September 5

Pre-1600

• 917 – Liu Yan declares himself emperor, establishing the Southern Han state in southern China, at his capital of Panyu.
• 1367 – Swa Saw Ke becomes king of Ava
• 1590 – Alexander Farnese's army forces Henry IV of France to lift the siege of Paris.

1601–1900

• 1622 – A hurricane overruns a Spanish fleet bound from Havana to Cadiz and sinks the galleon Atocha. Only five men are rescued, but 260 passengers and 200 million pesos are buried with the Atocha under 50 feet of water.
• 1661 – Fall of Nicolas Fouquet: Louis XIV's Superintendent of Finances is arrested in Nantes by D'Artagnan, captain of the king's musketeers.
• 1666 – Great Fire of London ends: Ten thousand buildings, including Old St Paul's Cathedral, are destroyed, but only six people are known to have died.
• 1697 – War of the Grand Alliance : A French warship commanded by Captain Pierre Le Moyne d'Iberville defeated an English squadron at the Battle of Hudson's Bay.
• 1698 – In an effort to Westernize his nobility, Tsar Peter I of Russia imposes a tax on beards for all men except the clergy and peasantry.
• 1725 – Wedding of Louis XV and Maria Leszczyńska.
• 1774 – First Continental Congress assembles in Philadelphia.
• 1781 – Battle of the Chesapeake in the American Revolutionary War: The British Navy is repelled by the French Navy, contributing to the British surrender at Yorktown.
• 1791 – Olympe de Gouges writes the Declaration of the Rights of Woman and of the Female Citizen.
• 1793 – French Revolution: The French National Convention initiates the Reign of Terror.
• 1798 – Conscription is made mandatory in France by the Jourdan law.
• 1812 – War of 1812: The Siege of Fort Wayne begins when Chief Winamac's forces attack two soldiers returning from the fort's outhouses.
• 1816 – Louis XVIII has to dissolve the Chambre introuvable ("Unobtainable Chamber").
• 1836 – Sam Houston is elected as the first president of the Republic of Texas.
• 1839 – The United Kingdom declares war on the Qing dynasty of China.
• 1862 – American Civil War: The Army of Northern Virginia crosses the Potomac River at White's Ford in the Maryland Campaign.
• 1877 – American Indian Wars: Oglala Sioux chief Crazy Horse is bayoneted by a United States soldier after resisting confinement in a guardhouse at Fort Robinson in Nebraska.
• 1882 – The first United States Labor Day parade is held in New York City.
• 1887 – A fire at the Theatre Royal, Exeter kills 186, making it the UK's deadliest ever building fire.

1901–present

• 1905 – Russo-Japanese War: In New Hampshire, United States, the Treaty of Portsmouth, mediated by U.S. President Theodore Roosevelt, ends the war.
• 1914 – World War I: First Battle of the Marne begins. Northeast of Paris, the French attack and defeat German forces who are advancing on the capital.
• 1915 – The pacifist Zimmerwald Conference begins.
• 1932 – The French Upper Volta is broken apart between Ivory Coast, French Sudan, and Niger.
• 1937 – Spanish Civil War: Llanes falls to the Nationalists following a one-day siege.
• 1938 – Chile: A group of youths affiliated with the fascist National Socialist Movement of Chile are executed after surrendering during a failed coup.
• 1941 – Whole territory of Estonia is occupied by Nazi Germany.
• 1942 – World War II: Japanese high command orders withdrawal at Milne Bay, the first major Japanese defeat in land warfare during the Pacific War.
• 1943 – World War II: The 503rd Parachute Infantry Regiment lands and occupies Lae Nadzab Airport, near Lae in the Salamaua–Lae campaign.
• 1944 – Belgium, Netherlands and Luxembourg constitute Benelux.
• 1945 – Cold War: Igor Gouzenko, a Soviet Union embassy clerk, defects to Canada, exposing Soviet espionage in North America, signalling the beginning of the Cold War.
• 1945 – Iva Toguri D'Aquino, a Japanese American suspected of being wartime radio propagandist Tokyo Rose, is arrested in Yokohama.
• 1948 – In France, Robert Schuman becomes President of the Council while being Foreign minister; as such, he is the negotiator of the major treaties of the end of World War II.
• 1954 – KLM Flight 633 crashes into the River Shannon in Shannon, County Clare, Ireland, killing 28.
• 1957 – Cuban Revolution: Fulgencio Batista bombs the revolt in Cienfuegos.
• 1960 – Poet Léopold Sédar Senghor is the first elected President of Senegal.
• 1960 – Muhammad Ali (then known as Cassius Clay) wins the gold medal in the light heavyweight boxing competition at the Olympic Games in Rome.
• 1969 – Mỹ Lai Massacre: U.S. Army Lieutenant William Calley is charged with six specifications of premeditated murder for the death of 109 Vietnamese civilians in My Lai.
• 1970 – Vietnam War: Operation Jefferson Glenn begins: The United States 101st Airborne Division and the South Vietnamese 1st Infantry Division initiate a new operation in Thừa Thiên–Huế Province.
• 1970 – Jochen Rindt becomes the only driver to posthumously win the Formula One World Drivers' Championship (in 1970), after being killed in practice for the Italian Grand Prix.
• 1972 – Munich massacre: A Palestinian terrorist group called "Black September" attacks and takes hostage 11 Israeli athletes at the Munich Olympic Games. Two die in the attack and nine are murdered the following day.
• 1975 – Sacramento, California: Lynette Fromme attempts to assassinate U.S. President Gerald Ford.
• 1977 – Voyager Program: NASA launches the Voyager 1 spacecraft.
• 1978 – Camp David Accords: Menachem Begin and Anwar Sadat begin peace discussions at Camp David, Maryland.
• 1980 – The Gotthard Road Tunnel opens in Switzerland as the world's longest highway tunnel at 10.14 miles (16.32 km) stretching from Göschenen to Airolo.
• 1981 – The first women arrive at what becomes Greenham Common Women's Peace Camp in the UK.
• 1984 – STS-41-D: The Space Shuttle Discovery lands after its maiden voyage.
• 1984 – Western Australia becomes the last Australian state to abolish capital punishment.
• 1986 – Pan Am Flight 73 from Mumbai, India with 358 people on board is hijacked at Karachi International Airport.
• 1990 – Sri Lankan Civil War: Sri Lankan Army soldiers slaughter 158 civilians.
• 1991 – The current international treaty defending indigenous peoples, Indigenous and Tribal Peoples Convention, 1989, comes into force.
• 1996 – Hurricane Fran makes landfall near Cape Fear, North Carolina as a Category 3 storm with 115 mph sustained winds. Fran caused over $3 billion in damage and killed 27 people.
• 2005 – Mandala Airlines Flight 091 crashes after takeoff from Polonia International Airport in Medan, Indonesia, killing 149.
• 2005 – A Kavatshi Airlines Antonov An-26 crashes near Matari Airport in Isiro, Democratic Republic of the Congo, killing all 11 people on board.
• 2012 – An accidental explosion at a Turkish Army ammunition store in Afyon, western Turkey kills 25 soldiers and wounds four others.
• 2021 – The President of Guinea, Alpha Condé is captured by armed forces during a coup d'état.
• 2022 – Liz Truss is declared the winner of the UK Conservative Party leadership election, beating Rishi Sunak
• 2022 – At least 93 people die and 25 are missing after a magnitude 6.8 earthquake strikes Sichuan, China.

Pre-1600

• 989 – Fan Zhongyan, Chinese chancellor (d. 1052)
• 1187 – Louis VIII, king of France (d. 1226)
• 1201 – Alix of Thouars, duchess of Brittany (d. 1221)
• 1319 – Peter IV, king of Aragon (d. 1387)
• 1451 – Isabel Neville, daughter of Richard Neville (d. 1476)
• 1500 – Maria of Jever, ruler of the Lordship of Jever (d. 1575)
• 1533 – Jacopo Zabarella, Italian philosopher and logician (d. 1589)
• 1540 – Magnus of Holstein, prince of Denmark (d. 1583)
• 1567 – Date Masamune, Japanese daimyō (d. 1636)
• 1568 – Tommaso Campanella, Italian poet, philosopher, and theologian (d. 1639)

1601–1900

• 1638 – Louis XIV, king of France (d. 1715)
• 1641 – Robert Spencer, 2nd Earl of Sunderland, English diplomat (d. 1702)
• 1642 – Maria of Orange-Nassau, Dutch princess (d. 1688)
• 1651 – William Dampier, English explorer (d. 1715)
• 1666 – Gottfried Arnold, German historian and theologian (d. 1714)
• 1667 – Giovanni Girolamo Saccheri, Italian priest, mathematician, and philosopher (d. 1733)
• 1694 – František Václav Míča, Czech conductor and composer (d. 1744)
• 1695 – Carl Gustaf Tessin, Swedish politician and diplomat (d. 1770)
• 1722 – Frederick Christian, Prince-Elector of Saxony (d. 1763)
• 1725 – Jean-Étienne Montucla, French mathematician and theorist (d. 1799)
• 1735 – Johann Christian Bach, German-English viol player and composer (d. 1782)
• 1750 – Robert Fergusson, Scottish poet and author (d. 1774)
• 1769 – John Shortland, English commander (d. 1810)
• 1771 – Archduke Charles, Duke of Teschen (d. 1847)
• 1772 – Fath-Ali Shah Qajar, Iranian king (d. 1834)
• 1774 – Caspar David Friedrich, German painter and etcher (d. 1840)
• 1775 – Juan Martín Díez, Spanish general (d. 1825)
• 1781 – Anton Diabelli, Austrian composer and publisher (d. 1858)
• 1787 – François Sulpice Beudant, French mineralogist and geologist (d. 1850)
• 1791 – Giacomo Meyerbeer, German pianist and composer (d. 1864)
• 1792 – Ours-Pierre-Armand Petit-Dufrénoy, French geologist and mineralogist (d. 1857)
• 1806 – Christophe Léon Louis Juchault de Lamoricière, French general and politician, French Minister of War (d. 1865)
• 1817 – Aleksey Konstantinovich Tolstoy, Russian poet, author, and playwright (d. 1875)
• 1818 – Edmund Kennedy, Australian explorer and surveyor (d. 1848)
• 1826 – John Wisden, English cricketer and businessman (d. 1884)
• 1827 – Goffredo Mameli, Italian poet and songwriter (d. 1849)
• 1829 – Lester Allan Pelton, American inventor (d. 1908)
• 1831 – Victorien Sardou, French author and playwright (d. 1908)
• 1833 – George Huntington Hartford, American businessman (d. 1917)
• 1836 – Justiniano Borgoño, Peruvian soldier and politician, 57th President of Peru (d. 1921)
• 1847 – Jesse James, American outlaw (d. 1882)
• 1850 – Eugen Goldstein, German physicist (d. 1930)
• 1856 – Thomas E. Watson, American lawyer, publisher, and politician (d. 1922)
• 1867 – Amy Beach, American pianist and composer (d. 1944)
• 1871 – Friedrich Akel, Estonian physician and politician, Head of State of Estonia (d 1941)
• 1872 – V. O. Chidambaram Pillai, Indian lawyer and politician (d. 1936)
• 1872 – Horace Rice, Australian tennis player (d. 1950)
• 1873 – Cornelius Vanderbilt III, American general and engineer (d. 1942)
• 1874 – Nap Lajoie, American baseball player and manager (d. 1959)
• 1876 – Wilhelm Ritter von Leeb, German field marshal (d. 1956)
• 1880 – José María of Manila, Spanish-Filipino priest and martyr (d. 1936)
• 1881 – Otto Bauer, Austrian philosopher and politician, Foreign Minister of Austria (d. 1938)
• 1881 – Henry Maitland Wilson, 1st Baron Wilson, English field marshal (d. 1964)
• 1883 – Otto Erich Deutsch, Austrian musicologist and scholar (d. 1967)
• 1888 – Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, Indian philosopher and politician, 2nd President of India (d. 1975)
• 1892 – Joseph Szigeti, Hungarian violinist and educator (d. 1973)
• 1897 – Morris Carnovsky, American actor (d. 1992)
• 1897 – Arthur Nielsen, American market analyst, founded ACNielsen (d. 1980)
• 1899 – Humphrey Cobb, American author and screenwriter (d. 1944)
• 1899 – Helen Creighton, Canadian author and educator (d. 1989)

1901–present

• 1901 – Florence Eldridge, American actress (d. 1988)
• 1901 – Mario Scelba, Italian politician, 33rd Prime Minister of Italy (d. 1991)
• 1902 – Jean Dalrymple, American playwright, producer, manager, and publicist (d. 1998)
• 1902 – Darryl F. Zanuck, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1979)
• 1904 – Vera Bradford, Australian pianist and educator (d. 2004)
• 1905 – Maurice Challe, French general (d. 1979)
• 1905 – Arthur Koestler, Hungarian-English journalist and author (d. 1983)
• 1905 – Justiniano Montano, Filipino lawyer and politician (d. 2005)
• 1906 – Ralston Crawford, American painter, lithographer, and photographer (d. 1978)
• 1906 – Sunnyland Slim, American singer-songwriter and pianist (d. 1995)
• 1908 – Josué de Castro, Brazilian physician, geographer, and activist (d. 1973)
• 1908 – Joaquín Nin-Culmell, German-American pianist and composer (d. 2004)
• 1908 – Cecilia Seghizzi, Italian composer and painter (d. 2019)
• 1908 – Renzo Rivolta, Italian engineer (d. 1966)
• 1909 – Hans Carste, German pianist and conductor (d. 1971)
• 1909 – Bernard Delfont, Russian-English talent manager (d. 1994)
• 1909 – Archie Jackson, Scottish-Australian cricketer (d. 1933)
• 1910 – Leila Mackinlay, English author (d. 1996)
• 1910 – Phiroze Palia, Indian cricketer (d. 1981)
• 1912 – John Cage, American composer and theorist (d. 1992)
• 1912 – Kristina Söderbaum, Swedish-German actress and photographer (d. 2001)
• 1912 – Frank Thomas, American voice actor, animator, and screenwriter (d. 2004)
• 1914 – Stuart Freeborn, English make up artist (d. 2013)
• 1914 – Gail Kubik, American violinist, composer, and educator (d. 1984)
• 1914 – Nicanor Parra, Chilean physicist, mathematician, and poet (d. 2018)
• 1916 – Frank Shuster, Canadian comedian, actor, and screenwriter (d. 2002)
• 1916 – Frank Yerby, American novelist (d. 1991)
• 1917 – Pedro E. Guerrero, American photographer (d. 2012)
• 1917 – Sören Nordin, Swedish harness racer and trainer (d. 2008)
• 1918 – Luis Alcoriza, Mexican actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1992)
• 1918 – Bob Katter, Sr., Australian captain and politician (d. 1990)
• 1918 – Fred McCarthy, American cartoonist and monk (d. 2009)
• 1919 – Elisabeth Volkenrath, German SS officer (d. 1945)
• 1920 – Peter Racine Fricker, English-American composer and educator (d. 1990)
• 1920 – Fons Rademakers, Dutch-Swiss actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2007)
• 1921 – Murray Henderson, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2013)
• 1921 – Jack Valenti, American businessman, created the MPAA film rating system (d. 2007)
• 1922 – Denys Wilkinson, English physicist and academic (d. 2016)
• 1923 – David Hamer, Australian captain and politician (d. 2002)
• 1923 – Ken Meuleman, Australian cricketer (d. 2004)
• 1924 – Paul Dietzel, American football player and coach (d. 2013)
• 1924 – Frank Armitage, Australian-American artist (d. 2016)
• 1925 – Justin Kaplan, American author (d. 2014)
• 1927 – Paul Volcker, American economist and academic (d. 2019)
• 1928 – Joyce Hatto, English pianist and educator (d. 2006)
• 1928 – Albert Mangelsdorff, German trombonist and educator (d. 2005)
• 1929 – Bob Newhart, American comedian and actor
• 1929 – Andriyan Nikolayev, Russian general, pilot, and cosmonaut (d. 2004)
• 1932 – Carol Lawrence, American actress and singer
• 1932 – Robert H. Dennard, American electrical engineer and inventor
• 1933 – Francisco Javier Errázuriz Ossa, Chilean cardinal
• 1934 – Paul Josef Cordes, German cardinal
• 1934 – Dennis Letts, American actor and educator (d. 2008)
• 1934 – Kevin McNamara, English politician, Shadow Secretary of State for Northern Ireland (d. 2017)
• 1935 – Werner Erhard, American author and philanthropist, founded Werner Erhard and Associates and The Hunger Project
• 1935 – Helen Gifford, Australian composer and educator
• 1935 – Lucille Soong, Chinese-American actress
• 1936 – Robert Burns, Canadian lawyer and politician (d. 2014)
• 1936 – John Danforth, American politician and diplomat, 24th United States Ambassador to the United Nations
• 1936 – Jonathan Kozol, American sociologist, author, and educator
• 1936 – Bill Mazeroski, American baseball player and coach
• 1936 – Knuts Skujenieks, Latvian poet, journalist, and translator
• 1937 – Antonio Valentín Angelillo, Argentinian footballer and manager (d. 2018)
• 1937 – Dick Clement, English director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1938 – John Ferguson, Sr., Canadian ice hockey player, coach, and manager (d. 2007)
• 1938 – Doreen Massey, Baroness Massey of Darwen, English politician
• 1939 – Claudette Colvin, American nurse and activist
• 1939 – William Devane, American actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1939 – George Lazenby, Australian actor
• 1939 – John Stewart, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2008)
• 1939 – George Tremlett, English journalist, author, and politician
• 1940 – Valerie Howarth, Baroness Howarth of Breckland, English politician
• 1940 – Raquel Welch, American actress and singer (d. 2023)
• 1941 – Dave Dryden, Canadian ice hockey player and coach (d. 2022)
• 1942 – Werner Herzog, German actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1942 – Eduardo Mata, Mexican conductor and composer (d. 1995)
• 1943 – Dulce Saguisag, Filipino social worker and politician, 10th Filipino Secretary of Social Welfare and Development (d. 2007)
• 1944 – Dario Bellezza, Italian poet, author, and playwright (d. 1996)
• 1944 – Gareth Evans, Australian lawyer and politician, 33rd Australian Minister of Foreign Affairs
• 1945 – Eva Bergman, Swedish director and screenwriter
• 1945 – Al Stewart, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist
• 1946 – Kyongae Chang, South Korean astrophysicist and academic
• 1946 – Dennis Dugan, American actor and director
• 1946 – Dean Ford, Scottish singer-songwriter and guitarist (d. 2018)
• 1946 – Freddie Mercury, British singer and songwriter (d. 1991)
• 1946 – Loudon Wainwright III, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor
• 1947 – Mel Collins, Manx saxophonist and flute player
• 1947 – Chip Davis, American pianist, songwriter, and producer
• 1947 – Buddy Miles, American singer-songwriter and drummer (d. 2008)
• 1947 – Bruce Yardley, Australian cricketer and sportscaster (d. 2019)
• 1948 – Benita Ferrero-Waldner, Austrian lawyer, politician, and diplomat, Foreign Minister of Austria
• 1949 – Clem Clempson, English guitarist and songwriter
• 1950 – Rosie Cooper, English businesswoman and politician
• 1950 – Cathy Guisewite, American cartoonist, created Cathy
• 1951 – Paul Breitner, German footballer
• 1951 – Michael Keaton, American actor and producer
• 1951 – Jamie Oldaker, American drummer and percussionist (d. 2020)
• 1952 – David Glen Eisley, American rock singer-songwriter and actor
• 1953 – Victor Davis Hanson, American historian and journalist
• 1953 – Murray Mexted, New Zealand rugby player and sportscaster
• 1953 – Eiki Nestor, Estonian engineer and politician, Estonian Minister of Social Affairs
• 1953 – Paul Piché, Canadian singer-songwriter
• 1954 – Richard Austin, Jamaican footballer and cricketer (d. 2015)
• 1954 – Frederick Kempe, American journalist and author
• 1956 – Low Thia Khiang, Singaporean businessman and politician
• 1956 – Roine Stolt, Swedish singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
• 1956 – Debbie Turner, American actress
• 1957 – Rudi Gores, German footballer and manager
• 1957 – Peter Winnen, Dutch cyclist
• 1958 – Lars Danielsson, Swedish bassist, composer, and producer
• 1959 – Frank Schirrmacher, German journalist and publisher (d. 2014)
• 1960 – Willie Gault, American football player, athlete, and actor
• 1960 – Don Kulick, Swedish anthropologist and academic
• 1961 – Marc-André Hamelin, Canadian pianist and composer
• 1962 – Tracy Edwards, English sailor and coach
• 1962 – John McGrath, Welsh businessman
• 1963 – Juan Alderete, American bass player and songwriter
• 1963 – Kristian Alfonso, American actress and model
• 1963 – Jeff Brantley, American baseball player and sportscaster
• 1963 – Terry Ellis, American R&B singer–songwriter and actress
• 1963 – Taki Inoue, Japanese race car driver and manager
• 1964 – Frank Farina, Australian footballer and manager
• 1964 – Sergei Loznitsa, Belarusian-Ukrainian director and screenwriter
• 1964 – Ken Norman, American basketball player
• 1964 – Thomas Mikal Ford, American actor (d. 2016)
• 1965 – David Brabham, Australian race car driver
• 1965 – Hoshitango Imachi, Japanese wrestler
• 1965 – Nick Talbot, English geneticist and academic
• 1966 – Achero Mañas, Spanish actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1966 – Milinko Pantić, Serbian footballer and manager
• 1967 – Matthias Sammer, German footballer and manager
• 1967 – Jane Sixsmith, English field hockey player
• 1968 – Serhiy Kovalets, Ukrainian footballer and manager
• 1968 – Dennis Scott, American basketball player and sportscaster
• 1968 – Robin van der Laan, Dutch footballer and coach
• 1968 – Brad Wilk, American singer-songwriter and drummer
• 1969 – Leonardo Araújo, Brazilian footballer and manager
• 1969 – Mariko Kouda, Japanese voice actress, singer, and radio host
• 1969 – Mark Ramprakash, English cricketer and coach
• 1969 – Dweezil Zappa, American actor and musician
• 1970 – Liam Lynch, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, puppeteer, and director
• 1970 – Mohammad Rafique, Bangladeshi cricketer
• 1970 – Gilbert Remulla, Filipino journalist and politician
• 1970 – Johnny Vegas, English actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
• 1971 – Adam Hollioake, Australian cricketer and mixed martial artist
• 1972 – Shane Sewell, Canadian-American wrestler and referee
• 1972 – Guy Whittall, Zimbabwean cricketer
• 1973 – Paddy Considine, English actor, director, and screenwriter
• 1973 – Rose McGowan, American actress
• 1974 – Lauren Jeska, British fell runner convicted of the attempted murder of Ralph Knibbs
• 1974 – Rawl Lewis, Grenadian cricketer
• 1974 – Ken-Marti Vaher, Estonian politician, Estonian Minister of the Interior
• 1975 – Rod Barajas, American baseball player and manager
• 1975 – George Boateng, Dutch footballer and manager
• 1975 – Randy Choate, American baseball player
• 1975 – Matt Geyer, Australian rugby league player and coach
• 1976 – Tatiana Gutsu, Ukrainian gymnast
• 1976 – Carice van Houten, Dutch actress and singer
• 1977 – Rosevelt Colvin, American football player and sportscaster
• 1977 – Joseba Etxeberria, Spanish footballer
• 1977 – Minoru Fujita, Japanese wrestler
• 1977 – Nazr Mohammed, American basketball player
• 1978 – Laura Bertram, Canadian actress
• 1978 – Chris Hipkins, New Zealand politician, 41st Prime Minister of New Zealand
• 1978 – Chris Jack, New Zealand rugby player
• 1978 – Sylvester Joseph, Antiguan cricketer
• 1978 – Zhang Zhong, Chinese chess player
• 1979 – John Carew, Norwegian footballer
• 1979 – Stacey Dales, Canadian basketball player and sportscaster
• 1979 – Julien Lizeroux, French skier
• 1979 – Salvatore Mastronunzio, Italian footballer
• 1979 – George O'Callaghan, Irish footballer
• 1980 – Franco Costanzo, Argentinian footballer
• 1980 – Kevin Simm, British singer
• 1981 – Daniel Moreno, Spanish cyclist
• 1981 – Kai Rüütel, Estonian opera singer
• 1981 – Filippo Volandri, Italian tennis player
• 1982 – Alexandre Geijo, Spanish-Swiss footballer
• 1983 – Eugen Bopp, Ukrainian-German footballer
• 1983 – Pablo Granoche, Uruguayan footballer
• 1983 – Lincoln Riley, American football coach
• 1983 – Antony Sweeney, English footballer
• 1983 – Chris Young, American baseball player
• 1984 – Alison Bell, Scottish field hockey player
• 1984 – Chris Anker Sørensen, Danish cyclist (d. 2021)
• 1985 – Justin Dentmon, American basketball player
• 1985 – Ryan Guy, American soccer player
• 1986 – Colt McCoy, American football player
• 1986 – Pragyan Ojha, Indian cricketer
• 1988 – Denni Avdić, Swedish footballer
• 1988 – Felipe Caicedo, Ecuadorian footballer
• 1988 – Emmy Raver-Lampman, American actress and singer
• 1989 – Elena Delle Donne, American basketball player
• 1989 – Kat Graham, American actress and singer
• 1989 – Craig Smith, American ice hockey player
• 1989 – José Ángel Valdés, Spanish footballer
• 1989 – Ben Youngs, English rugby player
• 1990 – Antonio Esposito, Italian footballer
• 1990 – Francesca Segarelli, Dominican tennis player
• 1990 – Lance Stephenson, American basketball player
• 1990 – Yuna Kim, South Korean figure skater
• 1990 – Franco Zuculini, Argentinian footballer
• 1991 – Skandar Keynes, English actor and political adviser
• 1991 – Zeki Yavru, Turkish footballer
• 1993 – Pablo Reyes, Dominican baseball player
• 1993 – T. J. Warren, American basketball player
• 1994 – Gregorio Paltrinieri, Italian swimmer
• 1995 – Szabina Szlavikovics, Hungarian tennis player
• 1995 – Lucas Wallmark, Swedish ice hockey player
• 1996 – Richairo Zivkovic, Dutch footballer
• 1996 – Sigrid, Norwegian singer
• 1997 – Kyōko Saitō, Japanese idol
• 1998 – Caroline Dolehide, American tennis player
• 1998 – Mac Jones, American football player
• 1998 – Davion Mitchell, American basketball player
• 1999 – Filip Chytil, Czech ice hockey player
• 2001 – Bukayo Saka, English footballer

Pre-1600

• 590 – Authari, Lombard king (b. 540)
• 714 – Shang, emperor of the Tang Dynasty
• 1165 – Nijō, emperor of Japan (b. 1143)
• 1235 – Henry I, duke of Brabant (b. 1165)
• 1311 – Amadeus Aba, Hungarian oligarch
• 1336 – Charles d'Évreux, count of Étampes (b. 1305)
• 1526 – Alonso de Salazar, Spanish explorer
• 1548 – Catherine Parr, Sixth and last Queen of Henry VIII of England (b. c. 1512)
• 1562 – Katharina Zell, German Protestant reformer (b. 1497)
• 1569 – Edmund Bonner, Bishop of London (b. c. 1500)

1601–1900

• 1607 – Pomponne de Bellièvre, French politician, Chancellor of France (b. 1529)
• 1629 – Domenico Allegri, Italian singer-songwriter (b. 1585)
• 1734 – Nicolas Bernier, French composer (b. 1664)
• 1786 – Jonas Hanway, English merchant and philanthropist (b. 1712)
• 1803 – Pierre Choderlos de Laclos, French general and author (b. 1741)
• 1803 – François Devienne, French flute player and composer (b. 1759)
• 1836 – Ferdinand Raimund, Austrian actor and playwright (b. 1790)
• 1838 – Charles Percier, French architect and interior decorator (b. 1764)
• 1857 – Auguste Comte, French sociologist and philosopher (b. 1798)
• 1876 – Manuel Blanco Encalada, Chilean admiral and politician, 1st President of Chile (b. 1790)
• 1877 – Crazy Horse, American tribal leader (b. 1849)
• 1894 – George Stoneman, Jr., United States Army cavalry officer (b. 1822)
• 1898 – Sarah Emma Edmonds, Canadian-American nurse, soldier, and spy (b. 1841)

1901–present

• 1901 – Ignacij Klemenčič, Slovenian physicist and academic (b. 1853)
• 1902 – Rudolf Virchow, German anthropologist, pathologist, and biologist (b. 1821)
• 1906 – Ludwig Boltzmann, Austrian physicist and philosopher (b. 1844)
• 1909 – Louis Bouveault, French chemist (b. 1864)
• 1912 – Arthur MacArthur, Jr., American LTG (Army), Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1845)
• 1917 – Marian Smoluchowski, Austrian-Polish physicist and mountaineer (b. 1872)
• 1920 – Robert Harron, American actor (b. 1893)
• 1922 – Georgette Agutte, French painter (b. 1867)
• 1926 – Karl Harrer, German journalist and politician (b. 1890)
• 1930 – Robert Means Thompson, American soldier, businessman, and philanthropist (b. 1849)
• 1931 – John Thomson, Scottish footballer (b. 1909)
• 1932 – Francisco Acebal, Spanish journalist, author, and playwright (b. 1866)
• 1932 – Paul Bern, German-American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1889)
• 1934 – Sidney Myer, Russian-Australian businessman, founded Myer Stores (b. 1878)
• 1936 – Gustave Kahn, French poet and critic (b. 1859)
• 1942 – François de Labouchère, French soldier and pilot (b. 1917)
• 1945 – Clem Hill, Australian cricketer and footballer (b. 1877)
• 1948 – Richard C. Tolman, American physicist and chemist (b. 1881)
• 1953 – Richard Walther Darré, Argentinian-German agronomist and politician (b. 1895)
• 1954 – Eugen Schiffer, German lawyer and politician, Vice-Chancellor of Germany (b. 1860)
• 1955 – Haydn Bunton, Sr., Australian footballer and coach (b. 1911)
• 1965 – Thomas Johnston, Scottish journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Scotland (b. 1882)
• 1966 – Dezső Lauber, Hungarian golfer, tennis player, and architect (b. 1879)
• 1970 – Jochen Rindt, German-Austrian race car driver (b. 1942)
• 1972 – Alan Kippax, Australian cricketer and businessman (b. 1897)
• 1973 – Jack Fournier, American baseball player and coach (b. 1889)
• 1975 – Alice Catherine Evans, American microbiologist (b. 1881)
• 1977 – Marcel Thiry, Belgian poet and activist (b. 1897)
• 1979 – Alberto di Jorio, Italian cardinal (b. 1884)
• 1980 – Don Banks, Australian composer and educator (b. 1923)
• 1982 – Douglas Bader, English captain and pilot (b. 1910)
• 1984 – Adam Malik, Indonesian politician and diplomat, 3rd Vice President of Indonesia (b. 1917)
• 1984 – Jane Roberts, American psychic and author (b. 1929)
• 1985 – Johannes Hint, Estonian engineer (b. 1914)
• 1986 – Neerja Bhanot, Indian model and youngest recipient of country's highest peacetime military award Ashok Chakra (b. 1963)
• 1988 – Gert Fröbe, German actor and singer (b. 1913)
• 1989 – Philip Baxter, Welsh-Australian chemical engineer (b. 1905)
• 1990 – Hugh Foot, Baron Caradon, English academic and diplomat (b. 1907)
• 1990 – Jerry Iger, American cartoonist and publisher, co-founded Eisner & Iger (b. 1903)
• 1990 – Ivan Mihailov, Bulgarian politician (b. 1896)
• 1991 – Sharad Joshi, Indian author and poet (b. 1931)
• 1992 – Fritz Leiber, American author and poet (b. 1910)
• 1993 – Claude Renoir, French cinematographer (b. 1914)
• 1994 – Shimshon Amitsur, Israeli mathematician and scholar (b. 1921)
• 1994 – John Newman, Australian politician (b. 1946)
• 1995 – Benyamin Sueb, Indonesian comedian, actor, and singer (b. 1939)
• 1995 – Salil Chowdhury, Indian music composer, who mainly composed for Bengali, Hindi, Malayalam film and other films. (b. 1922)
• 1996 – Basil Salvadore D'Souza, Indian bishop (b. 1926)
• 1997 – Leon Edel, American author and critic (b. 1907)
• 1997 – Eddie Little Sky, American actor (b. 1926)
• 1997 – Georg Solti, Hungarian conductor and director (b. 1912)
• 1997 – Mother Teresa, Albanian-Indian nun, missionary, and saint, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1910)
• 1998 – Ferdinand Biondi, Canadian radio host (b. 1909)
• 1998 – Willem Drees, Jr., Dutch economist and politician, Dutch Minister of Transport (b. 1922)
• 1998 – Verner Panton, Danish interior designer (b. 1926)
• 1998 – Leo Penn, American actor and director (b. 1921)
• 1999 – Alan Clark, English historian and politician, Minister for Defence Procurement (b. 1928)
• 1999 – Allen Funt, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1914)
• 1999 – Bryce Mackasey, Canadian businessman and politician, Postmaster General of Canada (b. 1921)
• 2000 – Roy Fredericks, Guyanese cricketer and politician (b. 1942)
• 2001 – Justin Wilson, American chef and author (b. 1914)
• 2001 – Vladimir Žerjavić, Croatian economist and academic (b. 1912)
• 2002 – David Todd Wilkinson, American cosmologist and astronomer (b. 1935)
• 2003 – Gisele MacKenzie, Canadian-American singer and actress (b. 1927)
• 2005 – Roberto Viaux, Chilean general (b. 1917)
• 2007 – Jennifer Dunn, American engineer and politician (b. 1941)
• 2007 – Paul Gillmor, American lawyer and politician (b. 1939)
• 2007 – Thomas Hansen, Norwegian singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1976)
• 2007 – D. James Kennedy, American pastor and author (b. 1930)
• 2007 – Nikos Nikolaidis, Greek director and screenwriter (b. 1939)
• 2009 – Gani Fawehinmi, Nigerian lawyer and activist (b. 1938)
• 2010 – Hedley Beare, Australian author and academic (b. 1932)
• 2010 – Guillaume Cornelis van Beverloo, Belgian-Dutch poet and painter (b. 1922)
• 2012 – Ediz Bahtiyaroğlu, Turkish-Bosnian footballer (b. 1986)
• 2012 – Ian Dick, Australian cricketer and field hockey player (b. 1926)
• 2012 – Victoria Fyodorova, Russian-American actress and author (b. 1946)
• 2012 – John Oaksey, English jockey and journalist (b. 1929)
• 2013 – Edwin Bideau, American lawyer and politician (b. 1950)
• 2013 – Geoffrey Goodman, English pilot, journalist, and author (b. 1922)
• 2013 – Isamu Jordan, American journalist and academic (b. 1975)
• 2014 – Bruce Morton, American journalist (b. 1930)
• 2014 – Mara Neusel, German mathematician, author, and academic (b. 1964)
• 2015 – Goh Eng Wah, Malaysian-Singaporean businessman, founded Eng Wah Global (b. 1923)
• 2015 – Aadesh Shrivastava, Indian singer-songwriter (b. 1964)
• 2015 – Chester Stranczek, American baseball player and businessman (b. 1929)
• 2016 – Hugh O'Brian, American actor (b. 1925)
• 2016 – Phyllis Schlafly, American lawyer, writer, and political activist (b. 1924)
• 2017 – Nicolaas Bloembergen, Dutch-American physicist and Nobel laureate (b. 1920)
• 2018 – Bhagwatikumar Sharma, Indian Gujarati writer and journalist (b. 1934)
• 2018 – Beatriz Segall, Brazilian actress (b. 1926)
• 2019 – Francisco Toledo, Mexican painter, sculptor, and graphic artist (b. 1940)
• 2021 – Sarah Harding, English singer, member of Girls Aloud (b. 1981)

• Christian feast day:
  • Bertin
  • Charbel (martyr)
  • Genebald
  • Gregorio Aglipay (Episcopal Church)
  • Mother Teresa
  • Ursicinus of Ravenna
  • Zechariah and Elisabeth (Anglican and Eastern Orthodox Church)
  • September 5 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
• Earliest date on which Jeûne genevois can fall, while September 11 is the latest; celebrated on Thursday after the first Sunday of September. (Canton of Geneva)
• International Day of Charity
• Teacher's Day (India)
• The flag-flying day for Denmark's deployed personnel (Denmark)
• First day of school in Vietnam

• "On This Day". BBC.
• The New York Times: On This Day
• "Historical Events on September 5". OnThisDay.com.