2008

This article is from 2008. For the car model, see Peugeot 2008 .

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2008
The financial crisis that began the year before has led to the bankruptcy of numerous banks in the USA and Europe and calls for global control of the financial market .
Democratic Senator Barack Obama is the 44th President of the United States of America elected .	Russia's new President Dmitry Medvedev is facing his first major foreign policy challenge with the conflict over South Ossetia .
During the torch relay for the Summer Olympics in Beijing , protests against the Chinese policy on Tibet broke out around the world .	The cyclone Nargis caused mainly in Myanmar widespread devastation, the regime falls because of restrictions on international aid workers in the criticism.

2008 in other calendars
From urbe condita	2761
Armenian calendar	1456-1457
Ethiopian calendar	2000-2001
Badi calendar	164-165
Bengali calendar	1414-1415
Berber calendar	2958
Buddhist calendar	2552
Burmese calendar	1370
Byzantine calendar	7516-7517
Chinese calendar
- era	4704-4705 or 4644-4645
- 60 year cycle	Fire Pig ( 丁亥 , 24) - Earth Rat ( 戊子 , 25)
French revolutionary calendar	CCXVI - CCXVII 216-217
Hebrew calendar	5768-5769
Hindu calendar
- Vikram Sambat	2064-2065
- Shaka Samvat	1930-1931
Iranian calendar	1386-1387
Islamic calendar	1428-1430
Japanese calendar
- Nengō (era):	Heisei 20th
- Kōki	2668
Coptic calendar	1724-1725
Korean calendar
- Dangun era	4341
- Juche era	97
Minguo calendar	97
Modern Olympics	XXIX
Seleucid calendar	2319-2320
Thai solar calendar	2551

Events

Politics and world events

See also: 2008 elections , 2008 UN Security Council resolutions

January

→ Main article : January 2008

• January 1 : The corporate tax reform came into force in Germany .
• January 1: Fall of the mail monopoly of the Deutsche Post AG .
• January 1: The law on data retention in Germany came into force.
• January 1st : Pascal Couchepin becomes President of Switzerland again
• January 1 to June 30 : Slovenia , one of the countries joining the EU expansion in 2004, took over the presidency of the EU for the first time .
• January 1st: Malta and Cyprus introduced the euro as their official national currency . This means that the euro is the official currency in 15 countries (excluding overseas departments). However, the euro is not the official currency in Northern Cyprus, which is occupied by Turkey .
• January 12 : President Chen Shui-bian's Democratic Progressive Party suffers a heavy defeat in the legislative yuan elections in the Republic of China (Taiwan) . More than three quarters of the seats are won by the opposition Kuomintang and its political allies.
• January 27 : In the elections for the state parliament in Lower Saxony , the CDU and FDP defend their majority with the incumbent Prime Minister Christian Wulff (CDU). The CDU in Hesse with the incumbent Prime Minister Roland Koch , on the other hand , suffered a significant defeat in the Hessian state election .
• January: 10th African Union Summit in Addis Ababa , Ethiopia .

February

→ Main article : February 2008

• February 2 : Germany: After a house fire in Ludwigshafen am Rhein with 9 dead people of Turkish origin, parallels are drawn with the Mölln assassination attempt ( 1992 ), but these cannot be confirmed.
• February 8 : Austria: In the worst fire accident since 2002, eleven people are killed in an old people's home in Egg in Vorarlberg .
• February 11 : Assassination attempt on February 11, 2008 in Dili ( East Timor ). President José Ramos-Horta is seriously injured, Prime Minister Xanana Gusmâo is able to escape the attackers unharmed.
• February 14 : Germany: First warning strikes in the collective bargaining round of the public service. The ver.di union mainly has municipal hospitals on strike.

Flag of the new state of Kosovo

• February 17th : The parliament of Kosovo unilaterally decides to detach from Serbia .
• February 20 : Germany: First collective bargaining agreement in 2008: In the steel industry there will be 5.2% more wages retroactively from February 1, 2008; Duration of the contract: 13 months.
• February 24 : The CDU loses an absolute majority in the Hamburg state election in 2008 .
• February 24 : At the 2008 Academy Awards , No Country for Old Men was named best film in Los Angeles , and Ethan and Joel Coen also received the Oscar for best director.
• February 24 : Raúl Castro is elected both head of state and head of government by parliament in Cuba . His sick brother Fidel Castro had previously announced that he would not stand for another candidacy.
• February 26th : The worldwide seed bank Svalbard Global Seed Vault is officially inaugurated on Spitzbergen .
• February 27 : Judgment by the Federal Constitutional Court on the legality of the online search .

March

→ Main article : March 2008

• March 1 : Kosovo becomes officially independent and receives start-up help from the EU .

Ma Ying-jeou (March 2006)

• March 2nd : Russian presidential elections 2008 : Dmitri Anatoljewitsch Medvedev wins with almost 70 percent of the vote.
• March 9th : The parliamentary elections in Spain take place. The socialists under José Luis Rodríguez Zapatero win the elections.
• 13. bis 14. March : 11th Summit of the Organization of the Islamic Conference
• March 24th : For the first time in the country's history, a national assembly is elected in Bhutan . In the parliamentary elections , the royalists are the clear winner.
• March 31 : Border control is abolished in many Eastern European airports due to the accession of the countries concerned to the Schengen area .
• The presidential election in the Republic of China was won by Ma Ying-jeou , the Kuomintang candidate , with 58.45 percent of the vote.

April

→ Main article : April 2008

• April 3 : NATO invites Albania and Croatia to join the organization in 2009 after all member states and the two countries themselves ratify the invitation.
• April 27 : The referendum to maintain the Berlin-Tempelhof airport is rejected due to insufficient turnout.
• April 29 : Josef Fritzl's incest case is discovered; the now 42-year-old Elisabeth F. was locked up for 24 years by her father in the basement of the family home and had seven children from him.
• April: NATO summit in Bucharest , Romania

May

→ Main article : May 2008

• May 14 : 60th anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel
• 19th bis thirtieth May : 9th UN Conference on Biological Diversity in Bonn
• May 21 : The parliamentary elections in Georgia result in a victory for the ruling party of President Mikheil Saakashvili .
• May 23 : Signing of the Charter of the Union of South American Nations in Brasília
• May: 5th EU-Latin America Summit in Lima , Peru

June

→ Main article : June 2008

• June 1 : The agreement for the conservation of gorillas and their habitats comes into force
• June 3 : The Democratic primary for the 2008 presidential election in the United States is won by Barack Obama .
• June 12 : A referendum in Ireland on the Lisbon Treaty rejects the Treaty.
• June 20 : The European Union lifts the economic sanctions against Cuba that have existed since 2003 .
• June 24th : International Conference in Support of Palestinian Civil Security and Rule of Law in Berlin

July

→ Main article : July 2008

Member States of the Union for the Mediterranean

• July 2 : Turkey: 55,000 Alevis demonstrate in Sivas in front of the Madimak Hotel (see Sivas arson attack ).
• July 7th to 9th : G8 summit in Tōyako , Japan .
• July 13 : The Union for the Mediterranean is founded in Paris.
• July 30 : The former, submerged President of Republika Srpska , Radovan Karadzic , the care of the United Nations Detention Facility in The Hague passed. During his term of office, he must answer before the International Criminal Court for crimes charged.

August

→ Main article : August 2008

• August 7th : The Caucasus War begins on the border between Georgia and South Ossetia with the deployment of Georgian military units .
• August 8 : The Caucasus conflict spreads with the invasion of Georgian troops in South Ossetia .

September

→ Main article : September 2008

Distribution of seats in the Bavarian state parliament

• September 15 : Lehman Brothers investment bank collapses as a result of the financial crisis .
• September 20 : The bomb attack on the Marriott Hotel in Islamabad leaves 54 dead and 266 injured. The fact remains unsolved.
• September 28 : In the state elections in Bavaria in 2008 , the CSU in Bavaria loses the absolute majority in the state parliament for the first time in 46 years .

October

→ Main article : October 2008

• 24. bis 25. October : Asia-Europe Meeting in Beijing , People's Republic of China
• October 25: Referendum on extensive autonomy in the Basque Country
• October 31 : The Tempelhof airport in Berlin is closed.

November

→ Main article : November 2008

The Taj Mahal Palace Hotel

Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck

• November 3 : Andrea Ypsilanti's attempt to install a red-green minority government tolerated by the Left Party in Hesse fails. As a result, new elections are scheduled.
• November 4 : Barack Obama becomes the first African American to be elected President of the United States .
• November 6th Jigme Khesar Namgyel Wangchuck is crowned King of Bhutan . At 28, he is the youngest head of state in the world.
• November 9th : 100,000 Alevis protest in Ankara against politics in Turkey. Singers like Yavuz Bingöl , Ferhat Tunç , Arif Sağ and Edip Akbayram take part in the demonstration.
• November 22nd : APEC summit in Lima , Peru
• November 26th : A terrorist group starts attacks in ten places in Mumbai . The hotels Trident Oberoi and Taj Mahal Palace & Tower are among those affected . The balance after days of exchanges of fire with the police: 174 dead and at least 239 injured.

December

→ Main article : December 2008

• 1. - 12. December : UN Climate Change Conference in Poznan
• December 1 : Angela Merkel is re-elected as CDU leader with 94.83% at the CDU party conference in Stuttgart. This is her second best result since 2000.
• December 2 : In Vienna, the new Austrian federal government under Federal Chancellor Werner Faymann is sworn in by Federal President Heinz Fischer .
• December 3 : An agreement banning cluster bombs is signed by 111 states in Oslo .
• December 4 : Israeli settlers pogrom against Palestinians in Hebron.
• December 13 : The head of the police in Passau , Alois Mannichl , is seriously injured in an attack allegedly motivated by right-wing extremists .
• December 15 : Montenegro applies for membership in the European Union.
• December 22nd : After the death of President Conté , unrest breaks out in Guinea . After a coup, Captain Moussa Dadis Camara takes power.
• December 27th : After Hamas rockets bombarded Israeli cities for days, the Israeli air force bombed targets in the Gaza Strip . The conflict between Hamas and Israel has thus broken out again.

elections

→ Main article : 2008 elections

• January: Presidential elections in the Czech Republic
• January: General elections in Djibouti
• January 12 : General Elections in the Republic of China (Taiwan)
• January 19th : Parliamentary elections in the Faroe Islands
• January 27 : State elections in Lower Saxony and Hesse
• February: Parliamentary elections in Armenia
• February: Elections in Bhutan
• February 3rd : Runoff election for the presidential election in Serbia
• February 5 : primaries for the US presidential election in 2008 in 24 US states
• February 17th : Presidential election in Cyprus
• February 18 : Parliamentary elections in Pakistan
• February 24th : State election in Hamburg
• February 24th : Runoff election for the presidential election in Cyprus
• March: Elections in the Swiss cantons of St. Gallen and Thurgau
• March: Parliamentary elections in Belize
• March 2 : Presidential elections in Russia
• March 2nd : Local elections in Bavaria
• March 9 : French local elections
• March 9 : General elections in Spain
• March 9 : State election in Lower Austria
• March 14 : Parliamentary elections in Iran
• March 22 : Presidential elections in the Republic of China (Taiwan)
• March 29 : Parliamentary and presidential elections in Zimbabwe
• April: Presidential and parliamentary elections in Paraguay
• April: General elections in Malta
• April 6 : Presidential elections in Montenegro
• April 13th and 14th : early parliamentary elections in Italy
• May: General elections in Barbados
• May: Presidential elections in Iceland
• May 16 : Presidential elections in the Dominican Republic
• May 25 : Local elections in Schleswig-Holstein
• June: parliamentary elections in Mongolia
• June: Parliamentary elections in the Bermuda Islands
• June 1st : General elections in Macedonia
• June 8 : State election in Tyrol
• June 8 : Local elections in Saxony
• June 27th : Runoff election for the presidency in Zimbabwe
• July 27 : Parliamentary elections in Cambodia
• September 28 : State election in Bavaria
• September 28 : Local elections in Brandenburg
• September 28 : National Council election in Austria
• October: Azerbaijan presidential elections
• October: Presidential elections in Dominica
• October: Parliamentary elections in Lithuania
• October: Parliamentary elections in Slovenia
• October: Local elections in Bosnia and Herzegovina
• October 14 : Canadian General Election
• October 26 : Local elections in Finland
• November: Presidential elections in Grenada
• 4 November : presidential elections in the United States
• November 4th : General election in Puerto Rico
• November 4th : Presidential and parliamentary elections in Palau
• November 15th : General election in New Zealand
• November 30th : Parliamentary elections in Romania
• December 10 : Federal Council replacement election in Switzerland
• December: Presidential elections in Guinea
• December: Presidential elections in Ghana

economy

• January to December : The financial crisis from 2007 onwards has a negative impact on the global economy.
• January 2 : The oil price temporarily exceeds the mark of 100 US dollars per barrel for the first time .
• January 21 : The German share index (DAX) loses more than 500 points within one day. This is the highest nominal daily slump since the stock index was founded.
• March 13 : The gold price , which is on the rise, exceeds the mark of 1,000 US dollars per ounce of fine gold for the first time in trading on the New York Mercantile Exchange .
• September 7 : In the United States , the competent authority takes control of the two largest of the financial crisis from 2007 acquired mortgage lenders Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac . It avoids the threatening bankruptcy of these credit institutions .
• September 15 : The financial institution Lehman Brothers files for bankruptcy .
• September 29 : The Dow Jones Index loses 6.98 percent in one day; the highest daily slump since the stock index was created.
• October 3 : The Emergency Economic Stabilization Act enters into force in the United States . According to the Paulson Plan, the financial market should be protected from the severe effects of the financial crisis from 2007 onwards with government money of up to 700 billion US dollars .
• October 10 : According to calculations by the US business magazine Forbes , Warren Buffett , the 78-year-old founder of Berkshire Hathaway , is now the richest American, ahead of Bill Gates , with 58 billion dollars . In September 2008, his fortune grew by eight billion dollars.
• October 15 : The Dow Jones share index slipped by 7.87 percent, the steepest price slump to date since Black Monday in 1987.
• October 29 : Bank Hypo Real Estate announces that it is negotiating a rescue package of 50 billion euros and that it has applied for 15 billion euros in liquid funds as an interim solution from the financial market stabilization fund .
• October: Northwest Airlines is taken over by Delta Air Lines .
• November 11th : The passenger ship Queen Elizabeth 2 begins its last voyage to Dubai , where it will anchor as a future floating hotel.
• December 11 : The United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) files indictments in the Manhattan District Court against Bernard L. Madoff . The finance and stock broker is insolvent after his pyramid scheme of mutual fund collapses with approximately $ 50 billion in damage.
• The German company Continental AG is taken over by the German company Schaeffler KG .
• The US company The Wrigley Company is taken over by the US company Mars Incorporated .

Culture

• The 50th anniversary of the Bundesvereinigung Lebenshilfe is celebrated with a variety of activities spread over the year.
• January 1st : The British city of Liverpool and Stavanger in Norway are the European Capitals of Culture of 2008.
• January 17 : American researchers say they have cloned an embryo from a skin cell for the first time .
• March 19 to April 6 : Space exhibition “Man and the Cosmos - Moments of Fascination in Trossingen ”, one of the largest space exhibitions in Europe.
• June 6th - 15th : 48th Hessentag in Homberg (Efze)
• June 14. bis 14. September : Expo in Zaragoza , Spain
• June 27th : Birthday concert for Nelson Mandela in London's Hyde Park .
• 4th - 6th July : 28th day of Lower Saxony in Winsen (Luhe)
• July 10th - 19th : 9 1/2 bones , musical by Frank Golischewski
• 10. - 21st August : 4th World Youth Congress in Quebec (City)
• 29th - 31st August : 3rd North Rhine-Westphalia Day in Wuppertal
• September 20 to October 5 : 175th Oktoberfest in Munich
• 19th - 22. October : IKA / Culinary Olympics in Erfurt

music

• 14. - 18th May : 38th International Dixieland Festival Dresden
• May 20th, 22nd and 24th Eurovision Song Contest 2008 in Belgrade . Dima Bilan's contribution Believe wins.
• 21st - 24. May 20 StuStaCulum music and theater festival in Munich
• June 6th - 8th : 21st Rock am Ring music festival on the Nürburgring
• 20th - 22. June 11 Hurricane Festival in Scheeßel in Bremen
• June 26th to July 20th : Summer Tollwood in Munich (Olympiapark Süd)
• July 19 : Love Parade in Dortmund
• July 27th and August 9th : Classic Open Air in Nuremberg
• July 31 to August 2 : Wacken Open Air Music Festival in Wacken
• July 31 to August 2 : Scene open-air music festival in Lustenau
• December 7th : World premiere of the musical Der Schuh des Manitu in Berlin

See also: Number one hits 2008 in Australia , Belgium , Denmark , Germany , Finland , France , Ireland , Italy , Japan , Canada , Mexico , New Zealand , the Netherlands , Norway , Austria , Poland , Portugal , Romania , Sweden , the Switzerland , Slovakia , Spain , Czech Republic , Hungary , the United States and the United Kingdom .

See also: Category: Music 2008

society

• February 2 : Nicolas Sarkozy marries Carla Bruni in Paris .
• February 10 : In Zurich, four paintings by the painters Claude Monet , Vincent van Gogh , Edgar Degas and Paul Cézanne with a total value of 180 million Swiss francs are stolen from the Art Museum Foundation EG Bührle Collection . Eight days later the police found two factories, the whereabouts of the other two are unclear.
• May 24th : Prince Joachim of Denmark marries Marie Cavallier in Møgeltønder Sogn .
• June 13 : Michael Ballack marries Simone Lambe in Starnberg .

Sports

• January 1st : John Part wins the PDC World Darts Championship
• 17th - 27. January : European Handball Championship for men in Norway
• January 20 to February 10 : African Football Championship in Ghana
• February 3 : Super Bowl XLII of the National Football League in Glendale , USA
• 9. - 17th February : Biathlon World Championships 2008 in Ostersund , Sweden
• February 13th - 17th : 2nd European Team Badminton Championship in Almere , Netherlands
• February 17th : The German national badminton team for women and the national team for men both win third place at the European team championships in badminton . Denmark wins the final in both the women (against the Dutch team) and the men (against the English team).
• March 7th - 9th : World Indoor Athletics Championships in Valencia , Spain
• 13. - 24. March : Swimming European Championships in Eindhoven , Netherlands
• April: World Fencing Championships in Beijing , People's Republic of China
• 18th - 20th April : Pétanque Championship of Espoirs 2008 in Saint-Jean-d'Angély ( France )
• April 19: FC Bayern Munich wins the DFB Cup after a 2-1 draw against Borussia Dortmund .
• April 20 : SK Rapid Wien won 3-0 (3-0) against SCR Altach early for the 32nd time as Austrian football champions
• 23. - 28. April 21 Badminton European Championship in Herning , Denmark
• May 2nd - 18th : Men's Ice Hockey World Championship in Canada
• 3rd / 4th May : The 1st BC Bischmisheim wins the play-offs against the 1st BC Beuel 6: 2 and 3: 0 and thus becomes the German team champion of the 1st Badminton Bundesliga for the third time in a row .
• May 14: Zenit Saint Petersburg wins the UEFA Cup after beating Glasgow Rangers 2-0 .
• May 17th: FC Bayern Munich become German soccer champions for the 21st time. 1. FC Nürnberg , Hansa Rostock and MSV Duisburg are relegated to the 2nd division . Moved up are the 1. FC Köln , the TSG 1899 Hoffenheim and Borussia Moenchengladbach .
• May 21: Manchester United wins the Champions League after a 7-6 draw against Chelsea
• 7th - 29th June : 13th European Football Championship 2008 in Switzerland and Austria : Switzerland lost the opening game in Basel against the Czech Republic with 0: 1. Spain wins the final at the Ernst Happel Stadium in Vienna 1-0 against Germany .

2008 Olympic Games logo

• 16 - June 21 : Special Olympics National Games Karlsruhe
• July 5th - 27th : Tour de France
• July 6 : Rafael Nadal defeated Roger Federer in the final of the Wimbledon Championships after almost five hours 6: 4, 6: 4, 6: 7, 6: 7, 9: 7.
• July 8th - 20th : World gliding championship in Rieti
• August 2nd - 16th : World gliding championship in Lüsse (Bad Belzig)
• 8. - 24. August : XXIX. Summer Olympic Games in Beijing , People's Republic of China .
• 8. - 10. August : petanque European youth in 2008 in Maastricht , Netherlands
• September 6th - 17th : Summer Paralympics in Beijing , People's Republic of China
• September 14 : With his victory at the Italian Grand Prix, the 21-year-old racing driver Sebastian Vettel advanced to become the youngest Grand Prix winner in Formula 1 history .
• September : The first Victoria Cup is held
• September : The seven-time Tour de France winner Lance Armstrong announced his comeback in professional cycling.
• 25 October to 22 November : Men's Rugby League World Cup in Australia
• November 2nd : Brazilian Grand Prix - Lewis Hamilton becomes Formula 1 world champion in São Paulo
• November 12th : Chess Olympiad in Dresden
• 12. - 16th November : Pétanque World Championships in 2008 in Dakar , Senegal
• December 2nd - 14th : European Women's Handball Championship in Macedonia

Natural events

• 26.-28. January: Austria is hit by hurricane Paula .
• Central Europe: As in 2007, January is much too warm, with up to 3.5 degrees above average.

Hurricane Emma on February 29, 2008 12:00 UTC (Trog Island)

• February 29 to March 1, 2008: Central Europe is hit by hurricane Emma .
• May 3: Cyclone Nargis kills well over 80,000 people in Myanmar (Burma). Over a million people are left homeless.
• MAY 12: A heavy earthquake of intensity 7.9 in southern China claims more than 70,000 lives.
• July 10th: Etna volcanic eruption in Sicily .

2008 was the ninth warmest year since weather statistics began. The ten hottest years are all between 1997 and 2008.

science and technology

• International year of planet earth
• Year of Mathematics (initiative from the BMBF )

• January 14 : The NASA - space probe MESSENGER for the Study of Mercury leads the first swing-by maneuver through over the planet.
• March 19 : The gamma-ray burst GRB 080319B is detected by NASA's Swift satellite . The gamma-ray burst will then become the most distant celestial object that has ever been seen with the naked eye.
• April 22 : The United States Air Force , the stealth bomber Lockheed F-117 Nighthawk out of service. They are multi-functional fighter aircraft of the type Lockheed Martin F-22 Raptor replaced.
• May 25 : NASA's Phoenix spacecraft lands on Mars.
• June 14th : The world's first automatic subway in mixed operation opens at the Nuremberg subway .
• 14.-20. July: RoboCup in Suzhou .
• September 5 : The Rosetta probe flies past the asteroid Šteins .
• October 6th : NASA's MESSENGER probe successfully flies past Mercury for the second time .
• October 22nd: Launch of the ISRO Chandrayaan-1 spacecraft .
• November 11th : The German Indonesian Tsunami Early Warning System (GITEWS) starts testing.
• December 31 : The state transmitter Beromünster is shut down.

• The Large Hadron Collider at CERN is completed. However, due to damage to the cooling system, the system had to be shut down for more than a year after ten days for repair work.
• Start of the Europe-wide TV music channel Concert Channel based in Erfurt.

Calendar and astronomy

• For the first time in its history , May 1st is also a Labor Day and Ascension Day

• Since the introduction of summer time in 1980, Easter falls into normal time for the first time. Summer time starts on March 30th in 2008 , and Easter is on March 23rd .

• February 7th: Annular solar eclipse lasting two minutes and twelve seconds , visible in Antarctica, Australia and New Zealand
• February 21: Total lunar eclipse
• August 1st: Two minute and 27 second total solar eclipse , visible in North America and Asia, partially in Europe
• August 16: Partial lunar eclipse

religion

Arrival of the Pope at World Youth Day

• 50 years of the diocese of Essen - motto: "Life on the move"
• January 20 : Franz-Peter Tebartz-van Elst is introduced to the office of Bishop of Limburg .
• 11 - February 14 : Spring Plenary Assembly of the German Bishops' Conference in Würzburg with premature election of its chairman
• April 30th to May 4th : Christival in Bremen
• May 21st - 25th : 97th German Catholic Day in Osnabrück under the motto "You lead us out into space"
• 22-25 May: 4th Youth Church Day of the Evangelical Church of Hesse and Nassau (EKHN) in Rüsselsheim
• May 30th to June 1st : German Evangelical Trumpet Day in Leipzig
• 15 - July 20 : World Youth Day 2008 in Sydney
• 2. - 7. July : Sivas massacre memorial week of Alevis to the Sivas victims
• July 30th to August 3rd : Baptist World Youth Congress “dive deeper” in Leipzig
• October 5th - 26th : XII. Ordinary General Assembly of the Synod of Bishops in the Vatican on the theme: "The Word of God in the life and mission of the Church"

Disasters

• June 22nd : The Philippine ferry Princess of the Stars runs aground and sinks during Typhoon Fengshen . Around 800 people die, only 56 passengers survive the disaster.
• August 10 : An explosion occurs in a propane gas plant in Toronto
• August 20 : An MD-82 of Spanair with codeshare flight number of Deutsche Lufthansa as Flight JK 5022 and LH 2554 from Madrid main airport Barajas to Las Palmas on Gran Canaria crashed just after the start. 154 of the 172 inmates died, the remaining 18 inmates were injured, some seriously.
• November 4 : A coach goes up in flames on Autobahn 2 near Hanover. 20 of the 36 inmates are killed in the inferno.

Annual dedications

Initiatives

• European year of intercultural dialogue
• Year of Mathematics in Germany (initiative from BMBF )
• Year of Armaments (EU Defense Agency)
• International Year of Planet Earth ( UNESCO )
• International Year of Languages (UNESCO)
• International Year of the Potato (UNESCO)

Species protection

See also: nature of the year

• The bison ( Bison bonasus ) is wild animal of the year ( Schutzgemeinschaft Deutsches Wild )
• The cuckoo ( Cuculus canorus ) is bird of the year ( NABU )
• The nodding thistle ( Carduus nutans ) is Flower of the Year ( Nature and Plants Foundation )
• The real walnut ( Juglans regia ) is tree of the year (Kuratorium Tree of the Year)
• The bronze bolete ( Boletus aereus ) is mushroom of the year ( German Society for Mycology )
• The bitterling ( Rhodeus amarus ) is fish of the year ( Association of German Sport Fishermen )
• The overlooked orchid ( Dactylorhiza praetermissa ) is Orchid of the Year (Arbeitskreis Heimische Orchideen)
• The real lavender ( Lavandula angustifolia ) is medicinal plant of the year (Naturheilverein Theophrastus)
• The common horse chestnut ( Aesculus hippocastanum ) is Medicinal Plant of the Year (Study Group Development History of Medicinal Plants)
• The large angle spider ( Tegenaria atrica ) is Spider of the Year (Arachnological Society)
• The mouse ear ( Myosotella myosotis ) is mollusk of the year
• The wolf lichen ( Letharia vulpina ) is lichen of the year (Bryological-Lichenological Working Group for Central Europe)
• The Pretty Golden Hair Moss ( Orthotrichum pulchellum ) is Moss of the Year ( Bryological-Lichenological Working Group for Central Europe )
• The sun bride ( Helenium ) is Perennial of the Year (Bund Deutscher Perenngärtner)
• The brown earth is soil of the year
• The European tree frog ( Hyla arborea ) is a reptile / amphibian of the year to / from the " Amphibian / Lurch been named the Year" of 2008. In addition, the World Conservation Organization IUCN and the World Zoo Association ( WAZA ) proclaimed the year 2008 as the international “Year of the Frog” ( frogs , real frogs (species) ).

• 

  European bison,
  wild animal of the year

• 

  Cuckoo,
  bird of the year

• 

  Nodding thistle
  plant of the year

• 

  Real walnut,
  tree of the year

• 

  Bronze earring,
  mushroom of the year

• 

  Overlooked
  Orchid , Orchid of the Year

• 

  Real lavender,
  medicinal plant of the year

• 

  European Tree Frog,
  International "Year of the Frog"

Born

• January 31 : Leander Menzel , young German actor
• June 10 : Helena Zengel , German actress
• September 17th : Mia Talerico , American actress

Died

For the detailed list of the deceased see Nekrolog 2008 .

January

• 0January 1 : Harald Deilmann , German architect, university professor and author (* 1920 )
• 0January 1 : Gerhard Kander , Canadian violinist (* 1921 )
• 0January 2 : Moon Kim , American rock 'n' roll singer (* 1931 )
• 0January 2 : George MacDonald Fraser , English author (born 1925 )
• 0January 2 : Günter Schubert , German actor (* 1938 )
• 0January 2 : OG Style , American rapper (* 1970 )
• 0January 2 : Galyani Vadhana , Thai princess and sister of the Thai king Bhumibol (* 1923 )
• 0January 3 : Werner Dollinger , German politician (* 1918 )
• 0January 4th : Herbert Keppler , American editor of photo magazines and camera developer (* 1925 )
• 0January 4th : Marianne Kiefer , German actress (* 1928 )
• 0January 4th : John O'Donohue , Irish philosopher and author (* 1956 )
• 0January 5 : Edward Kłosiński , Polish cameraman (* 1943 )
• 0January 6 : Ken Nelson , American music producer (* 1911 )
• 0January 7th : Philip Agee , American ex-secret agent and author (* 1935 )
• 0January 7th : Detlef Kraus , German pianist (* 1919 )
• 0January 7th : Manfred Mautner Markhof junior , Austrian industrialist and politician (* 1927 )
• January 10 : Josef van Eimern , German forest and agricultural meteorologist (* 1921 )
• January 11 : Walter Haug , Swiss Medievalist (* 1927 )
• January 11th : Edmund Hillary , New Zealand mountaineer (* 1919 )
• January 15 : Brad Renfro , American actor (* 1982 )
• January 16 : Jorge de Bagration , Spanish racing car driver (* 1944 )
• January 17th : Manfred Abelein , German politician (* 1930 )
• January 17 : Bobby Fischer , American-Icelandic chess grandmaster (* 1943 )
• January 18 : Hans Herbert Jöris , German conductor and university professor (* 1925 )
• January 19 : Karl Diehl , German industrialist (* 1907 )
• January 19 : Andy Palacio , Belizean musician (* 1960 )
• January 19 : Suzanne Pleshette , American film actress (* 1937 )
• January 19 : Albert Pütz , German writer and lawyer (* 1932 )
• January 19 : John Stewart , American singer-songwriter (* 1939 )
• January 20 : Louis de Cazenave , French war veteran (* 1897 )
• January 20 : Tālivaldis Ķeniņš , Canadian composer and music teacher of Latvian origin (* 1919 )
• January 21 : Reinhold Zundel , German local politician (* 1930 )
• January 22nd : Bernhard Horstmann alias Stefan Murr , German author (* 1919 )
• January 22nd : Ștefan Niculescu , Romanian composer (* 1927 )
• January 22nd : Claude Piron , Swiss psychologist, analyst and author (* 1931 )
• January 22nd : Heath Ledger , Australian film actor (born 1979 )
• January 23 : Felix F. Carlebach , German-British rabbi (* 1911 )
• January 23 : Stein Rønning , Norwegian karateka (* 1965 )
• January 24th : René Bianco , French opera singer (baritone) (* 1908 )
• January 25 : Andreas Hönisch , German Catholic clergyman and founder of an order (* 1930 )
• January 25 : Helmut Meyer-Abich , German naval officer and geologist (* 1919 )
• January 26 : Christian Brando , American actor (* 1958 )
• January 26 : George Habasch , Palestinian politician (* 1926 )
• January 27 : Gordon B. Hinckley , American Church leader (Mormon) (born 1910 )
• January 27 : Botho Prinz zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein , German politician and DRK representative (* 1927 )
• January 27 : Haji Mohamed Suharto , Indonesian general, politician and President (* 1921 )
• January 28 : Erwin van Aaken , German architect (* 1904 )
• January 28 : Christodoulos I , Archbishop and Greek Orthodox Church Leader (* 1939 )
• January 28 : Marie Takvam , Norwegian writer (* 1926 )
• January 29 : Helga Goetze , German artist, writer and political activist (* 1922 )
• January 30th : Marcial Maciel , Mexican Catholic priest and disciplined order founder (* 1920 )
• January 31 : Veronika Bayer , German actress (* 1940 )
• January 31 : Eva Heller , German writer (* 1948 )

February

• 0February 2 : Gustavo Arriola , American comic artist (* 1917 )
• 0February 2 : Earl Butz , American politician (* 1909 )
• 0February 2 : Heinrich Dahlinger , German handball player (* 1922 )
• 0February 2 : Joshua Lederberg , American molecular biologist (* 1925 )
• 0February 2 : Barry Morse , British actor (born 1918 )
• 0February 2 : Hans Roth , Austrian entrepreneur (* 1916 )
• 0February 3 : Jorge Liderman , American composer (* 1957 )
• 0February 4 : Chris Anderson , American jazz pianist (* 1926 )
• 0February 4th : Tata Güines , Cuban percussionist, band leader, composer and arranger (* 1930 )
• 0February 4 : Stefan Meller , Polish historian, diplomat and politician (* 1942 )
• 0February 5 : Marc Adrian , Austrian artist and filmmaker (* 1930 )
• 0February 5 : Maharishi Mahesh Yogi , Indian philosopher, founder of Transcendental Meditation and author (* 1918 )
• 0February 6 : Dieter Noll , German writer (* 1927 )
• 0February 6 : Tony Rolt , British racing car driver, developer and officer (* 1918 )
• 0February 7 : Andrew Bertie , British Grand Master of the Order of Malta (* 1929 )
• 0February 7th : Frank Geerk , German poet and writer (* 1946 )
• 0February 7th : Jirō Kawamura , Japanese translator, literary scholar and critic (* 1928 )
• 0February 9 : Murlidhar Devidas Office , Indian human rights activist (* 1914 )
• 0February 9 : Walter Bitterlich , Austrian forest scientist (* 1908 )
• February 10 : Wolfgang Lettl , German surrealist painter (* 1919 )
• February 10 : Peter Marginter , Austrian author and translator (* 1934 )
• February 10 : Inga Nielsen , Danish opera singer (* 1946 )
• February 10 : Roy Scheider , American film actor (* 1932 )
• February 11 : Emilio Carballido , Mexican playwright and screenwriter (* 1925 )
• February 11 : Tom Lantos , Hungarian-American politician (* 1928 )
• February 11 : Alfredo Alves Reinado , East Timorese military and rebel leader (* 1968 )
• February 12 : Monica Morell , Swiss pop singer (* 1953 )
• February 12 : Imad Mughniyya , Lebanese Hezbollah functionary (* 1962 )
• February 12 : Badri Patarkatsishvili , Georgian entrepreneur (* 1955 )
• February 13 : Franz Hagmann , Swiss local politician (* 1941 )
• February 13 : Kon Ichikawa , Japanese film director and screenwriter (* 1915 )
• February 13 : Gerhard Neiber , German politician, high MfS functionary (* 1929 )
• February 13 : Peter Orthofer , German-Austrian journalist, author, cabaret writer (* 1940 )
• February 13 : Henri Salvador , French singer (* 1917 )
• February 13 : Karl Schnell , German general (* 1916 )
• February 14 : Werner K. Giesa , German author (* 1954 )
• February 17 : Nicola Agnozzi , Italian bishop (* 1911 )
• February 17 : Klaus-Dieter Baumgarten , German politician and GDR military (* 1931 )
• February 18 : Raymond Kennedy , American writer (* 1934 )
• February 18 : Alain Robbe-Grillet , French writer and filmmaker (* 1922 )
• February 18 : KRH Sonderborg , German Informel painter (* 1923 )
• February 19 : Natalja Bessmertnowa , Russian ballet dancer (* 1941 )
• February 19 : Yegor Letow , Russian punk rock musician (* 1964 )
• February 19 : Teo Macero , American composer, jazz saxophonist and jazz producer (* 1925 )
• February 19 : Franz-Joachim Schneider , old German publisher and visual artist (* 1925 )
• February 19 : David Watkin , British cameraman (* 1925 )
• February 20 : Helmut Sturm , German painter (* 1932 )
• February 20 : Bobby Lee Trammell , American rockabilly musician and politician (* 1934 )
• February 20 : Allen Strange , American composer, musicologist and musician (* 1943 )
• February 21 : Hans Janitschek , Austrian journalist, author, diplomat (* 1934 )
• February 21 : Emmanuel Sanon , Haitian football player (* 1951 )
• February 23 : Janez Drnovšek , Slovenian politician and statesman (* 1950 )
• February 23 : Josep Palau i Fabre , Spanish writer and art critic (* 1917 )
• February 24 : Günther Rücker , German writer (* 1924 )
• February 26 : Buddy Miles , American drummer (* 1947 )
• February 27 : William F. Buckley, Jr. , American author (born 1925 )
• February 27 : Ernst Hiller , German motorcycle racer (* 1928 )
• February 27 : Ivan Rebroff , German singer (* 1931 )
• February 28 : Julian Rathbone , British writer (* 1935 )
• February 29 : Arnold Künzli , Swiss political scientist, philosopher and author (* 1919 )
• February 29 : Philip Rabinowitz , South African athlete (* 1904 )
• February 29 : Wolfram Achtnich , German crop scientist (* 1923 )

March

• 0March 2nd : Jeff Healey , Canadian rock guitarist and singer (born 1966 )
• 0March 3 : Giuseppe Di Stefano , Italian opera singer (* 1921 )
• 0March 3 : Annemarie Renger , German politician, President of the Bundestag (* 1919 )
• 0March 3 : Suzie , Dutch-Swedish singer and artist (* 1946 )
• 0March 5 : Joseph Weizenbaum , German-American computer scientist and science critic (* 1923 )
• 0March 8 : Igor Flach , German blues harp player (* 1966 )
• March 10 : Otto Schnellbacher , American football player (* 1923 )
• March 10 : Heinz Stangl , Austrian painter and graphic artist (* 1942 )
• March 11 : Hans A. Engelhard , German politician, Federal Minister of Justice (* 1934 )
• March 12 : Erik Ågren , Finnish-Swedish writer and poet (* 1924 )
• March 12 : Paulos Faraj Rahho , Archbishop of the Chaldean Catholic Church (* 1942 )
• March 12 : Erwin Geschonneck , German actor (* 1906 )
• March 12th : Lazare Ponticelli , last veteran of the First World War (* 1897 )
• March 14 : Clyde Robert Cameron , Australian politician (* 1913 )
• March 14th : Chiara Lubich , Italian founder of the Focolare Movement (* 1920 )
• March 14 : Pierre Mamie , Bishop of Lausanne (* 1920 )
• March 16 : Peter von Oertzen , German politician (* 1924 )
• March 17 : Jakob Christ , Swiss psychiatrist (* 1926 )
• March 18 : Anthony Minghella , British director and (screenwriter) writer (* 1954 )
• March 18 : Jochen Petersdorf , German satirical writer (* 1934 )
• March 19 : Arthur C. Clarke , British science fiction writer (born 1917 )
• March 19 : Hugo Claus , Belgian writer, painter, author and director (* 1929 )
• March 19 : Paul Scofield , British theater and film actor (born 1922 )
• March 22nd : Israel "Cachao" López , Cuban musician (* 1918 )
• March 24th : Rafael Azcona , Spanish screenwriter (* 1926 )
• March 24th : Carl Obenland , German painter (* 1908 )
• March 24 : Richard Widmark , American actor (* 1914 )
• March 24th : Hal Riney , American copywriter, art director, director in the advertising industry and Oscar-nominated film producer (born 1932 )
• March 25 : Abby Mann , American screenwriter (born 1923 )
• March 26 : Erwin Wickert , German diplomat and author (* 1915 )
• March 29 : Raul Donazar Calvet , Brazilian soccer player (* 1934 )
• March 29 : Josef Mikl , Austrian painter and graphic artist (* 1929 )
• March 30th : Dith Pran , Cambodian photo journalist (* 1942 )
• March 31 : Jules Dassin , American film director (* 1911 )

Day unknown:

• March : Anna Altschuk , Russian poet and visual artist (* 1955 )

April

• 0April 2 : Roger Blachon , French cartoonist (* 1941 )
• 0April 2 : Hans Kellner , German local politician (* 1913 )
• 0April 2 : Ray Poole , American football player (born 1921 )
• 0April 4 : Michael White , Australian psychotherapist (* 1948 )
• 0April 5 : Charlton Heston , American actor, gun lobbyist (* 1923 )
• 0April 7th : Phil Urso , American jazz saxophonist (* 1925 )
• 0April 7 : Joachim Wattendorff , German biologist (* 1928 )
• 0April 8 : Stanley Kamel , American actor (born 1943 )
• April 12 : Dieter Eppler , German actor (* 1927 )
• April 12 : Patrick Hillery , Irish politician, minister and President (* 1923 )
• April 13 : John Archibald Wheeler , American physicist (* 1911 )
• April 14 : Horst Bingel , German writer, poet and graphic artist (* 1933 )
• April 14 : Ollie Johnston , American animator (born 1912 )
• April 16 : Janusz Dolny , Polish pianist and music teacher (* 1927 )
• April 16 : Edward N. Lorenz , American meteorologist and mathematician (* 1917 )
• April 17 : Aimé Césaire , Afro-Caribbean-French poet, essayist and politician (* 1913 )
• April 17 : Werner Dürrson , German writer and translator (* 1932 )
• April 19 : Germaine Tillion , French ethnologist and resistance fighter (* 1907 )
• April 20 : Rudolf Agsten , German politician (* 1926 )
• April 20 : Bebe Barron , American film composer (* 1925 )
• April 20 : Frank Michael Beyer , German composer (* 1928 )
• April 21 : Al Wilson , American soul musician (* 1939 )
• April 22nd : Jaspar von Oertzen , German actor, author, politician (* 1912 )
• April 23 : Jean Daniel Cadinot , French film director and producer (* 1944 )
• April 24th : Rolf Anschütz , German restaurateur (* 1932 )
• April 24th : Tristram Cary , British-Australian composer (* 1925 )
• April 24 : Jimmy Giuffre , American jazz musician (* 1921 )
• April 25 : Humphrey Lyttelton , British jazz musician and author (* 1921 )
• April 26 : Henry Brant , American composer (born 1913 )
• April 27 : Ulrich Dibelius , German musicologist and critic (* 1924 )
• April 28 : Diana Barnato Walker , British pilot (* 1918 )
• April 29 : Bo Yang , Chinese author (* 1920 )
• April 29 : Albert Hofmann , Swiss chemist (* 1906 )
• April 29 : Charles Tilly , American historian, political scientist and sociologist (* 1929 )

May

• 0May 1 : Paulo Amaral , Brazilian soccer player and coach (* 1923 )
• 0May 1 : Bernard Archard , British actor (born 1916 )
• 0May 1st : Philipp Freiherr von Boeselager , German resistance fighter (* 1917 )
• 0May 2 : Alexander May , German actor, screenwriter, director (* 1927 )
• 0May 3 : Martin Finnegan , Irish motorcycle racer (* 1979 )
• 0May 3 : Badi Panahi , German social scientist (* 1935 )
• 0May 4th : Kishan Maharaj , Indian tabla player (* 1923 )
• 0May 6 : Kuno Bärenbold , German writer (* 1946 )
• 0May 8 : Richard Edward Arnold , American country and pop singer (born 1918 )
• 0May 8 : Luigi Malerba , Italian writer (* 1927 )
• 0May 9 : Pascal Sevran , French writer, singer and TV show host (* 1945 )
• May 11 : Eugen Jesser , President and Director of the Vienna Boys' Choir (* 1946 )
• May 12 : Robert Rauschenberg , American pop artist (* 1925 )
• May 12 : Hans Rotta , German publisher, editor, editor and biologist (* 1921 )
• May 13 : Georg Mautner Markhof , Austrian industrialist and politician (* 1926 )
• May 14 : Elmar Ferber , German filmmaker, author and publisher (* 1944 )
• May 15 : Jürgen Kolbe , German philologist, writer and local politician (* 1940 )
• May 16 : Wilfrid Mellers , English music critic, scholar, teacher and composer (* 1914 )
• May 18 : Jonathan James , American hacker (* 1983 )
• May 19 : Vijay Tendulkar , Indian author (* 1928 )
• May 20 : Joachim Erwin , German local politician (* 1949 )
• May 20 : Harald Hein , German fencer (* 1950 )
• May 21 : Gilberte Thirion , Belgian racing driver (* 1928 )
• May 23 : Utah Phillips , American folk singer, poet and trade unionist (born 1935 )
• May 23 : Heinrich Kwiatkowski , German football player (* 1926 )
• May 25 : Ernst Stuhlinger , German-American rocket researcher (* 1913 )
• May 26 : Sydney Pollack , American film director and producer (* 1934 )
• May 28 : Gerhard Konzelmann , German journalist and author (* 1932 )
• May 30th : Gert Haucke , German actor and writer (* 1929 )
• May 30th : Boris Schachlin , Soviet gymnast (* 1932 )
• May 31 : Detlev Albers , German political scientist and politician (* 1943 )

June

• 0June 1 : Josef Lapid , Israeli politician (* 1931 )
• 0June 1 : Yves Saint Laurent , French fashion designer (* 1936 )
• 0June 2 : Bo Diddley , American rock and blues musician (* 1928 )
• 0June 2 : Mel Ferrer , American actor, film director and producer (* 1917 )
• 0June 4 : Reinhard Peters , German conductor and musician (* 1926 )
• 0June 6 : Saeko Himuro , Japanese writer (* 1957 )
• 0June 8 : Peter Rühmkorf , German poet and essayist (* 1929 )
• 0June 9 : Algis Budrys , American science fiction writer (* 1931 )
• 0June 9 : Nan Hoover , Dutch media artist and video pioneer (* 1931 )
• June 10 : Tschingis Aitmatow , Kyrgyz writer (* 1928 )
• June 10 : Elmar Maria Kredel , German Catholic theologian and Archbishop of Bamberg (* 1922 )
• June 11th : Ove Andersson , Swedish rally driver (* 1938 )
• June 11 : Adam Ledwoń , Polish football player (* 1974 )
• June 13 : Gerd Sannemüller , German composer and musicologist (* 1914 )
• June 13 : Willy Schürmann , German painter and graphic artist (* 1913 )
• June 14 : Esbjörn Svensson , Swedish jazz pianist (* 1964 )
• June 15 : Stan Winston , American film designer and director (* 1946 )
• June 17 : Henry Beckman , Canadian actor (born 1921 )
• June 17th : Tsutomu Miyazaki , Japanese serial killer (* 1962 )
• June 18 : Jean Delannoy , French film director and screenwriter (* 1908 )
• June 22nd : George Carlin , American entertainer and author (born 1937 )
• June 22nd : Albert Cossery , Francophone Egyptian writer (* 1913 )
• June 22nd : Klaus Michael Grüber , German theater and opera director (* 1941 )
• June 22nd : Gerhard Meier , Swiss writer (* 1917 )
• June 24th : Pinkas Braun , Swiss actor and translator (* 1923 )
• June 26 : Lilyan Chauvin , French actress (* 1925 )
• June 26 : Jeanne Omelenchuk , American cyclist, speed skater and politician (* 1931 )
• June 27 : Lenka Reinerová , Czech German-speaking journalist and writer (* 1916 )
• June 29 : Hans Caninenberg , German actor and writer (* 1913 )
• June 29 : Don S. Davis , American actor and visual artist (* 1942 )

July

• 0July 1 : Mogens Glistrup , Danish politician (* 1926 )
• 0July 1 : Susanne Miller , German historian (* 1915 )
• 0July 4th : Thomas Michael Disch , American writer (* 1940 )
• 0July 4th : Jesse Helms , American politician, Republican senator (born 1921 )
• 0July 4th : Nicolaus Sombart , German cultural sociologist and writer (* 1923 )
• 0July 4th : Janwillem van de Wetering , Dutch writer (* 1931 )
• 0July 5th : René Harris , Nauruan politician, President of Nauru (* 1947 )
• 0July 7 : Bruce Conner , American artist and film director (* 1933 )
• 0July 7th : Bobby Durham , American jazz drummer (born 1937 )
• 0July 9 : David Paul Ausubel , American educator, learning theorist and university lecturer (* 1918 )
• July 11 : Michael Ellis DeBakey , American physician, cardiac surgeon (* 1908 )
• July 11 : Olga Knoblach-Wolff , German painter, graphic artist and author (* 1923 )
• July 11 : Anatoly Pristavkin , Russian writer (* 1931 )
• July 13 : Bronisław Geremek , Polish historian and politician (* 1932 )
• July 15 : Peter Ala Adjetey , Ghanaian lawyer, university professor and politician (* 1931 )
• July 16 : Ernst Solèr , Swiss writer (* 1960 )
• July 16 : Jo Stafford , American singer (* 1917 )
• July 18 : Michael Aichhorn , Austrian theater maker, actor and artist (* 1949 )
• July 18 : Hildy Beyeler , Swiss art collector and co-founder of Art Basel (* 1922 )
• July 18 : Rudi Hoffmann , German game designer (* 1924 )
• July 20 : Uwe Claussen , German physician and human geneticist (* 1945 )
• July 22 : Estelle Getty , American actress (born 1923 )
• July 22nd : Victor A. McKusick , American human geneticist (* 1921 )
• July 23 : Kurt Furgler , Swiss politician (* 1924 )
• July 25 : Lotte Betke , German theater actress and author (* 1905 )
• July 25 : Hiram Bullock , American jazz guitarist (* 1955 )
• July 25 : Johnny Griffin , American jazz saxophonist (* 1928 )
• July 27 : Youssef Chahine , Egyptian film director (* 1926 )
• July 27 : Horst Stein , German conductor (* 1928 )
• July 31 : Lee Cheong-jun , South Korean author (born 1939 )

August

• 0August 3 : Alexander Solzhenitsyn , Russian writer (* 1918 )
• 0August 5th : Eva Pflug , German actress and voice actress (* 1929 )
• 0August 7th : Andrea Pininfarina , Italian entrepreneur (* 1957 )
• 0August 8 : Tom Drake , Canadian singer-songwriter, screenwriter and director (* 1936 )
• 0August 9 : Mahmud Darwisch , Palestinian poet (* 1941 )
• 0August 9 : Walter Michael Klepper , Romanian-German composer (* 1929 )
• 0August 9 : Bernie Mac , American actor (born 1957 )
• August 10 : Isaac Hayes , American musician and composer (* 1942 )
• August 11th : Fred Sinowatz , Austrian politician (* 1929 )
• August 12 : Donald Erb , American composer (* 1927 )
• August 13 : Henri Cartan , French mathematician (* 1904 )
• August 19 : Leopold Abse , Welsh attorney, Labor Party politician, gay rights activist and author (born 1917 )
• August 19 : Levy Mwanawasa , Zambian President (2002–2008) (* 1948 )
• August 19 : Walter Scheler , German accountant, victim of the uprising of June 17, 1953 in the GDR, honorary citizen of Jena (* 1923 )
• August 20 : Hua Guofeng , Chinese politician (* 1921 )
• August 20 : Gene Upshaw , American football player and official (born 1945 )
• August 21 : Buddy Harman , American drummer (* 1928 )
• August 21 : Wolfgang Vogel , German lawyer, GDR negotiator (* 1925 )
• August 23 : Thomas Huckle Weller , American medic (* 1915 )
• August 24 : Tonino Ascari , Italian racing driver and entrepreneur (* 1942 )
• August 24th : Hansi Lang , Austrian musician (* 1955 )
• August 25 : Peter Bolton , British racing car driver (* 1919 )
• August 25 : Josef Tal , Israeli composer (* 1910 )
• August 26 : Christian Geissler , German writer (* 1928 )
• August 26th : Edip Sekowitsch , Yugoslav-Austrian boxer (* 1958 )
• August 28 : Phil Hill , American Formula 1 racing driver (* 1927 )
• August 30 : Eldon Rathburn , Canadian composer, pianist, organist and music teacher (* 1916 )
• August 31 : Jerry Reed , American country singer, guitarist, actor and songwriter (* 1937 )

Unknown date of death:

• August : Werner Burkhardt , German cultural journalist and jazz author (* 1928 )

September

• 0September 1 : Carl Kaufmann , German athlete (* 1936 )
• 0September 2 : Bill Meléndez , American animator (* 1916 )
• 0September 4 : Dan Bar-On , Israeli psychologist, author, Holocaust and peace researcher (* 1938 )
• 0September 7th : Peter Escher , Swiss composer (* 1915 )
• 0September 7 : Wendelin Schmidt-Dengler , Austrian Germanist and literary scholar (* 1942 )
• September 10 : Robert Glasgow , American organist and music teacher (* 1925 )
• September 11th : Mario de Jesús Báez , Dominican composer and music publisher (* 1924 )
• September 12 : David Foster Wallace , American writer (* 1962 )
• September 15 : Richard Wright , British musician and founding member of the rock band Pink Floyd (* 1943 )
• September 17th : Joachim Koch , German philosopher (* 1954 )
• September 19 : Alois Piňos , Czech composer and music teacher (* 1925 )
• September 20 : Wilfrid Joseph Dixon , American statistician (* 1915 )
• September 22nd : Thomas Dörflein , German zoo keeper (* 1963 )
• September 24 : Bengt Anderberg , Swedish translator and writer (* 1920 )
• September 24 : Ruslan Bekmirsajewitsch Jamadajew , Russian-Chechen politician (* 1961 )
• September 25 : Arthur Glenn Andrews , American politician (* 1909 )
• September 26 : Paul Newman , American actor (born 1925 )
• September 26 : Krystyna Moszumańska-Nazar , Polish composer (* 1924 )
• September 26 : Leopold Wagner , Austrian politician (* 1927 )
• September 30 : Christa Reinig , German writer (* 1926 )

October

• 0October 1 : Detlef Lewe , German canoeist, world champion (* 1939 )
• 0October 4th : Paul Fredrik Karl Åström , Swedish archaeologist (* 1929)
• 0October 7 : George Emil Palade , Romanian cell biologist and Nobel Prize winner (* 1912 )
• 0October 8 : Herbert Bötticher , German actor (* 1928 )
• 0October 8 : Hogan Wharton , American football player (born 1935 )
• October 10 : Alexei Alexejewitsch Prokurorow , Russian cross-country skier and Olympic champion (* 1964 )
• October 11 : Jörg Haider , Austrian politician (* 1950 )
• October 13 : Guillaume Depardieu , French actor (* 1971 )
• October 13 : Eduardo Serrano , Venezuelan musician, conductor and composer (* 1911 )
• October 14 : Pat Moss , British rally driver (* 1934 )
• October 16 : Bob Johnson , American racing driver (* 1927 )
• October 17 : Dieter Stappert , Austrian journalist and team manager in motorsport (* 1942 )
• October 19 : Harold Sanford Kant , American show business lawyer (* 1931 )
• October 21 : Sonja Bernadotte , German entrepreneur (* 1944 )
• October 23 : Rolf Andresen , German sports official (* 1925 )
• October 23 : Peter Gläser , German rock musician (* 1949 )
• October 24 : Helmut Zilk , Austrian journalist and politician (* 1927 )
• October 30 : Gerhard Perl , German classical philologist (* 1927 )
• October 31 : Studs Terkel , American author and radio host (* 1912 )

November

• 0November 1 : Jimmy Carl Black , American drummer and singer (* 1938 )
• 0November 1 : Jacques Piccard , Swiss deep-sea researcher (* 1922 )
• 0November 1 : Shakir Stewart , American music entrepreneur (* 1974 )
• 0November 2 : Ahmad al-Mirghani , Sudanese President (* 1941 )
• 0November 3 : Farideh Akashe-Böhme , German-Iranian author (* 1951 )
• 0November 3 : Alan Ford , American swimmer (* 1923 )
• 0November 4 : Michael Crichton , American writer, screenwriter and director (* 1942 )
• 0November 4 : Chertek Amyrbitowna Antschimaa-Toka , Tuvinian-Soviet politician (* 1912 )
• 0November 4th : Jacques Rossel , Swiss Protestant clergyman (* 1915 )
• 0November 6th : Heiko Engelkes , German journalist (* 1933 )
• 0November 6th : Michael Hinz , German actor (* 1939 )
• 0November 8th : Ali Amrozi bin Haji Nurhasyim , Indonesian terrorist (* 1962 )
• 0November 9 : Ljerko Spiller , Argentinian violinist, conductor and music teacher (* 1908 )
• November 10 : Miriam Makeba , South African singer (* 1932 )
• November 12 : Juanito Arteta , Venezuelan trumpeter and arranger (* 1918 )
• November 15 : Peter W. Jansen , German film critic and journalist (* 1930 )
• November 15 : Robert Schollemann , French racing driver (* 1912 )
• November 16 : Luisín Landáez , Venezuelan-Chilean singer (* 1931 )
• November 15 : Jan Krugier , Polish-Swiss gallery owner and art dealer (* 1928 )
• November 17th : Guy Peellaert , Belgian illustrator and comic book artist (* 1934 )
• November 22nd : MC Breed , American rapper (* 1971 )
• November 22 : Ibrahim Nasir , Maldivian politician, first President of the Second Republic of the Maldives (1968–1978) (* 1926 )
• November 23 : Erik Silvester , German pop singer (* 1942 )
• November 24th : Ryōhei Hirose , Japanese composer (* 1930 )
• November 25 : William Gibson , American playwright (born 1914 )
• November 28 : Lee Baxandall , American writer, translator and activist of the nudism movement (* 1935 )
• November 28 : Gustav Ginzel , globetrotter and Bohemian original (* 1932 )
• November 29 : Uwe Gronostay , German choir conductor (* 1939 )
• November 29 : Jørn Utzon , Danish architect (* 1918 )
• November 30th : Erwin Hasenzahl , German local politician in Hesse and mayor of Michelstadt (* 1914 )
• 000November : Raffaele Andreassi , Italian poet, journalist and documentary filmmaker (* 1924 )

December

• 0December 1 : Peter Maiwald , German writer (* 1946 )
• 0December 2 : Odetta Holmes , American singer (* 1930 )
• 0December 3 : Germain Lefebrve , Canadian singer, choir director and music teacher (* 1924 )
• 0December 5 : George Brecht , American Fluxus artist (* 1926 )
• 0December 8th : Xavier Perrot , Swiss racing driver (* 1932 )
• 0December 9 : Sigi Harreis , German journalist and presenter (* 1937 )
• 0December 9 : Władysław Ślesicki , Polish film director and screenwriter (* 1927 )
• December 10 : Henning Christiansen , Danish Fluxus composer (* 1932 )
• December 11 : Bettie Page , American model (* 1923 )
• December 12 : Tassos Papadopoulos , President of Cyprus (2003-2008) (* 1934 )
• December 13 : Horst Tappert , German actor (* 1923 )
• December 15 : Carlo Caracciolo , Italian publisher (* 1925 )
• December 15 : André Greiner-Pol , German rock musician (* 1952 )
• December 17 : Sammy Baugh , American football player and coach (born 1914 )
• December 17th : Freddy Breck , German pop singer (* 1942 )
• December 17 : Henry Ashby Turner , American historian (born 1932 )
• December 18 : Majel Barrett , American actress (born 1932 )
• December 18 : Claus Grimm (judge) , Vice President of the Federal Fiscal Court (* 1923 )
• December 19 : Renate Apitz , German writer (* 1939 )
• December 19 : Tana Schanzara , German actress (* 1925 )
• December 19 : Sam Tingle , racing driver from the former Rhodesia (* 1921 )
• December 20 : Albin Planinc , Yugoslav chess player (* 1944 )
• December 22 : Lansana Conté , President of Guinea (1984–2008) (* 1934 )
• December 22nd : Peter Steiner , German actor (* 1927 )
• December 24 : Samuel P. Huntington , American political scientist and author (* 1927 )
• December 24th : Harold Pinter , British playwright and Nobel Prize winner (* 1930 )
• December 25 : Eartha Kitt , American singer and actress (* 1927 )
• December 28 : Arthur Oliver Lonsdale Atkin , British-American mathematician (* 1925 )
• December 29th : Freddie Hubbard , American jazz trumpeter (* 1938 )
• December 29th : Rudi Michel , German sports journalist (* 1921 )
• December 31 : Włodzimierz Borowski , Polish painter, installation, concept and performance artist and art historian (* 1930 )

Gallery of the deceased

• 

  January 1: Harald Deilmann (2005)

• 

  January 2: Galyani Vadhana (?)

• 

  January 3: Werner Dollinger (1978)

• 

  January 7: Philip Agee (1977)

• 

  January 11: Edmund Hillary (2004)

• 

  January 15: Brad Renfro (2000)

• 

  January 17th: Bobby Fischer (1960)

• 

  January 19: Suzanne Pleshette (1991)

• 

  January 20: Louis de Cazenave (1918)

• 

  January 22: Claude Piron (2005)

• 

  January 22: Heath Ledger (2006)

• 

  January 26: George Habasch (1969)

• 

  January 27: Gordon B. Hinckley (2007)

• 

  January 27: Botho Prince zu Sayn-Wittgenstein-Hohenstein (?)

• 

  January 27: Suharto (1993)

• 

  January 28: Christodoulos I (2007)

• 

  January 28: Marie Takvam (1965)

• 

  January 30th: Marcial Maciel (2004)

• 

  January 31: Veronika Bayer (2007)

• 

  January 31: Eva Heller (?)

• 

  February 2: Earl Butz (?)

• 

  February 2: Joshua Lederberg (?)

• 

  February 2: Barry Morse (2007)

• 

  February 4th: Stefan Meller (?)

• 

  February 5: Maharishi Mahesh Yogi (2007)

• 

  February 6: Dieter Noll (1966)

• 

  February 10: Roy Scheider (2007)

• 

  February 11: Tom Lantos (?)

• 

  February 12: Badri Patarkatsishvili (2006)

• 

  February 13: Kon Ichikawa (1950s)

• 

  February 13: Henri Salvador (2006)

• 

  February 18: Alain Robbe-Grillet (?)

• 

  February 18: KRH Sonderborg (1962)

• 

  February 19: Yegor Letow (2000)

• 

  February 19: Teo Macero (1996)

• 

  February 23: Janez Drnovšek (2004)

• 

  February 27: Ivan Rebroff (2006)

• 

  February 29th: Wolfram Achtnich (?)

• 

  March 2: Jeff Healey (2002)

• 

  March 3: Annemarie Renger (1973)

• 

  March 5: Joseph Weizenbaum (2005)

• 

  March 11: Hans A. Engelhard (1990)

• 

  March 12: Lazare Ponticelli (2006)

• 

  March 19: Arthur C. Clarke (2005)

• 

  March 19: Hugo Claus (1961)

• 

  March 19: Paul Scofield (1975)

• 

  March 24: Richard Widmark (1991)

• 

  March 30th: Dith Pran (2007)

• 

  April 4: Michael White (2006)

• 

  April 5: Charlton Heston (2001)

• 

  April 13: John Archibald Wheeler (1963)

• 

  April 14: Ollie Johnston (1989)

• 

  April 20: Frank Michael Beyer (1993)

• 

  April 24th: Rolf Anschütz (1984)

• 

  April 25: Humphrey Lyttelton (2006)

• 

  April 29: Albert Hofmann (2006)

• 

  May 12: Robert Rauschenberg (1999)

• 

  May 19: Vijay Tendulkar (2007)

• 

  May 26: Sydney Pollack (2006)

• 

  May 30: Gert Haucke (1988)

• 

  May 30th: Boris Schachlin (1966)

• 

  June 1: Josef Lapid (1961)

• 

  June 2: Bo Diddley (1997)

• 

  June 8: Peter Rühmkorf (2004)

• 

  June 9: Algis Budrys (1985)

• 

  June 9: Nan Hoover (2007)

• 

  June 10: Tschingis Aitmatow (2003)

• 

  June 11: Ove Andersson (2002)

• 

  June 14: Esbjörn Svensson (2007)

• 

  June 22: George Carlin (2008)

• 

  June 27: Lenka Reinerová (2003)

• 

  June 29: Don S. Davis (2001)

• 

  July 4th: Thomas Michael Disch (2008)

• 

  July 4th: Jesse Helms (?)

• 

  July 4th: Janwillem van de Wetering (1982)

• 

  July 11: Michael Ellis DeBakey (2002)

• 

  July 11: Olga Knoblach-Wolff (1999)

• 

  July 11th: Anatoly Pristavkin (?)

• 

  July 13: Bronisław Geremek (2004)

• 

  July 16: Jo Stafford (1946)

• 

  July 20: Uwe Claussen (2008)

• 

  July 22: Estelle Getty (1989)

• 

  July 22: Victor Almon McKusick (?)

• 

  July 23: Kurt Furgler (?)

• 

  July 25: Hiram Bullock (2006)

• 

  July 25: Johnny Griffin (2007)

• 

  July 27: Youssef Chahine (1982)

• 

  July 27: Horst Stein (1985)

• 

  August 3: Alexander Solzhenitsyn (1998)

• 

  August 5th: Eva Pflug (2000)

• 

  August 9: Walter Michael Klepper (1970s)

• 

  August 9: Bernie Mac (2008)

• 

  August 10: Isaac Hayes (2007)

• 

  August 11th: Fred Sinowatz (?)

• 

  August 13: Henri Cartan (1968)

• 

  August 19: Levy Mwanawasa (2006)

• 

  August 20: Hua Guofeng (1978)

• 

  August 24: Hansi Lang (2008)

• 

  August 25: Josef Tal (1987)

• 

  August 28: Phil Hill (1991)

• 

  September 1: Carl Kaufmann (1960)

• 

  September 7: Wendelin Schmidt-Dengler (2007)

• 

  September 12: David Foster Wallace (2006)

• 

  September 15: Richard Wright (2006)

• 

  September 22nd: Thomas Dörflein (2007)

• 

  September 24: Ruslan Yamadayev (2004)

• 

  September 26: Paul Newman (2007)

• 

  October 10: Alexei Prokurorow (2002)

• 

  October 11: Jörg Haider (2008)

• 

  October 13: Guillaume Depardieu (2005)

• 

  October 14: Pat Moss (1963)

• 

  October 24: Helmut Zilk (2008)

• 

  October 31: Studs Terkel (2007)

• 

  November 1: Jimmy Carl Black (2002)

• 

  November 1st: Jacques Piccard (?)

• 

  November 3: Farideh Akashe-Böhme (?)

• 

  November 4th: Michael Crichton (2002)

• 

  November 6: Heiko Engelkes (2007)

• 

  November 10: Miriam Makeba (1969)

• 

  William Gibson (1964)

• 

  November 29: Uwe Gronostay (2005)

• 

  December 2: Odetta Holmes (1961)

• 

  December 11: Bettie Page (?)

• 

  December 12th: Tassos Papadopoulos (?)

• 

  December 13: Horst Tappert (1971)

• 

  December 17: Sammy Baugh (1938)

• 

  December 18: Majel Barrett (2006)

• 

  December 19: Tana Schanzara (2000)

• 

  December 20: Albin Planinc (1973)

• 

  December 22nd: Peter Steiner (2007)

• 

  December 24: Samuel P. Huntington (2004)

• 

  December 24th: Harold Pinter (2005)

• 

  December 25: Eartha Kitt (2007)

• 

  December 29: Freddie Hubbard (1976)

Nobel Prizes

Martti Ahtisaari is awarded the Nobel Peace Prize

Prize winners in economics, chemistry and physics

The 2008 Nobel Prize winners were announced from October 6th to 13th. The award ceremony took place in Stockholm and Oslo on December 10, 2008.

• Medicine or Physiology : Harald zur Hausen for discovering that human papillomaviruses can cause cervical cancer , and Françoise Barré-Sinoussi and Luc Montagnier for discovering the HI virus
• Physics : Yōichirō Nambu for his discovery of mechanisms for spontaneous symmetry breaking in the subatomic area , as well as Makoto Kobayashi and Toshihide Masukawa for their discovery of the origin of symmetry breaking , which led to the prediction of at least three generations of quarks in nature.
• Chemistry : Osamu Shimomura , Martin Chalfie and Roger Tsien for the discovery and development of the green fluorescent protein .
• Literature : Jean-Marie Gustave Le Clézio , "the author of the new beginnings, the poetic adventure and the sensual ecstasy, the explorer of a humanity outside and below the ruling civilization".
• Peace : Martti Ahtisaari for his important efforts to resolve international conflicts on different continents and over three decades.
• Alfred Nobel Memorial Prize for Economics : Paul Krugman "for the analysis of trade patterns and areas of economic activity."

Annual review in the media

• Review of the year 2008. FAZ.net, accessed on December 31, 2008 . 
• Annual review. That was 2008. Focus Online, accessed December 31, 2008 . 
• Editorial from the “NZZ Chronik” 2008. NZZ Online, December 12, 2008, archived from the original on December 23, 2008 ; accessed on May 9, 2015 . 
• Annual review 2008. sueddeutsche.de, accessed on December 31, 2008 . 
• Annual review 2008. Month after month - the big review. Welt Online, accessed December 31, 2008 . 
• Jan Ross: 2008: The year that got faster and faster. Zeit Online, December 23, 2008, accessed December 31, 2008 . 
• Lukas Hermsmeier: The year of the potato - positive numbers 2008. Cicero Online, December 23, 2008, accessed on December 31, 2008 . 

Web links

Commons : 2008  - collection of pictures, videos and audio files

 Wikinews: 2008  - in the news

• Annual review from tagesschau.de
• Annual chronicle of the House of History of the FRG

Individual evidence

1. ↑ n-tv.de: Medvedev elected (accessed June 18, 2017)
2. ↑ FTD: Embryo cloned from skin cells ( Memento from January 19, 2008 in the Internet Archive ) /
3. ↑ Current climate statistics - 2008 among the top ten warmest years. In: tagesschau.de. ARD, February 24, 2009, archived from the original on February 27, 2009 ; accessed on May 9, 2015 . 
4. ↑ Der Standard : Page no longer available , search in web archives: Today at noon announcement of the price for medicine of October 8, 2008.
5. ↑ Press release of the Nobel Foundation on the award of the Nobel Prize for Medicine (PDF; 249 kB), October 6, 2008.
6. ↑ Press release of the Nobel Foundation on the award of the Nobel Prize in Physics , October 7, 2008.
7. ↑ Press release of the Nobel Foundation on the award of the Nobel Prize in Chemistry , October 8, 2008.
8. ↑ Press release of the Nobel Foundation on the award of the Nobel Prize for Literature (PDF; 23 kB), October 9, 2008.
9. ↑ Press release of the Nobel Foundation on the award of the Nobel Peace Prize , October 10, 2008.
10. ↑ Press release of the Nobel Foundation on the award of the prize , October 13, 2008.