On this day
February 26 in literary history
Literary history for February 26: 19 writers born, 9 writers who died and 1 literary events from 1548 to 2014. Born on this day: Michel Houellebecq, Elizabeth George, Sharyn McCrumb.
Writers born on February 26
| Born | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 1956 | Michel Houellebecq | French writer (born 1956) |
| 1949 | Elizabeth George | American mystery and thriller writer |
| 1948 | Sharyn McCrumb | American writer (born 1948) |
| 1944 | Christopher Hope (novelist) | South African novelist and poet (born 1944) |
| 1940 | Oldřich Kulhánek | Oldřich Kulhánek, Czech painter, illustrator, and stage designer (died 2013) |
| 1934 | Mohammed Lakhdar-Hamina | Algerian film director and screenwriter (1934–2025) |
| 1920 | Lucjan Wolanowski | Polish writer |
| 1918 | Theodore Sturgeon | American speculative fiction writer (1918–1985) |
| 1909 | Fanny Cradock | English restaurant critic, television cook and writer (1909–1994) |
| 1902 | Jean Bruller | French writer and illustrator (1902–1991) |
| 1893 | Dorothy Whipple | English novelist and children's writer (1893–1966) |
| 1887 | Stefan Grabiński | Polish writer (1887–1936) |
| 1881 | Janus Djurhuus | Faroese poet |
| 1877 | Rudolph Dirks | American cartoonist (1877–1968) |
| 1842 | Camille Flammarion | French astronomer and author (1842–1925) |
| 1802 | Victor Hugo | French writer and politician (1802–1885) |
| 1671 | Anthony Ashley-Cooper, 3rd Earl of Shaftesbury | English politician, philosopher and writer (1671–1713) |
| 1651 | Quirinus Kuhlmann | German Baroque poet and mystic (1651-1689) |
| 1564 | Christopher Marlowe | English playwright and poet (1564–1593) |
Writers who died on February 26
| Died | Writer | Known as |
|---|---|---|
| 2014 | Sorel Etrog | Romanian born Israeli-Canadian artist, writer and sculptor (1933–2014) |
| 2014 | Phyllis Krasilovsky | American writer (1926–2014) |
| 2013 | Stéphane Hessel | Writer, Holocaust survivor and French Resistance member |
| 2012 | Richard Carpenter (screenwriter) | English screenwriter, author and actor (1929–2012) |
| 2011 | Arnošt Lustig | Czech Jewish writer (1926–2011) |
| 2006 | Georgina Battiscombe | British biographer (1905–2006) |
| 1981 | Robert Aickman | British writer and conservationist (1914–1981) |
| 1723 | Thomas d'Urfey | English writer & playwright (c.1653–1723) |
| 1548 | Lorenzino de' Medici | Italian politician and writer |
Literary events on February 26
| Year | Event |
|---|---|
| 2014 | Former editor-in-chief of Hong Kong newspaper Ming Pao Kevin Lau was stabbed, prompting concerns and protests about media freedom. |
Featured
Michel Houellebecq (1956) — Michel Houellebecq is a French author of novels, poems, and essays, as well as an occasional actor, filmmaker, and singer. His first book was a monograph on the horror writer H. P. Lovecraft.
Elizabeth George (1949) — Susan Elizabeth George is an American writer of mystery novels.
Sharyn McCrumb (1948) — Sharyn McCrumb is an American writer best known for books that celebrate the history and folklore of Appalachia. McCrumb is the winner of numerous literary awards, and is the author of the best-selling Ballad novels, set in the North Carolina/Tennessee mountains; the NASCAR series featuring St.
Sources & data
- Compiled from Wikipedia’s “On this day” selections (CC BY-SA 4.0), filtered for writers and literary events.