- 1604 - François Hédelin, abbé d'Aubignac, French writer born
- 1792 - Percy Bysshe Shelley, English poet born
- 1859 - Knut Hamsun, Norwegian writer born
- 1904 - Witold Gombrowicz, Polish novelist and dramatist born
- 1913 - Robert Hayden, American poet born
- 1936 - Assia Djebar, Algerian writer born