This is a list of notable

Cubans Cubans ( es, Cubanos) are people born in Cuba and people with Cuban citizenship. Cuba is a multi-ethnic nation, home to people of different ethnic, religious and national backgrounds. Racial and ethnic groups Census The population of Cuba wa ...

, ordered alphabetically by first name within each category.

Additional lists

For Cuban-Americans please see

List of Cuban Americans A ''list'' is any set of items in a row. List or lists may also refer to: People * List (surname) Organizations * List College, an undergraduate division of the Jewish Theological Seminary of America * SC Germania List, German rugby unio ...

Art and entertainment

Actors

Ana de Armas Ana Celia de Armas Caso (; born 30 April 1988) is a Cuban and Spanish actress. She began her career in Cuba and had a leading role in the romantic drama '' Una rosa de Francia'' (2006). At age 18, she moved to Madrid, Spain, and starred in t ...

, actress * Ana Margarita Martínez-Casado, actress and singer *

Andy García Andrés Arturo García Menéndez (born April 12, 1956), known professionally as Andy García, is a Cuban-born American actor, director and musician. He first rose to prominence acting in Brian De Palma's ''The Untouchables'' (1987) alongside ...

, actor *

César Évora César Évora Díaz (; born November 4, 1959, in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban actor. Biography Évora started his career in Cuba appearing in more than ten movies before moving to Mexico in the early 1990s. He became known for playing minor roles ...

, actor *

Daisy Fuentes Daisy Fuentes (born November 17, 1966) is a Cuban-American actress, comedian, model, television host and former weather presenter. Fuentes broke barriers as MTV's first Latina VJ (signed to MTV and MTV Latin America simultaneously) and as Revlon ...

, actress *

Desi Arnaz Desiderio Alberto Arnaz y de Acha III (March 2, 1917 – December 2, 1986) was a Cuban-born American actor, bandleader, and film and television producer. He played Ricky Ricardo on the American television sitcom '' I Love Lucy'', in which he c ...

, actor *

Emiliano Díez Emiliano Díez (born August 26, 1953) is a Cuban-American actor. He is best known for his role as Dr. Vic Palmero, George's father-in-law, in the sitcom ''George Lopez'', as well as his role as Manny Beltrán in the sitcom '' Los Beltrán''. Ea ...

, actor * Enrique Molina, actor *

Faizon Love Faizon Andre Love (born Langston Faizon Santisima; June 14, 1968) is a Cuban-born American actor and comedian. He is best known for his roles in the comedy films '' The Meteor Man'', ''Don't Be a Menace'', ''Friday'', '' B*A*P*S'', '' Elf'', '' ...

, actor and comedian *

Francisco Gattorno Francisco Alejandro Gattorno Sánchez (; born October 12, 1964), better known in the show business world plainly as Francisco Gattorno, is a Cuban-Mexican actor. Biography Francisco grew up in Santa Clara. He is a son of a Canarian father, an ...

, actor *

Julio Oscar Mechoso Julio Oscar Mechoso (May 31, 1955 – November 25, 2017) was an American actor who played detective Ruiz in '' Bad Boys'' and appeared in such films as ''Blue Streak'', ''Jurassic Park III'', ''The Legend of Zorro'', '' The Lost City'', ''Lit ...

, actor *

Luis Oquendo Luis Oquendo Valhuerdi (March 24, 1925 – August 25, 1992)''Social Security Death Index, 1935-2014''. Social Security Administration. was a Cuban-American actor who was well known for his acting on radio before going into television and film ...

, actor * Luisa Martínez Casado (1860-1925), actress * Manela Bustamante, actress * María Conchita Alonso, actress *

Mario Cimarro Mario Antonio Cimarro Paz (born June 1, 1971) is a Cuban actor. Biography Mario Antonio Cimarro Paz was born on June 1, 1971 in Havana, Cuba. He is the son of Antonio Luis Cimarro and María Caridad Paz. He has a sister, named María Antonia ...

, actor * Mario Ernesto Sánchez, actor and founder of Teatro Avante *

Renny Arozarena Renny Arozarena (born 1971, in Havana) is a Cuban actor. He started acting as a child, making his professional debut on the stage in leading roles in ''Andoba'', ''Santa Camila de la Habana Vieja'', ''Romeo et Juliette'', ''Othello'', among other ...

, actor * Steven Bauer, actor *

Velia Martínez Velia Martínez Febles (born June 14, 1920 in Tampa, Florida - May 22, 1993 in Miami, Florida) was a well-known actress, singer and former nightclub dancer. Martínez was born in Tampa to Cuban parents. In 1941, she settled in Havana, where s ...

, actress and singer * William Levy, actor *

Nobel Vega Nobel Vega (born August 21, 1930) better known as Tio Nobel (Uncle Nobel) is a Cuban actor and children's television personality. Vega is mostly remembered for his character as a boat captain who appeared on WKAQ-TV's "El Show del Tio Nobel" ("Uncl ...

, actor, "Tio Nobel"

Architects

Raúl de Armas Raúl de Armas (born 1941) is a Cuban-born architect who has designed and completed many major buildings in the United States, Europe, Canada, and the Middle East in his career of more than 35 years, winning numerous design awards. De Armas came ...

Nicolas Arroyo Nicolás Arroyo Márquez (31 August 1917 in Havana, Cuba - 13 July 2008 in Washington, D.C.) was a Cuban architect, diplomat and minister. He was the last Cuban Ambassador to the United States in 1958 before Fidel Castro's rise to power. He had ...

Max Borges Jr. Max Borges Jr., born Max Borges Recio (July 24, 1918 – January 18, 2009), was a Cuban architect best known for his work in Havana in the 1940s and 1950s. He later moved to the United States. Biography Borges Jr. was born in Cuba, the son ...

Max Borges del Junco Maximiliano de la Luz Borges y del Junco (May 29, 1890 in Jaruco, Cuba - June 9, 1963, Arlington, VA) was a well-known Cuban architect An architect is a person who plans, designs and oversees the construction of buildings. To practice archite ...

Felicia Chateloin Felicia Chateloin is a Cuban architect specialized in conservation and rehabilitation of built patrimony and in urban historic preservation.Linkedin. http://www.linkedin.com/groups/Announcement-from-Institute-Classical-Architecture-2554899.S.1712 ...

Leonardo Morales y Pedroso Leonardo Morales y Pedroso (January 25, 1887– November 17, 1965) was one of the most prominent Cuban architect in Cuba in the first half 20th century. In 1900 he entered and attended pre-university studies at De Witt Clinton High of New York, w ...

* Ricardo Porro *

Antonio Quintana Simonetti Antonio Luis Quintana Simonetti (April 19, 1919 - September 21, 1993) was a Cuban architect and a forerunner of Modern architecture in Havana. Quintana graduated from the University of Havana in 1944, among his works are some of the most import ...

Eugenio Rayneri Piedra Eugenio Rayneri Piedra was the architect of numerous buildings in Havana, son of Eugenio Rayneri Sorrentino a remarkable architect, author of the entrance of the Colón Cemetery, the Palace of the Marquise of Villalba, and the Mercado de Tacón. ...

* Mario Romañach

Artists, photographers and fashion designers

Agustín Cárdenas 250px, ''Untitled'' (1961), sculpture by Auguste Cardenas in the area above the Roman quarry in Sankt Margarethen im Burgenland near Lake Neusiedl.">Lake_Neusiedl.html" ;"title="Sankt Margarethen im Burgenland near Lake Neusiedl">Sankt Margareth ...

, sculptor *

Alberto Korda Alberto Díaz Gutiérrez, better known as Alberto Korda or simply Korda (September 14, 1928 – May 25, 2001), was a Cuban photographer, remembered for his famous image ''Guerrillero Heroico'' of Argentine Marxist revolutionary Che Guevara. ...

, photographer * Alexandre Arrechea, painter, sculptor *

Amelia Peláez Amelia Peláez del Casal (5 January 1896 – 8 April 1968) was an important Cuban painter of the Avant-garde generation. Biography Amelia Peláez was born in 1896 in Yaguajay, in the former Cuban province of Las Villas (now Sancti Spíritus Pr ...

, painter *

Baruj Salinas Baruj Salinas (born July 6, 1935) is a Cuban-American contemporary visual artist and architect. He is recognized as a central figure in the establishment of the modern Latin American art market in South Florida. Background Salinas' family is of ...

, painter * Carlos Enríquez, painter * Fidelio Ponce de León, painter * Herman Puig (born German Puig Paredes), photographer * Humberto Jesús Castro García, painter *

José Bernal José Bernal Romero (January 8, 1925 – April 19, 2010, known by his first name and by his paternal family name José Bernal) was a Cuban-American artist, born in Santa Clara, Cuba, in the former province of Las Villas (now Villa Clara). H ...

, painter *

José Vilalta Saavedra José Villalta Saavedra (born January 27, 1862, Havana, - died March 16, 1912, Rome) was a Cuban sculptor. One of the first native Cuban sculptors, Villalta was a mulatto born in Havana. Thanks to private patrons, he was able to train in Europe, ...

, sculptor * Josignacio, creator of plastic paint medium, contemporary painter * Juan José Sicre, sculptor * Juan T. Vázquez Martín, painter * Lourdes Gomez Franca, painter * Luis Castaneda, photographer * Mario Perez, painter * Miguel Fleitas, painter, photographer *

Miguel Rodez Miguel Rodez (born November 12, 1956) is a Cuban born contemporary visual artist, curator, and former attorney who has resided in the United States since 1969. Artistically, Rodez is known for his textured luminescent paintings and his Minimalist ...

, painter, sculptor *

Pedro Álvarez Castelló Pedro Reinaldo Álvarez Castelló (February 9, 1967 – February 12, 2004) was a Cuban artist who rose to prominence during Cuba's Special Period. Biography Álvarez was a native of Havana, Cuba. He studied art at the Escuela Nacional de Bel ...

, painter *

Rafael Consuegra Rafael Consuegra (September 16, 1941 – September 17, 2021) was a Cuban-born American sculptor and ceramist who worked in the United States and Europe. Consuegra was born in Havana, Cuba. He left the island in 1960 and established residence ...

, sculptor *

Raúl Corrales Raul, Raúl and Raül are the Italian, Portuguese, Romanian, Spanish, Galician, Asturian, Basque, Aragonese, and Catalan forms of the Anglo-Germanic given name Ralph or Rudolph. They are cognates of the French Raoul. Raul, Raúl or Raül may re ...

, photographer * Raúl Martínez, pop artist, painter * Rene Mederos, poster artist and graphic designer * René Portocarrero, painter * Tomas Sanchez, painter *

Victor Manuel The name Victor or Viktor may refer to: * Victor (name), including a list of people with the given name, mononym, or surname Arts and entertainment Film * ''Victor'' (1951 film), a French drama film * ''Victor'' (1993 film), a French shor ...

, painter *

Waldo Diaz-Balart Waldo may refer to: People * Waldo (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Waldo (surname), a list of people * Waldo (footballer) (1934-2019), full name Waldo Machado da Silva, Brazilian footballer Places Canada * Waldo, ...

, painter *

Wifredo Lam Wifredo Óscar de la Concepción Lam y Castilla (; December 8, 1902 – September 11, 1982), better known as Wifredo Lam, was a Cuban artist who sought to portray and revive the enduring Afro-Cuban spirit and culture. Inspired by and in conta ...

, painter

Authors and poets

Alejo Carpentier Alejo Carpentier y Valmont (, ; December 26, 1904 – April 24, 1980) was a Cuban novelist, essayist, and musicologist who greatly influenced Latin American literature during its famous "boom" period. Born in Lausanne, Switzerland, of French an ...

, novelist *

Antonio Benitez-Rojo Antonio is a masculine given name of Etruscan origin deriving from the root name Antonius. It is a common name among Romance language-speaking populations as well as the Balkans and Lusophone Africa. It has been among the top 400 most popular male ...

, author * Brígida Agüero, poet *

Daína Chaviano Daína Chaviano () (born 19 February 1957, Havana)Profile
''Encyclopæd ...

, author *

Carilda Oliver Labra Carilda Oliver Labra (6 July 1922 – 29 August 2018) was a Cuban poet. She was born in Matanzas and died there as well. Oliver Labra studied law at the University of Havana. She was also known to excel at drawing, painting and sculpting. Kno ...

, poet * Domitila García de Coronado, writer and journalist *

Dulce María Loynaz Dulce María Loynaz Muñoz (Havana, Cuba; 10 December 1902 – 27 April 1997) was a Cuban poet, and is considered one of the principal figures of Cuban literature. She was awarded the Miguel de Cervantes Prize in 1992. She earned her Doctorate ...

, author * Edmundo Desnoes, author *

Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda Gertrudis Gómez de Avellaneda y Arteaga (March 23, 1814 – February 1, 1873) was a 19th-century Cuban-born Spanish writer. Born in Puerto Príncipe, now Camagüey, she lived in Cuba until she was 22. Her family moved to Spain in 1836, where s ...

, author, poet * Guillermo Cabrera Infante, author * Heberto Padilla, poet *

Héctor Zumbado Héctor Zumbado Argueta (19 March 1932 – 6 June 2016), also known as H. Zumbado, was a Cuban writer, journalist, critic, humorist, and essayist. In his words, "humor is a weapon, because it criticizes and exposes at the same time, and does so ...

, writer, journalist, humorist, critic * José Ignacio Rivero, author and journalist *

Antonio Rodríguez Salvador Antonio Rodríguez Salvador (born December 22, 1960), is a poet, fiction writer, dramatist and essayist. Salvador was born Taguasco, Cuba. He graduated in Economics, but teaches Composition and Style at José Martí University, and Drama at Sil ...

, poet, author *

José Lezama Lima José María Andrés Fernando Lezama Lima (December 19, 1910 – August 9, 1976) was a Cuban writer, poet and essayist. He is considered one of the most influential figures in Cuban and Latin American literature. His novel ''Paradiso'' is one of ...

, author, poet * José María Heredia y Campuzano, poet *

José Martí José Julián Martí Pérez (; January 28, 1853 – May 19, 1895) was a Cuban nationalist, poet, philosopher, essayist, journalist, translator, professor, and publisher, who is considered a Cuban national hero because of his role in the libera ...

, author, poet, journalist *

Julián del Casal José Julián Herculano del Casal y de la Lastra (November 7, 1863 – October 21, 1893) was a poet from Havana, Cuba. He started his writing career at a young age and later in life was known as an important forebearer of modernistic expression ...

, 19th-century poet *

Leonardo Padura Fuentes Leonardo de la Caridad Padura Fuentes (born October 10, 1955) is a Cuban novelist and journalist. , he is one of Cuba's best-known writers internationally. In his native Spanish, as well as in English and some other languages, he is often refe ...

, novelist, journalist * Mariano Brull, author *

Nancy Morejón Nancy Morejón (born 1944 in Havana) is a Cuban poet, critic, and essayist. She was a recipient of the Struga Poetry Evenings Golden Wreath Award. She is "the best known and most widely translated woman poet of post-revolutionary Cuba". Biograp ...

, author * José Gómez-Sicre, art critic and author *

Nicolás Guillén Nicolás Cristóbal Guillén Batista (10 July 1902 – 17 July 1989) was a Cuban poet, journalist, political activist, and writer. He is best remembered as the national poet of Cuba.

, poet *

Norberto Fuentes Norberto Fuentes (born March 2, 1943 Havana) is a writer and journalist. He has published ''Hemingway in Cuba'' and ''Ernest Hemingway: Rediscovered'', both available in English, as well as ''Dulces guerreros cubanos'', ''Condenados de Condado'' ...

, author *

Pedro Juan Gutiérrez Pedro Juan Gutiérrez (born 27 January 1950, in Matanzas, Cuba) is a Cuban novelist. He grew up in Pinar del Río and began to work selling ice cream and newspapers when he was eleven years old. He was a soldier, swimming and kayak instructor, ...

, author, poet, painter *

Pedro Luis Boitel Pedro Luis Boitel (May 13, 1931–May 25, 1972) was a Cubans, Cuban poet and dissident who opposed the governments of both Fulgencio Batista and Fidel Castro. In 1961, he was sentenced to 10 years in prison. Boitel died during a hunger strike in ...

, poet *

Raúl Rivero Raúl Ramón Rivero Castañeda (23 November 1945 – 6 November 2021) was a Cuban poet, journalist, and dissident. Early life and career Rivero was born on 23 November 1945 in Morón, Camagüey, in central Cuba. In his youth, he was an ard ...

, poet and journalist *

Reinaldo Arenas Reinaldo Arenas (July 16, 1943 – December 7, 1990) was a Cuban poet, novelist, and playwright known as a vocal critic of Fidel Castro, the Cuban Revolution, and the Cuban government. His memoir of the Cuban dissident movement and of being a ...

, author *

Severo Sarduy Severo Sarduy (February 25, 1937 – June 8, 1993) was a Cubans, Cuban poet, author, playwright, and critic of Cuban literature and art. Some of his works deal explicitly with male homosexuality and transvestism. Biography Born in a working-class ...

, poet *

Virgilio Piñera Virgilio Piñera Llera ( Cárdenas, Cuba, August 4, 1912 – Havana, October 18, 1979) was a Cuban author, playwright, poet, short story writer, essayist and translator. His most notorious works are the poem ''La isla en peso'' (1943), the collec ...

, author, playwright, poet, short-story writer and essayist *

Zoé Valdés Zoé Valdés (born May 2, 1959 in Havana, Cuba) is a Cuban novelist, poet, scriptwriter, film director and blogger. She studied at the ''Instituto Superior Pedagógico Enrique José Varona'', but did not graduate. From 1984 to 1988, she worke ...

, author *

Cirilo Villaverde Cirilo Villaverde de la Paz (1812 - 1894) was a Cuban poet, novelist, journalist and freedom fighter. He is best known for ''Cecilia Valdés'', a novel about classes and races in colonial Cuba. Biography He was born to a doctor on a sugar planta ...

Composers

Alejandro García Caturla Alejandro García Caturla (7 March 1906 – 12 November 1940) was a Cuban composer of art music and creolized Cuban themes. Biography Caturla was born in the town of Remedios, Villa Clara, Cuba. With only sixteen years old, in 1922, he won a ...

, symphonic composer * Mariá Álvarez Rios, composer *

Antonio María Romeu Antonio María Romeu Marrero (11 September 1876 – 18 January 1955) was a Cuban pianist, composer and bandleader. His orchestra was Cuba's leading Charanga (Cuba), charanga for over thirty years, specializing in the danzón. Throughout his ca ...

, composer *

Arsenio Rodríguez Arsenio Rodríguez (born Ignacio Arsenio Travieso Scull; 31 August 1911 – 30 December 1970)Giro, Radamés 2007. ''Diccionario enciclopédico de la música en Cuba''. La Habana, v. 4 p. 45 et seq. was a Cuban musician, composer and bandleader ...

, developer of the rumba * Didier Hernández, singer composer *

Ernesto Lecuona Ernesto Lecuona y Casado (; August 7, 1896 – November 29, 1963) was a Cuban composer and pianist, many of whose works have become standards of the Latin, jazz and classical repertoires. His over 600 compositions include songs and zarzuelas as ...

, often regarded as the greatest Cuban composer * Esteban Salas y Castro, 18th century Cuban baroque composer * Gonzalo Roig, often regarded as one of the greatest composers of Cuba, "Quiere me mucho"/ Cecilia Valdez *

Ignacio Cervantes Ignacio Cervantes Kawanag (Havana, 31 July 1847 – Havana, 29 April 1905) was a Cuban pianist and composer. He was influential in the creolization of Cuban music. A child prodigy, he was taught by pianist Juan Miguel Joval, later by compose ...

, Chopinesque piano composer *

José White Lafitte José Silvestre White Lafitte (17 January 1836, in Matanzas, Cuba – 12–15 March 1918, Paris, France), also known as Joseph White, was a Cuban-French violinist and composer. Biography His father Don Carlos White was Spanish people, Spa ...

, violinist and composer *

Leo Brouwer Juan Leovigildo Brouwer Mezquida (born March 1, 1939) is a Cuban composer, conductor, and classical guitarist. He is a Member of Honour of the International Music Council. Family He is the grandson of Cuban composer Ernestina Lecuona y Casado. ...

, guitarist and composer * Yalil Guerra, composer *

Amadeo Roldán Amadeo Roldán y Gardes (Paris, 12 June 1900 – Havana, 7 March 1939) was a Cuban composer and violinist. Roldán was born in Paris to a Cuban mulatta and a Spanish father. It was his mother, the pianist Albertina Gardes, who initiated her ch ...

, composer and violinist *

Dámaso Pérez Prado Dámaso is a Spanish masculine given name. The name is equivalent to that of Pope Damasus I in English. The name also exists in Italian as Damaso, though it is uncommon. People * Dámaso Alonso (1898–1990), Spanish poet * Dámaso Berenguer, 1st ...

, developer of the mambo * Armando Rodriguez-Gonzalez, composer * Antonio Rodríguez Ferrer, composer *

René Touzet René Touzet y Monte (September 8, 1916 in Havana, Cuba – June 15, 2003 in Miami, Florida) was a Cuban-born American composer, pianist and bandleader. Career as bandleader Living in the city of Cojimar, he learned classical piano from the ag ...

, composer, bandleader and pianist *

Flores Chaviano Flores Chaviano (born 10 December 1946) is an accomplished Cuban composer, guitarist, professor and orchestral conductor that has achieved great international recognition. Academic background Flores Chaviano began his musical studies in his nati ...

, guitarist and composer * Danilo Avilés, composer *

Magaly Ruiz Doris Magaly Ruiz Lastres (born 1941) is a Cuban musician and composer. Her compositions have been performed at a number of international music festivals. Life Magaly Ruiz was born in Santa Clara, Cuba, in 1941. In 1981, she graduated with a deg ...

, composer *

José Ardévol José Ardévol (13 March 1911, in Barcelona – 7 January 1981, in Havana) was a Cuban composer and conductor of Spanish derivation. As a child, Ardévol studied under his father, Fernando, who was a musician and conductor. He emigrated to Cub ...

, composer * Harold Gramatges, composer *

Carlos Fariñas Carlos Fariñas (1934 in Cienfuegos – 2002 in La Habana) was a Cuban composer. He was one of the most important masters of the Cuban avant-garde in the 1960s along with Leo Brouwer and Juan Blanco. He received his firsts musical orientati ...

, composer * Roberto Valera, composer *

Julián Orbón Julián Orbón de Soto (August 7, 1925, Avilés, Spain – May 21, 1991, Miami, Florida was a Cuban composer who lived and composed in Spain, Cuba, Mexico, and the United States of America. Aaron Copland referred to Orbón as "Cuba's most gifte ...

, composer *

Margarita Lecuona Margarita Lecuona (1910–1981) was a Cuban singer and composer who is remembered for composing Afro songs such as "Babalú" and "Tabú". Biography Born in Havana on 18 April 1910, Lecuona was the daughter of Eugenio Lecuona, the Cuban consul in ...

, singer and composer

Chess

José Raúl Capablanca José Raúl Capablanca y Graupera (19 November 1888 – 8 March 1942) was a Cuban chess player who was world chess champion from 1921 to 1927. A chess prodigy, he is widely renowned for his exceptional endgame skill and speed of play. Capablanc ...

, chess world champion, grandmaster considered "the Mozart of Chess" *

Juan Corzo Juan Corzo y Príncipe (June 24, 1873 – September 27, 1941) was a Spanish–Cuban chess master and five-time chess champion of Cuba. Born in Madrid, Corzo emigrated to Cuba in 1887. He became Champion of the Havana Chess Club in 1898. He is ...

, chess *

Lázaro Bruzón Lázaro Bruzón Batista (born 2 May 1982 in Holguín) is a Cuban-American chess grandmaster. He is a former World Junior Champion, two-times American Continental champion, two-time Iberoamerican champion and five-time Cuban champion. Bruzó ...

, chess grandmaster * María Teresa Mora

Musicians

* Aida Diestro, pianist, arranger * Albita, singer * Alfredo de la Fé, musician *

Adalberto Álvarez Adalberto Álvarez (22 November 1948 – 1 September 2021) was a Cuba Cuba ( , ), officially the Republic of Cuba ( es, República de Cuba, links=no ), is an island country comprising the island of Cuba, as well as Isla de la Juventud and ...

, pianist, director, composer * Ángel Reyes, violinist * AJ McLean, singer, member of American boyband

The Backstreet Boys Backstreet Boys (often abbreviated as BSB) are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson. Lou Pearlman formed the group in 1993 in Orlando, Florida. The gr ...

Armando Peraza Armando Peraza (May 30, 1924 – April 14, 2014) was a Latin jazz percussionist and a member of the rock band Santana. Peraza played congas, bongos, and timbales. Biography Early life Born in Lawton Batista, Havana, Cuba in 1924 (although the ...

, percussionist *

Arturo Sandoval Arturo Sandoval is a Cuban-American jazz trumpeter, pianist, and composer. While living in his native Cuba, Sandoval was influenced by jazz musicians Charlie Parker, Clifford Brown, and Dizzy Gillespie. In 1977 he met Gillespie, who became his ...

, trumpeter *

, composer *

Benny Moré Bartolomé Maximiliano Moré Gutiérrez (24 August 1919 – 19 February 1963), better known as Benny Moré (also spelled Beny Moré), was a Cuban singer, bandleader and songwriter. Due to his fluid tenor voice and his great expressivity, he was k ...

, singer, songwriter, conductor, arranger *

Bola de Nieve Bola de Nieve (literally ''Snowball'') (11 September 1911 – 2 October 1971), born Ignacio Jacinto Villa Fernández, was a Cuban singer-pianist and songwriter. His name originates from his round, black face. Villa Fernández was born in Guanaba ...

, singer, pianist *

Cándido Fabré Cándido Fabré (born in San Luis, Santiago de Cuba) is a Cuban musician, song writer, and singer famous for his skilled improvisation. He was born on September 20, 1959, in the municipality of San Luis (Santiago de Cuba Province, Santiago de Cub ...

, musician, songwriter, singer * Carlos Manuel Pruneda, singer * Carlos Varela, singer, songwriter * Celia Cruz, singer *

Celina González Celina González Zamora (16 March 1929 – 4 February 2015) was a Cuban singer-songwriter, who specialized in "música campesina", traditional music of the Cuban countryside. She is best known for co-authoring ''A Santa Bárbara'' wi ...

, singer-songwriter * Cesar "Pupy" Pedroso, pianist, musician * Christina Milian, singer *

Chucho Valdés Jesús Valdés Rodríguez, better known as Chucho Valdés (born October 9, 1941), is a Cuban pianist, bandleader, composer and arranger whose career spans over 50 years. An original member of the Orquesta Cubana de Música Moderna, in 1973 he fo ...

, pianist, bandleader, composer, arranger *

Compay Segundo Máximo Francisco Repilado Muñoz Telles (18 November 1907 – 13 July 2003), known professionally as "Compay Segundo", was a Cuban trova guitarist, singer and composer. Biography Compay (meaning '' compadre'') Segundo, so called because he ...

, musician, songwriter *

Conchita Espinosa Conchita Espinosa (February 23, 1914 – September 19, 2006) was a world-renowned pianist who combined academics and the arts to create an educational style that exists today at Conchita Espinosa Academy in Miami, Florida. Early life and education ...

, pianist, teacher *

Cuban Link Felix Delgado (born December 18, 1974), better known by his stage name Cuban Link, is a Cuban American rapper and original member of Terror Squad. Biography Delgado was born in Havana, Cuba, in 1974. He and his family emigrated to the Unite ...

, rapper *

Cubanito 20.02 Cubanito, also known by the former name Cubanito 20.02, is a Cuban reggaeton/ cubaton band. The band is credited, along with the band Máxima Alerta, with popularizing cubaton, though Cubanito is influenced more by Jamaican music, whereas Máxim ...

, hip-hop band *

Dave Lombardo David Lombardo (born February 16, 1965) is a Cuban-American drummer, best known as a co-founding member of American thrash metal band Slayer. He is currently playing drums with Testament, Fantômas, Suicidal Tendencies, Dead Cross, Mr. Bungl ...

, drummer * David Calzado, musician * Didier Hernández, singer, songwriter * Donna Maria Martinez, guitarist and singer *

Elena Burke Elena Burke (born Romana Elena Burgues Gonzalez on February 28, 1928, in Havana, Cuba – June 9, 2002 in Havana, Cuba) was a revered and popular Cuban singer of boleros and romantic ballads. Biography She started her career by working in rad ...

, singer *

El Medico EL, El or el may refer to: Religion * El (deity), a Semitic word for "God" People * EL (rapper) (born 1983), stage name of Elorm Adablah, a Ghanaian rapper and sound engineer * El DeBarge, music artist * El Franco Lee (1949–2016), American po ...

, timba musician *

Eliades Ochoa Eliades Ochoa Bustamante (born 22 June 1946) is a Cuban guitarist and singer from Loma de la Avispa, Songo La Maya in the east of the country near Santiago de Cuba. He began playing the guitar when he was six and in 1978 he was invited to joi ...

, guitarist and singer *

Emilio Estefan Emilio Estefan Gómez (born March 4, 1953) is a Cuban-born American musician and producer. Estefan has won 19 Grammy Awards. He first came to prominence as a member of the Miami Sound Machine. He is the husband of singer Gloria Estefan, father ...

, producer, composer *

, pianist, composer *

Esther Borja Esther Borja Lima (5 December 1913 – 28 December 2013) was a Cuban operatic soprano and actress. Havana-born Esther Borja Lima was trained in solfége and music theory by Juan Elósegui, and in singing by Rubén Lepchutz. She graduated as a te ...

, singer * Eusebio Delfín, singer *

Francisco Aguabella Francisco Aguabella (October 10, 1925 – May 7, 2010) was an Afro-Cuban percussionist whose career spanned folk, jazz, and dance bands. He was a prolific session musician and recorded seven albums as a leader. Biography In Cuba Aguabella wa ...

, percussionist * German Nogueira Gomez, songwriter, composer, producer * Gloria Estefan, singer, composer *

Gonzalo Rubalcaba Gonzalo Rubalcaba (born May 27, 1963) is an Afro-Cuban jazz pianist and composer. Early life Rubalcaba was born Gonzalo Julio González Fonseca in Havana, Cuba into a musical family. He adopted his great grandmother's name for professional use, ...

, pianist * Guillermo Portabales, singer, songwriter * Guillermo Rubalcaba, musician * Harold Lopez Nussa, jazz pianist * Horacio Gutiérrez, concert pianist * Hubert de Blanck, pianist, composer *

Ignacio Piñeiro Ignacio Piñeiro Martínez (May 21, 1888 – March 12, 1969) was a Cuban musician, bandleader and composer whose career started in rumba and flowered in the rise of the son. He was one of the most important composers of son music; in total he ...

, composer *

Ibrahim Ferrer Ibrahim Ferrer (February 20, 1927 – August 6, 2005) was a Cuban singer who played with Los Bocucos for nearly forty years. He also performed with Conjunto Sorpresa, Chepín y su Orquesta Oriental and Mario Patterson. After his retirement in ...

, musician *

Issac Delgado Issac Delgado (born Isaac Felipe Delgado-Ramirez on April 11, 1962 in Marianao, Habana, Cuba) is one of the founders of the band NG La Banda and is a popular salsa and timba performer. Early life and family His father, Luis Delgado, was a tai ...

, singer *

Jacobo Rubalcaba Jacobo González Rubalcaba (1895–1960) was a Cuban musician, composer, bandleader and Music education, educator. Born in Sagua La Grande, he adopted his mother's maiden name for professional use.Orovio, Helio (2004). ''Cuban Music from A to Z-CL ...

, musician * Jorge Bolet, concert pianist * Juan Croucier, bassist *

Juan Formell Juan Climaco Formell Cortina (August 2, 1942 – May 1, 2014) was a Cuban bassist, composer, and arranger, best known as the director of Los Van Van. He was a creator of popular danceable music and credited with bringing electronic instrumentatio ...

, composer *

Juan de Marcos González Juan de Marcos González (born Juan de Marcos González-Cárdenas; January 29, 1954) is a Cuban bandleader, musician and actor, best known for his work with the Buena Vista Social Club and in the 2021 Sony Pictures Animation film '' Vivo'' as the ...

, musician *

La Lupe Lupe Victoria Yolí Raymond (23 December 1936 – 29 February 1992), better known as La Lupe, was a Cuban singer of boleros, guarachas and Latin soul, known for her energetic, sometimes controversial performances. Following the release of he ...

, singer *

Lena Lena or LENA may refer to: Places * Léna Department, a department of Houet Province in Burkina Faso * Lena, Manitoba, an unincorporated community located in Killarney-Turtle Mountain municipality in Manitoba, Canada * Lena, Norway, a village in ...

, singer *

Lissette Lissette Álvarez Chorens, commonly known as Lissette, (born March 10, 1947) is a singer, songwriter, and record producer from Cuba. She is best known for recording a Spanish language-version of Bonnie Tyler's "Total Eclipse of the Heart" in 19 ...

, singer *

Malena Burke Malena Burke (born September 15, 1958 in Havana, Cuba) is a well-known Cuban singer now living in Miami. She began her musical studies at various art schools when she was only 8 years old and graduated from the Amadeo Roldan Conservatory with d ...

, singer *

Manuel Barrueco Manuel Barrueco (born December 16, 1952) is a Cuban classical guitarist. During three decades of concert performances he has performed and recorded across the United States and has been involved in many successful collaborations. In addition, he ...

, classical guitarist *

María Teresa Vera María Teresa Vera (February 6, 1895 in Guanajay – December 17, 1965 in Havana) was a Cuban singer, guitarist and composer. She was an outstanding example of the Cuban trova movement. Career She started her career as a singer in 1911 in a th ...

, composer, guitarist, singer * Mayra Verónica, singer *

Miguel Matamoros The Trío Matamoros was one of the most popular Cuban trova groups. It was formed in 1925 by Miguel Matamoros (8 May 1894 in Santiago de Cuba – 15 April 1971; guitar), Rafael Cueto (14 March 1900 in Santiago de Cuba – 7 August 1991; g ...

, singer, composer * Moisés Valle, musician *

Moisés Simons Moisés Simons (born Moisés Simón Rodríguez; 24 August 1889 in Havana, Cuba – 28 June 1945 in Madrid, Spain),Mongo Santamaría Ramón "Mongo" Santamaría Rodríguez (April 7, 1917 – February 1, 2003) was a Cuban percussionist and bandleader who spent most of his career in the United States. Primarily a conga drummer, Santamaría was a leading figure in the pachanga an ...

, jazz musician * Moraima Secada, singer * Nelson Martinez, baritone *

Ñico Saquito Benito Antonio Fernández Ortiz (13 February 1901 – 4 August 1982), better known as Ñico Saquito, was a Cuban trova songwriter, guitarist and singer. He is widely considered the most prolific and successful composer of guarachas, most of whi ...

, composer, singer *

Olga Guillot Olga Guillot (October 9, 1922 – July 12, 2010) was a Cuban singer who was known as the "Queen of Bolero". She was a native of Santiago de Cuba. Biography Daughter of Catalan-Jewish immigrants who moved to Cuba, her father was a tailor and her ...

, singer *

Omara Portuondo Omara Portuondo Peláez (born 29 October 1930) is a Cuban singer and dancer. A founding member of the popular vocal group Cuarteto d'Aida, Portuondo has collaborated with many important Cuban musicians during her long career, including Julio Gu ...

, singer *

Orlando "Cachaito" López Orlando () is a city in the U.S. state of Florida and is the county seat of Orange County. In Central Florida, it is the center of the Orlando metropolitan area, which had a population of 2,509,831, according to U.S. Census Bureau figures relea ...

, bassist * Pablo Milanés, singer, songwriter *

Pío Leyva Pío Leiva (May 5, 1917 – March 22, 2006) was a Cuban singer and the author of the guaracha ''El Mentiroso'' ("The Liar"). Leyva was part of the Buena Vista Social Club, and composed some of Cuba’s best known standards. Biography Leyva was bor ...

, singer *

Pitbull Pit bull is a term used in the United States for a type of dog descended from bulldogs and terriers, while in other countries such as the United Kingdom the term is used as an abbreviation of the American Pit Bull Terrier breed. The term was f ...

, rapper * Raul Paz, singer *

Rey Ruiz Rey Ruiz (Reinerio Ruiz born June 21, 1966 in La Lisa, Havana, Cuba) is a salsa singer from Cuba. Ruiz reached international fame across Latin America, Europe and among Hispanic music fans in the United States. Biography Rey Ruiz demonstrated a ...

, singer *

Rita Montaner Rita Aurelia Fulcida Montaner y Facenda (20 August 1900 – 17 April 1958), known as Rita Montaner, was a Cuban singer, pianist and actress. In Cuban parlance, she was a '' vedette'' (a star), and was well known in Mexico City, Paris, Miami and ...

, singer * Roberto Faz, singer, conductor * Rubén González, pianist *

Rudy Sarzo Rodolfo Maximiliano Sarzo Lavieille Grande Ruiz Payret y Chaumont (born November 18, 1950) is a Cuban American hard rock/ heavy metal bassist. He remains best known for his work with Quiet Riot, Ozzy Osbourne, and Whitesnake, and has also played ...

, rock bassist *

Sen Dog Senen Reyes (born November 22, 1965), also known by his stage name Sen Dog, is a Cuban-American rapper and musician who is best known as a member of the rap group Cypress Hill and as the lead vocalist for the heavy metal band Powerflo. He has ...

, rapper *

Silvio Rodríguez Silvio Rodríguez Domínguez (born 29 November 1946) is a Cuban musician, and leader of the Nueva Trova movement. He is widely considered Cuba's best folk singer and arguably one of Latin America's greatest singer-songwriters. Known for his in ...

, singer, songwriter *

Tico Torres Hector Juan Samuel "Tico" Torres (born October 7, 1953) is an American musician, artist, and entrepreneur, best known as the drummer, percussionist, and a songwriter for American rock band Bon Jovi. In 2018, Torres was inducted into the Rock ...

, drummer, percussionist *

Willy Chirino Willy Chirino (born April 5, 1947, in Consolación del Sur, Pinar del Río, Cuba) is a Cuban-American musician. Early life Following the communist revolution in Cuba, Chirino came to the United States in 1960 as part of Operation Peter Pan ...

, singer, songwriter *

Voltaire (musician) Aurelio Voltaire Hernández (born January 25, 1967), professionally known as Aurelio Voltaire or simply as Voltaire, is a Cuban-American musician, singer, and composer. His professional name is Voltaire, his given middle-name. Name In the past, ...

, musician *

Xavier Cugat Xavier Cugat (; 1 January 1900 – 27 October 1990) was a Spanish musician and bandleader who spent his formative years in Havana, Cuba. A trained violinist and arranger, he was a leading figure in the spread of Latin music. In New York City ...

, musician * Yalil Guerra, producer, musician, composer *

Yotuel Romero Yotuel Omar Manzanares Romero (born October 6, 1976), mononymously known as Yotuel, is a Cuban singer, actor, and current lead singer and co-writer of the 2003 Latin Grammy Award-winning Platinum album-selling rap group Orishas. Among other rec ...

, rapper

Film directors

* Ernesto Daranas * Fernando Pérez *

Humberto Padrón Humberto Padrón (born 1967) is a Cuban film director. Padrón graduated from ISA (Superior Institute of Arts) in Havana Havana (; Spanish: ''La Habana'' ) is the capital and largest city of Cuba. The heart of the La Habana Province, Hava ...

Jorge Luis Sánchez Jorge Luis Sánchez (born 1960 in Havana) is a Cuban film director. He was a founder of the ''Federación Nacional de Cine Clubes de Cuba'' - the Nacional Federation of Cine Clubs of Cuba. He started to work in ICAIC in 1981 as camera assistant ...

* Juan Carlos Cremata * Juan Padrón * Miguel Coyula * Rodrigo García * Santiago Álvarez *

Tomás Gutiérrez Alea Tomás Gutiérrez Alea (; December 11, 1928 – April 16, 1996) was a Cuban film director and screenwriter. He wrote and directed more than twenty features, documentaries, and short films, which are known for his sharp insight into post-Revolu ...

Journalists

Calixto Martínez Calixto Martínez Arias is an independent Cuban journalist, who was jailed by the Cuban government from September 16, 2012, to April 9, 2013, without formal charge. He had been reporting about new outbreak of cholera at the east of the island, wh ...

* German Pinelli *

, writer, journalist, humorist, and critic *

Oscar Espinosa Chepe Óscar Manuel Espinosa Chepe (November 29, 1940 – September 23, 2013) was a Cuban economist and dissident. He was one of approximately 75 dissidents arrested, tried and convicted in 2003 as part of a crackdown by the Cuban government nicknamed ...

* Pablo de la Torriente Brau *

Rick Sanchez Rick Sanchez is one of the two eponymous characters from the Adult Swim animated television series ''Rick and Morty'' and resulting franchise. Created by Justin Roiland and Dan Harmon and voiced by the former, Sanchez is a misanthropic alcoh ...

Dancers

Alicia Alonso Alicia Alonso (born Alicia Ernestina de la Caridad del Cobre Martínez del Hoyo; 21 December 1920 – 17 October 2019) was a Cuban prima ballerina assoluta and choreographer whose company became the Ballet Nacional de Cuba in 1955. She is best ...

, Prima Ballerina Assoluta, director of the Cuban National Ballet (Ballet Nacional de Cuba) *

Carlos Acosta Carlos Yunior Acosta Quesada (born 2 June 1973) is a Cuban-British ballet director and retired dancer who is director of the Birmingham Royal Ballet. He danced with many companies including the English National Ballet, National Ballet of ...

, dancer * Sadaise Arencibia, star dancer with the Cuban National Ballet *

Fernando Bujones Fernando Bujones (March 9, 1955 – November 10, 2005) was an American dancer. Born in Miami, Florida to Cuban parents, Bujones is regarded as one of the finest male dancers of the 20th century and hailed as one of the greatest American male dan ...

, dancer * Jose Manuel Carreño,

American Ballet Theatre American Ballet Theatre (ABT) is a classical ballet company based in New York City. Founded in 1939 by Lucia Chase and Richard Pleasant, it is recognized as one of the world's leading classical ballet companies. Through 2019, it had an annual ei ...

principal dancer * Lydia Diaz Cruz, prima ballerina *

Miguel Campaneria Miguel Campaneria is a Cuban ballet dancer and choreographer. Life He started his ballet training at the National Ballet Academy of Cuba under Alicia Alonso and Azari Plisetski. He joined the National Ballet of Cuba where he became a soloist. L ...

, ballet dancer, currently artistic director of the

National Ballet Theater of Puerto Rico The National Ballet Theater of Puerto Rico ( es, Balleteatro Nacional de Puerto Rico) is one of the leading Ballet company, ballet companies in Puerto Rico. It was formed by former members of ''Ballet Concierto de Puerto Rico'' after the company ...

Vida Guerra Vida Guerra (born March 19, 1974) is a Cuban-born American glamour model and actress. Her first notable appearance was in the U.S. edition of ''FHM'' magazine in December 2002; since then, she has modeled for many other men's magazines. Early li ...

, video dancer *

Yat-Sen Chang Yat-Sen Chang Oliva (born 1971 in Matanzas, Cuba) is a Cuban former principal dancer. Biography Yat-Sen Chang is a Chinese Cuban born in Matanzas, Cuba. Yat-Sen Chang studied dance at the Cuban National Ballet School, beginning his studies a ...

, principal dancer, English National Ballet

Other entertainment

*Alvarez Guedes, comedian and author *Ana María Polo, television personality and lawyer *Alina María Hernández, "Cachita", television personality *Cristina Saralegui, magazine editor, talk show host (''Cristina'') and actress *

, model/actress *Lili Estefan, television personality and former model *Mauricio Zeilic, television personality * Mayra Verónica, model *Nelson Ascencio, comedian (''Madtv'') *Pedro Zamora, AIDS activist, featured on ''The Real World: San Francisco'' *Raúl De Molina, television personality *Raúl Musibay, Food Network chef and author *Rosaura Andreu, children's television entertainer

Sport

Baseball

* Adeiny Hechavarria, Miami Marlins * Adolfo Luque, Cincinnati Reds * Alex Fernandez (baseball), Alex Fernandez, Chicago White Sox, Florida Marlins * Alex Sánchez (outfielder), Alex Sánchez * Ariel Pestano, Cuba national baseball team * Ariel Prieto, Oakland Athletics * Aroldis Chapman, Cincinnati Reds * Aurelio Monteagudo, Kansas City Athletics * Barbaro Canizares, Atlanta Braves * Bárbaro Garbey, Detroit Tigers * Bert Campaneris, Kansas City Athletics * Brayan Peña, Atlanta Braves * Cristóbal Torriente, Negro leagues, Baseball Hall of Fame * Danys Báez, Baltimore Orioles * Diego Seguí, Kansas City Athletics * Eli Marrero, New York Mets * Esteban Bellán, first Latin American professional baseball player to play in the United States * Germán Mesa, trainer for the Cuban national baseball team * Jack Calvo, Washington Senators (1901–60), Washington Senators * Jorge Soler, Chicago Cubs * José Abreu (first baseman), José Abreu, Chicago White Sox * José Canseco, Oakland Athletics * José Cardenal, San Francisco Giants * José Contreras, Chicago White Sox * José Fernández (pitcher), José Fernández, Miami Marlins * José Iglesias (baseball), José Iglesias, Detroit Tigers * José Méndez, Kansas City Monarchs, Baseball Hall of Fame * José Rodríguez (infielder), José Rodríguez, New York Giants (NL), New York Giants * José Tartabull, Kansas City Athletics * Kendrys Morales, Kansas City Royals * Liván Hernández, Arizona Diamondbacks * Luis Tiant, Cleveland Indians * Martín Dihigo, Negro leagues, Baseball Hall of Fame * Mike Cuellar, Cincinnati Reds * Minnie Miñoso, Chicago White Sox * Octavio Rojas, Octavio "Cookie" Rojas, Cincinnati Reds * Omar Linares, Pinar del Río Vegueros, Cuba national baseball team, Cuban national baseball team * Orestes Destrade, New York Yankees, ESPN on-air personality * Orlando Hernández, New York Mets * Ozzie Canseco, Oakland Athletics * Pedro Ramos, Washington Senators (1901–60), Washington Senators * Preston Gómez, Washington Senators (1901–60), Washington Senators * Rafael Palmeiro, Baltimore Orioles * Ray Noble (baseball), Ray Noble, New York Giants (NL), New York Giants * René Arocha, St. Louis Cardinals * René Monteagudo, Washington Senators (1901–60), Washington Senators * Rey Ordóñez, New York Mets * Bobby Estalella (outfielder), Roberto "Bobby" Estalella, Washington Senators (1901–60), Washington Senators * Rolando Arrojo, Tampa Bay Devil Rays * Sandy Amorós, Brooklyn Dodgers * Tony Fossas, Texas Rangers (baseball), Texas Rangers * Tony González (baseball), Tony González, Cincinnati Reds * Tony Oliva, Minnesota Twins * Tony Pérez, Cincinnati Reds * Tony Taylor (baseball), Tony Taylor, Chicago Cubs * Yuniesky Betancourt, last played for the Milwaukee Brewers * Yasiel Puig, Los Angeles Dodgers * Yasmani Grandal, Los Angeles Dodgers * Yoenis Céspedes, New York Mets * Zoilo Versalles, Minnesota Twins, first Latin American Major League MVP in * Alexei Ramírez, Chicago White Sox * Yunel Escobar, Washington Nationals

Boxing

* Adolfo Horta, featherweight Olympic boxer * Ariel Hernández (boxer), Ariel Hernández, Middleweight Olympic boxer * Armando Martínez (boxer), Armando Martínez, light middle-weight Olympic boxer * Benny Paret, boxer * Eliseo Castillo, boxer * Félix Savón, Olympic boxer * Florentino Fernández (boxer), Florentino Fernández, boxer * Guillermo Rigondeaux Ortiz, amateur boxer * Joel Casamayor, boxer * Jorge Rubio (boxing trainer), Jorge Rubio, boxing trainer * José Nápoles, boxer * Kid Charol, boxer * Kid Chocolate, boxer * Kid Gavilán, boxer * Lorenzo Aragon Armenteros, Olympic welterweight boxer * Luis Manuel Rodríguez, boxer * Mario César Kindelán Mesa, Olympic gold medal-winning boxer * Raúl González (boxer), Raúl González, boxer * Roberto Balado, Olympic super heavyweight boxer * Sugar Ramos, world champion boxer * Teófilo Stevenson, amateur boxer * Yan Bartelemí, light flyweight gold medal winning boxer * Yanqui Díaz, boxer * Yudel Johnson Cedeno light-welterweight Olympic boxer * Yuriorkis Gamboa, flyweight Olympic gold medal-winning boxer

Athletes

* Alberto Juantorena, track * Aliecer Urrutia, triple jump * Ana Fidelia Quirot, 800m * Anier García, hurdler * Dayron Robles, hurdling athlete * Emeterio González, javelin thrower * Héctor Herrera (runner), Héctor Herrera, sprinter * Ioamnet Quintero, high jumper * Iván García (athlete), Iván García, sprinter * Iván Pedroso, long jump * Javier Sotomayor, track and field record setter * Joel Isasi, sprinter * Joel Lamela, sprinter * Jorge Aguilera, sprinter * Lázaro Martínez (sprinter), Lázaro Martínez, sprinter * Luis Alberto Pérez-Rionda, sprinter * Osleidys Menéndez, javelin * Roberto Hernández (athlete), Roberto Hernández * Roberto Moya, discus throw * Víctor Moya, high jumper * Yargelis Savigne, jump * Yarisley Silva, pole vaulter * Yipsi Moreno, hammer thrower * Yoandri Betanzos, triple jump * Yoel García, triple jumper * Yoel Hernández (athlete), Yoel Hernández, hurdler * Yudelkis Fernández, long jumper * Yunaika Crawford, hammer thrower * Yuniel Hernández, hurdler

Swimming

* Joel Armas, record holder in the US in monofin swimming * Neisser Bent, bronze medalist at the 1996 Summer Olympics * Rodolfo Falcón, silver medalist at the 1996 Summer Olympics * Leonel "Bebito" Smith, gold medalist in the 1926 and 1930 Central American and Caribbean Games

Other

* Deborah Andollo, holds world records in free diving * Alberto Delgado Pérez, Alberto Delgado, soccer * Ivan Dominguez, two time gold medalist in the Pan American Games and Cuban national champion in cycling * Héctor Socorro, Football (soccer), footballer * Ibrahim Rojas, flatwater canoer * Juan Tuñas, former Cuban footballer * Manrique Larduet, gymnast * Rafael A. Lecuona, gymnast * Rey Ángel Martínez, soccer * Tomás Fernández (footballer, born 1915), Tomás Fernández, footballer in the 1938 World Cup * Yanelis Yuliet Labrada Diaz, Olympic silver medallist in Taekwondo * Maykel Galindo, soccer * Jorge Sánchez Salgado, volleyball player

Politics

Current

*Abelardo Colomé Ibarra, vice president of the Council of State of Cuba *Alfonso Fraga-Perez, diplomat, Secretary General of the Organization of Solidarity of the People of Asia, Africa & Latin America (OSPAAAL), former Head of Cuban Interests Section *Carlos Lage Dávila, former executive Secretary of the Council of Ministers of Cuba *Felipe Pérez Roque, former Cuban government minister *Fidel Castro, previous First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba *José Luis Rodríguez García, Council of ministers of Cuba, Cuban government minister *José Ramón Balaguer Cabrera, current Minister for Health in Cuba *Juan Almeida Bosque, third ranking member of the Cuban Council of State *Luis Posada Carriles, Cuban paramilitary leader, accused terrorist *Mariela Castro, director of the Cuban National Center for Sex Education and daughter of Raúl Castro *Oscar Elías Biscet, physician and dissident and founder of the Lawton Foundation, currently jailed *Oswaldo Payá, founder of Proyecto Varela *Raúl Castro, current First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba *Liaena Hernandez Martínez, youngest member of the Cuban National Assembly *Roberto Fernández Retamar, President of the Casa de las Américas *Ricardo Alarcón, President of the Cuban National Assembly *Rosa Elena Simeón Negrín, former Minister of Science, Technology and the Environment *Pedro Pablo Prada Quintero, diplomat

Historical

* Abel Santamaría, Cuban revolutionary * Alcibiades Hidalgo, former ambassador to the UN * Ana Betancourt, first to campaign for equal rights for Cuban women, in 1868 during the Ten Years' War * Andrés Rivero Agüero, Cuba's prime minister from March 1957 to March 1958 * Anselmo Alliegro, acting president of Cuba for one day (1–2 January 1959) after the departure of General Fulgencio Batista from the country * Antonio Guiteras, politician and revolutionary * Antonio Maceo Grajales, Antonio Maceo, revolutionary, military strategist * Armando Hart Dávalos, politician and Communist leader * Camilo Cienfuegos, Cuban revolutionary * Carlos Hevia, provisional president of Cuba 1934 * Carlos Manuel Piedra, acting president of Cuba for one day (2 January 1959) after the departure of General Fulgencio Batista from the country * Carlos Prío Socarrás, former President of Cuba * Celia Sánchez, Cuban revolutionary and Secretary to the Presidency of the Council of Ministers * Cosme Torres Espinoza, ambassador to Zimbabwe * Eduardo Chibás, Cuban politician who used radio to broadcast his political views against Batista's government to the public * Federico Laredo Brú, President of Cuba from 1936 to 1940 * Fernando Tarrida del Mármol, Cuban anarchist * Fabio Grobart, Communist leader * Fulgencio Batista, former Cuban President * Frank País, 20th century revolutionary * Gerardo Machado, Cuban president 1920–33 * Gustavo Arcos, Cuban Revolutionary later became an imprisoned dissident * Huber Matos, Cuban Revolutionary * Ignacio Agramonte, 19th century Cuban revolutionary * Jorge Mas Canosa, founder of the Cuban American National Foundation * José Miró Cardona, President of Cuba in 1959 *

, poet, philosopher, politician, writer, revolutionary * Juan Carlos Robinson Agramonte, former member of the Cuban politburo and first Secretary of the Provincial Committee of the Cuban Communist Party in Santiago de Cuba * Julio Antonio Mella, founder of the original Cuban Communist Party * Jorge Payret, diplomat and academic * Leopoldo Cancio, deputy and Sectetary of Education * Manuel Piñeiro, first head of the Cuban Dirección General de Inteligencia, General Intelligence Directorate * Manuel Urrutia Lleó, provisional Cuban President January to July 1959 * Miguel Mariano Gómez, President of Cuba for seven months in 1936 * Paul Lafargue, Cuban-born French Communist and son-in-law to Karl Marx * Pedro Pablo Cazañas, Cuban judge and politician * Rafael Diaz-Balart, Cuban politician and majority leader during presidency of Batista * Ramón Grau, Cuban president for two terms 1933, 1940–44 * Saturnino and Mariano Lora, brothers and 19th century revolutionaries * Vilma Espín, Vilma Espín Guillois, President of the Women in Cuba, Cuban Federation of Women, wife of Raúl Castro * Virgilio Paz Romero, anti-Castro paramilitary

Religion

* Alfredo Llaguno-Canals, former Auxiliary Bishop of Havana * Miguel A. De La Torre, prolific author on Hispanic religiosity * Agustin Roman, retired Auxiliary Bishop of Miami * Braulio Orue-Vivanco, former Bishop of Pinar del Río * Eduardo Tomas Boza-Masvidal, former Auxiliary Bishop of Havana * Félix Varela, beatified priest, candidate for sainthood * Jaime Lucas Ortega y Alamino, Cardinal Archbishop of Havana * Meyer Rosenbaum (II), Meyer Rosenbaum, former rabbi and spiritual leader in Havana

Royalty and nobility

*Maria Teresa, Grand Duchess of Luxembourg *Edelmira Ignacia Adriana Sampedro-Robato, Countess of Covadonga, first wife of Alfonso Prince of Asturias *Marta Ester Rocafort-Altazarra, second wife of Alfonso Prince of Asturias

Military

* Adolfo Fernández Cavada, captain in the Union Army during the American Civil War who later served as commander-in-chief of the Cinco Villas during Cuba's Ten Year War * Alberto Bayo y Giroud, Cuban military leader of the defeated left-wing Loyalists in the Spanish Civil War * Antonio Maceo Grajales, second-in-command of the Cuban army of independence * Arnaldo Ochoa, Cuban general * Calixto García, Cuban soldier in the Ten Years' War * Carlos Manuel de Céspedes, Cuban general in the war of independence against the Spanish * Eliseo Reyes Rodríguez, Cuban guerrillero * Emilio Mola Vidal (1887–1937), Nationalist commander during the Spanish Civil War (1936–39); known for coining the phrase "fifth column" * Federico Fernández Cavada, colonel in the Union Army during the American Civil War; later commander-in-chief of all the Cuban forces during Cuba's Ten Year War * Jesús Sosa Blanco, captain in the Cuban army under Fulgencio Batista * José Braulio Alemán, Cuban general in the Spanish–American War * José Miguel Gómez, Cuban General in the war of independence against the Spanish * Julius Peter Garesché, lieutenant colonel in the Union Army who served as chief of staff, with the rank of lieutenant colonel to Maj. Gen. William S. Rosecrans * Loreta Janeta Velazquez, a.k.a. "Lieutenant Harry Buford", Velazquez was a Cuban-born woman who masqueraded as a male Confederate soldier during the Civil War * Manuel Artime, leader of the Bay of Pigs invasion in 1961 * Máximo Gómez, 19th-century leader of Cuban forces in the wars of independence * Pedro Luis Diaz Lanz, chief air force commander and member of Operation 40 * Víctor Dreke, Communist leader and a general in the Revolutionary Armed Forces * Tomás Diez Acosta, revolutionary soldier and historian * Víctor Ivo Acuña Velázquez, military commander

Science

*Luis Walter Alvarez, Luis Alvarez, winner of the 1968 Nobel Prize in Physics, worked on the Manhattan Project *Agustin Walfredo Castellanos, physician *Carlos Finlay, Carlos Juan Finlay, epidemiologist, proposed the mode of transmission of yellow fever and was instrumental in assisting Walter Reed with his studies in Cuba *Juan Gundlach, 19th century Natural history, naturalist and taxonomist *Celia Hart, Cuban physicist *Arnaldo Tamayo Méndez, first Cuban cosmonaut and the first person from a country in the Western Hemisphere other than the U.S. to travel to space *Hilda Molina, former chief neurosurgeon in Cuba *Felipe Poey, zoologist

Other categories

*Sebastian Arcos Bergnes, human rights activist *Ramón Castro (Cuban revolutionary), Ramón Castro, older brother of Fidel and Raúl Castro *Mirta Diaz-Balart, Fidel Castro's first wife *Enriqueta García Martín, Enriqueta García y Martín, prominent Cuban socialite, businesswoman and landowner *Delfín Fernández, High ranking government official, defected to Spain *Gregorio Fuentes, Cuban nautical captain *Elián González, boy who came to the US, leading to a custody battle between his American family and his father in Cuba *Jose Miguel Battle, Sr., former Godfather of the Cuban Mafia *Antonio Sánchez de Bustamante y Sirven, Judge of the Permanent Court of International Justice at the Hague *Dr. Eduardo J. Padrón, educator and college president *Jesus Permuy, human rights activist, architect, urban planner, community leader *Ignacio Jose Urrutia, Ignacio José Urrutia (born 1730), historian *Nitza Villapol, Cuban chef

Non-resident Cubans

* List of Cuban-Americans * :Mexican people of Cuban descent, List of Cuban-Mexicans * Dane Bowers * Guillermo Cabrera Infante *

* Sienna Guillory * William Montagu, 9th Duke of Manchester, William Montagu (Yznaga) * Consuelo Yznaga, Retrieved 5 December 2012. * Taismary Agüero * Mirka Francia * Libania Grenot * Magdelín Martínez * Alex Cabrera * Majandra Delfino * Viviana Gibelli * Arturo Miranda * Eduardo Sebrango * Bárbara Bermudo * Mike Lowell * Carlos Ponce * Rita Marley * Ziggy Marley * Lenny Martinez * Mariane Pearl * Oscar Isaac

Additional lists

Art and entertainment

Actors

Architects

Artists, photographers and fashion designers

Authors and poets

Composers

Chess

Musicians

Film directors

Journalists

Dancers

Other entertainment

Sport

Baseball

Boxing

Athletes

Swimming

Other

Politics

Current

Historical

Religion

Royalty and nobility

Military

Science

Other categories

Non-resident Cubans

References

See also