On this day — August 4 in African history

Pete Souza, Official White House Photo — CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons

Barack Obama, who in 2009 would become the first African-American President of the United States and whose father was Kenyan, was born in Honolulu, Hawaii.

Sources: Miller Center, University of Virginia ; Encyclopedia.com

Public Domain, Wikimedia Commons

President Thomas Sankara renamed the Republic of Upper Volta to Burkina Faso, meaning "land of upright/honest people," on the first anniversary of his taking power.

Sources: History Snacks ; Advance.hr

Bundesarchiv, Bild 183-R96374 — CC BY-SA 3.0 DE, Wikimedia Commons

Jesse Owens won his second Berlin Olympics gold medal in the long jump, after German rival Luz Long publicly advised him on his technique.

Sources: Olympics.com (International Olympic Committee) ; History.com (A&E Television Networks)

Archives New Zealand — CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons

Ugandan President Idi Amin ordered the expulsion of the country's South Asian minority, giving them 90 days to leave and upending tens of thousands of lives.

Sources: House of Lords Library (UK Parliament) ; UNHCR Canada

Georges Jansoone, CC BY 2.5, Wikimedia Commons

Moroccan forces defeated a Portuguese invasion at the Battle of Alcácer Quibir, killing King Sebastian of Portugal and Sultan Abd al-Malik, a clash so consequential it became known as the Battle of the Three Kings.

Sources: Encyclopaedia Britannica ; Arab America

Abeid Karume, who would become the first president of Zanzibar after leading the 1964 revolution, was born in the Zanzibar Sultanate.

Sources: Tanzania Daily News ; Encyclopedia.com (Encyclopedia of World Biography)