Seoul
Seoul ranks 19th in number of biographies on Pantheon, behind Stockholm, Buenos Aires, and Prague. Memorable people born in Seoul include Sejong the Great, Yoon Suk Yeol, and Yi Sun-sin. Memorable people who died in Seoul include Sejong the Great, Kim Dae-jung, and Lee Byung-chul. Seoul has been the birth place of many actors, and singers and the death place of many politicians, and actors. Seoul is located in South Korea.
Seoul, officially Seoul Special Metropolitan City, is both the capital and largest city of South Korea, and the largest city in the whole of Korea. The broader Seoul Metropolitan Area, encompassing Seoul, Gyeonggi Province and Incheon, emerged as the world's sixth largest metropolitan economy in 2022, behind New York, Tokyo, Los Angeles, Paris, and London, and hosts more than half of South Korea's population. Although Seoul's population peaked at over 10 million, it has gradually decreased since 2014, standing at about 9.6 million residents as of 2024. Seoul is the seat of the South Korean government. Read more on Wikipedia
People
Between 0 and 2006, Seoul was the birth place of 433 globally memorable people, including Sejong the Great, Yoon Suk Yeol, and Yi Sun-sin. Additionaly, 52 globally memorable people have passed away in Seoul including Sejong the Great, Kim Dae-jung, and Lee Byung-chul.
People Born in Seoul
Go to all RankingsSejong the Great
POLITICIAN
1397 - 1450
HPI: 82.84
Rank: 96
Yoon Suk Yeol
POLITICIAN
1960 - Present
HPI: 78.64
Rank: 200
Yi Sun-sin
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1545 - 1598
HPI: 76.95
Rank: 112
Sejo of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1417 - 1468
HPI: 74.90
Rank: 94
Seonjo of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1552 - 1608
HPI: 73.50
Rank: 115
Yejong of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1450 - 1469
HPI: 72.79
Rank: 109
Cheoljong of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1831 - 1864
HPI: 72.40
Rank: 103
Munjong of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1414 - 1452
HPI: 72.19
Rank: 120
Gwanghaegun of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1575 - 1641
HPI: 71.39
Rank: 104
Hyojong of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1619 - 1659
HPI: 70.95
Rank: 106
Psy
SINGER
1977 - Present
HPI: 70.88
Rank: 175
Chang Myon
POLITICIAN
1899 - 1966
HPI: 70.40
Rank: 93
Newly Added People Born in Seoul
Go to all RankingsPark Chan-wook
FILM DIRECTOR
1963 - Present
HPI: 63.66
Rank: 90
Han Suk-kyu
ACTOR
1964 - Present
HPI: 56.85
Rank: 89
Lee Jung-eun
ACTOR
1970 - Present
HPI: 53.62
Rank: 84
Kim Sung-ryung
ACTOR
1967 - Present
HPI: 53.17
Rank: 88
Yum Jung-ah
ACTOR
1972 - Present
HPI: 52.92
Rank: 80
Yoo Yeon-seok
ACTOR
1984 - Present
HPI: 52.20
Rank: 58
Yang Dong-geun
ACTOR
1979 - Present
HPI: 51.56
Rank: 68
Joo Jin-mo
ACTOR
1974 - Present
HPI: 50.70
Rank: 76
Kim Ji-hoon
ACTOR
1981 - Present
HPI: 50.53
Rank: 62
Park Ye-jin
ACTOR
1981 - Present
HPI: 49.06
Rank: 63
Bang Chan
SINGER
1997 - Present
HPI: 49.04
Rank: 20
Ha Hee-ra
ACTOR
1969 - Present
HPI: 48.97
Rank: 85
People Deceased in Seoul
Go to all RankingsSejong the Great
POLITICIAN
1397 - 1450
HPI: 82.84
Rank: 19
Kim Dae-jung
POLITICIAN
1924 - 2009
HPI: 78.26
Rank: 48
Lee Byung-chul
BUSINESSPERSON
1910 - 1987
HPI: 75.89
Rank: 39
Roh Tae-woo
POLITICIAN
1932 - 2021
HPI: 75.38
Rank: 15
Kim Young-sam
POLITICIAN
1927 - 2015
HPI: 75.34
Rank: 13
Jeongjong of Joseon
POLITICIAN
1357 - 1419
HPI: 73.36
Rank: 28
Kim Yong-sik
SOCCER PLAYER
1910 - 1985
HPI: 70.19
Rank: 35
Lee Yoo-hyung
SOCCER PLAYER
1911 - 2003
HPI: 70.16
Rank: 40
Kim Jae-gyu
POLITICIAN
1926 - 1980
HPI: 68.63
Rank: 44
Lee Kun-hee
BUSINESSPERSON
1942 - 2020
HPI: 67.05
Rank: 33
Heo Jeong
POLITICIAN
1896 - 1988
HPI: 66.37
Rank: 49
Kim Jong-pil
POLITICIAN
1926 - 2018
HPI: 65.89
Rank: 16
Newly Added People Deceased in Seoul
Go to all RankingsOccupations
Most individuals born in present day Seoul were actors (197), singers (75), politicians (27), soccer players (27), and athletes (22), while most who died were politicians (24), actors (11), businesspeople (4), soccer players (4), and religious figures (3).
Occupational Trends
Over the past 100 years, actors have been the top profession of globally memorable people born in Seoul, including Lee Byung-hun, Ma Dong-seok, and T.O.P. Whereas, throughout history, actors have been the profession with the most memorable people born in present day Seoul, including Lee Byung-hun, Ma Dong-seok, and T.O.P.
Places
Overlapping Lives
Below is a visual represetation of the lifespans of the top 20 globally memorable people born in Seoul since 1700.





































