50.8462° N, 4.3558° E
BRUSSELS
Most Famous People Born in Brussels, Belgium
- Notable people
- 3,534
- Peak decade
- 1960s
- Median birth year
- 1912
- Most distinctive
- Painter 4.3×
A small capital with an outsized share of painters and architects. Brussels's distinctive professions are painters and architects at more than three times the global rate, alongside sculptors, artists, composers, and a deep film bench — the legacy of the Académie Royale, the franco-belge comics tradition, and a postwar Belgian cinema that punched above its weight. The 19th century is unusually heavy here, when Brussels was one of the wealthiest cities in Europe and art nouveau was inventing itself in the streets around the Palais Royal.
One face per century — the most globally famous figure born in Brussels during each.
Notable Births by Decade
Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1960s with 264 notable births.
What Brussels Is Known For
Click any row to filter the list of people below.
Painter is Brussels's biggest profession — 11% of all notables (399).
Brussels over-indexes on painter — 4.3× the global rate.
Brussels under-produces football — only 0.5× the global rate.
Profession Mix Over Time
Each band shows a profession family's share of Brussels's notable births by decade. Hover the chart for the breakdown at any decade.
- Art & Design
- Politics & Law
- Sports
- Writing
- Film & TV
- Music
- Other
- Field: Composer Clear ×
Toots Thielemans
1922 - 2016
Joseph-Hector Fiocco
1703 - 1741
Pierre Van Dormael
1952 - 2008
Joseph Abaco
1710 - 1805
Paul Gilson
1865 - 1942
Pierre van Maldere
1729 - 1768
François van Campenhout
1779 - 1848
Poldowski
1880 - 1932
Peeter Cornet
1570 - 1633
Nicolas Hotman
1614 - 1663
Eva Dell'Acqua
1856 - 1930
Marios Varvoglis
1885 - 1967
Alexandre Artôt
1815 - 1845
Alphonse Mailly
1833 - 1918
Gustave Huberti
1843 - 1910
Pierre Leemans
1897 - 1980
Auguste Mermet
1810 - 1889
Jean-Joseph Fiocco
1686 - 1746
Paul Danblon
1931 - 2018
Arthur Hoérée
1897 - 1986
Léon Du Bois
1859 - 1935
Frans Krafft
1721 - 1795
René Bernier
1905 - 1984
Aimé Leborne
1797 - 1866
André Robberechts
1797 - 1860
Joseph Gehot
1756 - 1820
Jacques Leduc (compositeur)
1932 - 2016
Raymond Chevreuille
1901 - 1976
Eduard de Lannoy
1787 - 1853
Frédéric van Rossum
Born 1939
Philippe van Wicchel
1614 - 1675
Aimée van de Wiele
1907 - 1991
Charles Loos
Born 1951
Nicolas Gistou
1560 - 1609
David Bee
1903 - 1992
Willem de Mol
1846 - 1874
Jean-Baptiste de Cupis de Camargo
1711 - 1788
Gaston Brenta
1902 - 1969
Lucie Vellère
1896 - 1966
Francis de Bourguignon
1890 - 1961
Jan-Jacob van Turnhout
1545 - 1618
Francis Chassaigne
1847 - 1922
Charles Borremans
1769 - 1827
Robert Janssens
Born 1939
Brice Catherin
Born 1981
Theo Marzials
1850 - 1920
Jean Warland
1926 - 2015
Georges Monier
1892 - 1974
Jean-Baptiste de Pauw
1852 - 1924
José Sevenants
1868 - 1946
Peter Packay
1904 - 1966
Alex De Taeye
1898 - 1952
François de Munck
1815 - 1854
Jan Van den Eeden
1842 - 1917
Désiré Magnus
1828 - 1883
Julio Perceval
1903 - 1963
Joannes Florentius a Kempis
1635 - 1711
Eric Babak
Born 1970
Ernest de Munck
1840 - 1915
Félix Pardon
1851 - 1921
Eugène Godecharle
1742 - 1798
Myriam Alter
Born 1945
Michel Lysight
Born 1958
Gaspar de Verlit
1622 - 1682
Jules De Glimes
1814 - 1881
Ivan Georgiev
Born 1966
Émile Spencer
1859 - 1921
Acid Kirk
Born 1972
Joseph Borremans
1775 - 1827
Toine Thys
Born 1972
Joséphine-Rosalie de Walckiers
1756 - 1836
Jeanne Colin-De Clerck
Born 1924
Tiburtius van Brussel
1605 - 1669
Mady Kirsten
1903 - 1992
Bob Gay
Born 1928