34.6910° N, 135.1826° E

KOBE

Most Famous People Born in Kobe, Japan

Notable people
742
Peak decade
1980s
Median birth year
1963
Most distinctive
Rikishi 71.1×

Kobe was Japan's most foreign-facing port long before the 1995 earthquake, and the old Kitano settlements still show in an unusual density of bilingual Novelists. The real surprises are the voice-acting studios and manga houses that clustered here postwar — Seiyū and Manga counts running at seventy and sixty-plus times their global baselines — and a Judo bench that traces back to Kanō Jigorō founding the sport down the road.

Through the Decades

One face per decade — the most globally famous figure born in Kobe during each.

Notable Births by Decade

Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1980s with 110 notable births.

What Kobe Is Known For

Click any row to filter the list of people below.

Football is Kobe's biggest profession — 17% of all notables (129).

Kobe over-indexes on rikishi71.1× the global rate.

Kobe under-produces writer — only 0.4× the global rate.

  1. Football129
  2. Actor47
  3. Politician32
  4. Baseball28
  5. Seiyū25
  6. Singer23
  7. Manga19
  8. Composer18
  1. Rikishi1271.1×
  2. Seiyū2571.0×
  3. Manga1962.6×
  4. Judo149.8×
  5. Novelist134.4×
  6. Wrestler104.2×
  7. Skater73.9×
  8. Baseball283.3×
  1. Writer90.4×
  2. Politician320.4×

Profession Mix Over Time

Each band shows a profession family's share of Kobe's notable births by decade. Hover the chart for the breakdown at any decade.

16501700175018001850190019502000
  • Sports
  • Film & TV
  • Music
  • Art & Design
  • Politics & Law
  • Writing
  • Other
Skater7
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Showing 7 of 742 notable people

0302 SKATER

Kaori Sakamoto

Born 2000

Preview
0318 SKATER

Mai Mihara

Born 1999

Preview
0499 SKATER

Moa Iwano

Born 2004

Preview
0583 SKATER

Hiroki Yokoyama (speed skater)

Born 1994

Preview
0588 SKATER

Satsuki Muramoto

Born 1990

Preview
0647 SKATER

Eito Yasutoko

Born 1983

Preview
0701 SKATER

Yukiko Kashihara

Born 1971

Preview