1181

Events

* Jayavarman VII defeats the Cham and assumes control of the Khmer kingdom.
* The word Albigensians is first used by chronicler Geoffroy du Breuil of Vigeois to describe the inhabitants of Albi, France.
* September 1 — Pope Lucius III succeeds Pope Alexander III as the 171st pope.
* Chinese and Japanese astronomers observe what has since come to be understood as a supernova. One of only eight supernovae in the Milky Way observed in recorded history, it appears in the constellation Cassiopeia and is visible in the night sky for about 185 days. The radio source 3C58 is thought to be the remnant from this event.
* The Yowa era, marked by famine, begins in Japan.

Births

* September 26 — Saint Francis of Assisi, Italian founder of the Franciscan Order (d. 1226)
* Teresa of Portugal (d. 1250)

Deaths

* January 30 — Emperor Takakura of Japan (b. 1161)
* March 17 — Henry I of Champagne
* June 30 — Hugh de Kevelioc, 3rd Earl of Chester, English politician (b. 1147)
* August 30 — Pope Alexander III (b. c. 1100–1105)
* Taira no Kiyomori, Japanese warlord (b. 1118)
* As-Salih Ismail al-Malik, ruler of Syria (b. 1163)