The Highlights of 2002: A Year That Shaped the Future
2002 (MMII in Roman Numerals) was the year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar, the 2002th year of the Common Era (CE) and Anno Domini (AD) designations.
Is 2002 a year special to you? Discover what 2002 was famous for, Key World Leaders of 2002, 2002 Time’s Person of the Year, the #1 song, movie and book in 2002, how old is someone born in 2002 and what Chinese zodiac sign is associated to 2002.
On this page we will address all your questions and curiosities about 2002 to help you enjoy your trip down memory lane.
Table of contents
- What was 2002 known for ?
- Key World Leaders of 2002
- Who was the U.S. President in 2002?
- Who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2002?
- Who was the Pope in 2002?
- 2002: Who was Time's Person of the Year?
- What was the number 1 song in the USA in 2002?
- What was the number 1 song in the UK in 2002?
- What was the most popular movie in 2002?
- What was the best selling book in 2002?
- How old is someone born in 2002?
- What was the Chinese Zodiac sign associated with the year 2002?
What was 2002 known for ?
- In 2002, the Euro was announced as the official currency for twelve members of the European Union and ten new countries were voted to be added to the EU.
- At The Hague, the trial for Slobodan Milosevic, former Yugoslav’s leader, was opened with charges of crimes committed against humanity. Moreover, a 19-year-old civil war ended after the Sri Lankan government and Tamil Tigers signed a cease-fire agreement.
- It was a bad year for India as more than 1000 people died in a bloodshed. It involved Muslim mob firebombing a train that killed Hindu activists, which led to Hindus’ retaliation. On 2 March of the same year, Afghan and U.S troops launched the Anaconda Operation against the Taliban and al-Qaeda fighters that were remaining in Afghanistan.
- It is during this time that Israeli warplanes and tanks attacked the West Bank towns of Bethlehem, Jenin, Nablus, and a couple of others in response to the string of suicide bombings that had taken place in Palestine. The first three months of the same year were also not good for Israel as 14 suicide bombers killed dozens of Israeli civilians while hundreds of others were severely wounded. Luckily, the International Criminal Court won UN ratification while at the same time, U.S refused to sanction.
- In some twists of events, Hugo Chavez who was Venezuela’s president at the time was ousted in a coup but then two days later on April 14, he was fortunate enough to be reinstated. Almost a month later on May 13, Russia and U.S were able to reach an agreement on the landmark arms to reduce nuclear arsenals for both countries by up to two-thirds over a period of the next ten years.
- Meanwhile, The Osbourne’s, MTV’s reality TV show debuted and at the same time the O Brother Where Art Thou’s soundtrack recording won a remarkable five Grammy awards. Sadly, deaths related to AIDS were anticipated to hit the roof if no serious preventative measures were not taken.
- The world population in 2002 was 6,301,773,188 people according to data by United Nations, Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division. This figure includes both urban and rural populations. The urban population at that time accounted for 48.0% of the total population, which is roughly 3.0 billion individuals.The annual population change in 2002 was an increase of +79.0 million people, representing a percentage increase of +1.27% over the previous year.The average population density in 2002 was 26 persons per square mile (or 42 persons per square kilometer).
Key World Leaders of 2002
Who was the U.S. President in 2002?
In 2002, George W. Bush (Republican) was the President of the United States. His term spanned from January 20, 2001 to January 20, 2009. His administration led the U.S. response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks and initiated wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Who was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom in 2002?
In 2002 the UK Prime Minister was Tony Blair (Labour). His premiership saw the introduction of New Labour policies, major public service reforms, and military intervention in Iraq and Kosovo.
Who was the Pope in 2002?
The leader of the Catholic Church in 2002 was Pope St John Paul II who had held the papacy since 1978. During his long pontificate, he played a key role in the fall of communism in Eastern Europe, expanded interfaith dialogue, and was a strong advocate for human rights.
2002: Who was Time's Person of the Year?
The Whistleblowers
In 2002, The Whistleblowers was named by TIME magazine as Person of the Year. Represented by Cynthia Cooper, Coleen Rowley and Sherron Watkins.In 2001, Watkins uncovered accounting irregularities in the financial reports of Enron, testifying before Congressional committees the following year. In 2002, Cooper exposed a $3.8 billion fraud at WorldCom. At the time, this was the largest incident of accounting fraud in U.S. history. In 2002, Rowley, an FBI agent, gave testimony about the FBI's mishandling of information related to the September 11 attacks of 2001.
What was the number 1 song in the USA in 2002?
The number 1 song in the USA in 2002, i.e. the best selling and most popular song of tha year, was Dilemma by Nelly
What was the number 1 song in the UK in 2002?
The number 1 song in the UK in 2002, i.e. the best selling and most popular song of tha year, was How You Remind Me by Nickelback
What was the most popular movie in 2002?
The most popular movie and box office hit was The Lord of the Rings: The Two Towers by Peter Jackson
What was the best selling book in 2002?
How old is someone born in 2002?
Someone born in 2002 is 24 years old this year.
Try out our age, time and generation calculators:
What was the Chinese Zodiac sign associated with the year 2002?
According to the Chinese Zodiac and Astrology 2002 was the Year of the Horse.
Discover Zodiac Sign Characteristics and Personality Traits of people born under the Horse sign.