52.1311° N, 11.6394° E

MAGDEBURG

Most Famous People Born in Magdeburg, Germany

Notable people
1,379
Peak decade
1930s
Median birth year
1902
Most distinctive
Generalmajor 26.4×

A Prussian garrison town turned East German industrial city, and both halves show up in the bench. Magdeburg's distinctive professions are Generalmajoren, handball players, canoeists, teachers, entrepreneurs, authors, academics, and theologians — the trades of an officer class, a GDR sport school, and a rebuilt postwar university. Otto von Guericke was born here (he of the Magdeburg hemispheres), Telemann was kapellmeister here, and the 10th-century bench reaches back to Otto I, who used the city as his imperial base.

Through the Decades

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

Notable Births by Decade

Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1930s with 110 notable births.

What Magdeburg Is Known For

Click any row to filter the list of people below.

Politician is Magdeburg's biggest profession — 14% of all notables (194).

Magdeburg over-indexes on generalmajor26.4× the global rate.

Magdeburg under-produces football — only 0.3× the global rate.

  1. Politician194
  2. Actor78
  3. Academic50
  4. Football44
  5. Author43
  6. Writer40
  7. Painter40
  8. Lawyer35
  1. Generalmajor2126.4×
  2. Handball276.3×
  3. Canoe145.6×
  4. Teacher144.3×
  5. Entrepreneur173.6×
  6. Author433.6×
  7. Academic503.6×
  8. Theologian153.0×
  1. Football440.3×

Profession Mix Over Time

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

1500155016001650170017501800185019001950
  • Politics & Law
  • Science
  • Writing
  • Sports
  • Film & TV
  • Art & Design
  • Other
All1,379
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Showing 28 of 1,379 notable people

0016 LEXICOGRAPHER

Hermann Paul

1846 - 1921

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0017 MILITAR

Lothar von Trotha

1848 - 1920

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0042 MINERALOGIST

Paul Heinrich von Groth

1843 - 1927

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0045 PHYSICIAN

Richard Assmann

1845 - 1918

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0107 BOTANIST

Friedrich Wilhelm Ludwig Kraenzlin

1847 - 1934

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0128 INVENTOR

Hugo Borchardt

1844 - 1924

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0181 HISTORIAN

Martin Philippson

1846 - 1916

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0235 ACTOR

Hedwig Raabe

1844 - 1905

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0262 PAINTER

Ernst Anders

1845 - 1911

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0462 ENTREPRENEUR

Ernst Schiess

1840 - 1915

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0633 OFFICER

Richard Karl von Klitzing

1842 - 1907

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0825 PALAEONTOLOGIST

Otto Grunert

1845 - 1904

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0826 THEATRE

Arno Cabisius

1843 - 1907

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0866 POLITICIAN

Wilhelm Klees

1841 - 1922

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0880 HANDWERKER

Carl Francke

1843 - 1931

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0886 HISTORIAN

Gustav Toepke

1841 - 1899

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0920 CHEMIST

Wilhelm Michaëlis

1840 - 1911

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0973 ARCHITECT

Adolph Doebber

1848 - 1920

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0984 PAINTER

Joseph Osterrath

1845 - 1898

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1019 BUSINESS

Eugen Polte

1849 - 1911

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1088 BUSINESS

Christoph Wilhelm Otto Hubbe

1842 - 1904

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1091 LEHRER

Colmar Schumann

1844 - 1912

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1103 BUSINESS

Johann Wilhelm Hauswaldt

1846 - 1900

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1151 FABRIKANT

Gustav Schmidt (Unternehmer)

1844 - 1901

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1172 OFFICER

Max von Krosigk

1846 - 1919

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1219 HISTORIAN

Theodor Nolte

1848 - 1919

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1325 JUDGE

Friedrich Funk (Politiker, 1847)

1847 - 1897

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1330 THEATRE

Albert Baxmann

1848 - 1907

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