Haitians in France consist of migrants from Haiti and their descendants living in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Demographics

The 2011 Census recorded 62 298 Haitian-born people.

List of notable Haitians in France

Artists

* Edgar Degas, artist * Edouard Duval-Carrié, painter and sculptor * Philippe Dodard, graphic artist and painter * Gérard Fombrun, sculptor

Athletes

Ronald Agénor Ronald Jean-Martin Agénor (born November 13, 1964) is a former professional tennis player who represented Haiti during his playing career. He is the only Haitian to have ever earned a Top 25 world ranking in singles, reaching a highest singles ...

, professional tennis player * Bryan Alceus, professional football player * Gary Ambroise, professional football player * Ernst Atis-Clotaire, professional football player *

Jean-Kévin Augustin Jean-Kévin Augustin (born 16 June 1997) is a French professional footballer who plays as a striker for Swiss Super League club Basel. An academy graduate of French club Paris Saint-Germain, Augustin made his senior debut in 2015 and made 31 ...

, professional football player *

Hervé Bazile Hervé Bazile (born 18 March 1990) is a Haitian professional footballer. Career Bazile made his professional football debut on 11 November 2008 in a 2–4 loss to Bordeaux in the 2008–09 edition of the Coupe de la Ligue coming on as a substi ...

, professional football player *

Kervens Belfort Kervens Fils Belfort (born 16 May 1992) is a Haitian professional footballer who plays as a forward for Malaysian club Kelantan and the Haiti national team. Club career Belfort has played for Tempête, Le Mans B, Le Mans, FC Sion, Grenobl ...

, professional football player * Jean-Ricner Bellegarde, professional football player *

Frantz Bertin Frantz Bertin (born 30 May 1983) is a Haitian former professional Association football, footballer who played as a Defender (association football)#Centre-back, central defender. Club career Bertin was born in Paris, France. After beginning his c ...

, professional football player * Davidson Charles, professional football player * Rochel Chery, professional basketball player * Yves Desmarets, professional football player * Belony Dumas, professional football player *

Jean-Kévin Duverne Jean-Kevin Duverne (born 12 July 1997) is a French professional footballer who plays as a defender for Ligue 1 club Brest. Club career Duverne made his RC Lens first team debut on 5 August 2016 against Tours FC. International career Duverne ...

, professional football player *

Wagneau Eloi Wagneau Eloi (born 11 September 1973) is a Haitian former professional footballer who played as a striker. Born in Haiti, Eloi's family relocated to Paris, France when he was nine. In Paris, Eloi played for Red Star and Paris FC before join ...

, professional football player *Gabriel Flambert, professional football player *

Herby Fortunat Herby Fortunat (born 28 June 1982) is a Congolese former professional footballer who played as a forward. Club career Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Fortunat was raised in France. He began his professional career with FC Sochaux-Montbéliard ...

, professional football player * Yassin Fortune, professional football player *

Romain Genevois Romain Genevois (born 28 October 1987) is a Haitian professional footballer who most recently played as a defender for Stade Malherbe Caen of the Ligue 1 in France. Early years Genevois was born in L'Estère, Haiti. At the age 3, he was sepa ...

, professional football player * Marc Hérold Gracien, professional football player; was considered as the fastest player in France by beating

Nicolas Anelka Nicolas Sébastien Anelka (; born 14 March 1979) is a French professional football manager and retired player who played as a forward. As a player, he regularly featured in his country's national team, often scoring at crucial moments. Known f ...

's record after a physical test at Clarefontaine (The National Institute of Soccer) *

Constantin Henriquez Constantin Henriquez was a Haitian-born French rugby union footballer. He played as number eight, wing and centre. Henriquez was the first known black athlete to compete in the Olympic Games, and the first to become an Olympic gold medallist, ...

, first person of color to compete in the

Olympic Games The modern Olympic Games or Olympics (french: link=no, Jeux olympiques) are the leading international sporting events featuring summer and winter sports competitions in which thousands of athletes from around the world participate in a vari ...

and by extension to win a gold medal; rugby union footballer *

Max Hilaire Max Hilaire (born 6 December 1985) is a Haitian professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for Stade Poitevin. Club career Born in Bondy, France, Hilaire started his career in 1993 with Blanc Mesnil SF and joined FC Aulnay-sous-Bois in ...

, professional football player * Lecsinel Jean-François, professional football player * Dominique Jean-Zéphirin, professional football player * Jean-Dimmy Jéoboam, professional basketball player * Georgi Joseph, professional basketball player *

Steeven Joseph-Monrose Steeven Joseph-Monrose (born 20 July 1990) is a French professional footballer who plays as a right winger for French Championnat National 3 club Gazélec Ajaccio. Career Club Joseph-Monrose began his career playing for his local club in Bondy, ...

, professional football player * Presnel Kimpembe, professional football player *

Kevin Lafrance Kevin Pierre Lafrance (born 13 January 1990) is a professional footballer who most recently played as a centre-back for Polish side Stomil Olsztyn. Born in France, he represents the Haiti national team at international level. Club career Born ...

, professional football player *

Alexandre Lippmann Alexandre Lippmann (11 June 1881 – 23 February 1960) was a French Olympic champion épée fencer. He won two Olympic gold medals, as well as three other Olympic medals. Early and personal life Lippmann was born in Paris, France, in the 1 ...

, fencer *

Jeff Louis Jeff Louis (born 8 August 1992) is a Haitian former professional footballer who played as a midfielder. Between 2011 and 2018 he represented the Haiti national team internationally, making 29 FIFA-official appearances and scoring 3 goals. Clu ...

, professional football player *

Mike Maignan Mike Peterson Maignan (born 3 July 1995) is a French professional footballer who plays as a goalkeeper for club AC Milan and the France national team. Maignan came through the youth teams at Paris Saint-Germain, he was an unused substitute sev ...

, professional football player *

Jean-Eudes Maurice Jean-Eudes Maurice (born 21 June 1986) is a professional footballer who plays for UR Namur in Belgium. He is a typical 'Number 9' striker known for his speed and accuracy. Born in France, he represents Haiti at international level and was a me ...

, professional football player * Pierre Mercier, professional football player * Rénald Metelus, professional football player * Soni Mustivar, professional football player * Wilner Nazaire, professional football player *Ralph Noncent, professional football player * Windsor Noncent, professional football player * Vladimir Pascal, professional football player *

Jean-Jacques Pierre Jean-Jacques Pierre (born 23 January 1981) is a Haitian football coach and former professional footballer who played as a centre back. He coaches the Haiti national team. Club career Born in Léogâne, Jean-Jacques Pierre began his career in ...

, professional football player * Listner Pierre-Louis, professional football player * Johny Placide, professional football player *

Yves Pons Yves Pons (born 7 May 1999) is a Haitian-born French professional basketball player for ASVEL of the LNB Pro A and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball for the Tennessee Volunteers. Early life and career Pons was born in Port-au-Prince, ...

, professional basketball player * Dylan Saint-Louis, professional football player * Abel Thermeus, professional football player * William Vainqueur, professional football player * Ronaël Pierre-Gabriel

Entertainment

Jeanne Duval Jeanne Duval (; – c. 1862) was a Haitian-born actress and dancer of mixed French and black African ancestry. For 20 years, she was the muse of French poet and art critic Charles Baudelaire. They met in 1842 when Duval left Haiti for Franc ...

, actress *

Raoul Peck Raoul Peck (born 9 September 1953 in Port-au-Prince, Haiti) is a Haitian filmmaker, of both documentary and feature films. He is known for using historical, political, and personal characters to tackle and recount societal issues and historical ...

, filmmaker

Historical personalities

Eugene Bullard Eugene Jacques Bullard (born Eugene James Bullard; October 9, 1895 – October 12, 1961) was one of the first black American military pilots, although Bullard flew for France, not the United States. Bullard was one of the few black combat pilo ...

, first African-American military pilot, whose ancestors where Haitian slaves who fled the Haitian Revolution. * Charles Terres Weymann, racing pilot, who flew for

Nieuport Nieuport, later Nieuport-Delage, was a French aeroplane company that primarily built racing aircraft before World War I and fighter aircraft during World War I and between the wars. History Beginnings Originally formed as Nieuport-Duplex in ...

during World War I as a test pilot and was awarded the rank of Chevalier of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleon ...

. * Jean-Baptiste Belley, former slave from

Saint Domingue Saint-Domingue () was a French colony in the western portion of the Caribbean island of Hispaniola, in the area of modern-day Haiti, from 1659 to 1804. The name derives from the Spanish main city in the island, Santo Domingo, which came to re ...

* Joseph Philippe Lemercier Laroche, engineer and the only passenger of known African ancestry on the ill-fated voyage of the

RMS Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United ...

. *

Michèle Bennett Michèle Bennett (born 15 January 1950) is the former First Lady of Haiti and the ex‑wife of former President of Haiti, Jean‑Claude Duvalier. They fled to France together when he resigned in 1986; they divorced in 1990. Early life Michèl ...

, ex-wife of former President for Life of Haiti,

Jean-Claude Duvalier Jean-Claude Duvalier (; 3 July 19514 October 2014), nicknamed "Baby Doc" ( ht, Bebe Dòk), was a Haitian politician who was the President of Haiti from 1971 until he was overthrown by a popular uprising in February 1986. He succeeded his father ...

. * Serge Gilles, exiled leader of the

Fusion of Haitian Social Democrats The Fusion of Haitian Social Democrats ( ht, Fizyon Sosyodemokrat Ayiti, ; french: Fusion des Sociaux-Démocrates Haïtiens, ) —also translated in some sources as ''Union of Haitian Social Democrats''— is a political party in Haiti. History ...

political party of Haiti.

Literature

* Alexandre Dumas, writer (most notable for works such as ''

The Three Musketeers ''The Three Musketeers'' (french: Les Trois Mousquetaires, links=no, ) is a French historical adventure novel written in 1844 by French author Alexandre Dumas. It is in the swashbuckler genre, which has heroic, chivalrous swordsmen who fight ...

'') *

Alexandre Dumas, fils Alexandre Dumas (; 27 July 1824 – 27 November 1895) was a French author and playwright, best known for the romantic novel ''La Dame aux Camélias'' (''The Lady of the Camellias''), published in 1848, which was adapted into Giuseppe Verdi's 1 ...

, writer and dramatist *

Félix Morisseau-Leroy Félix Morisseau-Leroy (13 March 1912 – 5 September 1998), was a Haitian writer who used Haitian Creole to write poetry and plays, the first significant writer to do so. By 1961 he succeeded in having Creole recognized as an official languag ...

, writer *

Gary Klang Gary Klang (born December 28, 1941, in Port-au-Prince Haiti), is a Haitian-Canadian poet and novelist. Since 2007, he is the president of the prestigious "Conseil des Écrivains francophones d'Amérique" (Committee, Council of America's francophone ...

, poet and novelist * Ida Faubert, writer * Jacques Bins, comte de Saint-Victor, poet *

Jacques Roumain Jacques Roumain (June 4, 1907 – August 18, 1944) was a Haitian writer, politician, and advocate of Marxism. He is considered one of the most prominent figures in Haitian literature. The African-American poet, Langston Hughes, translated some of ...

, writer, politician, and advocate of Marxism * Jean-Baptiste Dureau de la Malle, writer and translator * Jean-Baptiste Romane, poet and one poem, ''Vers à la France'', he was awarded a gold medallion by the French government *

Jean Dominique Jean Léopold Dominique (31 July 1930 – 3 April 2000) was a Haitian journalist and noted activist for human rights and democracy in Haiti. His station, Radio Haiti-Inter, was the first to broadcast news, investigative reporting, and politic ...

, journalist *

Joel Dreyfuss Joel Dreyfuss (born September 1945) is a Haitian-American retired magazine editor. Personal life A Haitian-American, Joel Dreyfuss was born in September 1945 in Port-au-Prince, Republic of Haiti. He grew up in Monrovia, New York City, and P ...

, journalist, editor, and writer * John James Audubon, ornithologist, naturalist, and painter *

Maggy de Coster Maggy de Coster (born April 23, 1966) is a Haitian-born writer living in France. Until 1987 (or possibly somewhat later), she wrote under her birth name Margareth Lizaire and is also known as Margareth Lizaire de Coster. Biography She was born in ...

, writer * Paul Arcelin, writer * Pierre Faubert, poet and playwright *

René Depestre René Depestre (born 29 August 1926, Jacmel, Haiti) is a Haitian poet and former communist activist. He is considered to be one of the most prominent figures in Haitian literature. He lived in Cuba as an exile from the Duvalier regime for ma ...

, poet and former communist activist * Roger Gaillard, historian and novelist * Solon Ménos, author and politician *

Thomas Madiou Thomas Madiou (Port-au-Prince, April 30 1815-''ibidem'', May 25, 1884) was a Haitian historian. His work ''Histoire d'Haïti'' (English: ''History of Haiti'') is the first complete history of Haiti from 1492 to 1846 (Madiou's present). It is consid ...

, historian *

Victor Séjour Juan Victor Séjour Marcou et Ferrand (June 2, 1817 – September 20, 1874) was an American Creole of color and expatriate writer. Born in New Orleans, he spent most of his career in Paris. His fiction and plays were written and published in Fr ...

, author

Medicine

* François Fournier de Pescay, first person of color to have practiced medicine and surgery in Europe.

Models

Misty Jean Misty Jean (born c. 1980 in Haiti) is a former Miss West Indies and singer. She sings in her native Haitian Creole / French language and also in English. Biography Misty Jean started performing at age of three with the dance institute of L ...

, former Miss West Indies and singer

Music

Célimène Daudet Célimène Daudet (born in 1977) is a contemporary French classical pianist. Biography Born in Aix-en-Provence to a French father and a Haitian mother, Daudet began her training at the Aix-en-Provence Conservatory with Michel Bourdoncle. She th ...

, pianist *

Alibi Montana Nikarson Saint-Germain better known by his stage name Alibi Montana (born 1978 in Villetaneuse, Seine-Saint-Denis, France) is a French rapper of Haitian origin. Career Alibi Montana born in Villetaneuse, moved to the city of 4000 at La Courneu ...

, rapper *

Kery James Alix Mathurin (; born 28 December 1977) better known as Kery James, is a French rapper, singer, songwriter, dancer and record producer from Orly, who was born in Guadeloupe to Haitian parents. Prior to his solo career, he was in Idéal J where ...

, rapper and singer * Michel Paul Guy de Chabanon, violinist, composer and writer * Roi Heenok, rapper, producer and entrepreneur

Political figures

* Alexandre Pétion * André Rigaud *

Dumarsais Estimé Dumarsais Estimé (born April 21, 1900 in Verrettes, died July 20, 1953 in New York) was a Haitian politician and President of the Haitian Republic from August 16, 1946 to May 10, 1950. Previously, he was a member of the Parliament for Verrett ...

Franck Lavaud Franck Lavaud (February 16, 1903 – February 27, 1988) was a Haitian general and politician who was an acting head of state during two terms: from January 11, 1946 until August 16, 1946 and from May 10, 1950 until December 6, 1950. Both times he ...

, military general and politician * François-Ferdinand Christophe * Jean-Baptiste Mills *

Jean-Claude Bajeux Jean-Claude Bajeux (17 September 1931 – 5 August 2011) was a Haitian political activist and professor of Caribbean literature. For many years he was director of the Ecumenical Center for Human Rights based in Haiti's capital, Port-au-Prin ...

, political activist and professor of Caribbean literature * Joseph Bunel * Jules DeMun * Léon Thébaud, lawyer and ambassador *

Lysius Salomon Louis Étienne Félicité Lysius Salomon (June 30, 1815 – October 19, 1888) was the President of Haiti from 1879 to 1888. Salomon is best remembered for instituting Haiti's first postal system and for his lively enthusiasm for Haiti's moderni ...

Michaëlle Jean Michaëlle Jean (; born September 6, 1957) is a Canadian stateswoman and former journalist who served from 2005 to 2010 as governor general of Canada, the 27th since Canadian Confederation. She is the first Haitian Canadian and black person ...

* Paul Arcelin, political activist *

Philippe Kieffer Philippe Kieffer (24 October 1899 – 20 November 1962), '' capitaine de frégate'' in the French Navy, was a French officer and political personality, and a hero of the Free French Forces. Life and career Born in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, to a ...

, French officer and political personality, and a hero of the

Free French Forces __NOTOC__ The French Liberation Army (french: Armée française de la Libération or AFL) was the reunified French Army that arose from the merging of the Armée d'Afrique with the prior Free French Forces (french: Forces françaises libres, l ...

Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Thomas-Alexandre Dumas Davy de la Pailleterie (; known as Alexandre Dumas; 25 March 1762 – 26 February 1806) was a Creole General officer, general, from The French colony of Saint-Domingue, in French Revolution, Revolutionary France. Along ...

Toussaint Louverture François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture (; also known as Toussaint L'Ouverture or Toussaint Bréda; 20 May 1743 – 7 April 1803) was a Haitian general and the most prominent leader of the Haitian Revolution. During his life, Louverture ...

References

{{Immigration to France Caribbean diaspora in France Society of France Ethnic groups in France Immigration to France by country of origin

Demographics

List of notable Haitians in France

Artists

Athletes

Entertainment

Historical personalities

Literature

Medicine

Models

Music

Political figures

See also

References