37.5599° N, 126.9893° E
SEOUL
Most Famous People Born in Seoul, South Korea
- Notable people
- 2,330
- Peak decade
- 1980s
- Median birth year
- 1978
- Most distinctive
- Skater 15.9×
A capital where the Joseon court and the K-pop industry sit on the same list. Seoul's most distinctive professions are figure skaters at nearly sixteen times the global rate, golfers at more than ten times, and singers — the statistical fingerprint of Yuna Kim, Se Ri Pak, and the entire post-2000 K-pop wave. Almost a third of the notables here are entertainers in the strict sense, a share matched by very few cities outside Los Angeles and Mumbai.
One face per century — the most globally famous figure born in Seoul during each.
Notable Births by Decade
Click a decade to filter the list below. Peak: 1980s with 690 notable births.
What Seoul Is Known For
Click any row to filter the list of people below.
Actor is Seoul's biggest profession — 20% of all notables (463).
Seoul over-indexes on skater — 15.9× the global rate.
Seoul under-produces politician — only 0.3× the global rate.
Profession Mix Over Time
Each band shows a profession family's share of Seoul's notable births by decade. Hover the chart for the breakdown at any decade.
- Sports
- Film & TV
- Music
- Writing
- Politics & Law
- Art & Design
- Other
- Field: Film Clear ×
Hong Sang-soo
Born 1960
Kim Jee-woon
Born 1964
Na Hong-jin
Born 1974
Kim Ki-young
1922 - 1998
Peter Chung
Born 1961
Im Sang-soo
Born 1962
Yeon Sang-ho
Born 1978
Lee Joon-ik
Born 1959
Lee Cheol-ha
Born 1970
Jang Sun-woo
Born 1952
Jang Jin
Born 1971
Lee Man-hee (director)
1931 - 1975
Kim Tae-yong
Born 1969
Lee Myung-se
Born 1957
Yang Ik-june
Born 1975
Kim Tae-kyun (director)
Born 1960
Kim-Jho Gwangsoo
Born 1965
Yang Woo-suk
Born 1969
Yim Pil-sung
Born 1972
Song Il-gon
Born 1971
Kim Ki-duk (director, born 1934)
1934 - 2017
Lee Kyoung-mi
Born 1973
Song Hae-sung
Born 1964
Lee Seok-hoon
Born 1972
Gina Kim
Born 1973
Park Kwang-hyun
Born 1969
Park Jin-pyo
Born 1966
Jeong Jae-eun
Born 1969
Hwang Dong-hyuk
Born 1971
Park Heung-sik (born 1965)
Born 1965
Kim Sung-su (director)
Born 1961
John H. Lee (director)
Born 1971
Shin Su-won
Born 1967
Yoon Jong-chan
Born 1963
Heo Jang-kang
1925 - 1975
Jang Tae-yoo
Born 1972
Lee Doo-yong
Born 1942
Choi Ha-won
Born 1937
Kim Dong-won (filmmaker, born 1955)
Born 1955
Won Tae-yeon
Born 1971
Park Kwang-chun
Born 1967
Lee Hwan-kyung
Born 1970
Lee Jang-ho
Born 1945
Jeong Yoon-soo
Born 1962
Kogonada
-
Shin Yeon-shick
Born 1976
Jung Byung-gil
Born 1980
Jung Sung-il (director)
Born 1959
Yoon Sam-yook
1937 - 2020
Chang Yoon-hyun
Born 1967
Lee Yong-ju
Born 1970
Seok Rae-myeong
1936 - 2003
Helen Lee (director)
Born 1965
Juhn Jai-hong
Born 1977
Kim Cheong-gi
Born 1941
Brian Metcalf
-
Lee Yong-min
1916 - 1982
Choi Ho
Born 1967
Roh Deok
Born 1980
Koo Kyo-hwan
Born 1982
Ahn Gooc-jin
Born 1980
Noh Young-seok
Born 1976
Lee Kyoo-man
Born 1972
Jonathan Kim
Born 1960
Baek-Yeop Sung
Born 1960
Handae Rhee
Born 1977
Ryu Jang-ha
Born 1966