Year by year · 21st century

2012

2012 in world history: 5 events and 4 deaths. 188 recorded states existed that year.

Events

  1. 27 July

    Danny Boyle's ceremony opens the London Olympics

    The London 2012 Olympics opened with 'Isles of Wonder', a ceremony tracing Britain from rural idyll through the Industrial Revolution to the NHS and pop culture. It was watched by hundreds of millions.

    Industrial RevolutionLondon

  2. 25 August

    Neil Armstrong dies aged 82

    Neil Armstrong, the first person to walk on the Moon, died in Cincinnati after heart surgery. A modest engineer, he largely avoided the celebrity that followed Apollo 11.

  3. 29 October

    Hurricane Sandy makes landfall in New Jersey

    Sandy came ashore near Atlantic City, bringing a record storm surge that flooded lower Manhattan and the New York subway. Across the Caribbean and North America it killed more than 230 people.

    North AmericaCaribbeanNew York

  4. Event

    Marikana massacre

    The Marikana massacre took place on 16 August 2012 near the Lonmin platinum mine at Marikana in North West Province, South Africa, when police opened fire on striking miners, killing 34.

ProfileState185 states with a known seat in 2012Open the atlas at 2012 →

In the profiles

Died in 2012 4

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Cite this page
APA
The Epoch Institute. (2026). 2012. In The Epoch Institute, Year by Year. https://the-epoch-institute.org/years/2012
MLA
“2012.” The Epoch Institute, Year by Year, The Epoch Institute, 2026, https://the-epoch-institute.org/years/2012. Accessed .
Chicago
The Epoch Institute. “2012.” The Epoch Institute, Year by Year. 2026. https://the-epoch-institute.org/years/2012.
Harvard
The Epoch Institute (2026) ‘2012’, The Epoch Institute, Year by Year. Available at: https://the-epoch-institute.org/years/2012 (Accessed: ).