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List of Hungarians

This is a list of Hungarians notable within Hungary and/or abroad. It includes notable Hungarians born outside present-day Hungary.

Architects

Artists

Aviators

World War I aviators

World War II aviators

Business professionals

Lea Gottlieb (1918–2012), Israeli fashion designer and founder of Gottex
Andrew Grove, pioneer in the semiconductor industry; a chairman and CEO of Intel
Éva Hegedüs (1957–) Chairman-CEO and majority shareholder of Gránit Bank
Radovan Jelašić, governor of the National Bank of Serbia
Peter Munk, Canadian-Hungarian entrepreneur, founder of Barrick Gold, and philanthropist
Tibor Rosenbaum, businessman
George Soros, Hungarian-American business magnate, investor, philosopher and philanthropist

Composers and performers

See more in List of Hungarian composers.

Film artists

History and politics

Viktor Orbán (born 1963), current Prime Minister of Hungary (1998–2002, 2010–present)
László Almásy (1895–1951), desert explorer, author, the inspiration for the fictionalised character of Almásy in Michael Ondaatje's 1992 novel The English Patient
Gyula Andrássy (1823–1890), statesman
József Antall (1932–1993), Prime Minister of Hungary (1990–1993)
Albert Apponyi (1846–1933), statesman
Gordon Bajnai (born 1968), former Prime Minister of Hungary (2009–2010)
Tamás Bakócz (1442–1521), archbishop, cardinal and statesman
Gábor Baross (1848–1892), statesman
Erzsébet Báthory (1560–1614), countess
- István Báthory (1477–1534), Governor of Transylvania
- István (Stephen) Báthory (1533–1586), Prince of Transylvania and King of Poland
Zsigmond Báthory (1572–1613), Prince of Transylvania
Vilma Beck (1810–1851), writer and freedom fighter
Ödön Beöthy (1796–1854), Hungarian deputy and orator
Béla Bugár (born 1958), politician
Krisztina Csáky (1654–1723) was a Hungarian countess, resistance fighter
Pál Csáky (born 1956), politician
Aurél Dessewffy (1808–1842), journalist and politician
Péter Doszpot (born 1962), former member of parliament
Ignaz Aurelius Fessler (1756–1839), court councillor and minister to Alexander I of Russia
Catharina Anna Grandon de Hochepied (1767–1803), noble and amateur actress
András Hadik (1710–1790), Count
Theodor Herzl (Tivadar Herzl, 1860–1904), journalist, modern Zionism
Miklós Horthy (1868–1957), admiral and regent (1920–1944)
Stephen I of Hungary (Stephen I, Szent István, Stephanus Rex, I. István) (975–1038) first King of Hungary
Friar Julian
János Kádár (1912–1989), communist leader
Charles I of Hungary (Károly Róbert) (1288–1342), King of Hungary (1308–1342)
Mihály Károlyi (1875–1955), first President of Hungary (1919)
Lajos Kossuth (1802–1894), Hungarian politician later Regent-President of Hungary
Teddy Kollek (born Tivadar Kollek, 1911–2007), Israeli Mayor of Jerusalem
Béla Kun (1886–1938), minister, revolutionist (1919)
Louis I of Hungary (Louis I, Nagy Lajos, 1326–1382), king of Hungary (1342–1382)
Tom Lantos (1928–2008), former U.S. Congressman from California
Géza Malasits (1874–1948), deputy in parliament
József Mindszenty (1892–1975), cardinal, imprisoned by communist government
Imre Nagy (1896–1958), prime minister in 1953 and 1956
Ágnes Osztolykán (born 1974), Hungarian politician and Romani activist
Mátyás Rákosi (1892–1971), communist leader
George Soros (György Soros, born 1930), stock investor, philanthropist, and political activist
Ferenc Szálasi (1897–1946), head of Arrow Cross Party, Head of State, Prime Minister of Hungary (1944–1945)
László Szalay (1813–1864), statesman and historian
Count Széchenyi István (1791–1860)
Istvan Tisza (1861–1918), Prime Minister of Hungary (1903–1905; 1913–1917)
Toma András (Tamás András), Hungarian World War II prisoner found in Russian mental hospital and returned after 55 years
László Tőkés (born 1952), Reformed Church pastor and an instigator of the Romanian Revolution of 1989
Count Zrínyi Miklós (1508–1566), Hungarian general who held Szigetvár against the Ottoman Turks
Count Zrínyi Miklós (1620–1664), Hungarian general, statesman and poet
János Zsámboky, humanist

Inventors

Ferenc Anisits, inventor of the BMW diesel engine (1983)
Oszkár Asbóth, inventor of helicopter (1928)
Donát Bánki, inventor of the cross-flow turbine
Béla Barényi, inventor in field of automobile safety
László Bíró, inventor of the ballpoint pen (1931)
Ottó Bláthy, inventor of the voltage regulator, co-inventor (with Miksa Déri and Károly Zipernowsky) of the transformer
János Csonka, inventor of the carburetor
Miksa Déri, co-inventor (with Ottó Bláthy and Károly Zipernowsky) of the transformer
Dénes Gábor, inventor of holography (1947)
József Galamb, creator of the Ford Model T (1908)
Csaba Horváth, inventor of the high-performance liquid chromatography
János Irinyi, inventor of noiseless match (1836)
Ányos Jedlik, co-inventor of dynamo (1861) and soda water (1826)
Rudolf E. Kálmán, co-inventor of the Kalman filter
Kálmán Kandó, pioneer in the development of railway electric traction
Dénes Mihály, inventor of television technology
Joseph Petzval, mathematician, inventor, and physicist.
Tivadar Puskás, inventor of the telephone exchange
Ernő Rubik, inventor of the Rubik's Cube (1976)
Kálmán Tihanyi, inventor of cathode ray tubes, inventor of the first manless aircraft in Great Britain
Károly Zipernowsky, co-inventor (with Ottó Bláthy and Miksa Déri) of the transformer

Religion

Scientists

Sports

Robert Antal (1921–1995), Olympic champion water polo player
Péter Bakonyi (born 1938), saber fencer, twice Olympic bronze
Gedeon Barcza (1911–1986), chess player
Viktor Barna (born Győző Braun) (1911–1972), 22-time world champion table tennis player, International Table Tennis Foundation Hall of Fame
István Barta (1895–1948), Olympic champion water polo player, silver
Zsolt Baumgartner (born 1981), Formula One racecar driver (2003–2004), Jordan-Ford (two races, subbing for injured Ralph Firman) (2003), Minardi-Cosworth (2004), all 18 Grand Prix, 1 point (United States Grand Prix in Indianapolis, Indiana)
Laszlo Bellak (1911–2006), seven-time world champion table tennis player, ITTFHoF
Tibor Benedek (born 1972), water polo player, Olympic champion: 2000 Summer Olympics (Sydney), 2004 Summer Olympics (Athens), 2008 Summer Olympics (Beijing)
Pál Benkő (1928–2019), chess player
Gyula Bíró (1890–1961), midfield and forward footballer (national team)
László Bita (born 1967), footballer
Balázs Borbély (born 1979), footballer
József Braun (also known as József Barna; 1901–1943), Olympic footballer
Gyula Breyer (1894–1921), chess player
György Bródy (1908–1967), water polo goalkeeper, two-time Olympic champion
Ákos Buzsáky (born 1982), football player
Ibolya Csák, winner of women's high jump at the 1936 Summer Olympics
Zoltán Czibor (1929–1997), soccer player
Tamás Darnyi, swimmer (four Olympic gold medals)
Krisztina Egerszegi, swimmer (five Olympic gold medals)
Ilona Elek (née "Schacherer"; 1907–1988), foil fencer (Olympic gold-medal winner, and world champion, both before and after World War II)
Árpád Élő, (1903–1992), Hungarian-born American creator of the chess Elo rating system
Zsolt Erdei, boxer, WBO light heavyweight world champion
Sándor Erdős (born 1947), épée fencer, Olympic champion
Dr. Dezső Földes (1880–1950), saber fencer, two-time Olympic champion
Samu Fóti, Olympic silver (gymnastics team combined exercises)
Dr. Jenő Fuchs (1882–1955), saber fencer, four-time Olympic champion
Tamás Gábor (1932–2007), épée fencer, Olympic champion
János Garay (1889–1945), saber fencer, Olympic champion, silver, bronze, killed in the Holocaust
György Gedó (born 1949), Olympic champion light flyweight boxer
Sándor Gellér (1925–1996), soccer goalkeeper, Olympic champion
Imre Gellért, Olympic silver-medal winner (gymnastics team combined exercises)
Zoltán Gera, soccer player; has played for Ferencváros, West Bromwich Albion and Fulham
Dr. Oskar Gerde (1883–1944), saber fencer, two-time Olympic champion, killed in the Holocaust
Aladár Gerevich, fencer, seven Olympic gold medals
Charlie Gogolak (born 1944), American football number-one draft pick of the Washington Redskins
Péter Gogolak (born 1942), American football; invented "soccer style" kicking; played for the New York Giants and the Buffalo Bills
Dr. Sándor Gombos (1895–1968), saber fencer, Olympic champion
Gyula Grosics, goalkeeper for Golden Magyar soccer team undefeated from 1950 to 1954
Béla Guttmann (1900–1981), midfielder, national team football player, international coach; forced laborer in the Holocaust
Andrea Gyarmati, Olympic swimmer silver (100-meter backstroke) and bronze (100-meter butterfly); world championships bronze (200-meter backstroke), International Swimming Hall of Fame
Dezső Gyarmati, water polo player (triple Olympic champion)
Alfréd Hajós (born Arnold Guttmann; 1878–1955), swimmer three-time Olympic champion (100-meter freestyle, 800-meter freestyle relay, 1,500-meter freestyle), International Swimming Hall of Fame
Mickey Hargitay, bodybuilder and actor
Nándor Hidegkuti (1922–2002), soccer player
Endre Kabos (1906–1944), saber fencer, three-time Olympic champion, bronze; killed while a forced laborer in the Holocaust
Garry Kallos (born 1956), Hungarian-born Canadian wrestler and sambo competitor
Béla Károlyi (born 1942), premier gymnastics coach (ethnic Hungarian, lived in Romania, now a US citizen)
Károly Kárpáti (also known as Károly Kellner), Olympic champion wrestler (freestyle lightweight), silver
Ágnes Keleti (born 1921), five-time Olympic gymnastics champion
Adolf Kertész (1892–1920), footballer
Gyula Kertész (1888–1982), footballer
Vilmos Kertész (1890–1962), footballer
Kincsem (1874–1887), most successful racehorse in world history
Sándor Kocsis (1929–1979), soccer player
Zsuzsa Körmöczy, tennis player, world #2, won 1958 French Open Singles
István "Koko" Kovács, boxer, Olympic champion and WBO world champion
Pál Kovács, fencer, six Olympic gold medals
Lily Kronberger (1890–1974), four-time world figure skating champion, two-time bronze, World Figure Skating Hall of Fame
Péter Lékó (born 1979), chess player
Imi Lichtenfeld, boxer and wrestler, developed the self-defense system Krav Maga
Andor Lilienthal (1911–2010), chess player
Johann Löwenthal (1810–1876), chess player
Zoltán Magyar (born 1953), twice Olympic pommel horse gold medalist
Gyula Mándi (1899–1969), half back Olympic footballer (player and coach of national teams)
Géza Maróczy (1870–1951), chess player
Opika von Méray Horváth, three-time world figure-skating champion
József Munk, Olympic silver swimmer (4x200-meter freestyle relay)
Nickolas Muray (born Miklós Mandl; 1892–1965), Hungarian-born American photographer and Olympic fencer
Les Murray (born 1945 as László Ürge), Australian soccer broadcaster, sports journalist and analyst
Henrik Nádler (1901–1944), international footballer
Henrietta Ónodi, Olympic medal-winning gymnast (won gold, silver at Barcelona in 1992)
Árpád Orbán (1938–2008), Olympic champion footballer
László Papp, boxer (three-time Olympic champion)
Attila Petschauer (1904–1943), sabre fencer, two-time team Olympic champion, silver; killed in the Holocaust
Anna Pfeffer (born 1946), Olympic medalist sprint canoeist
Judit Polgár (born 1976), chess player
Zsófia Polgár (born 1974), chess player
Zsuzsa Polgár (born 1969), chess player
Imre Polyák, Olympic and World Champion Greco-Roman wrestler
Lajos Portisch (born 1937), chess player
Ferenc Puskás (1927–2006), football (soccer) player
Béla Rajki-Reich (1909–2000), swimming coach and water polo coach
Emília Rotter, pair skater, World Championship four-time gold, silver, Olympic two-times bronze
Miklós Sárkány, two-time Olympic champion water polo player
Zoltán Ozoray Schenker (1880–1966), saber fencer, Olympic champion
Gusztáv Sebes (1906–1986), Hungarian national soccer coach
Anna Sipos, 11-time world champion table tennis player, ITTFHoF
Tamás Sipos, sports commentator and writer, former director of Hungarian television
László Szabados, Olympic bronze swimmer (4 x 200-meter freestyle relay)
Miklós Szabados, 15-times world champion table tennis player
László Szabó (1917–1998), chess player
Ágnes Szávay (born 1988), tennis player
András Székely (1909–1943), Olympic silver swimmer (200-meter breaststroke) and bronze (4 x 200-meter freestyle relay)
Éva Székely (born 1927), Olympic champion and silver swimmer (200-meter breaststroke); International Swimming Hall of Fame; mother of Andrea Gyarmati
László Szollás (1907–1980), pair skater, World Championship four-time gold, silver, Olympic two-times bronze
Gábor Talmácsi (born 1981), 125 cc MotoGP World Champion
Imre Taussig (1894–1945), Hungarian footballer
Judit Temes (1930–2013), Olympic champion swimmer (4×100-meter freestyle), bronze (100-meter freestyle)
Ildikó Újlaky-Rejtő (born 1937), foil fencer, two-time Olympic champion, world champion
Antal Vágó (1891–1944), footballer
Márton Vas (born 1980), ice hockey player
Árpád Weisz (1896–1944), Olympic football player and manager
Richárd Weisz, Olympic champion wrestler (Greco-Roman super heavyweight)
Lajos Werkner (1883–1943), sabre fencer, two-time Olympic champion
George Worth, born György Woittitz (1915–2006), American Olympic saber fencer
Imre Zachár, Olympic silver swimmer (4x200-meter freestyle relay)
Dominik Szoboszlai, Hungarian professional footballer
Áron Szilágyi, sabre fencer, three-time Olympic and World champion

Writers

List of Hungarians who were born outside present-day Hungary

The borders of Hungary have changed substantially in the past century. Many places once part of Hungary now belong to neighboring countries. The list is organised by country of birth and those listed have the name of their birthplace (in parentheses) as it is currently named.