List of Irish people

This is a list of famous Irish people.

It covers

people who come from the island of Ireland, which includes people from both Irish territories, the Republic of Ireland and the province of Northern Ireland.
people of Irish descent who identified themselves or involved themselves with Ireland (eg, Eamon de Valera, Princess Grace of Monaco),
people who chose to adopt an Irish identity or Irish citizenship (eg, Daniel Day-Lewis).

Some people born on the island of Ireland, particularly from Northern Ireland, also regard themselves as British. Perhaps because of the extent of Irish emigration, talented people of Irish birth or descent have become known throughout the world.

Table of contents

1 Art

1.1 Architecture
1.2 Actors
1.3 Music
1.4 Dance
1.5 Writing

2 Politics
3 Science and technology
4 Sport
5 Other

Art

Francis Bacon, painter
Robert Ballagh, painter, Aosdána
John Behan, sculptor, Aosdána
John Coll, sculptor
Pauline Bewick, Aosdána
Louis le Brocquy, Saoi of Aosdána, painter
Dorothy Cross, various media, Aosdána
Edward Delaney, sculptor, Aosdána
Evie Hone stained glass
Gene Lambert, painter, Aosdána
Sir William Lavery painter
Daniel Maclise
Anne Madden, Aosdána
William Orpen
Patrick Pye, sculptor, painter and stained glass artist, Aosdána
Camille Souter, painter, Aosdána
Imogen Stuart, sculptor, Aosdána
Jack B Yeats
Patrick Collins, Saoi of Aosdána
Tony O'Malley, Saoi of Aosdána

Architecture

Eileen Gray

James Hoban (designer of White House)

Kevin Roche
Sam Stephenson

Actors

Pierce Brosnan - Navan-born James Bond Actor
Sir Michael Gambon
Gabriel Byrne
Cyril Cusack (born in South Africa)
Niamh Cusack
Sorcha Cusack
Hilton Edwards - British born co-founder of the Gate Theatre
Daniel Day-Lewis, Oscar winner, (born in UK, now Irish citizen)
Colin Farrell
Barry Fitzgerald - Abbey Theatre actor turned Hollywood star
Brenda Fricker - Oscar winner
Richard Harris
Grace Kelly - Irish American actress who married Prince Rainier III of Monaco
Joe Lynch - TV actor
Micheál MacLiammoir - British born co-founder of the Gate Theatre
Victor McLaglen
Colm Meaney
Liam Neeson
Maureen O'Hara - actress
Milo O'Shea
Maureen O'Sullivan - actress, mother of Mia Farrow
Peter O'Toole, Oscar-Academy Award winner
Stephen Rea
Fiona Shaw
Patrick Bergin

Music

Bono (real name: Paul Hewson), lead singer of U2
Boyzone
The Corrs
The Cranberries
Sinead O'Connor,Mother Bernadette, singer
Mary O'Hara, harpist/singer
Derek Bell, harpist
Turlough O'Carolan, 17th century harpist and composer ("Last of the Bards")
Dana, Rosemary Scallon,MEP - singer turned politician
James Galway - musician
Ronan Keating, singer/songwriter
Christy Moore, singer/songwriter
Van Morrison, singer/songwriter
Bob Geldof, songwriter, singerBoomtown Rats, activist
John Field, composer (creator of the nocturne)
The Chieftains, traditional music group
The Fury Brothers and Davy Arthur
Christy Moore, songwriter and singer
Luke Kelly, singer
Daniel O'Donnell, C and W singer
Phil Lynott - Thin Lizzy frontman
Samantha Mumba - singer
Brian Kennedy - singer
Gerald Barry - composer, member of Aosdána
Hamilton Harty - composer and arranger
John, Count McCormack - singer
Phil Coulter - composer
Westlife
Seóirse Bodley, member of Aosdána
John Buckley, member of Aosdána
Frank Corcoran, member of Aosdána
Raymond Deane, member of Aosdána
Jerome de Bromhead, member of Aosdána
Roger Doyle, member of Aosdána
Eibhlis Farrell, member of Aosdána
Michael Holohan, member of Aosdána
Fergus Johnson, member of Aosdána
John Kinsella, member of Aosdána
Philip Martin, member of Aosdána
Kevin O'Connell, member of Aosdána
Jane O'Leary, member of Aosdána
Eric Sweeney, Member of Aosdána
Ian Wilson, member of Aosdána
James Wilson, member of Aosdána

Dance

Michael Flatley, dancer

Bill Whelan - choreographer
Dame Ninette de Valois, ballet

Writing

George Barrington
John Banville, novelist
Samuel Beckett, Saoi
Brendan Behan, playwright, novelist
Roddy Doyle, novelist
Brian Friel, playwright, member of Aosdána
Oliver Goldsmith - novelist and dramatist
Seamus Heaney, Saoi of Aosdána
James Joyce, novelist
Neil Jordan, author, film director, member of Aosdána
Patrick Kavanagh,poet
Francis Ledwidge, poet
Thomas Moore - poet
Edna O'Brien - novelist, member of Aosdána
Sean O'Casey, playwright
George Bernard Shaw,novelist, playwright,
Laurence Sterne - novelist
Bram Stoker (author of Dracula)
Jonathan Swift, Dean of St. Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, novelist and satirist
John Millington Synge - dramatist
Oscar Wilde, novelist, poet, satirist
William Butler Yeats, poet
Richard Brinsley Sheridan, playwright
Martin Mc Donagh, playwright
Walter Macken, novelist
Cecil Frances Alexander
William Allingham, poet
Brian O'Nolan (aka Myles na Gopaleen, Flann O'Brien), novelist/columnist
Christy Browne - author of My Left Foot
Francis Stuart, Saoi of Aosdána
Sebastian Barry, novelist, member of Aosdána
Dermot Bolger, novelist, member of Aosdána
Clare Boylan, Aosdána
Pearse Hutchinson, Aosdána
Rita Ann Higgins, poet, member of Aosdána
Jennifer Johnston, member of Aosdána
Benedict Kiely, Saoi of Aosdána
Tom Kilroy, member of Aosdána
Christopher Nolan, poet, member of Aosdána
Frank O'Connor, short story writer
John McGahern, novelist, member of Aosdána
Seamus Deane, member of Aosdána
Carlo Gébler, member of Aosdána
Michael Longley, member of Aosdána
Frank McGuinness, member of Aosdána
Richard Murphy,poet, member of Aosdána
James Plunkett, member of Aosdána
William Trevor, writer, member of Aosdána
Lady Gregory, playwright and founder of the Abbey Theatre
Deirdre Purcell
Marina Carr, Aosdána
Ciarán Carson, Aosdána
Leland Bardwell, Aosdána
Philip Casey, Aosdána
Harry Clifton, Aosdána
Michael Coady, Aosdána
Dermot Healy, Aosdána
Aidan Higgins, Aosdána
Adrian Kenny, Aosdána
Ulick O'Connor, Aosdána
Julia Ó Faoláin, Aosdána
Seán Ó Faoláin, Saoi of Aosdána
Anthony Cronin, Aosdána
Margaretta D'Arcy, Aosdána
Theo Dorgan, Aosdána
Robert Greacen, Aosdána
Eamon Delaney
Oliver St John Gogarty
Mary Lavin, Saoi of Aosdána
James Clarence Mangan poet
Aubrey de Vere poet
Sir Samuel Ferguson poet
George Russell, AE

Politics

Eamon de Valera (born in USA) Taoiseach (1932-1948; 1951-54; 1957-1959) President of Ireland (1959-1973)
Padraic Pearse - poet, teacher and leader of the Easter Rising
James Connolly - Scottish-born socialist, founder of the Labour Party and Easter Rising participant
W.T. Cosgrave - President of the Executive Council (prime minister) (1922-1932)
Mary Harney, deputy Prime Minister (Tánaiste) & leader of the Progressive Democrats
Desmond O'Malley - founder and first leader of the Progressive Democrats
Tim Healy - politician and Governor-General of the Irish Free State (1922-28)
Domhnall Ua Buachalla Fianna Fáil TD turned Governor-General (1932-36/7)
Douglas Hyde - founder of the Gaelic League, President of Ireland (1938-1945)
Patrick Hillery - Irish EEC Commissioner & President of Ireland (1976-1990)
Mary Robinson, President of Ireland (1990-1997)
Mary McAleese, President of Ireland (1997-present)
Bertie Ahern, prime minister (the Taoiseach) and leader of Fianna Fáil
Gerry Adams - politician & leader of Sinn Féin
Wolfe Tone - nationalist leader
David Trimble - former First Minister of Northern Ireland and leader of the Ulster Unionist Party
Brian Lenihan - Tánaiste & defeated presidential candidate
Roger Casement - human rights campaigner turned revolutionary
Michael Collins - assassinated President of the Provisional Government
Gerry Fitt - politician & first leader of the SDLP
John Hume - MP, MEP and second leader of the SDLP
Garret FitzGerald - politician and Taoiseach (1981-2, 1982-87)
Charles Haughey - politician and Taoiseach (1979-81; 1982; 1987-92)
Countess Markiewicz - politician
Rev. Ian Paisley MP, MEP, MLA - politician and leader of the Democratic Unionist Party
Charles Stewart Parnell - politician and leader of the Irish Parliamentary Party
Boyle Roche - eighteenth century politician and member of the Irish House of Commons
Edmund Burke
Arthur Griffith - President of Dáil Éireann (Jan-Aug 1922) & 1921 Treaty delegation leader
David Norris - senator, Joycean scholar and gay rights campaigner
Lord Edward Fitzgerald - eighteenth century aristocratic revolutionary
Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington - member of Irish House of Commons, military leader and British Prime Minister
Frank Pakenham, 7th Earl of Longford Irish-born UK politician, cabinet minister and author.
Pat Cox - President of the European Parliament
Brian Boru - High King of Ireland
Rory O'Connor - High King of Ireland
Dermot McMurrough - King of Leinster
Garret Fitzgerald - the Great Earl of Kildare
Patrick Sarsfield - Earl of Lucan - military leader
Willam Joyce - Lord Haw Haw - Nazi propagandist
Robert Emmet - leader of 1803 rebellion
Henry Joy McCracken - Ulster leader of 1798 rebellion
Daniel O'Connell - The Liberator - leader of campaign for Catholic Emancipation
Isaac Butt - Home Rule leader
Michael Davitt (1846-1906) - founder of the Land League
John Redmond - Home Rule leader
Eoin MacNeill - founder-member of the the Gaelic League
Thomas J Clarke - signatory of 1916 Proclamation
The O'Rahilly - 1916 leader
Joseph Plunkett - signatory of 1916 Proclamation
Jeremiah O'Donovan Rossa - veteran Fenian leader (d. 1915)
Seán Mac Diarmada - signatory of 1916 Proclamation
Thomas MacDonagh - signatory of 1916 Proclamation
Eamonn Ceannt - signatory of 1916 Proclamation
Tomás MacCurtain - Lord Mayor of Cork (d. 1920)
Terence MacSwiney - Lord Mayor of Cork (d. 1920)
Arthur Griffith - Home Rule leader (d. 1922)
Seán Lemass - Taoiseach
General Eoin O'Duffy - leader of the Blueshirts
John A Costello - Taoiseach (1948-51),(1954-57)
Noel Browne - controversial Health Minister (1948-51)
Seán MacBride - IRA chief, minister (1948-51),lawyer and founder member of Amnesty International
TK Whitaker - architect of post-war economic development
Liam Cosgrave - Taoiseach(1973-77)
Frederick Boland - Diplomat and Irish delegate to UN
Lord Edward Fitzgerald - aristocratic rebel in 1798 rebellion
Henry Grattan- 18th century defender of Irish parliamentary independence and opponent of the Act of Union
Thomas D'Arcy McGee, promoter of a federal union for the Canadian provinces