In History, Today on November 16

The United Nations General Assembly adopted a resolution declaring 2022 to 2032 as the International Decade of Indigenous Languages to draw attention to the critical loss of Indigenous languages and the urgent need to preserve, revitalize, and promote them.

The kilogram was redefined in terms of the Planck constant, changing the way this unit of mass is measured in the International System of Units (SI).

Xi Jinping was appointed as the General Secretary of the Communist Party of China, marking the beginning of his leadership in China.

The United States Senate passes the Food Safety Modernization Act, aiming to ensure the U.S. food supply is safe by shifting the focus from responding to contamination to preventing it.

SNCF, France's state-owned railway company, recognized its role in transporting Jews to Nazi concentration camps during World War II, stating its commitment to remember but not take direct responsibility.

Nintendo released the Wii, their seventh-generation video game console, in North America, revolutionizing motion controls in gaming and becoming one of the best-selling consoles of its generation.

NASA's X-43A scramjet sets a new speed record for aircraft at approximately Mach 9.6.

A series of bombings targeting synagogues occurred in Istanbul, Turkey, killing 27 people and injuring over 300 in one of the deadliest attacks in modern Turkish history.

The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted Resolution 1441, giving Iraq a final opportunity to comply with disarmament obligations and threatening serious consequences for any further violations.

The first Harry Potter film, 'Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone' (known as 'Harry Potter and the Sorcerer's Stone' in the United States), was released in theaters, marking the beginning of a highly successful film franchise.

Bill Clinton, President of the United States, became the first American head of state to visit Vietnam since the end of the Vietnam War, seeking to promote bilateral relations and support economic reforms in Vietnam.

After nearly 18 years of restoration work, Michelangelo's frescoes in the Sistine Chapel were unveiled to the public.

The People's Republic of China announced that it would release 211 political prisoners and reduce sentences for 48 others.

The Supreme Soviet of the Estonian SSR declares that Estonia is 'sovereign' but stops short of declaring independence.

U.S. President Richard Nixon signs the Trans-Alaska Pipeline Authorization Act into law, authorizing the construction of the Alaska Pipeline.

The Sound of Music, a musical by Richard Rodgers and Oscar Hammerstein II, opened on Broadway at the Lunt-Fontanne Theatre.

UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization) is founded.

Swiss chemist Albert Hofmann first synthesizes LSD at Sandoz Laboratories in Basel, Switzerland, though its psychoactive properties are not discovered until 1943.

The United States and the Soviet Union establish formal diplomatic relations.

Oklahoma becomes the 46th state of the United States.

Louis Riel, a Canadian political and Métis leader, was executed for treason in Regina, Northwest Territories, after leading the North-West Rebellion against the Canadian government.

The Siege of Knoxville began during the American Civil War, with Confederate forces under General James Longstreet laying siege to the Union garrison commanded by Major General Ambrose Burnside.

A Russian court sentences writer Fyodor Dostoevsky to death for anti-government activities linked to a radical intellectual group. His sentence is later commuted to a term of exile in Siberia.

The Battle of Fort Washington ends in a decisive British victory during the American Revolutionary War.

Battle of Lützen during the Thirty Years' War: King Gustavus Adolphus of Sweden is killed in battle but ensures a Swedish victory against the Holy Roman Empire forces led by Albrecht von Wallenstein. This battle marked a crucial turning point, reinforcing Protestant control in northern Germany.

Spanish conquistador Francisco Pizarro captures Inca Emperor Atahualpa at the Battle of Cajamarca.

Henry III of England died, and his son Edward I, who was on his way back from the Ninth Crusade, succeeded him as the King of England. Edward would be formally recognized as king upon his return to England in 1274.

Pope Urban II calls for the First Crusade at the Council of Clermont, encouraging Europeans to liberate Jerusalem and the Holy Land from Muslim control, setting off a series of religious wars.

The second and final revision of the Codex Justinianus was published. This was part of Emperor Justinian I's comprehensive codification of Roman law, which had a lasting impact on the legal systems of many modern European nations.