38.1157° N, 13.3613° E

PALERMO

Most Famous People Born in Palermo, Italy

Notable people
1,542
Peak decade
1960s
Median birth year
1922
Most distinctive
Mafia 336.0×

A Sicilian capital whose most distinctive profession in the entire dataset is mafioso, at more than three hundred times the global rate, with magistrates and criminals and mobsters close behind — the statistical footprint of both Cosa Nostra and the judges who prosecuted it. Giovanni Falcone and Paolo Borsellino were born here, as was Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa; the pre-modern bench runs through Norman and Hohenstaufen kings, Arab-Norman saints, and Alessandro Scarlatti.

Through the Centuries

One face per century — the most globally famous figure born in Palermo during each.

What Palermo Is Known For

Click any row to filter the list of people below.

Politician is Palermo's biggest profession — 16% of all notables (246).

Palermo over-indexes on mafia336.0× the global rate.

  1. Politician246
  2. Football146
  3. Actor117
  4. Painter76
  5. Writer68
  6. Priest46
  7. Architect40
  8. Singer39
  1. Mafia26336.0×
  2. Mafioso17191.4×
  3. Sculptor383.8×
  4. Architect402.9×
  5. Entrepreneur152.9×
  6. Priest462.0×
  7. Painter761.9×
  8. Composer321.6×

Profession Mix Over Time

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

1500155016001650170017501800185019001950
  • Politics & Law
  • Sports
  • Writing
  • Art & Design
  • Film & TV
  • Music
  • Other
All1,542
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Showing 7 of 1,542 notable people

0193 PHILOSOPHER

Gioacchino Ventura di Raulica

1792 - 1861

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0250 BOTANIST

Vincenzo Tineo

1791 - 1856

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0391 PRIEST

Gaspare Grasselini

1796 - 1875

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0664 ARCHITECT

Emmanuele Palazzotto

1798 - 1872

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0856 PAINTER

Francesco Zerilli

1793 - 1837

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1088 PHYSICIAN

Giuseppe Tranchina

1797 - 1837

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1371 POLITICIAN

Giuseppe Paternò

1794 - 1874

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