Belfast
Belfast ranks 149th in number of biographies on Pantheon, behind Genoa, Memphis, Tennessee, and Osaka. Memorable people born in Belfast include William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, Betty Williams, and C. S. Lewis. Memorable people who died in Belfast include Betty Williams, Ernest Walton, and Thomas Andrews. Belfast has been the birth place of many soccer players, and actors and the death place of many social activists, and politicians. Belfast is located in United Kingdom.
Belfast is the capital city and principal port of Northern Ireland, standing on the banks of the River Lagan and connected to the open sea through Belfast Lough and the North Channel. It is the second-largest city in Ireland, with an estimated population of 352,390 in 2024, and a metropolitan area population of 671,559. Read more on Wikipedia
People
Between 1798 and 1997, Belfast was the birth place of 81 globally memorable people, including William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin, Betty Williams, and C. S. Lewis. Additionaly, 9 globally memorable people have passed away in Belfast including Betty Williams, Ernest Walton, and Thomas Andrews.
People Born in Belfast
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William Thomson, 1st Baron Kelvin
PHYSICIST
1824 - 1907
HPI: 83.39
Rank: 4
Betty Williams
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1943 - 2020
HPI: 78.16
Rank: 66
C. S. Lewis
WRITER
1898 - 1963
HPI: 76.86
Rank: 3
George Best
SOCCER PLAYER
1946 - 2005
HPI: 75.63
Rank: 67
Gary Moore
MUSICIAN
1952 - 2011
HPI: 71.07
Rank: 68
Chaim Herzog
DIPLOMAT
1918 - 1997
HPI: 70.40
Rank: 71
Kenneth Branagh
ACTOR
1960 - Present
HPI: 70.06
Rank: 59
Mairead Maguire
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1944 - Present
HPI: 69.94
Rank: 45
Osborne Reynolds
PHYSICIST
1842 - 1912
HPI: 69.26
Rank: 72
John Stewart Bell
PHYSICIST
1928 - 1990
HPI: 66.75
Rank: 74
Thomas Andrews
CHEMIST
1813 - 1885
HPI: 66.15
Rank: 76
Ciarán Hinds
ACTOR
1953 - Present
HPI: 65.26
Rank: 24
Newly Added People Born in Belfast
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People Deceased in Belfast
Go to all RankingsBetty Williams
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1943 - 2020
HPI: 78.16
Rank: 2
Ernest Walton
PHYSICIST
1903 - 1995
HPI: 68.17
Rank: 3
Thomas Andrews
CHEMIST
1813 - 1885
HPI: 66.15
Rank: 7
David Trimble
POLITICIAN
1944 - 2022
HPI: 64.07
Rank: 4
Alex Higgins
SNOOKER
1949 - 2010
HPI: 58.18
Rank: 8
Ian Paisley
POLITICIAN
1926 - 2014
HPI: 57.39
Rank: 5
John McNally
ATHLETE
1932 - 2022
HPI: 52.81
Rank: 1
Charlotte Despard
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1844 - 1939
HPI: 50.72
Rank: 6
Cahal Daly
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
1917 - 2009
HPI: 46.66
Rank: 9
Occupations
Most individuals born in present day Belfast were soccer players (24), actors (9), athletes (8), writers (7), and politicians (6), while most who died were social activists (2), politicians (2), physicists (1), chemists (1), and snookers (1).
Occupational Trends
Over the past 100 years, soccer players have been the top profession of globally memorable people born in Belfast, including George Best, Vivian Campbell, and Danny Blanchflower. Whereas, throughout history, soccer players have been the profession with the most memorable people born in present day Belfast, including George Best, Vivian Campbell, and Danny Blanchflower.
Places
Overlapping Lives
Below is a visual represetation of the lifespans of the top 25 globally memorable people born in Belfast since 1700.
