2006

2006 (MMVI) was a common year that started on a Sunday in the Gregorian calendar. It was the 2006th year of the Common Era or Anno Domini designation, the 6th year of the 3rd millennium and of the 21st century, and the 7th of the 2000s decade.

2006 was designated the:
 * International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
 * International Asperger's Year.
 * Year of Mozart, marking the 250th anniversary of the birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

January

 * January 1 – Russia cuts natural gas to Ukraine over a price dispute.
 * January 4 - Ariel Sharon, Prime Minister of Israel, suffers a severe stroke and cerebral hemorrhage; he is rushed to the hospital in serious condition.
 * January 5 – A hotel in Mecca, Saudi Arabia collapses, killing 76 pilgrims visiting to perform hajj.
 * January 12 – A stampede during the Stoning of the devil ritual on the last day at the Hajj in Mina, Saudi Arabia, kills 362 pilgrims.
 * January 15 – NASA's Stardust mission successfully ends, the first to return dust from a comet.
 * January 25 – Pope Benedict XVI issues his first encycylical, Deus Caritas Est.
 * January 27 – Celebrations are held in Salzburg and around the world, for the 250th anniversary of the birth of Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart.

February

 * February 3 – An Egyptian passenger ferry carrying more than 1,400 people, sinks in the Red Sea off the Saudi coast.
 * February 4 – The Wowowee stampede at the PhilSports Arena in Pasig City, Philippines kills 74 people and leaves 600 injured.
 * February 10–February 26 – The 2006 Winter Olympics are held in Turin, Italy.
 * February 17 – A massive mudslide occurs in Southern Leyte, Philippines; the official death toll is set at 1,126.
 * February 19 – Pasta de Conchos mine disaster: Sixty-five miners die after becoming trapped underground, following an explosion in Nueva Rosita, Mexico.

March

 * March 4 – The final contact attempt with Pioneer 10 receives no response.
 * March 9 – NASA's Cassini-Huygens spacecraft discovers geysers of a liquid substance shooting from Saturn's moon Enceladus, signaling a possible presence of water.
 * March 10 – NASA's Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter enters Mars orbit.
 * March 28 – A scramjet jet engine, Hyshot III, designed to fly at 7 times the speed of sound, is successfully tested at Woomera, South Australia.

April

 * April 5 – A swan with Avian Flu is discovered in Cellardyke in Fife, Scotland (the first case in the United Kingdom).
 * April 10 – A fire at the Brand India Fair, Victoria Park, Meerut, Uttar Pradesh, India, kills at least 100.
 * April 11
 * The European Space Agency's Venus Express spaceprobe enters Venus' orbit.
 * President of Iran Mahmoud Ahmadinejad confirms that Iran has successfully produced a few grams of low-grade enriched uranium.
 * April 20 – Iran announces a deal with Russia, involving a joint uranium enrichment firm on Russian soil; 9 days later Iran announces that it will not move all activity to Russia, thus leading to a de-facto termination of the deal.

May

 * May – Human Genome Project publishes the last chromosome sequence, in Nature.
 * May 24 – East Timor's Foreign Minister José Ramos-Horta officially requests military assistance from the governments of Australia, New Zealand, Malaysia and Portugal.
 * May 27 – A 6.3 magnitude earthquake strikes central Java in Indonesia, killing more than 6,000, injuring at least 36,000 and leaving some 1.5 million people homeless.

June

 * June 3 – Montenegro declares independence after a May 21 referendum. The state union of Serbia and Montenegro is dissolved on June 5, leaving Serbia as the successor state.
 * June 9 – July 9 – The 2006 FIFA World Cup begins in Germany.
 * June 18 – The first Kazakh space satellite KazSat is launched.
 * June 28 – Operation Summer Rains: Israel launches an offensive against militants in Gaza.

July

 * July 1 – The Qingzang railway launches a trial operation, making Tibet the last province-level entity of China to have a conventional railway.
 * July 6 – The Nathula Pass between India and China, sealed during the Sino-Indian War, re-opens for trade after 44 years.
 * July 9
 * Italy wins their fourth FIFA World Cup title.
 * S7 Airlines Flight 778 crashes into a concrete barrier shortly after landing, killing at least 122 people and leaving many injured.
 * July 10 – Pakistan International Airlines Flight 688 crashes in Multan, Pakistan shortly after takeoff.
 * July 11 – A series of coordinated bomb attacks strikes several commuter trains in Mumbai, India during the evening rush hour.
 * July 12 – 2006 Lebanon War: Israeli troops invade Lebanon in response to Hezbollah kidnapping two Israeli soldiers and killing 3. Hezbollah declares open war against Israel 2 days later.
 * July 18 – The SS Nomadic, the last floating link to Titanic, returns home to a large reception in Belfast.

August

 * August 11 – A resolution to end the 2006 Lebanon War is unanimously accepted by the United Nations Security Council.
 * August 22
 * Pulkovo Airlines Flight 612 crashes near the Russian border in Ukraine, killing 171 people, including 45 children.
 * The ICM awards Grigori Perelman the Fields Medal for proving the Poincare conjecture, one of 7 Millennium Prize Problems; Perelman refuses the medal.
 * August 24 – The International Astronomical Union defines 'planet' at its 26th General Assembly, demoting Pluto to the status of 'dwarf planet' more than 70 years after its discovery.

September

 * September 19 – Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra of Thailand declares a state of emergency in Bangkok as members of the Royal Thai Army stage a coup d'état. The army announces the removal of Prime Minister Thaksin Shinawatra from power.
 * September 29 – Gol Flight 1907 (Boeing 737-800) collides with a business jet over the Amazon Rainforest, killing all 155 onboard.

October

 * October 9 – North Korea claims to have conducted its first-ever nuclear test.
 * October 13 – South Korean Ban Ki-moon is elected as the new Secretary-General of the United Nations.
 * October 29 – Aviation Development Company Flight 53 crashes shortly after takeoff in Nigeria killing 96 people.

November

 * November 2 – No. 5, 1948 by Jackson Pollock becomes the most expensive painting after it was sold privately at $140 million.
 * November 5 – Former President of Iraq Saddam Hussein is sentenced to death by hanging by the Iraqi Special Tribunal.
 * November 8 - Mercury transits the sun. It is visible from the Americas, Eastern China, Japan, Australia, and Polynesia.
 * November 12 – The former Soviet republic of South Ossetia holds a referendum on independence from Georgia.
 * November 15 – Al Jazeera launches its English language news channel, Al Jazeera English.
 * November 23 – A series of car bombs and mortar attacks in Sadr City, Baghdad, kill at least 215 people and injure 257 other people.
 * November 30 – Typhoon Durian triggers a massive mudslide and kills at least 720 people in Albay province on the island of Luzon in the Philippines.

December

 * December 5 – The military seizes power in Fiji, in a coup d'état led by Commodore Josaia Voreqe "Frank" Bainimarama.
 * December 13 – The Chinese River Dolphin or Baiji becomes extinct.
 * December 24 – Ethiopia admits its troops have intervened in Somalia.
 * December 26 – An oil pipeline explodes in Nigeria's commercial capital, Lagos, killing at least 200 people.
 * December 30 – Basque nationalist group ETA detonates a van bomb at Madrid-Barajas Airport in Madrid, Spain, ending a nine-month ceasefire.

Births

 * September 6 – Prince Hisahito of Akishino, son of Kiko, Princess Akishino and Prince Akishino

January

 * January 3 – Bill Skate, Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea (b. 1954)
 * January 4 – Sheikh Maktoum bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Prime Minister of the United Arab Emirates (b. 1946)
 * January 6 – Lou Rawls, American singer (b. 1933)
 * January 7 – Heinrich Harrer, mountaineer, explorer and author (b. 1912)
 * January 14 – Shelley Winters, American actress (b. 1920)
 * January 15 – Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, Emir of Kuwait (b. 1926)
 * January 19 – Wilson Pickett, American singer (b. 1941)
 * January 21 – Ibrahim Rugova, first President of Kosovo (b. 1944)
 * January 24 – Chris Penn, American actor (b. 1965)
 * January 27 – Johannes Rau, President of Germany (b. 1931)
 * January 30 – Coretta Scott King, American civil rights activist and wife of Martin Luther King, Jr. (b. 1927)

February

 * February 1
 * Dick Brooks, American auto racer (b. 1942)
 * Bryce Harland, New Zealand diplomat (b. 1931)
 * February 3 – Al Lewis, American actor (b. 1923)
 * February 4 – Betty Friedan, American feminist, activist, and writer (b.1921)
 * February 8
 * Ron Greenwood, English football manager (b. 1921)
 * Akira Ifukube, Japanese classical music/film composer (b. 1914)
 * February 9 – Sir Freddie Laker, British airline entrepreneur (b. 1922)
 * February 10 – J Dilla, American music producer (b. 1974)
 * February 12
 * Peter Benchley, American writer (b. 1940)
 * Ken Hart, American composer, journalist, and playwright (b. 1917)
 * February 13
 * Andreas Katsulas, American actor (b. 1946)
 * P. F. Strawson, English philosopher (b. 1919)
 * February 14 – Shoshana Damari, Israeli singer and actress (b. 1923)
 * February 15 – Sun Yun-suan, Premier of the Republic of China (b. 1913)
 * February 16 – Ernie Stautner, German-born American football player (b. 1925)
 * February 20 – Lucjan Wolanowski, Polish journalist, writer and traveler (b. 1920)
 * February 22
 * Anthony Burger, American musician and singer (b. 1961)
 * Sinnathamby Rajaratnam, Singapore politician (b. 1925)
 * February 23
 * Mauri Favén, Finnish painter (b. 1920)
 * Zarra, Spanish footballer (b. 1921)
 * February 24
 * Don Knotts, American actor (b. 1924)
 * Dennis Weaver, American actor (b. 1924)
 * February 25
 * Darren McGavin, American actor (b. 1922)
 * Florian ZaBach, American musician and TV personality (b. 1931)
 * February 27 – Linda Smith, English comedian (b. 1958)

March

 * March 1
 * Harry Browne, American Libertarian Presidential candidate (b. 1933)
 * Peter Osgood, English footballer (b. 1947)
 * Peter Snow, New Zealand doctor (b. 1935)
 * March 2 – Jack Wild, English actor (b. 1952)
 * March 3 – William Herskovic, Hungarian Holocaust hero and philanthropist (b. 1914)
 * March 4
 * Edgar Valter, Estonian illustrator and cartoonist (b. 1929)
 * John Reynolds Gardiner, American author and engineer (b. 1944)
 * March 6
 * Dana Reeve, American actress, wife of Christopher Reeve (b. 1961)
 * Kirby Puckett, U.S. baseball player (b. 1960)
 * King Floyd, American singer (b. 1945)
 * March 8 – Brian Barratt-Boyes, New Zealand heart surgeon (b. 1924)
 * March 9
 * Hanka Bielicka, Polish actress (b. 1915)
 * John Profumo, British politician (b. 1915)
 * March 11
 * Bernie Geoffrion, Canadian hockey player (b. 1931)
 * Slobodan Milošević, President of Serbia (b. 1941)
 * March 13
 * Maureen Stapleton, American actress (b. 1925)
 * Peter Tomarken, American game show host (b. 1942)
 * March 14 – Lennart Meri, President of Estonia (b. 1929)
 * March 15 – George Mackey, American mathematician (b. 1916)
 * March 22 – Lawrence Stephen, Nauruan politician (b. 1939)
 * March 23 – Cindy Walker, American songwriter (b. 1918)
 * March 24 – Lynne Perrie, English actress (b. 1931)
 * March 25
 * Rocio Durcal, Spanish singer and actress (b. 1944)
 * Richard Fleischer, American film director (b. 1916)
 * March 26 – Paul Dana, American race car driver (b. 1975)
 * March 27 – Stanislaw Lem, Polish writer (b. 1921)
 * March 28 – Caspar Weinberger, United States Secretary of Defense (b. 1917)

April

 * April 2 – Nina Schenk von Stauffenberg, German wife of soldier Claus Schenk von Stauffenberg (b. 1913)
 * April 4 – Denis Donaldson, Irish Republican informer (b. 1950)
 * April 5 – Gene Pitney, American singer (b. 1941)
 * April 6 – Francis L. Kellogg, U.S. diplomat and prominent socialite (b. 1917)
 * April 8 – Gerard Reve, Dutch author (b. 1923)
 * April 11
 * Proof, American rapper (D12) (b. 1973)
 * Les Foote, Australian footballer (b. 1924)
 * June Pointer, American singer (b. 1953)
 * April 12
 * Rajkumar, Indian actor (b. 1929)
 * William Sloane Coffin, American university chaplain and activist (b. 1924)
 * April 13 – Muriel Spark, Scottish novelist (b. 1918)
 * April 15 – Louise Smith, American race car driver (b. 1916)
 * April 17 – Calum Kennedy, Scottish singer (b. 1928)
 * April 18 – John Lyall, British football player and manager (b. 1940)
 * April 19 – Scott Crossfield, American pilot (b. 1921)
 * April 21 – Telê Santana, Brazilian footballer and coach (b. 1931)
 * April 23
 * Alida Valli, Italian actress (b. 1921)
 * Johnny Checketts, New Zealand flying ace (b. 1912)
 * April 24
 * Nasreen Huq, Bangladeshi social worker and human rights activist (b. 1958)
 * Brian Labone, English footballer (b. 1940)
 * Steve Stavro, Canadian businessman and sports team owner (b. 1927)
 * Moshe Teitelbaum, Hungarian-born Hassidic rabbi (b. 1914)
 * April 25
 * Jane Jacobs, American-born writer and activist (b. 1916)
 * Peter Law, British politician (b. 1948)
 * April 29 – John Kenneth Galbraith, Canadian economist (b. 1908)
 * April 30 – Beatriz Sheridan, Mexican actress and director (b. 1934)

May

 * May 2 – Louis Rukeyser, American television host (b. 1933)
 * May 3
 * Karel Appel, Dutch painter (b. 1921)
 * Pramod Mahajan, Indian Bharatiya Janata Party politician and strategist (b. 1949)
 * Earl Woods, American athlete and father of Tiger Woods (b. 1932)
 * May 6
 * Lillian Asplund, last American survivor of the Titanic disaster (b. 1906)
 * Shigeru Kayano, Japanese activist (b. 1926)
 * May 7
 * Richard Carleton, Australian journalist (b. 1943)
 * Steve Bender, German musician (Dschinghis Khan) (b. 1946)
 * May 8 – Iain Macmillan, British photographer (b. 1938)
 * May 10 – Val Guest, British film director (b. 1911)
 * May 11
 * Yossi Banai, Israeli singer and actor (b. 1932)
 * Floyd Patterson, American boxer (b. 1935)
 * May 12 – Hussein Maziq, Former Libyan prime minister (b. 1918).
 * May 13
 * Jaroslav Pelikan, American historian (b. 1923)
 * Johnnie Wilder, Jr., American R&B singer (b. 1949)
 * May 16 – Jorge Porcel, Argentine actor (b. 1936)
 * May 19 – Freddie Garrity, English singer (Freddie and the Dreamers) (b. 1940)
 * May 21 – Katherine Dunham, American dancer, choreographer, and songwriter (b. 1909)
 * May 22 – Lee Jong-wook, Korean Director-General of the World Health Organisation (b. 1945)
 * May 23 – Lloyd Bentsen, American politician (b. 1921)
 * May 24
 * Anderson Mazoka, Zambian politician (b. 1943)
 * Michał Życzkowski, Polish technician (b. 1930)
 * May 25
 * Desmond Dekker, Jamaican singer and songwriter (b. 1941)
 * Tobías Lasser, Venezuelan botanist (b. 1911)
 * Kari S. Tikka, Finnish professor (b. 1944)
 * May 26 – Édouard Michelin, French businessman (b. 1963)
 * May 27 – Alex Toth, American comic book artist and cartoonist (b. 1928)
 * May 29 – Masumi Okada, Japanese actor (b. 1935)
 * May 30
 * Shohei Imamura, Japanese film director (b. 1926)
 * David Lloyd, New Zealand biologist (b. 1938)

June

 * June 1 – Rocio Jurado, Spanish singer and actress (b. 1944)
 * June 6
 * Arnold Newman, American photographer (b. 1918)
 * Billy Preston, American artist and musician (b. 1946)
 * Hilton Ruiz, Puerto Rican jazz pianist (b. 1952)
 * June 7
 * Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, Jordanian militant (b. 1966)
 * John Tenta, Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1963)
 * June 11 – Neroli Fairhall, New Zealand archer (b. 1944)
 * June 12
 * Chakufwa Chihana, Malawi politician (b. 1939)
 * György Ligeti, Hungarian composer (b. 1923)
 * Kenneth Thomson, Canadian businessman and art collector (b. 1923)
 * June 13
 * Charles Haughey, Prime Minister of Ireland (b. 1925)
 * Hiroyuki Iwaki, Japanese conductor and percussionist (b. 1932)
 * June 14 – Jean Roba, Belgian comics author (b. 1930)
 * June 15 – Raymond Devos, French humorist (b. 1922)
 * June 18 – Gica Petrescu, Romanian musician (b. 1915)
 * June 23 – Aaron Spelling, American television producer (b. 1923)
 * June 25
 * Arif Mardin, Turkish-born music producer (b. 1932)
 * Jaap Penraat, Dutch architect and resistance fighter (b. 1918)
 * June 30
 * Mohamed Haneef, Maldivian Politician and former Vice-President of Islamic Democratic Party of Maldives (b. 1946)
 * Robert Gernhardt, German satirist (b. 1937)

July

 * July 1
 * Ryutaro Hashimoto, 53rd Prime Minister of Japan (b. 1937)
 * Fred Trueman, English cricketer (b. 1931)
 * July 3 – Joseph Goguen, American computer scientist (b. 1941)
 * July 5
 * Gert Fredriksson, Swedish kayaker (b. 1919)
 * Kenneth Lay, American businessman (b. 1942)
 * July 6 – Kasey Rogers, American actress, author, and biker (b. 1925)
 * July 7
 * Tom Weir, Scottish climber, author, and broadcaster (b. 1914)
 * Rudi Carrell, Dutch entertainer (b. 1934)
 * Syd Barrett, English singer, songwriter, and guitarist (b. 1946)
 * John Money, Sexologist (b. 1921)
 * Elias Hrawi, former President of Lebanon (b. 1925)
 * July 8
 * June Allyson, American actress (b. 1917)
 * Catherine Leroy, French photographer (b. 1945)
 * July 10 – Shamil Basayev, Chechen rebel (b. 1965)
 * July 11
 * Ross M. Lence, American political scientist (b. 1943)
 * John Spencer, British snooker player (b. 1935)
 * July 13 – Red Buttons, American actor and comedian (b. 1919)
 * July 16 – Bob Orton, American wrestler (b. 1929)
 * July 17 – Mickey Spillane, American writer (b. 1918)
 * July 18 – Raul Cortez, Brazilian actor (b. 1931)
 * July 19 – Jack Warden, American actor (b. 1920)
 * July 20
 * Lim Kim San, Singapore politician (b. 1916)
 * Ted Grant, British politician (b. 1913)
 * July 21
 * Ta Mok, Cambodian military leader (b. 1926)
 * Mako Iwamatsu, Japanese-born actor (b. 1933)
 * July 22
 * José Antonio Delgado, Venezuelan mountain climber (b. 1965)
 * Gianfrancesco Guarnieri, Italian-born Brazilian actor and playwright (b.1934)
 * July 25
 * Ezra Fleischer, Romanian dissident, later Israeli writer (b. 1928)
 * Hani Mohsin, Malaysian actor (b. 1965)
 * July 28 – David Gemmell, British author (b. 1948)
 * July 30 – Murray Bookchin, American libertarian socialist (b. 1921)

August

 * August 3
 * Elisabeth Schwarzkopf, German-born soprano (b. 1915)
 * Arthur Lee, American musician (b. 1945)
 * August 6 – Hirotaka Suzuoki, Japanese Seiyu (b. 1950)
 * August 9 – James van Allen, American physicist (b. 1914)
 * August 11 – Mike Douglas, American entertainer (b. 1925)
 * August 13
 * Tony Jay, English-born actor (b. 1933)
 * Jon Nödtveidt, Swedish musician (b. 1975)
 * August 15
 * Te Atairangi Kaahu, Maori queen (b. 1931)
 * Faas Wilkes, former Dutch football player(b. 1923)
 * August 16 – Alfredo Stroessner, President of Paraguay (b. 1912)
 * August 19 – Oscar Miguez, Uruguayan football player (b. 1927)
 * August 20 – Joe Rosenthal, American photographer (b. 1911)
 * August 21
 * Bismillah Khan, Indian musician (b. 1916)
 * S. Yizhar, Israeli writer (b. 1916)
 * August 23
 * Maynard Ferguson, Canadian musician and bandleader (b. 1928)
 * Wolfgang Priklopil, Austrian kidnapper of Natascha Kampusch (b. 1962)
 * August 26
 * Rainer Barzel, German politician (b. 1924)
 * Clyde Walcott, Barbadian cricketer (b. 1926)
 * August 27
 * Hrishikesh Mukherjee, Indian filmmaker (b. 1922)
 * Maria Capovilla, Ecuadorian supercentenarian and last remaining person born during the 1880s (b. 1889)
 * August 30
 * Glenn Ford, Canadian actor (b. 1916)
 * Naguib Mahfouz, Egyptian writer, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1911)
 * Robin Cooke, Baron Cooke of Thorndon, New Zealand jurist and member of the British House of Lords (b. 1926)

September

 * September 1 – György Faludy, Hungarian poet (b. 1910)
 * September 2
 * Charlie Williams, British comedian (b. 1927)
 * Bob Mathias, American athlete (b. 1930)
 * Willi Ninja, American dancer and choreographer (b. 1961)
 * September 4
 * Steve Irwin, Australian environmentalist and television personality (b. 1962)
 * Giacinto Facchetti, Italian footballer (b. 1942)
 * Colin Thiele, Australian author and educator (b. 1920)
 * September 8 – Hilda Bernstein, English-born author, artist, and activist (b. 1915)
 * September 9
 * Richard Burmer, American composer and musician (b. 1955)
 * William B. Ziff, Jr., American publishing executive (b. 1930)
 * September 10 – Taufa'ahau Tupou IV, King of Tonga (b. 1918)
 * September 11
 * Joachim Fest, German historian and journalist (b. 1926)
 * Johannes Bob van Benthem, Dutch lawyer (b. 1921)
 * September 14
 * Elizabeth Choy, Singaporean World War II hero (b. 1910)
 * Mickey Hargitay, Hungarian-born actor and bodybuilder (b. 1926)
 * September 15
 * Oriana Fallaci, Italian journalist (b. 1929)
 * Abe Saffron, Australian nightclub owner and property developer (b. 1920)
 * September 16 – Rob Levin, American computer programmer (b. 1955)
 * September 17
 * Patricia Kennedy Lawford, American socialite, sister of John F. Kennedy (b. 1924)
 * Dorothy C. Stratton, Director of the United States Coast Guard Women's Reserve (b. 1899)
 * September 19
 * Roy Schuiten, Dutch cyclist (b. 1950)
 * Hugh Kawharu, New Zealand academic and Māori chief (b. 1927)
 * September 20
 * Armin Jordan, Swiss conductor (b. 1932)
 * John W. Peterson, American composer (b. 1921)
 * September 23
 * Malcolm Arnold, English composer (b. 1921)
 * Aladár Pege, Hungarian musician (b. 1939)
 * September 24 – Tetsuro Tamba, Japanese actor (b. 1922)
 * September 26
 * Byron Nelson, American golfer (b. 1912)
 * Iva Toguri D'Aquino, American propagandist for Japan in World War II (b. 1916)
 * September 29 – Walter Hadlee, New Zealand cricketer (b. 1915)

October

 * October 6
 * Buck O'Neil, American baseball player (b. 1911)
 * Wilson Tucker, American writer (b. 1914)
 * October 7 – Anna Politkovskaya, American-born Russian journalist (b. 1958)
 * October 8 – Mark Porter, New Zealand race car driver (b. 1975)
 * October 9 – Paul Hunter, British snooker player (b. 1978)
 * October 10 – Michael John Rogers, English ornithologist (b. 1932)
 * October 11 – Cory Lidle, American baseball player (b. 1972)
 * October 13 – Mason Andrews, delivered America's first test tube baby; former mayor of Norfolk, Virginia (b. 1919)
 * October 14 – Freddy Fender, American singer (b. 1937)
 * October 16
 * Lister Sinclair, Canadian broadcaster and playwright (b. 1921)
 * Valentín Paniagua, President of Peru (b. 1936)
 * October 18 – Anna Russell, British-born comedian and music satirist (b. 1911)
 * October 20 – Jane Wyatt, American actress (b. 1910)
 * October 24 – Enolia McMillan, American first female president of the NAACP (b. 1904)
 * October 25 – Danny Rolling, American serial killer (b. 1954) (executed by lethal injection)
 * October 28
 * Red Auerbach, American basketball coach and official (b. 1917)
 * Trevor Berbick, Jamaican boxer (b. 1955)
 * October 30 – Clifford Geertz, American anthropologist (b. 1926)
 * October 31 – Pieter Willem Botha, former State President of South Africa (b. 1916)

November

 * November 1
 * Adrienne Shelly, American actress & director (b. 1966)
 * William Styron, American writer (b. 1925)
 * November 2
 * Adrien Douady, French mathematician (b. 1935)
 * Wally Foreman, Australian sports commentator (b. 1948)
 * November 3
 * Paul Mauriat, French musician (b. 1925)
 * Alberto Spencer, Ecuadorian footballer (b. 1937)
 * November 4
 * Frank Arthur Calder, Canadian politician (b. 1915)
 * Sergi López Segú, Spanish footballer (b. 1967)
 * November 5
 * Mustafa Bülent Ecevit, Turkish politician, poet, writer and journalist (b. 1925)
 * Samuel Bowers, American Ku Klux Klansman and convicted killer (b. 1924)
 * November 8 – Basil Poledouris, American composer (b. 1945)
 * November 9 – Ed Bradley, American journalist (b. 1941)
 * November 10
 * Gerald Levert, American singer (b. 1966)
 * Jack Palance, American actor (b. 1919)
 * November 15 – Ana Carolina Reston, Brazilian fashion model (b. 1985)
 * November 16 – Milton Friedman, American economist, Nobel Prize laureate (b. 1912)
 * November 17
 * Ferenc Puskás, Hungarian footballer (b. 1927)
 * Bo Schembechler, American football coach (b. 1929)
 * Ruth Brown, American singer (b. 1928)
 * November 20
 * Robert Altman, American film director (b. 1925)
 * Andre Waters, American football player (b. 1962)
 * November 21
 * Pierre Amine Gemayel, Lebanese politician (b. 1972)
 * Hassan Gouled Aptidon, former President of Djibouti (b. 1916)
 * November 22 – John Allan Cameron, Canadian musician (b. 1938)
 * November 23
 * Alexander Litvinenko, Russian-born spy (b. 1962)
 * Philippe Noiret, French actor (b. 1930)
 * Anita O'Day, American singer (b. 1919)
 * Willie Pep, American boxer (b. 1922)
 * November 24
 * Walter Booker, American jazz bassist (b. 1933)
 * Juice Leskinen, Finnish singer and songwriter (b. 1950)
 * November 25
 * Leo Chiosso, Italian poet (b. 1920)
 * Valentin Elizalde, Mexican singer (b. 1979)
 * Phyllis Fraser Cerf Wagner, American actress, journalist and publisher (b. 1916)
 * November 26 – Dave Cockrum, American comic book artist (b. 1943)
 * November 27 – Alan Freeman, Australian-born broadcaster and disc jockey (b. 1927)
 * November 28 – Bernard Orchard, British biblical scholar (b. 1912)

December

 * December 3 – Craig Hinton, British novelist (b. 1964)
 * December 4 – Ross A. McGinnis, American soldier, posthumously awarded the Medal of Honor (b. 1987)
 * December 5 – David Bronstein, Soviet Union chess grandmaster (b. 1924)
 * December 6 – John Feeney, New Zealand documentary film-director (b. 1922)
 * December 7
 * Jeane Kirkpatrick, American political theorist and U.N. ambassador (b. 1926)
 * J. B. Hunt, American trucking magnate (b. 1927)
 * December 8 – Jose Uribe, Dominican Major League Baseball player (b. 1959)
 * December 10 – Augusto Pinochet, Chilean dictator (b. 1915)
 * December 12
 * Paul Arizin, American basketball player (b. 1928)
 * Peter Boyle, American actor (b. 1935)
 * Raymond P. Shafer, American politician (b. 1917)
 * December 13
 * Lamar Hunt, American sports executive (b. 1932)
 * "Homesick" James Williamson, American blues musician (b. 1910)
 * Federico Crescentini, Sanmarinese football player (b. 1982)
 * December 14
 * Ahmet Ertegün, Turkish record executive (b. 1923)
 * Mike Evans, American actor (b. 1949)
 * December 15 – Clay Regazzoni, Swiss race car driver (b. 1939)
 * December 16 – Don Jardine, Canadian professional wrestler (b. 1940)
 * December 18 – Joseph Barbera, American animator (b. 1911)
 * December 20
 * Yukio Aoshima, Japanese politician, novelist and TV-actor (b. 1932)
 * Ma Ji, Chinese actor (b. 1934)
 * December 21 – Saparmurat Niyazov, President of Turkmenistan (b. 1940)
 * December 22 – Elena Mukhina, Russian gymnast (b. 1960)
 * December 23
 * Robert Stafford, American politician (b. 1913)
 * Dutch Mason, Canadian blues musician (b. 1938)
 * Marilyn Waltz, American actress, model, and Playboy Playmate (b. 1931)
 * December 24
 * Braguinha, Brazilian songwriter (b. 1907)
 * Charlie Drake, English comedian (b. 1925)
 * Frank Stanton, American television executive (b. 1908)
 * Kenneth Sivertsen, Norwegian musician, composer, poet and comedian (b. 1961)
 * December 25 – James Brown, American singer (b. 1933)
 * December 26 – Gerald R. Ford, 38th President of the United States (b. 1913)
 * December 29 – Charles Addo Odametey, Ghanaian football player (b. 1937)
 * December 30
 * Saddam Hussein, 5th President of Iraq, executed by hanging (b. 1937)
 * Antony Lambton, Viscount Lambton, British politician (b. 1922)

Nobel Prizes

 * Chemistry – Roger D. Kornberg.
 * Economics – Edmund Phelps.
 * Literature – Orhan Pamuk.
 * Peace – Muhammad Yunus and the Grameen Bank.
 * Physics – John C. Mather, and George F. Smoot.
 * Physiology or Medicine – Andrew Z. Fire, and Craig C. Mello.

Major holidays

 * January 1 – New Year's Day
 * January 6 – Feast of Epiphany or Día de los Reyes Magos (Day of the Magi Kings) or La Fête des Rois (Feast of the Kings).
 * January 7 – Christmas in the Russian Orthodox, Serbian Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Ukrainian Catholic and other Eastern Christian church calendars.
 * January 10 – Islamic festival of Eid ul-Adha begins (ends on January 12).
 * January 11 – Vaikunta Ekadashi is observed by Hindus.
 * January 14 – Mahayana Buddhist New Year.
 * January 29 – Lunar New Year
 * January 31 – Muslim New Year.
 * February 1 – Imbolc Cross-quarter day (Celebrated on February 2 in some places).
 * February 9 – Day of Ashurah.
 * February 13 – Tu Bishvat.
 * February 28 – Mardi Gras.
 * March 13 – Jewish holiday of Purim begins at sunset.
 * March 14 – Sikh New Year.
 * March 21 – Iranian New Year's Day (Norouz).
 * March 30 – Hindu New Year.
 * April 5 – Qingming Festival.
 * April 11 – Birth anniversary of Muhammad.
 * April 12 – Pesach or Passover begins at sunset, continues for a week.
 * April 13
 * Theravada Buddhist New Year.
 * Punjabi New Year.
 * April 14
 * Good Friday in the Western Church Calendar.
 * Sikh Holiday of Vaisakhi.
 * Puththaandu Tamil New Year in the Tamil Calendar, observed by people in Tamil Nadu.
 * April 16 – Easter in the Western Church Calendar.
 * April 21 – Good Friday in the Eastern Church Calendar!
 * April 23 – Easter in the Eastern Church Calendar!
 * May 1 – Beltane Cross-quarter day.
 * June 1 – Jewish holiday of Shavuot begins at sunset!
 * August 1 – Lammas Cross-quarter day.
 * August 2 – Jewish fast of Tisha B'Av begins at sundown; it extends until the night of August 3.
 * September 22 – Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashanah begins at sundown. Continues until nightfall of the 24th.
 * September 23 – First day of Ramadan.
 * October 1 – Jewish holiday of Yom Kippur begins at sundown. Ends at nightfall of the 2nd.
 * October 21 – Hindu festival of Diwali.
 * October 23 – Islamic festival of Eid ul-Fitr.
 * October 31 – Samhain Cross-quarter day.
 * December 15 – Hannukah.
 * December 21 – Wiccans celebrate the festival of Yule.
 * December 25 – Christmas in the Western Church Calendar.
 * December 31 – Islamic festival of Eid ul-Adha begins (ends on January 2, 2007).

In fiction

 * The Bible Code (1997): According to purported codes hidden in the Torah, the apocalypse was to have occurred in 2006. Nuclear wars, major destructive earthquakes, etc., were predicted for 2006 based on Bible Codes.
 * Kid Gravity: According to Penny Galactica's robot UNI, the first year we build cities on Mars.
 * Set in 2006:
 * Driver: Parallel Lines (2006): The first half of the game is set in 1978; the second half is set in 2006.
 * BattleTanx: Global Assault (1999)
 * Tom Clancy's Splinter Cell: Pandora Tomorrow (2004)
 * Perfect Dark (2000) had the "Carrington Institute" created in 2006.
 * Garou: Mark of the Wolves(1999)
 * Dead Rising(2006)
 * Tales of the Abyss (2006)
 * Seven Ancient Wonders by Matthew Reilly (2005): March 20 is the day of the coming of Tartarus.
 * Briefcase Full of Blues by the Blues Brothers (1978): On the opening track "I Can't Turn You Loose,"  Elwood Blues laments that the blues will exist only in the classical music records department of your local public library by 2006.
 * "When I'm Sixty-Four" was written by Paul McCartney when he was a teenager in the 1950s, but wasn't recorded until late 1966 when his own father turned 64; it was released in 1967 on the Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band album; McCartney turned 64 on June 18, 2006.
 * Doctor Who:
 * "Aliens of London" and "World War Three" (both 2005): Set in March
 * "Boom Town" (2005): Set in September
 * "The Christmas Invasion" (2005): Set on December 24-December 25
 * Jeremiah (2002-2004): A viral plague kills every human being that has entered puberty, leaving only children alive.
 * Life on Mars (2006-2007): Central character Sam Tyler travels in time from 2006 to 1973.
 * South Park ("My Future Self n' Me," 2002): An actor portraying a future version of Stan Marsh tells his younger counterpart that he'll be sent to juvenile hall sometime during the course of the year.
 * The West Wing: on November 8, Congressman Matt Santos of Texas defeats Senator Arnold Vinick of California in the 2006 US presidential election.
 * General Hospital: on November 16, Luke and Laura celebrate their 25th anniversary by remarrying.