So you want to have a drink but you aren't sure why? Here are some GREAT reasons to call your friends over and have a party.

February 2nd


- Earliest day on which Shrove Monday can fall, while March 8 is the latest; celebrated on Monday before Ash Wednesday. (Christianity)
- February 2 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
- A quarter day in the Christian calendar (due to Candlemas). (Scotland)
- Anniversary of Treaty of Tartu (Estonia)
- Feast of the Presentation of Jesus at the Temple or Candlemas (Western Christianity)
- Celebration of Yemanja (Candomblé)
- Christian Feast Day:
Cornelius the Centurion
- Our Lady of Navigators (Brazil)
- Virgin of Candelaria (Tenerife, Spain)
- George III Day (University of King's College)
- Groundhog Day (United States and Canada)
- Imbolc in northern hemisphere, Lughnasadh in southern hemisphere (Neopaganism)
- Inventor's Day (Thailand)
- World Wetlands Day (International)

February 2nd


- 2007 - Three tornadoes hit Central Florida, killing 42 people.
- 1998 - A Cebu Pacific Flight 387 DC-9-32 crashes into a mountain near Cagayan de Oro, Philippines, killing 104.
- 1990 - Apartheid: F.W. de Klerk allows the African National Congress to function legally and promises to release Nelson Mandela.
- 1989 - Soviet war in Afghanistan: The last Soviet armoured column leaves Kabul.
- 1987 - After the 1986 People Power Revolution the Philippines enacts a new constitution.
- 1982 - Hama Massacre: Syria attacks the town of Hama.
- 1980 - Reports surface that the FBI was targeting allegedly corrupt Congressmen in the Abscam operation.
- 1976 - The Groundhog Day gale hits the north-eastern United States and south-eastern Canada.
- 1974 - The F-16 Fighting Falcon flies for the first time.
- 1972 - The British embassy in Dublin is destroyed in protest at Bloody Sunday.
- 1971 - Idi Amin replaces President Milton Obote as leader of Uganda.
- 1967 - The American Basketball Association is formed.
- 1966 - Pakistan suggests a six-point agenda with Kashmir after the Indo-Pakistani War of 1965.
- 1957 - Iskander Mirza of Pakistan lays the foundation-stone of the Guddu Barrage.
- 1946 - The Hungarian Republic is proclaimed.
- 1943 - World War II: The Battle of Stalingrad comes to conclusion as Soviet troops accept the surrender of 91,000 remnants of the Axis forces.
- 1940 - Frank Sinatra debuts with the Tommy Dorsey orchestra.
- 1935 - Leonarde Keeler tests the first polygraph machine.
- 1934 - The Export-Import Bank of the United States is incorporated.
- 1925 - Serum run to Nome: Dog sleds reach Nome, Alaska with diphtheria serum, inspiring the Iditarod race.
- 1925 - The Charlevoix-Kamouraska earthquake strikes northeastern North America.
- 1922 - Ulysses by James Joyce is published.
- 1920 - The Tartu Peace Treaty is signed between Estonia and Russia.
- 1920 - France occupies Memel.
- 1913 - Grand Central Terminal is opened in New York City.
- 1901 - Funeral of Queen Victoria.
- 1899 - The Australian Premiers' Conference held in Melbourne decides to locate Australia's capital city, Canberra, between Sydney and Melbourne.
- 1887 - In Punxsutawney, Pennsylvania the first Groundhog Day is observed.
- 1882 - The Knights of Columbus are formed in New Haven, Connecticut.
- 1878 - Greece declares war on Turkey.
- 1876 - The National League of Professional Baseball Clubs of Major League Baseball is formed.
- 1848 - Mexican-American War: The Treaty of Guadalupe Hidalgo is signed.
- 1848 - California Gold Rush: The first ship with Chinese immigrants arrives in San Francisco, California.
- 1812 - Russia establishes a fur trading colony at Fort Ross, California.
- 1790 - The Supreme Court of the United States convenes for the first time.
- 1709 - Alexander Selkirk is rescued after being shipwrecked on a desert island, inspiring the book Robinson Crusoe by Daniel Defoe.
- 1653 - New Amsterdam (later renamed The City of New York) is incorporated.
- 1542 - Portuguese under Christovão da Gama capture a Moslem-occupied hill fort in northern Ethiopia in the Battle of Baçente.
- 1536 - Spaniard Pedro de Mendoza founds Buenos Aires, Argentina.
- 1509 - The Battle of Diu takes place near Diu, India, between Portugal and Turkey.
- 1032 - Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor becomes King of Burgundy.
- 962 - Translatio imperii: Pope John XII crowns Otto I, Holy Roman Emperor, the first Holy Roman Emperor in nearly 40 years.
- 506 - Alaric II, eighth king of the Visigoths promulgates The Breviary of Alaric (Breviarium Alaricianum or Lex Romana Visigothorum) a collection of Roman law.

February 2nd


- 1992 - Danielle White, American singer
- 1990 - Dan Gosling, English footballer
- 1987 - Gerard Piqué, Spanish football player
- 1987 - Martin Spanjers, American actor
- 1984 - Renn Kiriyama, Japanese actor
- 1984 - Rudi Wulf, New Zealand All Black rugby player
- 1983 - Ronny Cedeño, Venezuelan baseball player
- 1983 - Carolina Klüft, Swedish athlete
- 1983 - Will South, British musician (Thirteen Senses)
- 1983 - Jordin Tootoo, Canadian hockey player
- 1983 - Alex Westaway, British musician
- 1982 - Sergio Castaño, Spanish footballer
- 1982 - Han Ga In, South Korean model/actress
- 1982 - Kelly Mazzante, American basketball player
- 1982 - Brandy Talore, American pornographic actress
- 1981 - Michelle Bass, English reality tv star and glamour model
- 1980 - Teddy Hart, Canadian professional wrestler
- 1980 - Gucci Mane, American rapper
- 1980 - Oleguer Presas, Spanish football player
- 1979 - Irini Terzoglou, Greek shot putter
- 1979 - Urmo Aava, Estonian rally driver
- 1979 - Fani Chalkia, Greek hurdler
- 1979 - Klaus Mainzer, German rugby player
- 1979 - Shamita Shetty, Indian actress
- 1978 - Eden Espinosa, American singer and actress
- 1978 - Barry Ferguson, Scotish football player
- 1978 - Rich Sommer, American actor
- 1977 - Heather Martin, American gospel singer
- 1977 - Shakira, Colombian singer
- 1977 - Libor Sionko, Czech football player
- 1976 - James Hickman, British swimmer
- 1976 - Lori Beth Denberg, American actress
- 1975 - Todd Bertuzzi, Canadian hockey player
- 1975 - Donald Driver, American football player
- 1975 - Vaggelis Koutsoures, Greek footballer
- 1975 - Ieroklis Stoltidis, Greek footballer
- 1975 - Niclas Wallin, Swedish hockey player
- 1973 - Aleksander Tammert, Estonian discus thrower
- 1973 - Marissa Jaret Winokur, American actress
- 1972 - Tego Calderón, Puerto Rican reggaeton artist
- 1972 - Dana International, Israeli singer
- 1972 - Melvin Mora, Venezuelan baseball player
- 1970 - C. Ernst Harth, Canadian actor
- 1970 - Nikolaos Michopoulos, Greek footballer
- 1970 - Roar Strand, Norwegian footballer
- 1970 - Jennifer Westfeldt, American actress
- 1969 - Valeri Karpin, Russian footballer
- 1968 - Sean Elliott, American basketball player
- 1968 - Scott Erickson, American baseball player
- 1968 - Simon Wickham-Smith, British musician
- 1968 - Thomas Teige, German martial artist, actor and record holder
- 1967 - Laurent Nkunda, Congolese military leader
- 1967 - Arturs Irbe, Latvian hockey player
- 1966 - Andrei Chesnokov, Russian tennis player
- 1966 - Robert DeLeo, American musician (Stone Temple Pilots)
- 1965 - Carl Airey, English footballer
- 1965 - Naoki Sano, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1963 - Eva Cassidy, American singer (d. 1996)
- 1963 - Philip Laats, Belgian judoka
- 1962 - Andy Fordham, English darts player
- 1962 - Paul Kilgus, American baseball player
- 1962 - Michael T. Weiss, American actor
- 1961 - Lauren Lane, American actress
- 1961 - Steve Penney, National Hockey League goaltender
- 1960 - Jari Porttila, Finnish sports journalist
- 1958 - Michel Marc Bouchard, Quebec playwright
- 1957 - Phil Barney, French singer
- 1955 - Leszek Engelking, Polish poet, writer and translator
- 1955 - Virginia Leng, British equestrian
- 1954 - Christie Brinkley, American model
- 1954 - Hansi Hinterseer, Austrian singer and actor
- 1954 - John Tudor, American baseball player
- 1953 - Duane Chapman, American bounty hunter
- 1952 - John Cornyn, American politician, junior senator of Texas
- 1950 - Osamu Kido, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1950 - Genichiro Tenryu, Japanese professional wrestler
- 1950 - Barbara Sukowa, German actress
- 1949 - Francisco Maturana, Colombian football manager
- 1949 - Brent Spiner, American actor
- 1949 - Ross Valory, American musician (Journey)
- 1948 - Ina Garten, American author and TV personality
- 1948 - Al McKay, American guitarist and songwriter (Earth, Wind & Fire)
- 1948 - Roger Williamson, English racecar driver (d. 1973)
- 1947 - Farrah Fawcett, American actress (d. 2009)
- 1946 - Constantine Papadakis, Greek-American businessman
- 1946 - Alpha Oumar Konaré, Mali politician
- 1944 - Andrew Davis, British conductor
- 1944 - Karen Foss, American broadcaster
- 1944 - Geoffrey Hughes, British actor
- 1943 - Susan Hanson, English actress
- 1942 - Graham Nash, British-born American musician
- 1941 - Terry Biddlecombe, English horse racing jockey
- 1940 - Wayne Fontes, American football coach
- 1940 - David Jason, English actor
- 1939 - Akbar Adibi, Iranian scientist (d. 2000)
- 1937 - Don Buford, American baseball player
- 1937 - Remak Ramsay, American actor
- 1937 - Tom Smothers, American musician and comedian
- 1936 - Duane Jones, American actor
- 1933 - Tony Jay, English actor (d. 2006)
- 1933 - Than Shwe, ruler of Myanmar
- 1932 - Robert Mandan, American actor
- 1931 - Dries van Agt, Dutch politician, Prime Minister of the Netherlands from 1977 until 1982
- 1931 - Les Dawson, British comedian (d. 1993)
- 1931 - Judith Viorst, American author
- 1929 - George Band, British mountaineer
- 1929 - V?ra Chytilová, Czech director
- 1928 - Aloyisus Leon Higginbotham, Jr, American civil rights activist (d. 1998)
- 1927 - Stan Getz, American musician (d. 1991)
- 1926 - Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, French politician
- 1925 - Elaine Stritch, American actress
- 1924 - Elfi von Dassanowsky, Austrian-born American producer and musician (d. 2007)
- 1924 - Jack Clemmons, American law enforcement officer (d. 1998)
- 1923 - Bonita Granville, American actress (d. 1988)
- 1923 - Red Schoendienst, American baseball player and manager
- 1923 - Liz Smith, American gossip columnist
- 1923 - James Dickey, American poet and author (d. 1997)
- 1918 - Hella S. Haasse, Dutch writer
- 1917 - ?? M??i, Vietnamese leader
- 1916 - Xuân Di?u, Vietnamese poet (d. 1985)
- 1915 - Abba Eban, Israeli diplomat (d. 2002)
- 1915 - Stan Leonard, Canadian professional golfer (d. 2005)
- 1914 - Eric Kierans, Canadian politician and economist (d. 2004)
- 1913 - Poul Reichhardt, Danish actor (d. 1985)
- 1912 - Millvina Dean, last living survivor of the RMS Titanic (d. 2009)
- 1912 - Burton Lane, American composer and lyricist (d. 1997)
- 1909 - Frank Albertson, American actor (d. 1964)
- 1908 - Wes Ferrell, American baseball player (d. 1976)
- 1905 - Ayn Rand, Russian-born American author and philosopher (d. 1982)
- 1902 - Jane Ising, German-born wife of Ernst Ising
- 1902 - Newbold Morris, American politician (d. 1966)
- 1901 - Jascha Heifetz, Lithuanian violinist (d. 1987)
- 1900 - Willie Kamm, American baseball player (d. 1988)
- 1897 - Aimé Avignon, France's former oldest living man (d. 2007)
- 1897 - Howard Johnson, American hotelier (d. 1972)
- 1896 - Kazimierz Kuratowski, Polish mathematician and logician (d. 1980)
- 1895 - George Halas, American NFL co-founder (d. 1983)
- 1893 - Cornelius Lanczos, Hungarian mathematician (d. 1974)
- 1893 - Raoul Riganti, Argentine racing driver (d. 1970)
- 1892 - Tochigiyama Moriya, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 27th Yokozuna (d. 1959)
- 1890 - Charles Correll, American actor (d. 1972)
- 1889 - Jean de Lattre de Tassigny, French general, posthumous Marshal of France (d. 1952)
- 1888 - Frederick Lane, Australian swimmer (d. 1969)
- 1887 - Ernst Hanfstängl, German pianist and politician (d. 1975)
- 1882 - James Joyce, Irish author (d. 1941)
- 1881 - Orval Overall, American baseball player (d. 1947)
- 1878 - Alfréd Hajós, Hungarian swimmer (d. 1955)
- 1875 - Fritz Kreisler, Austrian violinist (d. 1962)
- 1873 - Konstantin von Neurath, German diplomat and statesman (d. 1956)
- 1861 - Solomon R. Guggenheim, American art collector and philanthropist (d. 1949)
- 1860 - Curtis Guild, Jr., American politician (d. 1915)
- 1851 - José Guadalupe Posada, Mexican artist (d. 1913)
- 1849 - Pavol Országh Hviezdoslav, Slovak poet (d. 1921)
- 1842 - Yulian Vasilievich Sokhotski, Russian mathematician (d. 1927)
- 1841 - François-Alphonse Forel, Swiss hydrologist (d. 1912)
- 1829 - Alfred Brehm, German zoologist (d. 1884)
- 1829 - William Stanley, inventor and engineer (d. 1909)
- 1803 - Albert Sidney Johnston, American Confederate general (d. 1862)
- 1802 - Jean Baptiste Boussingault, French chemist (d. 1887)
- 1786 - Jacques Philippe Marie Binet, French mathematician (d. 1856)
- 1754 - Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, French diplomat and statesman (d. 1838)
- 1717 - Ernst Gideon Freiherr von Laudon, Austrian field marshal (d. 1790)
- 1714 - Gottfried August Homilius, German composer (d. 1785)
- 1711 - Wenzel Anton von Kaunitz, Austrian diplomat (d. 1794)
- 1700 - Johann Christoph Gottsched, German writer (d. 1766)
- 1695 - William Borlase, English naturalist (d. 1772)
- 1695 - François de Chevert, French general (d. 1769)
- 1669 - Louis Marchand, French organist and harpsichordist (d. 1732)
- 1650 - Nell Gwynne, English actress and royal mistress (d. 1687)
- 1649 - Pope Benedict XIII (d. 1730)
- 1621 - Johannes Schefferus, Alsatian humanist (d. 1679)
- 1613 - Noël Chabanel, French Jesuit missionary (d. 1649)
- 1600 - Gabriel Naudé, French librarian and scholar (d. 1653)
- 1522 - Lodovico Ferrari, Italian mathematician (d. 1565)
- 1506 - René de Birague, French cardinal and chancellor (d. 1583)
- 1502 - Damião de Góis, Portuguese philosopher (d. 1574)
- 1494 - Bona Sforza, queen of Sigismund I of Poland (d. 1557)
- 1455 - King John of Denmark (d. 1513)
- 1208 - James I of Aragon (d. 1276)