55.9533° N, 3.1894° W
EDINBURGH
Most Famous People Born in Edinburgh, United Kingdom
- Notable people
- 2,337
- Peak decade
- 1980s
- Median birth year
- 1919
- Most distinctive
- Botanist 3.0×
Half university town, half capital. Edinburgh's notables are unusually dense in the 1700s and 1800s — botanists, chemists, physicians, judges, and engineers — a footprint that maps almost perfectly onto the Scottish Enlightenment and the Victorian scientific establishment. The modern half adds cricketers and rugby players (grouped in the data as 'player'), but the city's intellectual tilt is still its defining feature.
One face per decade — the most globally famous figure born in Edinburgh during each.
Notable Births by Decade
Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1980s with 175 notable births.
What Edinburgh Is Known For
Click any row to filter the list of people below.
Football is Edinburgh's biggest profession — 22% of all notables (509).
Edinburgh over-indexes on botanist — 3.0× the global rate.
Edinburgh under-produces politician — only 0.7× the global rate.
Profession Mix Over Time
Each band shows a profession family's share of Edinburgh's notable births by decade. Hover the chart for the breakdown at any decade.
- Sports
- Science
- Politics & Law
- Writing
- Art & Design
- Film & TV
- Other
- Field: Politician Clear ×
Tony Blair
Born 1953
Michael Gove
Born 1967
George Hamilton-Gordon, 4th Earl of Aberdeen
1784 - 1860
John Stuart, 3rd Earl of Bute
1713 - 1792
Iain Duncan Smith
Born 1954
Malcolm Rifkind
Born 1946
Gilbert Elliot-Murray-Kynynmound, 1st Earl of Minto
1751 - 1814
Henry Brougham, 1st Baron Brougham and Vaux
1778 - 1868
William Whitelaw, 1st Viscount Whitelaw
1918 - 1999
Leander Starr Jameson
1853 - 1917
Danny Alexander
Born 1972
Tam Dalyell
1932 - 2017
Richard Haldane, 1st Viscount Haldane
1856 - 1928
William Brodie
1741 - 1788
John Hamilton-Gordon, 1st Marquess of Aberdeen and Temair
1847 - 1934
John Anderson, 1st Viscount Waverley
1882 - 1958
James Busby
1801 - 1871
Edward Stafford (politician)
1819 - 1901
Robert Dundas, 2nd Viscount Melville
1771 - 1851
Sir James Fergusson, 6th Baronet
1832 - 1907
Ian Liddell-Grainger
Born 1959
Ian Blackford
Born 1961
James Stuart, 1st Viscount Stuart of Findhorn
1897 - 1971
John Swinney
Born 1964
David Martin (Scottish politician)
Born 1954
Katharine Stewart-Murray, Duchess of Atholl
1874 - 1960
David Boyle, 7th Earl of Glasgow
1833 - 1915
Andrew Murray, 1st Viscount Dunedin
1849 - 1942
Thomas Gibson-Carmichael, 1st Baron Carmichael
1859 - 1926
Robert Hunter (governor)
1664 - 1734
Patrick Jenkin
1926 - 2016
Russell Johnston
1932 - 2008
Ian Murray (British politician)
Born 1976
Anne McIntosh
Born 1954
George Hay, 8th Marquess of Tweeddale
1787 - 1876
Joanna Cherry
Born 1966
Hugo Charteris, 11th Earl of Wemyss
1857 - 1937
Keith Brown (Scottish politician)
Born 1961
Florence Horsbrugh, Baroness Horsbrugh
1889 - 1969
Drew Hendry
Born 1964
John Gollan
1911 - 1977
Walter Lowrie (politician)
1784 - 1868
Douglas Chapman (Scottish politician)
Born 1955
David McLetchie
1952 - 2013
Frank Doran (British politician)
1949 - 2017
John Sinclair, 1st Baron Pentland
1860 - 1925
William Wedderburn
1838 - 1918
Stewart Stevenson
Born 1946
Kenny MacAskill
Born 1958
Chris Law
Born 1969
William Cargill
1784 - 1860
Algernon Keith-Falconer, 9th Earl of Kintore
1852 - 1930
Francis Horner
1778 - 1817
Charles McLaren, 1st Baron Aberconway
1850 - 1934
Arthur Woodburn
1890 - 1978
James Duff, 5th Earl Fife
1814 - 1879
Andrew Cochrane-Johnstone
1767 - 1833
Iain Gray
Born 1957
Jamie Stone (politician)
Born 1954
Andrew Elliot
1728 - 1797
Andrew Taylor (architect)
1850 - 1937
Archibald Primrose, 1st Earl of Rosebery
1664 - 1723
Malcolm Chisholm
Born 1949
Robert Murray Keith (the younger)
1730 - 1795
James Clyde, Baron Clyde
1932 - 2009
Abram Combe
1775 - 1827
Paul Masterton
Born 1985
Ron Brown (Scottish politician)
1938 - 2007
Liam McArthur
Born 1967
Martin O'Neill, Baron O'Neill of Clackmannan
1945 - 2020
Cecil Ramage
1895 - 1988
John Home Robertson
Born 1948
Alison Johnstone
Born 1965
Thomas Baldwin Peddie
1808 - 1889
Henry Scrymgeour-Wedderburn, 11th Earl of Dundee
1902 - 1983
Alexander Stuart (Australian politician)
1824 - 1886
Liz Smith (politician)
Born 1960
James Younger, 5th Viscount Younger of Leckie
Born 1955
Kate Green
Born 1960
Drummond Shiels
1881 - 1953
Graeme Morrice
Born 1959
Alick Buchanan-Smith (politician)
1932 - 1991
Ash Denham
Born 1974
Colin Low, Baron Low of Dalston
Born 1942
Donald Luddington
1920 - 2009
Sir Frederick Thomson, 1st Baronet
1875 - 1935
Petter Mørch Koren
1910 - 2004
James Walker (Australian politician)
1841 - 1923
William Strahan (publisher)
1715 - 1785
Ruth Smeeth
Born 1979
Bill Walker (Scottish Nationalist politician)
Born 1942
Michael Hutchison
1914 - 1993
Samuel Vetch
1668 - 1732
Angus Morrison (politician)
1822 - 1882
David Davidson (Scottish politician)
Born 1943
Robert Livingston the Younger
1663 - 1725
Edward Deas Thomson
1800 - 1879
Mary Fee
Born 1954
Doug Henderson (Labour politician)
Born 1949
Noel Skelton
1880 - 1935
Brian Monteith
Born 1958
Jeremy Balfour
Born 1967
David Christie (politician)
1818 - 1880
Sir John Sinclair, 3rd Baronet
1825 - 1912
Roderick Campbell
Born 1953
Lloyd Quinan
Born 1957
Peter Peacock
Born 1952
William Mitchell-Thomson, 1st Baron Selsdon
1877 - 1938
Esmond Birnie
Born 1965
Sir Andrew Agnew, 8th Baronet
1818 - 1892
Douglas Henderson (SNP politician)
1935 - 2006
David Monro
1813 - 1877
Gordon Prentice
Born 1951
John Petrie
1822 - 1892
Richard Baker (Scottish politician)
Born 1974
Dave Petrie
1946 - 2011
Arthur Otway
1822 - 1912
Robert Farquharson (politician)
1837 - 1918
Sarah Mair
1846 - 1941
Andrew George (diplomat)
Born 1952
Powlett Milbank
1852 - 1918
Adam Brown (Canadian politician)
1826 - 1926
Angus MacKay (Scottish politician)
Born 1964
Sir John Ogilvy, 9th Baronet
1803 - 1890
Adam Haldane-Duncan, 2nd Earl of Camperdown
1812 - 1867
Colin Keir
Born 1959
George Ferguson (Royal Navy officer)
1788 - 1867
Richard Simpson (Scottish politician)
Born 1942
John Darling Sr.
1831 - 1905
Margaret Smith (Scottish politician)
Born 1961
Frederick Innes
1816 - 1882
John Scott (Queensland politician)
1821 - 1898
David Buddo
1853 - 1937
Stefan Tymkewycz
Born 1959
David Buchanan (politician)
1823 - 1890
William Allan (Queensland politician)
1840 - 1901
Hamilton Grant
1872 - 1937
Francis Ivory
1831 - 1896
Donald Guthrie (politician)
1840 - 1915
A. Thomas Alsbury
1904 - 1990
Alexander David Ferrier
1813 - 1890
Andrew Murray (Scottish politician)
1903 - 1977
Matthew B. Lowrie
1773 - 1850
Alexander Learmonth (MP)
1829 - 1887
James Stodart
1849 - 1922
George Ralph Richardson Cockburn
1834 - 1912
Sir George Henry Scott-Douglas, 4th Baronet
1825 - 1885
John Watt (politician)
1826 - 1897
Robert McKeen
1884 - 1974
Thomas Dick (politician)
1823 - 1900
Edward Cargill
1823 - 1903
Ferdinand William Hutchison
1819 - 1893
Alexander Thorburn
1836 - 1894
Alexander MacWilliam Sr.
1891 - 1966
Robert Muir (politician)
1919 - 2011
George Laurenson
1857 - 1913
Neil Young (politician)
1936 - 2015
James Murdoch (New South Wales politician)
1867 - 1939
Robert Stirton Thornton
1863 - 1936
George Forbes (Queensland politician)
1828 - 1881
William Thomson (politician)
1818 - 1866
Alexander Archibald (politician)
1869 - 1922
John Learmonth
1789 - 1858
Daniel R. Fraser
1851 - 1920
Edward McGlashan
1817 - 1889
Herbert Archbold Brechin
1903 - 1979
George Black (Australian politician)
1854 - 1936
Gordon Sandeman
1810 - 1897
William Graham (Queensland politician)
1836 - 1892
Robert Cruickshank (Australian politician)
1868 - 1928
John Claude Hamilton
Born 1854
Andrew Cruikshank
1820 - 1859
John Balfour (Queensland politician)
1820 - 1875
Hugh Finlayson
1810 - 1889
William Grahame (1841–1906)
1841 - 1906
George Burns (Queensland politician)
1847 - 1893
James Johnston (Queensland politician)
1820 - 1876
James Williamson (New South Wales politician)
1811 - 1881
Catherine Byrne (Politikerin, um 1897)
Died 1994
Robert Wilkinson (Canadian politician)
1888 - 1967
William Duncan Smith (politician)
1899 - 1977
James Comrie (politician)
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