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: Painter Clear ×
Alix d'Anethan
1848 - 1921
George Weissbort
1928 - 2013
Édouard Duyck
1856 - 1897
Henri Lallemand
1809 - 1892
Adrien-Paul Duerinckx
1888 - 1938
Alfred Ruytinckx
1871 - 1908
Marie-Louise Verwée
1906 - 2010
Guy Vandenbranden
1926 - 2014
Jean-Baptiste De Roy
1759 - 1839
Fritz Toussaint
1846 - 1920
Robert Preyer
1930 - 2012
José Dierickx
1865 - 1959
Léon Houyoux
1856 - 1940
Henri van Seben
1825 - 1913
Henri Baes
1850 - 1920
Émile Sacré
1844 - 1882
Luc Mondry
1938 - 1999
Patrick Guns
Born 1962
Pierre Scoupreman
1873 - 1960
Emma Ronner
1860 - 1936
Joos van Liere
1500 - 1583
Balthazar-François Tasson-Snel
1811 - 1890
Henri Gabriel
1918 - 1994
Roland Palmaerts
Born 1953
Adolphe Keller
1880 - 1968
Firmin Verhevick
1874 - 1962
Henry Janlet
1857 - 1935
Robert Picard (peintre)
1870 - 1941
Léon Van den Houten
1874 - 1944
Félix Buelens
1850 - 1921
Kris van de Giessen
Born 1942
Mayken Coecke
1545 - 1578
Jules Raeymaekers
1833 - 1904
Marcel Pire
1913 - 1991
François Xavier Joseph Jacquin
1756 - 1826
Pierre Schwarz
Born 1950
Mary Gasparioli
Born 1856
Maurice Romberg
1861 - 1943
Franz de Hamilton
1640 - 1695
Hubert Olyff
1900 - 1977
Franz Seghers
1849 - 1939
Charles Billoin
1813 - 1869
Charles Van Roose
1883 - 1960
Arthur Grosemans
1906 - 1995
Eugène Frey
1863 - 1930
Maximilien De Haese
1712 - 1787
Max Van Dyck
1902 - 1992
Bonaventure Fieullien
1903 - 1976
Jules Lentrein
1875 - 1943
Karl Wilhelm de Hamilton
1668 - 1754
Pierre-Willy De Muylder
1921 - 2013
Herbert Jonckers
1953 - 1996
Thomas Lefèbvre
1636 - 1720
Pieter Stalpaert
1572 - 1639
Jean-François Thys
1780 - 1865
Jean De Bremaeker
1908 - 2007
Emile Vauthier
1864 - 1946
Pieter van Orley
1638 - 1708
Paul Timper
1937 - 2010
Mariette Salbeth
Born 1929
Guy Huygens
Born 1924
Paul Blieck
1867 - 1901
Pierre-François Jacobs
1780 - 1808
Gabriël van der Hofstadt
1620 - 1690
Jeanlouis Boccar
Born 1963
Engelhard de Pee
1560 - 1605
Remi Smits
1921 - 2001
Hieronymus van Orley
Born 1590
Amélie van Assche
Born 1804
Fernand Wesly
1894 - 1983
Caroline Chariot-Dayez
Born 1958
Marten Waefelaerts
1748 - 1799
Guy Ducaté
Born 1936
Jean-Anatole Langrand
1849 - 1907
François Bossaerts
1879 - 1960
Remigius van Rheni
1560 - 1620
Igor-Albert Swingedau
1939 - 2008
Frans Boudewijns
1682 - 1767
Claude Albert Sevin
Died 1676
Jules Vandievoet
1885 - 1947
Albert Cortvriendt
1875 - 1920
Albert Rigaux
1897 - 1981
Philippe Schott
1885 - 1964
Louis Barnaba
1826 - 1892
Guy Verton
1928 - 2009
Jean-Louis Minne
1876 - 1951
Mathilde Corr
1813 - 1888
Paul De Gobert
Born 1949
Christian Satin
Born 1946
Gaston Kuypers
1903 - 1997
Jacques Joseph Spaak
1742 - 1825
Jacques Lejeune (peintre)
Born 1931
Adriaen van der Burch
1560 - 1602
Richard Waegeneer
Born 1931
Henri Snykens
Born 1854
Léopold-Jean Daras
1902 - 1980
Dupont detto Pointié
1660 - 1712
Ray Serste
Born 1959
Maximilien Lambert Gelissen
1786 - 1867