Jules Verne's Birthday
Next: February 8, 2027
Imagine it, and someone will build it.
The story
Where it comes from
Jules Verne was born in Nantes, France, on 8 February 1828, and this Story marks his birthday. Sent to Paris to study law, he fell in love with literature and the theatre, and dreamed of a new kind of novel that would combine scientific fact with adventure. His publisher Pierre-Jules Hetzel launched his 'Extraordinary Journeys' with Five Weeks in a Balloon in 1863, and more than 60 followed, among them Journey to the Centre of the Earth, Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and Around the World in Eighty Days. He is often called the patron saint of science fiction.
How it's celebrated
There is no formal observance, but his birthday is a perfect excuse for an adventure: read a chapter of one of his novels, watch a film made from his stories, or plan an imaginary journey around the world on a map. Science teachers and librarians often use his books to show how imagination can run ahead of invention.
Did you know
- In Around the World in Eighty Days, Phileas Fogg's steamer stops at Singapore on the way from Calcutta to Hong Kong.
- His books have been translated into more than 140 languages, making him one of the world's most translated authors.
- In 1954 the US Navy named the world's first nuclear-powered submarine Nautilus, after Captain Nemo's ship.
Coming up next
- Shrove Tuesday (Pancake Day) · February 9, 2027
- The Jumbo Jet's First Flight · February 9, 2027
- World Pulses Day · February 10, 2027
- International Day of Women and Girls in Science · February 11, 2027
- Darwin Day · February 12, 2027
- World Radio Day · February 13, 2027