book Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe.
1814 – Mayon Volcano in the Philippines erupts, killing around 1,200 people, the most devastating eruption of the volcano.
1835 – Slavery is abolished in Mauritius.
1884 – The first volume (A to Ant) of the Oxford English Dictionary is published.
1893 – Thomas A. Edison finishes construction of the first motion picture studio, the Black Maria in West Orange, New Jersey.
1897 – Shinhan Bank, the oldest bank in South Korea, opens in Seoul.
1918 – Russia adopts the Gregorian Calendar.
1942 – Voice of America, the official external radio and television service of the United States federal government, begins broadcasting with programs aimed at areas controlled by the Axis powers.
1946 – The Parliament of Hungary abolishes the monarchy after nine centuries, and proclaims the Hungarian Republic.
1958 – Egypt and Syria merge to form the United Arab Republic, which lasts until 1961.
1965 – The Hamilton River in Labrador, Canada is renamed the Churchill River in honour of Winston Churchill.
1974 – Kuala Lumpur is declared a Federal Territory.
1982 – Senegal and the Gambia form a loose confederation known as Senegambia.
2003 – Space Shuttle Columbia on mission STS-107 disintegrates during reentry into the Earth's atmosphere, killing all seven astronauts aboard.
2009 – Jóhanna Sigurðardóttir is chosen the first female Prime Minister of Iceland, becoming the first openly gay head of government in the modern world.

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