Significant Birth Date: Difference between revisions

{{trope}}

 

In [[Real Life]], people are born on random dates. In fiction, their date of birth tends to be deliberately chosen for its [[What Do You Mean Its Not Symbolic|symbolic meaning]] - such as [[Leap Day|February 29th]]. The meaning may be straightforward or ironic. It can also, owing to [[When the Planets Align]], have actual meaning.

 

May lead to an [[I Remember Because]]. A specific variation of [[Significant Reference Date]].

 

== Anime and Manga ==

* Aoi from ''[[Ai Yori Aoshi]]'' was born on the day of [[Tanabata]], which celebrates the once-a-year meeting of Orihime (Vega) and Hikoboshi (Altair) across the Milky Way. It's the Asian equivalent to Valentine's Day.

* ''[[Ouran High School Host Club]]'' does this. Honey, who is [[Older Than They Look|older than he looks]], was born on February 29, the joke being that he ages only every four years. The twins Hikaru and Kaoru were born on June 9 (6/9), showing that [[Sibling Yin-Yang|they're alike, but different]]. Or, [[Twincest|you know...]]

* ''[[One Piece]]'':

** Luffy's birthday is on Children's Day (May 5), Usopp's is April Fool's Day, and Chopper's is Christmas Eve. Sanji's, Franky's, and Brook's are word puns. Zoro's birthday is also a word pun, but it falls on Armistice Day.

* ''[[Ojamajo Doremi]]'': Hazuki Fujiwara's birthday is on Valentine's Day, and this plays a role in a "Naisho" episode.

* In ''[[Axis Powers Hetalia]]'', character birthdays are often a country's Independence Day. [[Captain Obvious|This may be because]] [[Moe Anthropomorphism|said characters are personified countries.]]

* ''[[Death Note]]'': What could be a better day for a [[Sweet Tooth|sugar loving]] detective to be born than Halloween, the day random strangers give candy to whoever knocks on their door, and being anonymous is perfectly normal?

** There's also Misa, whose birthday falls on Christmas. Quite appropriate for a character who's [[The Ingenue|childlike]], [[Kawaiiko|cute]] and willing to give of herself to others (specifically, Light).

* In ''[[Lucky Star]]'':

** Akira Kogami: Valentine's day, but not much is made of it.

** The Hiiragi twins' birthday is on [[Tanabata]].

 

== Comic Books ==

{{quote|'''Alberto Falcone:''' ''[To his dad, Carmine]'' Do you even know when my birthday is? I'll give you a hint. It falls on a holiday.}}

* In ''[[Liberality for All]]'', one of the main characters was born on September 11, 2001.

 

== Film ==

* In ''[[The Omen]]'', Damien is born on 6 June at 6 a.m. Think about that a second.

* Provides an in-joke in ''Trail of [[The Pink Panther]]'': We learn that Chief Inspector Jacques Clouseau's birthday fell on September 8. This was the birthday of the role's creator, [[Peter Sellers]].

* ''[[The Bourne Series]]'': Jason Bourne is told he was born on 4/15/71. It's a code, the character telling him that is passing on vital info. {{spoiler|It's not his actual birthday, but a New York address (415 71st Street) where Bourne can find the answers to his questions.}}

* In ''Raintree County'', John and Susanna's son Jimmy is born the day the [[The American Civil War|Civil War]] begins.

* In the first ''[[Final Destination]]'' movie, the main character's birthday is the 25th September. It coincides with the departure time (9:25) and his designated seat (25 I) of the ill-fated flight he was supposed to be on.

* ''[[Jack (film)|Jack]]'', a boy who suffers a unique form of [[Rapid Aging]], was born (prematurely) on Halloween.

 

== Literature ==

* ''[[Harry Potter]]''

** Voldemort was born on New Year's Eve.

* ''[[The Curious Case of Benjamin Button]]'': Benjamin's birthday was the day [[World War I]] ended.

* The main character of ''[[The Eight]]'' by Katherine Neville was born on April 4, which ties in with a lot of the book's numerology and is also said to be an Islamic holy day.

** Harry Dresden was born on Halloween. His mother deliberately had him around that time so that he'd be born with the ability to affect Outsiders.

** [[Horny Devil]] Thomas Raith was born on Valentine's Day.

* In the ''[[Horatio Hornblower]]'' books, or at least [[Retcon|the ones published later]], Hornblower was born on July 4, 1776, something which he is occasionally teased about (it otherwise [[Red Herring|never becomes important]]). It is worth noting that Hornblower was written to be a man of [[Audience Surrogate|20th century sensibilities]] who is fighting in the Wars of French Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars, and thus has some opinions that are regarded as a touch "Republicist" by those who he has offended (or who just feel like needling the nervous skinny guy for fun). Mind you, the author, C. S. Forester, an Englishman though born in Egypt, eventually moved to California to stay, and was likely aiming the books at an American audience. Making Hornblower the same age as the U. S. -- and why not exactly the same age? -- helps fix his place in history in the readers' minds.

* ''[[Misery]]'': Annie was born on April Fool's Day.

 

== Live-Action TV ==

* ''[[Doctor Who]]'', "A Good Man Goes to War":

{{quote|'''River:''' It's my birthday.}}

** {{spoiler|It's also the episode right after Melody's birth.}} Admit it, you went back to this moment when River's identity was revealed.

 

== Music ==

 

== Newspaper Comics ==

* In ''Snake Tales'', the [[Butt Monkey]] Snake's birthday is April 25, Anzac Day.

 

* In the ''[[Spirit of the Century]]'' tabletop role playing game, all player characters were born on 1 January 1901, the first day of the new century.

* The [[Play-By-Post Games|roleplaying game]] ''[[Honorable Hogwarts]]'' adds significant birthdays for several characters, including Valentine's Day for a [[Kavorka Man|ladies' man]], [[V for Vendetta|November 5th]] for a [[Rebellious Spirit]], and Earth Day for another political-activist character. The [[Genius Bonus|Brazilian Independence Day]] even comes into play.

 

== Tabletop Games ==

* In ''[[Magic: The Gathering]]'', Urza was born on the first day of the year and Mishra was born on the last. This meant that Urza was one year older than Mishra except on Mishra's birthday. {{spoiler|That very day is the day that Urza activated the Golgothian Sylex, destroying pretty much everything, including the brother he had been warring against for decades, [[Pyrrhic Victory|"winning" the war]] and [[Ascend to a Higher Plane of Existence|ascending to Planeswalker-hood]].}}

 

== Theater ==

 

== Video Games ==

* One adaptation of the ''[[Sonic the Hedgehog]]'' origins had Dr. Robotnik born on the 6th of June, 2006 - 06/06/06.

* A in-universe subversion of this trope (because the actual date of birth is never revealed in-game): [[The Elder Scrolls III: Morrowind|"...born on a certain day, to uncertain parents..."]]

* The [[Player Character]] of ''[[Fallout 3]]'' was born on 7/13/2258, a reference to [[The Bible]] verse Micah 7:13, "The earth will become desolate because of its inhabitants, as the result of their deeds." It sums up the ''[[Fallout]]'' universe nicely.

 

== Web Comics ==

* In ''[[Eerie Cuties]]'' Nina [[Vegetarian Vampire|doesn't drink blood like normal vampires]], but craves [[Sweet Tooth|chocolate]] instead. The only explanation she and her sister got was that it's because she was born on Easter.

 

== Web Original ==

 

== Western Animation ==

* In the ''[[South Park]]'' episode "Awesom-O", [[Butt Monkey|Butters]]' birthday is revealed to be the 11th of September.

 

== Real Life ==

* Metal guitar virtuoso Steve Vai was born on June 6, 1960 (6-6-60). [[Rock Me, Asmodeus|May explain where he got his near-otherworldly skills...]]

* Princess Beatrice of York (granddaughter of Queen Elizabeth II) was born on August 8, 1988 (8-8-88).

* Physicist [[Stephen Hawking]] was born on January 6, 1942 - Three hundred years to the day after the death of astronomer Galileo Galilei.

* Squick to anyone born exactly 9 months after a parent's birthday.

 

{{reflist}}

[[Category:Birthday Tropes]]

[[Category:Laws and Formulas]]