upright=1.35|thumb|[[Vladimir the Great|Vladimir I (the Great) (c. 958–1015)]]

Year 980 (CMLXXX) was a leap year starting on Thursday of the Julian calendar.

Events

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By place

Europe

  • Peace is concluded between Emperor Otto II (the Red) and King Lothair III (or Lothair IV) at Margut, ending the Franco-German war of 978–980. Lothair renounces his claim on Lower Lorraine, while Otto promises to recognize Lothair's son Louis V as the rightful heir of the West Frankish Kingdom.
  • June 11 &ndash; Vladimir I (the Great), grand prince of Kiev<!--See WP:KIEV-->, consolidates the Kievan realm from modern Ukraine to the Baltic Sea. Vladimir is proclaimed ruler (knyaz) of all Kievan Rus'.
  • Fall &ndash; Otto II sets off on his first expedition to Italy. He leaves the government in the hands of Archchancellor Willigis. Otto is accompanied by his wife, Empress Theophanu.
  • Winter &ndash; Otto II celebrates Christmas with his family at Ravenna. He receives the Iron Crown of Lombardy as the King of Italy.
  • King Harald Bluetooth orders the construction of the Viking ring fortress of Trelleborg (modern Denmark).

England

  • Viking raids from Scandinavia threaten the southern English coast after a pause of 25 years. Hampshire and the Isle of Thanet are ravaged.

Arabian Empire

  • The Dari dialect (which will become the major language of Persia) is developed in the royal courts of the Samanid Empire in Central Asia.

Africa

  • The Kilwa Sultanate, centered at Kilwa (an island off modern Tanzania), is founded by Ali ibn al-Hassan Shirazi, Persian prince of Shiraz.

By topic

Religion

  • Notker (or Notger), Frankish Benedictine monk and bishop, founds the Prince-Bishopric of Liège (modern Belgium) which will remain an independent state inside the Holy Roman Empire for more than 800 years.

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Births

  • July 5 &ndash; Mokjong, king of Goryeo (Korea) (d. 1009)
  • July 15 &ndash; Ichijō, emperor of Japan (d. 1011)
  • Abu Mansur al-Baghdadi, Persian scholar (d. 1037)
  • Abu 'Ubayd al-Juzjani, Persian physician (d. 1070)
  • Adalbero, German nobleman (approximate date)
  • Avicenna, Persian polymath (approximate date)
  • Baldwin IV (the Bearded), French nobleman (d. 1035)
  • Bardo, German abbot and archbishop (approximate date)
  • Benedict VIII, pope of the Catholic Church (d. 1024)
  • Einar Thambarskelfir, Norwegian nobleman (d. 1050)
  • Ekkehard IV, Swiss chronicler (approximate date)
  • Farrukhi Sistani, Persian poet (approximate date)
  • Geoffrey I, French nobleman (d. 1008)
  • Herman I, German nobleman (approximate date)
  • Humbert I, founder of the House of Savoy (approximate date)
  • Pope Nicholas II, pope of the Catholic Church (d. 1061)
  • Olof Skötkonung, king of Sweden (approximate date)
  • Otto III, Holy Roman Emperor (d. 1002)
  • Sviatopolk I, Grand Prince of Kiev (approximate date)
  • Tancred of Hauteville, Norman nobleman (d. 1041)
  • Theodora Porphyrogenita, Byzantine empress (d. 1056)
  • Xuedou Chongxian, Chinese Buddhist monk (d. 1052)

Deaths

  • February 15 &ndash; Berthold, German nobleman (approximate date)
  • September 28 &ndash; Minamoto no Hiromasa, Japanese nobleman (b. 918)
  • Dado (or Dodon), Italian nobleman (approximate date)
  • Domnall ua Néill (or Donal O'Neill), High King of Ireland
  • Eoghan Ua Cathain, abbot of Clonfert (Ireland)
  • Gunnhild, Norwegian Viking queen (approximate date)
  • Ibn Khalawayh, Persian scholar and grammar (or 981)
  • Liu Chang, emperor of Southern Han (b. 942)
  • Yaropolk I, Grand Prince of Kiev (approximate date)

References