National Paperclip Day is on Saturday, May 29, 2027, and it falls on May 29 every year. It honors one of the simplest, most useful office tools ever made: a bent piece of wire that holds paper without tearing it. Its history is more surprising than you might expect.
When Is National Paperclip Day?
It’s always May 29. It’s an unofficial day, popular in offices and classrooms.
Who Started National Paperclip Day?
No founder or start year has been documented.
Who invented the paper clip?
No one person can be credited. From 1867 on, inventors filed many patents for ways to bind sheets with a single piece of metal, Gizmodo reports.
The familiar double-loop design is called the Gem, after the British firm Gem Manufacturing Limited, which may not have created it. The Gem was already being praised in an 1883 book, according to engineer and author Henry Petroski.
In 1899, William Middlebrook filed a U.S. patent for a machine that made wire clips “in lieu of pins.” It contains the first recognizable Gem-style clip in patent records.
The Norway myth
Norwegian patent clerk Johan Vaaler is often called the inventor. He patented a wire fastener in Germany in 1899, but his design lacked the Gem’s second full loop and didn’t grip as well. The title of inventor was given to him after his death.
Why Celebrate the Paper Clip?
Because good design can be simple. The Gem has barely changed in more than a century, which says a lot about how well it works.
A symbol of resistance
During the Nazi occupation of Norway in World War II, Norwegians wore paper clips on their lapels. The clip was a quiet sign of unity, meaning “we are bound together.” Wearing one could get you arrested. People wore them anyway.
A giant paper-clip sculpture now stands outside a school near Oslo. Fittingly, it’s shaped like a Gem, not Vaaler’s design.
How to Celebrate National Paperclip Day
- Make a chain: link paper clips into a necklace or a classroom chain and measure how long it gets.
- Try a science trick: float a paper clip on water using surface tension.
- Test magnets: see how many clips one magnet can hold.
- Organize your desk: clip loose papers, then recycle what you no longer need.
- Use a clip as a tool: reset a device, open a SIM tray or hold a bookmark.
- Design a better clip: challenge kids to bend wire into a new shape and test its grip.
- Learn the history: share the story of the Norwegian resistance with students.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did a Norwegian invent the paper clip?
No. Johan Vaaler patented a different, less effective design in 1899. The Gem clip was already in use before then.
Why is it called a Gem clip?
It’s named after Gem Manufacturing Limited, a British company linked to the design.
Why did Norwegians wear paper clips in WWII?
As a silent protest against the Nazi occupation. The clip stood for people being “bound together.”