December 6

Pre-1600

 * 1060 – Béla I is crowned king of Hungary.
 * 1240 – Mongol invasion of Rus': Kyiv, defended by Voivode Dmytro, falls to the Mongols under Batu Khan.
 * 1492 – After exploring the island of Cuba (which he had mistaken for Japan) for gold, Christopher Columbus lands on an island he names Hispaniola.
 * 1534 – The city of Quito in Ecuador is founded by Spanish settlers led by Sebastián de Belalcázar.

1601–1900

 * 1648 – Pride's Purge removes royalist sympathizers from Parliament so that the High Court of Justice could put the King on trial.
 * 1704 – Battle of Chamkaur: During the Mughal-Sikh Wars, an outnumbered Sikh Khalsa defeats a Mughal army.
 * 1745 – Charles Edward Stuart's army begins retreat during the second Jacobite Rising.
 * 1790 – The U.S. Congress moves from New York City to Philadelphia.
 * 1803 – Five French warships attempting to escape the Royal Naval blockade of Saint-Domingue are all seized by British warships, signifying the end of the Haitian Revolution.
 * 1865 – Georgia ratifies the 13th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution.
 * 1882 – Transit of Venus, second and last of the 19th century.
 * 1884 – The Washington Monument in Washington, D.C., is completed.
 * 1897 – London becomes the world's first city to host licensed taxicabs.

1901–present

 * 1904 – Theodore Roosevelt articulated his "Corollary" to the Monroe Doctrine, stating that the U.S. would intervene in the Western Hemisphere should Latin American governments prove incapable or unstable.
 * 1907 – A coal mine explosion at Monongah, West Virginia, kills 362 workers.
 * 1912 – The Nefertiti Bust is discovered.
 * 1916 – World War I: The Central Powers capture Bucharest.
 * 1917 – Finland declares independence from the Russian Empire.
 * 1917  – Halifax Explosion: A munitions explosion near Halifax, Nova Scotia kills more than 1,900 people in the largest artificial explosion up to that time.
 * 1917  – World War I: USS Jacob Jones (DD-61) is the first American destroyer to be sunk by enemy action when it is torpedoed by German submarine SM U-53.
 * 1921 – The Anglo-Irish Treaty is signed in London by British and Irish representatives.
 * 1922 – One year to the day after the signing of the Anglo-Irish Treaty, the Irish Free State comes into existence.
 * 1928 – The government of Colombia sends military forces to suppress a month-long strike by United Fruit Company workers, resulting in an unknown number of deaths.
 * 1933 – In United States v. One Book Called Ulysses Judge John M. Woolsey rules that James Joyce's novel Ulysses is not obscene despite coarse language and sexual content, a leading decision affirming free expression.
 * 1941 – World War II: Camp X opens in Canada to begin training Allied secret agents for the war.
 * 1956 – A violent water polo match between Hungary and the USSR takes place during the 1956 Summer Olympics in Melbourne, against the backdrop of the Hungarian Revolution of 1956.
 * 1957 – Project Vanguard: A launchpad explosion of Vanguard TV3 thwarts the first United States attempt to launch a satellite into Earth orbit.
 * 1967 – Adrian Kantrowitz performs the first human heart transplant in the United States.
 * 1969 – Altamont Free Concert: At a free concert performed by the Rolling Stones, eighteen-year old Meredith Hunter is stabbed to death by Hells Angels security guards.
 * 1971 – Pakistan severs diplomatic relations with India, initiating the Indo-Pakistani War of 1971.
 * 1973 – The Twenty-fifth Amendment: The United States House of Representatives votes 387–35 to confirm Gerald Ford as Vice President of the United States. (On November 27, the Senate confirmed him 92–3.)
 * 1975 – The Troubles: Fleeing from the police, a Provisional IRA unit takes a British couple hostage in their flat on Balcombe Street, London, beginning a six-day siege.
 * 1977 – South Africa grants independence to Bophuthatswana, although it is not recognized by any other country.
 * 1978 – Spain ratifies the Spanish Constitution of 1978 in a referendum.
 * 1982 – The Troubles: The Irish National Liberation Army bombs a pub frequented by British soldiers in Ballykelly, Northern Ireland, killing eleven soldiers and six civilians.
 * 1989 – The École Polytechnique massacre (or Montreal Massacre): Marc Lépine, an anti-feminist gunman, murders 14 young women at the École Polytechnique in Montreal.
 * 1990 – A military jet of the Italian Air Force, abandoned by its pilot after an on-board fire, crashed into a high school near Bologna, Italy, killing 12 students and injuring 88 other people.
 * 1991 – Yugoslav Wars: In Croatia, forces of the Serb-dominated Yugoslav People's Army (JNA) heaviest bombardment of Dubrovnik during a siege of seven months.
 * 1992 – The Babri Masjid in Ayodhya, India, is demolished, leading to widespread riots causing the death of over 1,500 people.
 * 1998 – in Venezuela, Hugo Chávez is victorious in presidential elections.
 * 1999 – A&M Records, Inc. v. Napster, Inc.: The Recording Industry Association of America sues the peer-to-peer file-sharing service Napster, alleging copyright infringement.
 * 2005 – An Iranian Air Force C-130 military transport aircraft crashes into a ten-floor apartment building in a residential area of Tehran, killing all 94 on board and 12 more on the ground.
 * 2006 – NASA reveals photographs taken by Mars Global Surveyor suggesting the presence of liquid water on Mars.
 * 2015 – Venezuelan parliamentary election: For the first time in 17 years, the United Socialist Party of Venezuela loses its majority in parliament.
 * 2017 – Donald Trump's administration officially announces the recognition of Jerusalem as the capital of Israel.

Pre-1600

 * 846 – Hasan al-Askari, Arabian 11th of the Twelve Imams (d. 874)
 * 1285 – Ferdinand IV of Castile (d. 1312)
 * 1421 – Henry VI of England (d. 1471)
 * 1478 – Baldassare Castiglione, Italian courtier, diplomat, and author (d. 1529)
 * 1520 – Barbara Radziwiłł, queen of Poland (d. 1551)
 * 1545 – Janus Dousa, Dutch historian and noble (d. 1604)
 * 1586 – Niccolò Zucchi, Italian astronomer and physicist (d. 1670)
 * 1592 – William Cavendish, 1st Duke of Newcastle (d. 1676)

1601–1900

 * 1608 – George Monck, 1st Duke of Albemarle, English general and politician, Lord Lieutenant of Ireland (d. 1670)
 * 1637 – Edmund Andros, English courtier and politician, 4th Colonial Governor of New York (d. 1714)
 * 1640 – Claude Fleury, French historian and author (d. 1723)
 * 1645 – Maria de Dominici, Maltese sculptor and painter (d. 1703)
 * 1685 – Marie Adélaïde of Savoy (d. 1712)
 * 1721 – Guillaume-Chrétien de Lamoignon de Malesherbes, French minister and politician (d. 1794)
 * 1721  – James Elphinston, Scottish philologist and linguist (d. 1809)
 * 1732 – Warren Hastings, British colonial administrator of India (d. 1818)
 * 1752 – Gabriel Duvall, American jurist and politician (d. 1844)
 * 1778 – Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac, French physicist and chemist (d. 1850)
 * 1792 – William II of the Netherlands (d. 1849)
 * 1803 – Maria Josepha Amalia of Saxony (d. 1829)
 * 1805 – Richard Hanson, English-Australian politician, 4th Premier of South Australia (d. 1876)
 * 1812 – Robert Spear Hudson, English businessman and philanthropist (d. 1884)
 * 1823 – Max Müller, German-English philologist and orientalist (d. 1900)
 * 1827 – William Arnott, Australian biscuit manufacturer and founder of Arnott's Biscuits (d. 1901)
 * 1833 – John S. Mosby, American colonel (d. 1916)
 * 1835 – Wilhelm Rudolph Fittig, German chemist (d. 1910)
 * 1841 – Frédéric Bazille, French painter and soldier (d. 1870)
 * 1848 – Johann Palisa, Austrian astronomer (d. 1925)
 * 1849 – August von Mackensen, German field marshal (d. 1945)
 * 1853 – Hans Molisch, Czech-Austrian botanist and academic (d. 1937)
 * 1853  – Haraprasad Shastri, Indian historian and scholar (d. 1931)
 * 1863 – Charles Martin Hall, American chemist and engineer (d. 1914)
 * 1864 – William S. Hart, American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 1946)
 * 1872 – Arthur Henry Adams, Australian journalist and author (d. 1936)
 * 1875 – Albert Bond Lambert, American golfer and pilot (d. 1946)
 * 1875  – Evelyn Underhill, English mystic and author (d. 1941)
 * 1876 – Fred Duesenberg, German-American businessman, co-founded the Duesenberg Automobile & Motors Company (d. 1932)
 * 1878 – Elvia Carrillo Puerto, Mexican politician (d. 1968)
 * 1882 – Warren Bardsley, Australian cricketer (d. 1954)
 * 1884 – Cornelia Meigs, American author, playwright, and academic (d. 1973)
 * 1886 – Joyce Kilmer, American soldier, author, and poet (d. 1918)
 * 1887 – Lynn Fontanne, British actress (d. 1983)
 * 1887  – Joseph Lamb, American pianist and composer (d. 1960)
 * 1888 – Will Hay, English actor, director, and screenwriter (d. 1949)
 * 1890 – Dion Fortune, Welsh occultist, psychologist, and author (d. 1946)
 * 1890  – Yoshio Nishina, Japanese physicist and academic (d. 1951)
 * 1890  – Rudolf Schlichter, German painter and illustrator (d. 1955)
 * 1892 – Osbert Sitwell, English-Italian captain, poet, and author (d. 1969)
 * 1893 – Homer N. Wallin, American admiral (d. 1984)
 * 1893  – Sylvia Townsend Warner, English author and poet (d. 1978)
 * 1896 – Ira Gershwin, American songwriter (d. 1983)
 * 1898 – Alfred Eisenstaedt, German-American photographer and journalist (d. 1995)
 * 1898  – John McDonald, Scottish-Australian politician, 37th Premier of Victoria (d. 1977)
 * 1898  – Gunnar Myrdal, Swedish sociologist and economist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1987)
 * 1898  – Winifred Lenihan, American actress, writer, and director (d. 1964)
 * 1900 – Agnes Moorehead, American actress (d. 1974)

1901–present

 * 1901 – Eliot Porter, American photographer and academic (d. 1990)
 * 1903 – Tony Lazzeri, American baseball player and manager (d. 1946)
 * 1904 – Ève Curie, French-American journalist and pianist (d. 2007)
 * 1905 – Elizabeth Yates, American journalist and author (d. 2001)
 * 1907 – John Barkley Rosser Sr., American logician (d. 1989)
 * 1908 – Herta Freitag, Austrian-American mathematician (d. 2000)
 * 1908  – Pierre Graber, Swiss lawyer and politician, 69th President of the Swiss Confederation (d. 2003)
 * 1908  – Baby Face Nelson, American gangster (d. 1934)
 * 1908  – Miklós Szabó, Hungarian runner (d. 2000)
 * 1909 – Rulon Jeffs, American religious leader (d. 2002)
 * 1909  – Alan McGilvray, Australian cricketer and sportscaster (d. 1996)
 * 1910 – David M. Potter, American historian, author, and academic (d. 1971)
 * 1913 – Karl Haas, German-American pianist, conductor, and radio host (d. 2005)
 * 1913  – Eleanor Holm, American swimmer and actress (d. 2004)
 * 1914 – Cyril Washbrook, English cricketer (d. 1999)
 * 1916 – Yekaterina Budanova, Russian captain and pilot (d. 1943)
 * 1916  – Kristján Eldjárn, Icelandic educator and politician, 3rd President of Iceland (d. 1982)
 * 1916  – Hugo Peretti, American songwriter and producer (d. 1986)
 * 1917 – Dean Hess, American minister and colonel (d. 2015)
 * 1917  – Kamal Jumblatt, Lebanese lawyer and politician (d. 1977)
 * 1917  – Irv Robbins, Canadian-American businessman, co-founded Baskin-Robbins (d. 2008)
 * 1918 – Tauba Biterman, Polish Holocaust survivor (d. 2019)
 * 1919 – Skippy Baxter, Canadian-American figure skater and coach (d. 2012)
 * 1919  – Paul de Man, Belgian-born philosopher, literary critic and theorist (d. 1983)
 * 1920 – Dave Brubeck, American pianist and composer (d. 2012)
 * 1920  – Peter Dimmock, English sportscaster and producer (d. 2015)
 * 1920  – George Porter, English chemist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2002)
 * 1921 – Otto Graham, American football player and coach (d. 2003)
 * 1921  – Piero Piccioni, Italian lawyer, pianist, and composer (d. 2004)
 * 1922 – John Brunt, English captain, Victoria Cross recipient (d. 1944)
 * 1922  – Benjamin A. Gilman, American soldier and politician (d. 2016)
 * 1924 – Wally Cox, American actor (d. 1973)
 * 1927 – Jim Fuchs, American shot putter and discus thrower (d. 2010)
 * 1928 – Bobby Van, American actor, dancer, and singer (d. 1980)
 * 1929 – Philippe Bouvard, French journalist and radio host
 * 1929  – Nikolaus Harnoncourt, German-Austrian cellist and conductor (d. 2016)
 * 1929  – Frank Springer, American comic book illustrator (d. 2009)
 * 1929  – Alain Tanner, Swiss director, producer, and screenwriter (d. 2022)
 * 1930 – Daniel Lisulo, Zambian banker and politician, 3rd Prime Minister of Zambia (d. 2000)
 * 1931 – Zeki Müren, Turkish singer-songwriter and actor (d. 1996)
 * 1932 – Kamleshwar, Indian author, screenwriter, and critic (d. 2007)
 * 1933 – Henryk Górecki, Polish composer and academic (d. 2010)
 * 1933  – Donald J. Kutyna, American general
 * 1934 – Nick Bockwinkel, American wrestler, sportscaster, and actor (d. 2015)
 * 1935 – Jean Lapointe, Canadian actor, singer, and politician (d. 2022)
 * 1936 – Bill Ashton, English saxophonist and composer
 * 1936  – Kenneth Copeland, American evangelist and author
 * 1936  – David Ossman, American writer and comedian
 * 1937 – Alberto Spencer, Ecuadorian-American soccer player (d. 2006)
 * 1938 – Patrick Bauchau, Belgian-American actor
 * 1939 – Franco Carraro, Italian politician and sports administrator
 * 1940 – Lawrence Bergman, Canadian lawyer and politician
 * 1940  – Richard Edlund, American visual effects designer and cinematographer
 * 1941 – Helen Cornelius, American country singer-songwriter and actress
 * 1941  – Bruce Nauman, American sculptor and illustrator
 * 1941  – Richard Speck, American murderer (d. 1991)
 * 1941  – Bill Thomas, American academic and politician
 * 1942 – Peter Handke, Austrian author and playwright, Nobel Prize laureate
 * 1942  – Robb Royer, American guitarist, keyboard player, and songwriter
 * 1943 – Mike Smith, English singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer (d. 2008)
 * 1943  – Keith West, English rock singer-songwriter and music producer
 * 1944 – Jonathan King, English singer-songwriter, record producer, music entrepreneur, television/radio presenter, and convicted sex offender
 * 1945 – Shekhar Kapur, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter
 * 1946 – Frankie Beverly, American soul/funk singer-songwriter, musician, and producer
 * 1946  – Willy van der Kuijlen, Dutch footballer and manager (d. 2021)
 * 1947 – Lawrence Cannon, Canadian businessman and politician, 9th Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs
 * 1947  – Henk van Woerden, Dutch-South African painter and author (d. 2005)
 * 1947  – Miroslav Vitouš, Czech-American bassist and songwriter
 * 1948 – Jean-Paul Ngoupandé, Central African politician, Prime Minister of the Central African Republic (d. 2014)
 * 1948  – Don Nickles, American businessman and politician
 * 1948  – Keke Rosberg, Finnish racing driver
 * 1948  – JoBeth Williams, American actress
 * 1949 – Linda Barnes, American author, playwright, and educator
 * 1949  – Linda Creed, American singer-songwriter (d. 1986)
 * 1949  – Doug Marlette, American author and cartoonist (d. 2007)
 * 1949  – Peter Willey, English cricketer and umpire
 * 1950 – Guy Drut, French hurdler and politician
 * 1950  – Joe Hisaishi, Japanese pianist, composer, and conductor
 * 1950  – Helen Liddell, Baroness Liddell of Coatdyke, Scottish journalist and politician, Secretary of State for Scotland
 * 1951 – Wendy Ellis Somes, English ballerina and producer
 * 1951  – Maurice Hope, Caribbean-English boxer
 * 1952 – Nicolas Bréhal, French author and critic (d. 1999)
 * 1952  – Craig Newmark, American computer programmer and entrepreneur; founded Craigslist
 * 1952  – Shio Satō, Japanese illustrator (d. 2010)
 * 1953 – Sue Carroll, English journalist (d. 2011)
 * 1953  – Gary Goodman, Australian cricketer and coach
 * 1953  – Geoff Hoon, English academic and politician, Minister of State for Europe
 * 1953  – Tom Hulce, American actor
 * 1953  – Masami Kurumada, Japanese author and illustrator
 * 1954 – Nicola De Maria, Italian painter
 * 1954  – Chris Stamey, American singer-songwriter, musician, and music producer
 * 1955 – Anne Begg, Scottish educator and politician
 * 1955  – Rick Buckler, English drummer, songwriter, and producer
 * 1955  – Graeme Hughes, Australian cricketer, rugby league player, and sportscaster
 * 1955  – Tony Woodcock, English footballer
 * 1955  – Steven Wright, American actor, comedian, and screenwriter
 * 1956 – Peter Buck, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
 * 1956  – Hans Kammerlander, Italian mountaineer and guide
 * 1956  – Randy Rhoads, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer (d. 1982)
 * 1957 – Adrian Borland, English singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 1999)
 * 1957  – Andrew Cuomo, American politician, 56th Governor of New York
 * 1957  – Bill Hanzlik, American basketball player and coach
 * 1958 – Nick Park, English animator, director, producer, and screenwriter
 * 1959 – Deborah Estrin, American computer scientist and academic
 * 1959  – Stephen Hepburn, English politician
 * 1959  – Satoru Iwata, Japanese game programmer and businessman (d. 2015)
 * 1959  – Stephen Muggleton, English computer scientist and engineer
 * 1960 – Masahiko Katsuya, Japanese journalist and photographer (d. 2018)
 * 1961 – David Lovering, American drummer
 * 1961  – Jonathan Melvoin, American musician (d. 1996)
 * 1961  – Manuel Reuter, German race car driver
 * 1962 – Janine Turner, American actress
 * 1962  – Ben Watt, English singer-songwriter, musician, author, DJ, and radio presenter
 * 1963 – Ulrich Thomsen, Danish actor and producer
 * 1964 – Mall Nukke, Estonian painter
 * 1965 – Gordon Durie, Scottish footballer and manager
 * 1966 – Natascha Badmann, Swiss triathlete
 * 1966  – Per-Ulrik Johansson, Swedish golfer
 * 1967 – Judd Apatow, American director, producer, and screenwriter
 * 1967  – Helen Greiner, American businesswoman and engineer
 * 1967  – Arnaldo Mesa, Cuban boxer (d. 2012)
 * 1968 – Karl Ove Knausgård, Norwegian author
 * 1968  – Ali Latifiyan, Iranian writer and political theorist
 * 1968  – Akihiro Yano, Japanese baseball player
 * 1969 – Torri Higginson, Canadian actress
 * 1970 – Ulf Ekberg, Swedish singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
 * 1970  – Adrian Fenty, American lawyer and politician, 6th Mayor of the District of Columbia
 * 1970  – Mark Reckless, English politician
 * 1970  – Jeff Rouse, American swimmer
 * 1971 – Craig Brewer, American director, producer, and screenwriter
 * 1971  – José Contreras, Cuban baseball player
 * 1971  – Richard Krajicek, Dutch tennis player
 * 1971  – Naozumi Takahashi, Japanese singer and voice actor
 * 1971  – Carole Thate, Dutch field hockey player
 * 1971  – Ryan White, American activist (d. 1990)
 * 1972 – Ewan Birney, English scientist
 * 1972  – Heather Mizeur, American lawyer and politician
 * 1974 – Jens Pulver, American mixed martial artist and boxer
 * 1974  – Nick Stajduhar, Canadian ice hockey player
 * 1975 – Noel Clarke, English actor, director, and screenwriter
 * 1975  – Adrian García Arias, Mexican footballer
 * 1976 – Lindsay Price, American actress
 * 1977 – Kevin Cash, American baseball player and manager
 * 1977  – Andrew Flintoff, English cricketer, coach, and sportscaster
 * 1977  – Paul McVeigh, Irish footballer
 * 1978 – Chris Başak, American baseball player
 * 1978  – Darrell Jackson, American football player
 * 1978  – Adriana Moisés Pinto, Brazilian basketball player
 * 1978  – Ramiro Pez, Argentine rugby player
 * 1979 – Tim Cahill, Australian footballer
 * 1980 – Danielle Downey, American golfer and coach (d. 2014)
 * 1980  – Steve Lovell, English footballer
 * 1980  – Carlos Takam, Cameroonian-French boxer
 * 1981 – Federico Balzaretti, Italian footballer
 * 1982 – Ryan Carnes, American actor and producer
 * 1982  – Alberto Contador, Spanish cyclist
 * 1982  – Sean Ervine, Zimbabwean cricketer
 * 1982  – Robbie Gould, American football player
 * 1982  – Aaron Sandilands, Australian footballer
 * 1982  – Susie Wolff, Scottish race car driver
 * 1984 – Syndric Steptoe, American football player
 * 1984  – Nora Kirkpatrick, American actress and musician
 * 1984  – Princess Sofia, Duchess of Värmland
 * 1985 – Shannon Bobbitt, American basketball player
 * 1985  – Aristeidis Grigoriadis, Greek swimmer
 * 1985  – R. P. Singh, Indian cricketer
 * 1986 – Sean Edwards, English race car driver (d. 2013)
 * 1986  – Matt Niskanen, American ice hockey player
 * 1988 – Adam Eaton, American baseball player
 * 1988  – Ravindra Jadeja, Indian cricketer
 * 1988  – Sandra Nurmsalu, Estonian singer and violinist
 * 1988  – Nils Petersen, German footballer
 * 1988  – Nobunaga Shimazaki, Japanese voice actor
 * 1989 – Felix Schiller, German footballer
 * 1990 – Tamira Paszek, Austrian tennis player
 * 1991 – Rachel Jarry, Australian basketball player
 * 1991  – Milica Mandić, Serbian taekwondo athlete
 * 1991  – Coco Vandeweghe, American tennis player
 * 1992 – Viktor Antipin, Russian ice hockey player
 * 1992  – Britt Assombalonga, Congolese footballer
 * 1992  – Johnny Manziel, American football player
 * 1993 – Jasprit Bumrah, Indian cricketer
 * 1993  – Elián González, Cuban technician, known for a child custody and immigration case held in 2000
 * 1993  – Tautau Moga, Australian-Samoan rugby league player
 * 1994 – Giannis Antetokounmpo, Greek-Nigerian basketball player
 * 1994  – Wakatakakage Atsushi, Japanese sumo wrestler
 * 1994  – Shreyas Iyer, Indian cricketer
 * 1995 – A Boogie wit da Hoodie, American rapper and singer-songwriter
 * 1996 – Davide Calabria, Italian footballer
 * 1996  – Stefanie Scott, American actress and singer
 * 1997 – Sabrina Ionescu, American basketball player
 * 1998 – Angelīna Kučvaļska, Latvian figure skater

Pre-1600

 * 343 – Saint Nicholas, Greek bishop and saint (b. 270)
 * 735 – Prince Toneri of Japan (b. 676)
 * 762 – Muhammad al-Nafs al-Zakiyya, Arab rebel leader (b. 710)
 * 1185 – Afonso I of Portugal (b. 1109)
 * 1305 – Maximus, Metropolitan of Kyiv
 * 1306 – Roger Bigod, 5th Earl of Norfolk (b. 1270)
 * 1352 – Pope Clement VI (b. 1291)
 * 1562 – Jan van Scorel, Dutch painter (b. 1495)

1601–1900

 * 1616 – Ahmad Ibn al-Qadi, Moroccan writer, judge and mathematician (b. 1552)
 * 1618 – Jacques Davy Duperron, French cardinal (b. 1556)
 * 1658 – Baltasar Gracián, Spanish priest and author (b. 1601)
 * 1675 – John Lightfoot, English priest, scholar, and academic (b. 1602)
 * 1686 – Eleonora Gonzaga, Queen consort of Ferdinand III (b. 1630)
 * 1716 – Benedictus Buns, Dutch priest and composer (b. 1642)
 * 1718 – Nicholas Rowe, English poet and playwright (b. 1674)
 * 1746 – Lady Grizel Baillie, Scottish poet and songwriter (b. 1665)
 * 1771 – Giovanni Battista Morgagni, Italian anatomist and pathologist (b. 1682)
 * 1779 – Jean-Baptiste-Siméon Chardin, French painter (b. 1699)
 * 1788 – Jonathan Shipley, English bishop (b. 1714)
 * 1855 – William John Swainson, English ornithologist and entomologist (b. 1789)
 * 1867 – Jean Pierre Flourens, French physiologist and academic (b. 1794)
 * 1868 – August Schleicher, German linguist and academic (b. 1821)
 * 1878 – Theodoros Vryzakis, Greek painter and educator (b. 1814)
 * 1879 – Erastus Brigham Bigelow, American businessman (b. 1814)
 * 1882 – Alfred Escher, Swiss businessman and politician, founded Credit Suisse (b. 1819)
 * 1882  – Anthony Trollope, English novelist, essayist, and short story writer  (b. 1815)
 * 1889 – Jefferson Davis, American general and politician, President of the Confederate States of America (b. 1808)
 * 1892 – Werner von Siemens, German engineer and businessman, founded the Siemens Company (b. 1816)

1901–present

 * 1918 – Alexander Dianin, Russian chemist (b. 1851)
 * 1921 – Said Halim Pasha, Ottoman politician, 280th Grand Vizier of the Ottoman Empire (b. 1865)
 * 1924 – Gene Stratton-Porter, American author and screenwriter (b. 1863)
 * 1945 – Edmund Dwyer-Gray, Irish-Australian politician, 29th Premier of Tasmania (b. 1870)
 * 1951 – Harold Ross, American journalist and publisher, founded The New Yorker (b. 1892)
 * 1955 – Honus Wagner, American baseball player and manager (b. 1874)
 * 1956 – B. R. Ambedkar, Indian economist and politician, 1st Indian Minister of Justice (b. 1891)
 * 1961 – Frantz Fanon, Martinique-French psychiatrist and author (b. 1925)
 * 1964 – Evert van Linge, Dutch footballer and architect (b. 1895)
 * 1972 – Janet Munro, English actress and singer (b. 1934)
 * 1974 – Nikolay Kuznetsov, Soviet naval officer (b. 1904)
 * 1976 – João Goulart, Brazilian lawyer and politician, 24th President of Brazil (b. 1918)
 * 1980 – Charles Deutsch, French engineer and businessman, co-founded DB (b. 1911)
 * 1982 – Jean-Marie Seroney, Kenyan activist and politician (b. 1927)
 * 1983 – Lucienne Boyer, French singer and actress (b. 1903)
 * 1983  – Gul Khan Nasir, Pakistani poet, historian, and politician (b. 1914)
 * 1985 – Burr Tillstrom, American actor and puppeteer (b. 1917)
 * 1985  – Burleigh Grimes, American baseball player and manager (b. 1893)
 * 1985 – Carroll Cole, American serial killer, arsonist, and cannibal (b. 1938)
 * 1988 – Roy Orbison, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1936)
 * 1989 – Frances Bavier, American actress (b. 1902)
 * 1989  – Sammy Fain, American pianist and composer (b. 1902)
 * 1989  – John Payne, American actor, singer, and producer (b. 1912)
 * 1990 – Pavlos Sidiropoulos, Greek singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1948)
 * 1990  – Tunku Abdul Rahman, Malaysian lawyer and politician, 1st Prime Minister of Malaysia (b. 1903)
 * 1991 – Mimi Smith, English nurse (b. 1906)
 * 1991  – Richard Stone, English economist and statistician, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1913)
 * 1993 – Don Ameche, American actor (b. 1908)
 * 1994 – Heinz Baas, German footballer and manager (b. 1922)
 * 1994  – Gian Maria Volonté, Italian actor and director (b. 1933)
 * 1996 – Pete Rozelle, American businessman (b. 1926)
 * 1997 – Willy den Ouden, Dutch swimmer (b. 1918)
 * 1998 – César Baldaccini, French sculptor and educator (b. 1921)
 * 2000 – Werner Klemperer, German-American actor (b. 1920)
 * 2000  – Aziz Mian, Pakistani singer-songwriter and poet (b. 1942)
 * 2001 – Charles McClendon, American football player and coach (b. 1923)
 * 2002 – Philip Berrigan, American priest and activist (b. 1923)
 * 2003 – Carlos Manuel Arana Osorio, Guatemalan general and politician, President of Guatemala (b. 1918)
 * 2005 – Charly Gaul, Luxembourger cyclist (b. 1932)
 * 2005  – Devan Nair, Malaysian-Singaporean union leader and politician, 3rd President of Singapore (b. 1923)
 * 2005  – Danny Williams, South African singer (b. 1942)
 * 2005  – William P. Yarborough, American general (b. 1912)
 * 2006 – John Feeney, New Zealand director and producer (b. 1922)
 * 2010 – Mark Dailey, American-Canadian journalist and actor (b. 1953)
 * 2011 – Dobie Gray, American singer-songwriter and producer (b. 1940)
 * 2012 – Miguel Abia Biteo Boricó, Equatoguinean engineer and politician, Prime Minister of Equatorial Guinea (b. 1961)
 * 2012  – Jan Carew, Guyanese author, poet, and playwright (b. 1920)
 * 2012  – Jeffrey Koo Sr., Taiwanese banker and businessman (b. 1933)
 * 2012  – Huw Lloyd-Langton, English guitarist (b. 1951)
 * 2012  – Pedro Vaz, Uruguayan lawyer and politician, Minister of Foreign Affairs of Uruguay (b. 1963)
 * 2013 – Jean-Pierre Desthuilliers, French poet and critic (b. 1939)
 * 2013  – Stan Tracey, English pianist and composer (b. 1926)
 * 2013  – M. K. Turk, American basketball player and coach (b. 1942)
 * 2014 – Ralph H. Baer, German-American video game designer, created the Magnavox Odyssey (b. 1922)
 * 2014  – Jimmy Del Ray, American wrestler and manager (b. 1962)
 * 2014  – Fred Hawkins, American golfer (b. 1923)
 * 2014  – Luke Somers, English-American photographer and journalist (b. 1981)
 * 2015 – Ko Chun-hsiung, Taiwanese actor, director, and politician (b. 1945)
 * 2015  – Liu Juying, Chinese general and politician (b. 1917)
 * 2015  – Nicholas Smith, British actor (b. 1934)
 * 2016 – Peter Vaughan, British actor (b. 1923)

Holidays and observances

 * Anniversary of the Founding of Quito (Ecuador)
 * Armed Forces Day (Ukraine)
 * Christian feast day:
 * Abraham of Kratia
 * Aemilianus (Roman Catholic Church)
 * Denise and companions
 * Blessed János Scheffler
 * María del Monte Carmelo Sallés y Barangueras
 * Nicholas of Myra, and its related observances:
 * St Nicholas Day, where St. Nicholas/Santa Claus leaves little presents in children's shoes. (International)
 * December 6 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
 * Constitution Day (Spain)
 * Day of the Ministry of Communications and Information Technologies of Azerbaijan
 * Independence Day, celebrates the independence of Finland from Russia in 1917.
 * National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women (Canada)