Famous People Born in France

French writer and journalist.

German-French sculptor and painter, co-founder of Dada known for biomorphic abstract reliefs.

French novelist and short story writer.

French actress and international sex symbol of the 1950s and 1960s.

French poet known for Les Fleurs du mal.

French biochemist and endocrinologist who was best known for his research in the field of steroid hormones and their role in reproduction and aging.

French actor and star of the New Wave movement.

French actress successful in European and international cinema.

French long-distance runner, Olympic silver medalist, and world record holder who competed in the early 20th century before being killed in World War I.

French-Algerian novelist.

French-American sculptor and installation artist famous for large-scale spider sculptures and themes of family and memory.

French journalist, television and radio presenter.

French painter and sculptor who co-founded Cubism alongside Picasso.

French philologist and orientalist, known primarily as the decipherer of Egyptian hieroglyphs and a founding figure in the field of Egyptology.

French actor, film producer, painter and ceramist who appeared in numerous French films and television productions from the late 1950s onward.

French sculptor noted for expressive works and collaboration with Rodin.

French poet, playwright, novelist, designer, film director, visual artist and critic.

French actress awarded for roles in both French and Hollywood productions.

French painter who led the Realist movement, focusing on everyday scenes such as 'A Burial at Ornans'.

Post-Impressionist painter whose study of form and color strongly influenced modern art, often considered a bridge to Cubism.

French novelist and short story writer.

French novelist and playwright known for La Comédie Humaine.

French writer and philosopher whose work shaped modern feminism.

French Romantic poet and playwright.

French Impressionist painter and sculptor celebrated for depictions of ballet dancers.

French-American actress, screenwriter, and director.

French actress known for elegance and prolific film career.

French novelist known for historical fiction.

French mathematician, physicist, and writer who translated and commented on Isaac Newton’s Principia, helping to popularize Newtonian physics in continental Europe.

French novelist and filmmaker.

French novelist known for The Three Musketeers.

French writer known for The Lady of the Camellias.

French singer-songwriter and poet known for his politically engaged chansons and for setting the poetry of Louis Aragon to music.

French novelist known for Madame Bovary.

French poet, novelist and critic.

French novelist and playwright known for transgressive themes and poetic language.

French-Swiss filmmaker and critic known as a central figure of the French New Wave, recognized for his innovative narrative style and lasting influence on modern cinema.

French actress recognized for a variety of dramatic and genre performances.

French novelist, poet and playwright, leading figure of Romanticism.

French actress noted for intense dramatic roles and long career.

French Neoclassical painter renowned for portraits and mythological subjects such as 'Grande Odalisque'.

French singer and actress who achieved international success in the late 1980s with her debut album Mademoiselle chante le blues.

French Surrealist painter and illustrator known for fantastical, theatrical imagery.

French actress and filmmaker with international recognition.

Chemist known as the father of modern chemistry.

French portrait painter celebrated for elegant portraits of Marie Antoinette and aristocracy.

French Symbolist poet.

French painter pivotal to the transition from Realism to Impressionism, known for 'Olympia' and 'Le Déjeuner sur l'herbe'.

French actor known for roles in French and international cinema.

French novelist and Goncourt winner.

French artist known for vivid color, fluid draughtsmanship and as a leading figure of Fauvism; notable work 'The Dance'.

French actress known for acclaimed work in contemporary cinema.

French Impressionist painter known for series paintings of water lilies, Rouen Cathedral and haystacks, emphasizing light and color.

French Impressionist painter recognized for domestic scenes and subtle color work.

French novelist and Prix Goncourt winner.

French‑born diarist and novelist known for intimate, psychoanalytic prose.

French singer, actress, and model who rose to international fame as a teenager with her 1987 hit song “Joe le taxi.”

Microbiologist known for germ theory and vaccination.

Mexican journalist and novelist known for oral histories and empathetic portrayals of women and the poor.

French actor known for acclaimed dramatic performances.

French Impressionist painter celebrated for luminous portraits and scenes of social life; notable work 'Luncheon of the Boating Party'.

French poet known for Symbolist and visionary poetry.

French sculptor considered father of modern sculpture; most noted for 'The Thinker' and 'The Gates of Hell'.

French novelist and Nobel laureate (1915) known for humanitarian themes.

French poet and playwright, author of Cyrano de Bergerac.

French existentialist philosopher, novelist and playwright; declined the Nobel Prize in Literature (1964).

German‑born novelist and essayist known for elegiac fiction blending memory and documentary.

French Post-Impressionist who developed pointillism and produced 'A Sunday Afternoon on the Island of La Grande Jatte'.

Turkish-British novelist and feminist essayist.

French Neo-Impressionist painter and follower of Seurat, known for pointillism landscapes and harbor scenes.

French novelist and essayist, best known for his novels Le Rouge et le Noir and La Chartreuse de Parme.

French painter associated with the Montmartre district of Paris, best known for his atmospheric cityscapes and depictions of urban architecture.

French chess grandmaster and elite player known for his expertise in rapid and blitz chess.

French writer and journalist.

French poet associated with Symbolism and Decadence.

French novelist known as a pioneer of science fiction.

French Nabi painter known for intimate interior scenes with patterned surfaces.

French novelist and founder of Naturalism.