October 3

Pre-1600

 * 2457 BC – Gaecheonjeol, Hwanung (환웅) purportedly descended from heaven. South Korea's National Foundation Day.
 * 52 BC – Gallic Wars: Vercingetorix, leader of the Gauls, surrenders to the Romans under Julius Caesar, ending the siege and battle of Alesia.
 * 42 BC – Liberators' civil war: Triumvirs Mark Antony and Octavian fight to a draw Caesar's assassins Brutus and Cassius in the first part of the Battle of Philippi, where Cassius commits suicide believing the battle is lost.
 * 382 – Roman Emperor Theodosius I concludes a peace treaty with the Goths and settles them in the Balkans.
 * 1392 – Muhammed VII becomes the twelfth sultan of the Emirate of Granada.
 * 1574 – The Siege of Leiden is lifted by the Watergeuzen.

1601–1900

 * 1683 – Qing dynasty naval commander Shi Lang receives the surrender of the Tungning kingdom on Taiwan after the Battle of Penghu.
 * 1712 – The Duke of Montrose issues a warrant for the arrest of Rob Roy MacGregor.
 * 1739 – The Treaty of Niš is signed by the Ottoman Empire and Russia ending the Russian–Turkish War.
 * 1789 – George Washington proclaims Thursday November 26, 1789 a Thanksgiving Day.
 * 1792 – A militia departs from the Spanish stronghold of Valdivia to quell a Huilliche uprising in southern Chile.
 * 1863 – The last Thursday in November is declared as Thanksgiving Day by U.S. President Abraham Lincoln.
 * 1873 – Chief Kintpuash and companions are hanged for their part in the Modoc War of northern California.

1901–present

 * 1912 – U.S. forces defeat Nicaraguan rebels at the Battle of Coyotepe Hill.
 * 1918 – Tsar Boris III of Bulgaria accedes to the throne.
 * 1919 – Cincinnati Reds pitcher Adolfo Luque becomes the first Latin American player to appear in a World Series.
 * 1929 – The Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes is renamed to Yugoslavia by King Alexander I.
 * 1932 – The Kingdom of Iraq gains independence from the United Kingdom.
 * 1935 – Second Italo-Abyssinian War: Italy invades Ethiopia.
 * 1942 – A German V-2 rocket reaches a record 85 km (46 nm) in altitude.
 * 1943 – World War II: German forces murder 92 civilians in Lingiades, Greece.
 * 1946 – An American Overseas Airlines Douglas DC-4 crashes near Ernest Harmon Air Force Base in Stephenville, Newfoundland and Labrador, Canada, killing 39.
 * 1949 – WERD, the first black-owned radio station in the United States, opens in Atlanta.
 * 1951 – Korean War: The First Battle of Maryang San pits Commonwealth troops against communist Chinese troops.
 * 1952 – The United Kingdom successfully tests a nuclear weapon in the Montebello Islands, Western Australia, to become the world's third nuclear power.
 * 1957 – The California State Superior Court rules that the book Howl and Other Poems is not obscene.
 * 1962 – Project Mercury: US astronaut Wally Schirra, in Sigma 7, is launched from Cape Canaveral for a six-orbit flight.
 * 1963 – A violent coup in Honduras begins two decades of military rule.
 * 1981 – The hunger strike at the Maze Prison in Northern Ireland ends after seven months and ten deaths.
 * 1985 – The Space Shuttle Atlantis makes its maiden flight, carrying two DSCS-III Satellites on STS-51-J.
 * 1986 – TASCC, a superconducting cyclotron at the Chalk River Laboratories in Canada, is officially opened.
 * 1989 – A coup in Panama City is suppressed and 11 participants are executed.
 * 1990 – The German Democratic Republic is abolished and becomes part of the Federal Republic of Germany; the event is afterwards celebrated as German Unity Day.
 * 1991 – Nadine Gordimer is announced as the winner of the Nobel Prize in Literature.
 * 1993 – An American attack against a warlord in Mogadishu fails; eighteen US soldiers and over 350 Somalis die.
 * 1995 – O. J. Simpson murder case: O. J. Simpson is acquitted of the murders of Nicole Brown Simpson and Ronald Goldman.
 * 2008 – The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008 for the U.S. financial system is signed by President George W. Bush.
 * 2009 – Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, Kyrgyzstan, and Turkey join in the Turkic Council.
 * 2013 – At least 360 migrants are killed when their boat sinks near the Italian island of Lampedusa.
 * 2015 – Forty-two people are killed and 33 go missing in the Kunduz hospital airstrike in Afghanistan.
 * 2021 – Eight people are killed in an airplane crash near Milan, Italy.
 * 2022 – Svante Pääbo is awarded the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine.

Pre-1600

 * 85 BC – Gaius Cassius Longinus, Roman politician (d. 42 BC)
 * 1390 – Humphrey, Duke of Gloucester (d. 1447)
 * 1458 – Saint Casimir, Prince of Poland and Duke of Lithuania (d. 1484)
 * 1554 – Fulke Greville, 1st Baron Brooke, English poet (d. 1628)

1601–1900

 * 1610 – Gabriel Lalemant, French-Canadian missionary and saint (d. 1649)
 * 1631 – Sebastian Anton Scherer, German organist and composer (d. 1712)
 * 1637 – George Gordon, 1st Earl of Aberdeen, Lord Chancellor of Scotland (d. 1720)
 * 1713 – Antoine Dauvergne, French violinist and composer (d. 1797)
 * 1716 – Giovanni Battista Beccaria, Italian physicist and academic (d. 1781)
 * 1720 – Johann Uz, German poet and judge (d. 1796)
 * 1790 – John Ross, American tribal chief (d. 1866)
 * 1797 – Leopold II, Grand Duke of Tuscany (d. 1870)
 * 1800 – George Bancroft, American historian and politician, 17th United States Secretary of the Navy (d. 1891)
 * 1804 – Townsend Harris, American merchant, politician, and diplomat, United States Ambassador to Japan (d. 1878)
 * 1804  – Allan Kardec, French author, translator, educator and founder of modern Spiritism (d. 1869)
 * 1828 – Woldemar Bargiel, German composer and educator (d. 1897)
 * 1837 – Nicolás Avellaneda, Argentinian journalist and politician, 8th President of Argentina (d. 1885)
 * 1846 – James Jackson Putnam, American neurologist and academic (d. 1918)
 * 1848 – Henry Lerolle, French painter and art collector (d. 1929)
 * 1858 – Eleonora Duse, Italian actress (d. 1924)
 * 1862 – Johnny Briggs, English cricketer and rugby player (d. 1902)
 * 1863 – Pyotr Kozlov, Russian archaeologist and explorer (d. 1935)
 * 1865 – Gustave Loiseau, French painter (d. 1935)
 * 1866 – Josephine Sabel, American singer and comedian (d. 1945)
 * 1867 – Joseph Beech, American Methodist missionary and educator (d. 1954)
 * 1867 – Pierre Bonnard, French painter (d. 1947)
 * 1869 – Alfred Flatow, German gymnast (d. 1942)
 * 1875 – Dr. Atl, Mexican painter (d. 1964)
 * 1879 – Warner Oland, Swedish-American actor and singer (d. 1938)
 * 1882 – A. Y. Jackson, Canadian painter and academic (d. 1974)
 * 1885 – Sophie Treadwell, American playwright and journalist (d. 1970)
 * 1886 – Alain-Fournier, French soldier, author, and critic (d. 1914)
 * 1888 – Wade Boteler, American actor and screenwriter (d. 1943)
 * 1889 – Carl von Ossietzky, German journalist and activist, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 1938)
 * 1890 – Emilio Portes Gil, Mexican politician, President of Mexico (d. 1978)
 * 1894 – Elmer Robinson, American lawyer and politician, 33rd Mayor of San Francisco (d. 1982)
 * 1894  – Walter Warlimont, German general (d. 1976)
 * 1895 – Giovanni Comisso, Italian author and poet (d. 1969)
 * 1895  – Sergei Yesenin, Russian poet (d. 1925)
 * 1896 – Auvergne Doherty, Australian businesswoman (d. 1961)
 * 1896  – Gerardo Diego, Spanish poet and critic (d. 1987)
 * 1897 – Louis Aragon, French author and poet (d. 1982)
 * 1898 – Leo McCarey, American director and screenwriter (d. 1969)
 * 1898  – Adolf Reichwein, German economist and educator (d. 1944)
 * 1899 – Gertrude Berg, American actress, screenwriter and producer (d. 1966)
 * 1900 – Thomas Wolfe, American novelist (d. 1938)

1901–present

 * 1901 – Jean Grémillon, French director, composer, and screenwriter (d. 1959)
 * 1904 – Ernst-Günther Schenck, German colonel and physician (d. 1998)
 * 1905 – Tekin Arıburun, Turkish soldier and politician, President of Turkey (d. 1993)
 * 1906 – Natalie Savage Carlson, American author (d. 1997)
 * 1908 – Johnny Burke, American songwriter (d. 1964)
 * 1911 – Michael Hordern, English actor (d. 1995)
 * 1912 – Charles Wood, 2nd Earl of Halifax, British peer, Conservative politician (d. 1980)
 * 1915 – Ray Stark, American film producer (d. 2004)
 * 1916 – James Herriot, English veterinarian and author (d. 1995)
 * 1919 – James M. Buchanan, American economist and academic, Nobel Prize laureate (d. 2013)
 * 1921 – Ray Lindwall, Australian cricketer and soldier (d. 1996)
 * 1923 – Edward Oliver LeBlanc, Dominican lawyer and politician, 1st Premier of Dominica (d. 2004)
 * 1924 – Harvey Kurtzman, American cartoonist (d. 1993)
 * 1924  – Arkady Vorobyov, Russian weightlifter and coach (d. 2012)
 * 1925 – Simone Segouin (also known as Nicole Minet), French Resistance fighter and partisan (d. 2023)
 * 1925  – Gore Vidal, American novelist, screenwriter, and critic (d. 2012)
 * 1925  – George Wein, American pianist and producer, co-founded the Newport Folk Festival (d. 2021)
 * 1926 – Gerardo P. Cabochan, Filipino politician (d. 2014)
 * 1928 – Erik Bruhn, Danish dancer and choreographer (d. 1986)
 * 1928  – Shridath Ramphal, Guyanese academic and politician, 2nd Commonwealth Secretary-General
 * 1931 – Glenn Hall, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
 * 1933 – Neale Fraser, Australian tennis player
 * 1934 – Benjamin Boretz, American composer and theorist
 * 1934  – Miguel-Ángel Cárdenas, Colombian-Dutch painter and illustrator (d. 2015)
 * 1934  – Harold Henning, South African golfer (d. 2004)
 * 1934  – Simon Nicholson, English sculptor and painter (d. 1990)
 * 1935 – Charles Duke, American general, pilot, and astronaut
 * 1935  – Armen Dzhigarkhanyan, Soviet Russian-Armenian actor (d. 2020)
 * 1936 – Steve Reich, American composer
 * 1938 – Eddie Cochran, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and actor (d. 1960)
 * 1938  – David Hart Dyke, English captain
 * 1938  – Jack Hodgins, Canadian author and academic
 * 1938  – Pedro Pablo Kuczynski, Peruvian entrepreneur and politician, 66th President of Peru
 * 1939 – Bob Armstrong, American wrestler and trainer (d. 2020)
 * 1940 – Alan O'Day, American singer-songwriter (d. 2013)
 * 1940  – Jean Ratelle, Canadian ice hockey player and coach
 * 1940  – Mike Troy, American swimmer (d. 2019)
 * 1941 – Chubby Checker, American singer-songwriter
 * 1941  – Andrea de Adamich, Italian racing driver and sportscaster
 * 1941  – John Elliott, Australian businessman (d. 2021)
 * 1941  – Nicolae Șerban Tanașoca, Romanian historian and philologist (d. 2017)
 * 1942 – Alan Rachins, American actor
 * 1943 – Jeff Bingaman, American soldier and politician, 25th Attorney General of New Mexico
 * 1943  – Baki İlkin, Turkish civil servant and diplomat
 * 1944 – Pierre Deligne, Belgian mathematician and academic
 * 1944  – Bob Riley, American politician, 52nd Governor of Alabama
 * 1945 – Tony Brown, English footballer and sportscaster
 * 1945  – Christopher Bruce, English dancer and choreographer
 * 1945  – Jo Ritzen, Dutch economist and politician, Dutch Minister of Education
 * 1946 – P. P. Arnold, American soul singer
 * 1947 – John Perry Barlow, American poet, songwriter, blogger, and activist (d. 2018)
 * 1947  – Ben Cauley, American trumpet player and songwriter  (d. 2015)
 * 1947  – Fred DeLuca, American businessman (d. 2015)
 * 1947  – Anne Dorte of Rosenborg (d. 2014)
 * 1947  – Takis Michalos, Greek water polo player and coach (d. 2010)
 * 1949 – Lindsey Buckingham, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
 * 1949  – J. P. Dutta, Indian director, producer, and screenwriter
 * 1949  – Aleksandr Rogozhkin, Russian director and screenwriter (d. 2021)
 * 1949  – Laurie Simmons, American photographer and director
 * 1950 – Ronnie Laws, American jazz, R&B, and funk saxophone player
 * 1951 – Keb' Mo', American blues musician and songwriter
 * 1951  – Kathryn D. Sullivan, American geologist and astronaut
 * 1951  – Dave Winfield, American baseball player and sportscaster
 * 1952 – Bruce Arians, American football coach
 * 1952  – Gary Troup, New Zealand cricketer
 * 1954 – Eddie DeGarmo, American singer-songwriter, keyboard player, and producer
 * 1954  – Dennis Eckersley, American baseball player and sportscaster
 * 1954  – Al Sharpton, American minister, talk show host, and political activist
 * 1954  – Stevie Ray Vaughan, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer (d. 1990)
 * 1955 – Moshe Kam, American engineering educator
 * 1955  – John S. Lesmeister, American educator and politician, 30th North Dakota State Treasurer (d. 2006)
 * 1955  – Allen Woody, American bass player and songwriter  (d. 2000)
 * 1955  – Buket Uzuner, Turkish author
 * 1956 – Hart Bochner, Canadian actor, director, producer, and screenwriter
 * 1957 – Roberto Azevêdo, Brazilian engineer and diplomat, 6th Director-General of the World Trade Organization
 * 1957  – Tim Westwood, English radio and television host
 * 1958 – Chen Yanyin, Chinese sculptor
 * 1958  – Louise Lecavalier, Canadian dancer and choreographer
 * 1959 – Craig Bellamy, Australian rugby league player and coach
 * 1959  – Fred Couples, American golfer
 * 1959  – Greg Proops, American comedian, actor, and screenwriter
 * 1959  – Frank Stephenson, Italian automotive designer and blogger
 * 1959  – Jack Wagner, American actor and singer
 * 1961 – Rebecca Stephens, English journalist and mountaineer
 * 1961  – Ludger Stühlmeyer, German cantor, composer, and musicologist
 * 1962 – Tommy Lee, Greek-American singer-songwriter, drummer, and producer
 * 1962  – Simon Scarrow, Nigerian-English novelist
 * 1963 – Benny Anders, American basketball player
 * 1963  – Dan Goldie, American tennis player
 * 1964 – Clive Owen, English actor
 * 1965 – Annemarie Verstappen, Dutch swimmer
 * 1965  – Jan-Ove Waldner, Swedish table tennis player
 * 1966 – Darrin Fletcher, American baseball player and sportscaster
 * 1967 – Rob Liefeld, American author and illustrator
 * 1967  – Chris Collingwood, English-American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
 * 1968 – Paul Crichton, English footballer and manager
 * 1968  – Greg Foster, American basketball player and coach
 * 1968  – Marko Rajamäki, Finnish footballer and manager
 * 1968  – Donald Sild, Estonian javelin thrower
 * 1969 – Garry Herbert, English rower and sportscaster
 * 1969  – Janel Moloney, American actress
 * 1969  – Gwen Stefani, American singer-songwriter, actress, and fashion designer
 * 1969  – Tetsuya, Japanese singer-songwriter, bass player, and producer
 * 1970 – Elmar Liitmaa, Estonian guitarist and songwriter
 * 1970  – Jimmy Ray, English singer-songwriter and guitarist
 * 1971 – Wil Cordero, Puerto Rican-American baseball player and coach
 * 1971  – Kevin Richardson, American singer-songwriter and actor
 * 1972 – Komla Dumor, Ghanaian-English journalist (d. 2014)
 * 1972  – G. Love, American singer-songwriter, guitarist, and harmonica player
 * 1972  – Michael Nylander, Swedish ice hockey player and coach
 * 1972  – Guy Oseary, Israeli-American talent manager and businessman
 * 1973 – Keiko Agena, American actress
 * 1973  – Neve Campbell, Canadian actress
 * 1973  – Angélica Gavaldón, American-Mexican tennis player and coach
 * 1973  – Lena Headey, British actress
 * 1973  – Eirik Hegdal, Norwegian saxophonist and composer
 * 1974 – Mike Johnson, Canadian ice hockey player and sportscaster
 * 1974  – Antti Laaksonen, Finnish ice hockey player
 * 1974  – Marianne Timmer, Dutch speed skater
 * 1975 – India Arie, American singer-songwriter, producer, and actress
 * 1975  – Phil Greening, English rugby player and coach
 * 1975  – Satoko Ishimine, Japanese singer-songwriter, guitarist, and producer
 * 1975  – Talib Kweli, American rapper
 * 1975  – Alanna Ubach, American actress
 * 1976 – Herman Li, Hong Kong-English guitarist and producer
 * 1976  – Seann William Scott, American actor and producer
 * 1977 – Daniel Hollie, American wrestler
 * 1977  – Eric Munson, American baseball player and coach
 * 1977  – Luca Tognozzi, Italian footballer
 * 1978 – Gerald Asamoah, Ghanaian-German footballer
 * 1978  – Neil Clement, English footballer
 * 1978  – Claudio Pizarro, Peruvian footballer
 * 1978  – Jake Shears, American singer-songwriter
 * 1978  – Shannyn Sossamon, American actress
 * 1979 – Josh Klinghoffer, American guitarist, songwriter, and producer
 * 1979  – John Morrison, American wrestler and actor
 * 1980 – Anquan Boldin, American football player
 * 1980  – Sheldon Brookbank, Canadian ice hockey player
 * 1980  – Lindsey Kelk, English journalist and author
 * 1980  – Danny O'Donoghue, Irish singer-songwriter and producer
 * 1980  – Héctor Reynoso, Mexican footballer
 * 1980  – Ivan Turina, Croatian footballer (d. 2013)
 * 1981 – Danny Coid, English footballer
 * 1981  – Zlatan Ibrahimović, Swedish footballer
 * 1981  – Andreas Isaksson, Swedish footballer
 * 1981  – Jonna Lee, Swedish singer and musician
 * 1981  – Ronald Rauhe, German kayaker
 * 1981  – Matt Sparrow, English footballer
 * 1983 – Thiago Alves, Brazilian mixed martial artist
 * 1983  – Fred, Brazilian footballer
 * 1983  – Mark Giordano, Canadian ice hockey player
 * 1983  – Andreas Papathanasiou, Cypriot footballer
 * 1983  – Tessa Thompson, American actress
 * 1984 – Yoon Eun-hye, South Korean singer and actress
 * 1984  – Bruno Gervais, Canadian ice hockey player
 * 1984  – Jessica Parker Kennedy, Canadian actress
 * 1984  – Anthony Le Tallec, French footballer
 * 1984  – Chris Marquette, American actor
 * 1984  – Gary Neal, American basketball player and coach
 * 1984  – Ashlee Simpson, American singer-songwriter and actress
 * 1985 – Courtney Lee, American basketball player
 * 1986 – Lewis Brown, New Zealand rugby league player
 * 1986  – Jackson Martínez, Colombian footballer
 * 1987 – Starley, Australian pop singer
 * 1988 – Dustin Gazley, American ice hockey player
 * 1988  – ASAP Rocky, American rapper and songwriter
 * 1988  – Alicia Vikander, Swedish actress
 * 1989 – Nate Montana, American football player
 * 1989  – Alex Trimble, Irish singer
 * 1990 – Johan Le Bon, French cyclist
 * 1991 – Jenny McLoughlin, English sprinter
 * 1991  – Aki Takajo, Japanese singer
 * 1993 – Raffaele Di Gennaro, Italian footballer
 * 1994 – Victoria Bosio, Argentinian tennis player
 * 1994  – Seth Jones, American ice hockey player
 * 1995 – Mike Gesicki, American football player
 * 1995  – Artyom Zub, Russian ice hockey player
 * 1997 – Jin Boyang, Chinese figure skater
 * 1997  – Jonathan Isaac, American basketball player
 * 2001 – Anton Lundell, Finnish ice hockey player
 * 2001  – Max Plath, Australian rugby league player
 * 2004 – Noah Schnapp, American actor

Pre-1600

 * 42 BC – Gaius Cassius Longinus, Roman politician (b. 85 BC)
 * 723 – Elias I of Antioch, Syriac Orthodox Patriarch of Antioch.
 * 818 – Ermengarde, queen of the Franks
 * 900 – Muhammad ibn Zayd, Tabaristan emir
 * 959 – Gérard of Brogne, Frankish abbot
 * 1078 – Iziaslav I of Kiev (b. 1024)
 * 1226 – Francis of Assisi, Italian friar and saint (b. 1181 or 1182)
 * 1283 – Dafydd ap Gruffydd, Welsh prince (b. 1238)
 * 1369 – Margaret, Countess of Tyrol (b. 1318)
 * 1399 – Eleanor de Bohun, English noble (b. 1360)
 * 1568 – Elisabeth of Valois (b. 1545)
 * 1596 – Florent Chrestien, French poet (b. 1541)

1601–1900

 * 1611 – Charles, Duke of Mayenne (b. 1554)
 * 1629 – Giorgi Saakadze, Georgian commander and politician (b. 1570)
 * 1649 – Giovanni Diodati, Swiss-Italian clergyman and theologian (b. 1576)
 * 1653 – Marcus Zuerius van Boxhorn, Dutch linguist and academic (b. 1612)
 * 1656 – Myles Standish, English captain (b. 1584)
 * 1690 – Robert Barclay, Scottish theologian and politician, 2nd Governor of East Jersey (b. 1648)
 * 1701 – Joseph Williamson, English politician, Secretary of State for the Northern Department (b. 1633)
 * 1795 – Tula, Curaçao slave leader (date of birth unknown; executed)
 * 1801 – Philippe Henri, marquis de Ségur, French general and politician, French Minister of Defence (b. 1724)
 * 1833 – François, marquis de Chasseloup-Laubat, French general and engineer (b. 1754)
 * 1838 – Black Hawk, American tribal leader (b. 1767)
 * 1860 – Rembrandt Peale, American painter and curator (b. 1778)
 * 1867 – Elias Howe, American engineer, invented the sewing machine (b. 1819)
 * 1873 – Kintpuash, American tribal leader (b. 1837)
 * 1877 – James Roosevelt Bayley, American archbishop (b. 1814)
 * 1877  – Rómulo Díaz de la Vega, Mexican general and president (1855) (b. 1800)
 * 1881 – Orson Pratt, American mathematician and religious leader (b. 1811)
 * 1890 – Joseph Hergenröther, German historian and cardinal (b. 1824)
 * 1891 – Édouard Lucas, French mathematician and theorist (b. 1842)
 * 1896 – William Morris, English author and poet (b. 1834)

1901–present

 * 1907 – Jacob Nash Victor, American engineer (b. 1835)
 * 1910 – Lucy Hobbs Taylor, American dentist (b. 1833)
 * 1911 – Rosetta Jane Birks, Australian suffragist (b. 1856)
 * 1917 – Eduardo Di Capua, Neapolitan composer, singer and songwriter (b. 1865)
 * 1929 – Jeanne Eagels, American actress (b. 1894)
 * 1929  – Gustav Stresemann, German politician, Chancellor of Germany, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1878)
 * 1931 – Carl Nielsen, Danish violinist, composer, and conductor (b. 1865)
 * 1936 – John Heisman, American football player and coach (b. 1869)
 * 1953 – Arnold Bax, English composer and poet (b. 1883)
 * 1959 – Tochigiyama Moriya, Japanese sumo wrestler, the 27th Yokozuna (b. 1892)
 * 1963 – Refet Bele, Turkish general (b. 1877)
 * 1965 – Zachary Scott, American actor (b. 1914)
 * 1966 – Rolf Maximilian Sievert, Swedish physicist and academic (b. 1896)
 * 1967 – Woody Guthrie, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1912)
 * 1967  – Malcolm Sargent, English organist, composer, and conductor (b. 1895)
 * 1969 – Skip James, American singer-songwriter and guitarist (b. 1902)
 * 1979 – Nicos Poulantzas, Greek-French sociologist and philosopher (b. 1936)
 * 1980 – Friedrich Karm, Estonian footballer (b. 1907)
 * 1981 – Anna Hedvig Büll, Estonian-German missionary (b. 1887)
 * 1986 – Vince DiMaggio, American baseball player and manager (b. 1912)
 * 1987 – Jean Anouilh, French playwright and screenwriter (b. 1910)
 * 1987  – Kalervo Palsa, Finnish painter (b. 1947)
 * 1988 – Franz Josef Strauss, Bavarian lieutenant and politician, Minister President of Bavaria (b. 1915)
 * 1990 – Stefano Casiraghi, Italian-Monegasque businessman (b. 1960)
 * 1990  – Eleanor Steber, American soprano and educator (b. 1914)
 * 1993 – Katerina Gogou, Greek actress, poet, and author (b. 1940)
 * 1993  – Gary Gordon, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1960)
 * 1993  – Randy Shughart, American sergeant, Medal of Honor recipient (b. 1958)
 * 1994 – John C. Champion, American producer and screenwriter (b. 1923)
 * 1994  – Dub Taylor, American actor (b. 1907)
 * 1995 – Ma. Po. Si., Indian author and politician (b. 1906)
 * 1997 – Michael Adekunle Ajasin, Nigerian politician, 3rd Governor of Ondo State (b. 1908)
 * 1998 – Roddy McDowall, English-American actor (b. 1928)
 * 1999 – Akio Morita, Japanese businessman, co-founded Sony (b. 1921)
 * 2000 – Benjamin Orr, American singer-songwriter and bass player (b. 1947)
 * 2001 – Costas Hajihristos, Greek actor, director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1921)
 * 2002 – Bruce Paltrow, American director, producer, and screenwriter (b. 1943)
 * 2003 – Florence Stanley, American actress (b. 1924)
 * 2003  – William Steig, American sculptor, author, and illustrator (b. 1907)
 * 2004 – John Cerutti, American baseball player and sportscaster (b. 1960)
 * 2004  – Janet Leigh, American actress (b. 1927)
 * 2005 – Ronnie Barker, English actor and screenwriter (b. 1929)
 * 2005  – Nurettin Ersin, Turkish general (b. 1918)
 * 2006 – Lucilla Andrews, Egyptian-Scottish nurse and author (b. 1919)
 * 2006  – John Crank, English mathematician and physicist (b. 1916)
 * 2006  – Peter Norman, Australian runner (b. 1942)
 * 2006  – Alberto Ramento, Filipino bishop (b. 1937)
 * 2007 – M. N. Vijayan, Indian journalist, author, and academic (b. 1930)
 * 2009 – Vladimir Beekman, Estonian poet and translator (b. 1929)
 * 2010 – Ben Mondor, Canadian-American businessman (b. 1925)
 * 2010  – Abraham Sarmiento, Filipino lawyer and jurist (b. 1921)
 * 2012 – Abdul Haq Ansari, Indian theologian and scholar (b. 1931)
 * 2012  – Robert F. Christy, American physicist and astrophysicist (b. 1916)
 * 2012  – Albie Roles, English footballer (b. 1921)
 * 2013 – Sari Abacha, Nigerian footballer (b. 1978)
 * 2013  – Sergei Belov, Russian basketball player and coach (b. 1944)
 * 2013  – Joan Thirsk, English cryptologist, historian, and academic (b. 1922)
 * 2014 – Ewen Gilmour, New Zealand comedian and television host (b. 1963)
 * 2014  – Benedict Groeschel, American priest, psychologist, and talk show host (b. 1933)
 * 2014  – Jean-Jacques Marcel, French footballer (b. 1931)
 * 2014  – Kevin Metheny, American businessman (b. 1954)
 * 2014  – Ward Ruyslinck, Belgian author (b. 1929)
 * 2015 – Denis Healey, English soldier and politician, Shadow Chancellor of the Exchequer (b. 1917)
 * 2015  – Muhammad Nawaz Khan, Pakistani historian and author (b. 1943)
 * 2015  – Javed Iqbal, Pakistani philosopher and judge (b. 1925)
 * 2021 – Todd Akin, American politician (b. 1947)
 * 2021  – Dan Petrescu, Romanian businessman and billionaire (b. 1953)

Holidays and observances

 * Christian feast day:
 * Abd-al-Masih
 * Adalgott
 * Blessed Szilárd Bogdánffy
 * Dionysius the Areopagite
 * Ewald the Black and Ewald the Fair
 * Francis Borgia
 * John Raleigh Mott (Episcopal Church)
 * Gerard of Brogne
 * Hesychius of Sinai
 * Théodore Guérin
 * Maximian of Bagai
 * October 3 (Eastern Orthodox liturgics)
 * 3 October Festival (Leiden, Netherlands)
 * German Unity Day (Germany)
 * Mean Girls Day
 * Morazán Day (Honduras)
 * National Day, celebrates the independence of Iraq from the United Kingdom in 1932.
 * National Foundation Day or Gaecheonjeol (South Korea)