The following is a list of notable people who were born in

Berlin Berlin ( , ) is the capital and largest city of Germany by both area and population. Its 3.7 million inhabitants make it the European Union's most populous city, according to population within city limits. One of Germany's sixteen constitue ...

Germany Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated betwe ...

Politicians and Statesmen

Frederick II of Prussia Coloured drawing

Kaiser Wilhelm II of Germany - 1902(cropped)

Friedrich Ancillon Johann Peter Friedrich Ancillon (30 April 1767 – 19 April 1837) was a Prussian historian and statesman. He provided Frederick William III of Prussia with strong ideological support against political reforms that might restrain monarchical ...

(1767–1837), Prussian historian and statesman. *

Adolf Heinrich von Arnim-Boitzenburg Adolf Heinrich Graf von Arnim-Boitzenburg (10 April 1803 – 8 January 1868) was a German statesman. He served as the first Minister-President of Prussia for ten days during the Revolution of 1848. Biography Arnim was born in the Prussian cap ...

(1803–1868), statesman and politician *

Eduard Bernstein Eduard Bernstein (; 6 January 1850 – 18 December 1932) was a German social democratic Marxist theorist and politician. A member of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD), Bernstein had held close association to Karl Marx and Friedric ...

(1850–1932), politician (

SPD The Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, ; SPD, ) is a centre-left social democratic political party in Germany. It is one of the major parties of contemporary Germany. Saskia Esken has been t ...

), member of the Reichstag *

Berthold von Bernstorff Berthold Hartwig Arthur, Graf von Bernstorff (21 January 1842 – 12 February 1917) was a German politician, forester and landowner. He served in the Reichstag from 1893 until 1907. In 1893, he bought the Dutch island of Schiermonnikoog. Biograp ...

(1842–1917), politician and owner of Schiermonnikoog. *

Anna of Brandenburg Margravine Anna of Brandenburg (27 August 1487 – 3 May 1514) was a German noblewoman. Margravine Anna was the daughter of John Cicero, Elector of Brandenburg and Margaret of Thuringia. She was born in Berlin, Brandenburg, and died in Kiel ...

(1487–1514), noblewoman and mother of

Christian III Christian III (12 August 1503 – 1 January 1559) reigned as King of Denmark from 1534 and King of Norway from 1537 until his death in 1559. During his reign, Christian formed close ties between the church and the crown. He established ...

(King of Denmark) *

Rudy Boschwitz Rudolph Ely Boschwitz (born November 7, 1930) is an American politician and businessman who served as a United States senator from Minnesota from 1978 until 1991. Boschwitz is a member of the Republican Party. He was born in Berlin to a Jewish ...

(born 1930),

U.S. Senator The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and powe ...

from

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

and former U.S. Ambassador to the

United Nations Commission on Human Rights The United Nations Commission on Human Rights (UNCHR) was a functional commission within the overall framework of the United Nations from 1946 until it was replaced by the United Nations Human Rights Council in 2006. It was a subsidiary body of t ...

, born to a

Jewish family Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""Th ...

in Berlin. *

Rainer Brüderle Rainer Brüderle (born 22 June 1945) is a German politician and member of the Free Democratic Party (FDP). He served as Minister of Economics and Transport of Rhineland-Palatinate from 1987–1998. On 28 October 2009, he was appointed Federal M ...

(born 1945), politician (FDP) *

Sawsan Chebli Sawsan Mohammed Chebli (born 26 July 1978 in West Berlin, Berlin, West Germany) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD). Early life and education Chebli was born to Palestinian asylum seekers in Germany and grew up with her ...

(born 1978), politician (SPD) *

Eberhard Diepgen Eberhard Diepgen (born 13 November 1941) is a German lawyer and politician who served as Mayor of West Berlin from 1984 to 1989 and again as Mayor of (united) Berlin, from 1991 until 2001, as member of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU). E ...

(born 1941), politician (CDU),

Governing Mayor of Berlin The Governing Mayor (german: Regierender Bürgermeister) of Berlin is the head of government, presiding over the Senate of Berlin, Berlin Senate. As Berlin is an independent city as well as one of the constituent States of Germany (''Bundesländer ...

Kurt Eisner Kurt Eisner (; 14 May 1867 21 February 1919)"Kurt Eisner – Encyclopædia Britannica" (biography), ''Encyclopædia Britannica'', 2006, Britannica.com webpageBritannica-KurtEisner. was a German politician, revolutionary, journalist, and theatre c ...

(1867–1919), politician (SPD,

USPD The Independent Social Democratic Party of Germany (german: Unabhängige Sozialdemokratische Partei Deutschlands, USPD) was a short-lived political party in Germany during the German Empire and the Weimar Republic. The organization was establish ...

) *

Frederick the Great Frederick II (german: Friedrich II.; 24 January 171217 August 1786) was King in Prussia from 1740 until 1772, and King of Prussia from 1772 until his death in 1786. His most significant accomplishments include his military successes in the Sil ...

(1712–1786), King of Prussia from 1740 until 1786. * Frederick William (1620–1688), Elector of Brandenburg and Duke of Prussia from 1640 until 1688. * Frederick William I (1688–1740), King in Prussia and Elector of Brandenburg from 1713 until 1740. * Frederick William II (1744–1797), King of Prussia from 1786 until 1797. * Stefan Gelbhaar (born 1976), politician (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen) *

Ernst Ludwig von Gerlach Ernst Ludwig von Gerlach (7 March 1795 – 18 February 1877) was a Prussian politician, editor and judge. He is considered one of the main founders and leading thinkers of the Conservative Party in Prussia and was for many years its leader in the P ...

(1795–1877), judge, politician and journalist *

George V of Hanover en, George Frederick Alexander Charles Ernest Augustus , house = Hanover , religion = Protestant , father = Ernest Augustus, King of Hanover , mother = Frederica of Mecklenburg-Strelitz , birth_date = 27 May 1819 , ...

(1819—1878), King of

Hanover Hanover (; german: Hannover ; nds, Hannober) is the capital and largest city of the German state of Lower Saxony. Its 535,932 (2021) inhabitants make it the 13th-largest city in Germany as well as the fourth-largest city in Northern Germany ...

from 1851 until 1866. *

Gregor Gysi Gregor Florian Gysi (; born 16 January 1948) is a German attorney, former president of the Party of the European Left and a prominent politician of The Left (''Die Linke'') political party. He belonged to the reformist wing of the governing So ...

(born 1948), politician (The Left) *

Klaus Gysi Klaus Gysi (3 March 1912 – 6 March 1999) was a journalist and publisher and a member of the French Resistance against the Nazis. After World War II, he became a politician in the German Democratic Republic, serving in the government as Minister o ...

(1912–1999), Minister of Culture and state secretary for church affairs of GDR * Prince Friedrich Karl of Prussia (1828–1885), brother of future German emperor

William I William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 1087 ...

. *

Reinhard Klimmt Reinhard Klimmt (born 16 August 1942 in Berlin) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party of Germany, Social Democratic Party (SPD). From 1998 to 1999, he was Minister-President, Minister President of Saarland, and 1999–2000, Feder ...

(born 1942), politician (SPD), Prime Minister of

Saarland The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, and ...

Hans Luther Hans Luther () (10 March 1879 – 11 May 1962) was a German politician and Chancellor of Germany for 482 days in 1925 to 1926. As Minister of Finance he helped stabilize the Mark during the hyperinflation of 1923. From 1930 to 1933, Luther was h ...

(1879–1962),

Chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

in the

Weimar Republic The Weimar Republic (german: link=no, Weimarer Republik ), officially named the German Reich, was the government of Germany from 1918 to 1933, during which it was a constitutional federal republic for the first time in history; hence it is al ...

David McAllister David James McAllister (born 12 January 1971) is a German politician who has been a member of the European Parliament since 2014. He is a member of the Christian Democratic Union, part of the European People's Party. He is the current Vice Pre ...

(born 1971), politician (CDU), Prime Minister of

Niedersachsen Lower Saxony (german: Niedersachsen ; nds, Neddersassen; stq, Läichsaksen) is a German state (') in northwestern Germany. It is the second-largest state by land area, with , and fourth-largest in population (8 million in 2021) among the 16 ...

Erich Mielke Erich Fritz Emil Mielke (; 28 December 1907 – 21 May 2000) was a German communist official who served as head of the East German Ministry for State Security (''Ministerium für Staatsicherheit'' – MfS), better known as the Stasi, from 1957 u ...

(1907–2000), head of the

Stasi The Ministry for State Security, commonly known as the (),An abbreviation of . was the Intelligence agency, state security service of the East Germany from 1950 to 1990. The Stasi's function was similar to the KGB, serving as a means of maint ...

Petra Pau Petra Pau (born 9 August 1963) is a German politician of The Left. She has been a member of the Bundestag since 1998. Since 2006, she has also served as one of the Vice Presidents of the Bundestag, being the first member of her party to hold t ...

(born 1963), politician (The Left) *

Hugo Preuss Hugo or HUGO may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Hugo'' (film), a 2011 film directed by Martin Scorsese * Hugo Award, a science fiction and fantasy award named after Hugo Gernsback * Hugo (franchise), a children's media franchise based on a ...

(1860–1925), lawyer and "father of the

Weimar Constitution The Constitution of the German Reich (german: Die Verfassung des Deutschen Reichs), usually known as the Weimar Constitution (''Weimarer Verfassung''), was the constitution that governed Germany during the Weimar Republic era (1919–1933). The c ...

" *

Jesko von Puttkamer Jesko Albert Eugen von Puttkamer (2 July 1855 in Berlin – 23 July 1917 in Berlin) was a German colonial military chief, and nine times governor of Kamerun: *13 May 1887 – 4 October 1887 *14 August 1890 – 2 December 1890 *31 December 189 ...

(1855–1917), colonial military chief, and nine times governor of Cameroon *

Walther Rathenau Walther Rathenau (29 September 1867 – 24 June 1922) was a German industrialist, writer and liberal politician. During the First World War of 1914–1918 he was involved in the organization of the German war economy. After the war, Rathenau s ...

(1867–1922), industrialist, politician ( DDP) and Foreign Minister of the Weimar Republic *

Baldur von Schirach Baldur Benedikt von Schirach (9 May 1907 – 8 August 1974) was a German politician who is best known for his role as the Nazi Party national youth leader and head of the Hitler Youth from 1931 to 1940. He later served as ''Gauleiter'' and ''Re ...

(1907–1974), leader of the

Hitlerjugend The Hitler Youth (german: Hitlerjugend , often abbreviated as HJ, ) was the youth organisation of the Nazi Party in Germany. Its origins date back to 1922 and it received the name ("Hitler Youth, League of German Worker Youth") in July 1926. ...

1931-1940, Reich governor in

Vienna en, Viennese , iso_code = AT-9 , registration_plate = W , postal_code_type = Postal code , postal_code = , timezone = CET , utc_offset = +1 , timezone_DST ...

* Rupert Scholz (born 1937), politician (CDU) * Paul Singer (1844–1911), SPD co-founder, whose chairman and Reichstag, producer *

Willi Stoph Wilhelm Stoph (9 July 1914 – 13 April 1999) was a German politician. He served as Chairman of the Council of Ministers (Prime Minister) of the German Democratic Republic (East Germany) from 1964 to 1973, and again from 1976 until 1989. He ...

(1914–1999), politician (SED), Chairman of the State Council *

Gustav Stresemann Gustav Ernst Stresemann (; 10 May 1878 – 3 October 1929) was a German statesman who served as chancellor in 1923 (for 102 days) and as foreign minister from 1923 to 1929, during the Weimar Republic. His most notable achievement was the reconci ...

(1878–1929), politician (DVP),

chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...

and

foreign minister A foreign affairs minister or minister of foreign affairs (less commonly minister for foreign affairs) is generally a cabinet minister in charge of a state's foreign policy and relations. The formal title of the top official varies between cou ...

of the Weimar Republic,

Nobel Peace Prize The Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Swedish industrialist, inventor and armaments (military weapons and equipment) manufacturer Alfred Nobel, along with the prizes in Nobel Prize in Chemistry, Chemi ...

laureate *

Otto Wels Otto Wels (15 September 1873 – 16 September 1939) was a German politician who served as a member of parliament from 1912 to 1933 and as the chairman of the Social Democratic Party of Germany (SPD) from 1919 until his death in 1939. His 1933 sp ...

(1873–1939), politician (SPD) *

William I, German Emperor William I or Wilhelm I (german: Wilhelm Friedrich Ludwig; 22 March 1797 – 9 March 1888) was King of Prussia from 2 January 1861 and German Emperor from 18 January 1871 until his death in 1888. A member of the House of Hohenzollern, he was the f ...

(1797–1888), German Emperor. *

Wilhelm II, German Emperor Wilhelm II (Friedrich Wilhelm Viktor Albert; 27 January 18594 June 1941) was the last German Emperor (german: Kaiser) and King of Prussia, reigning from 15 June 1888 until his abdication on 9 November 1918. Despite strengthening the German Empir ...

(1859–1941), German Emperor. * Wilhelmine of Prussia (1709–1758), Margravine of Brandenburg-Bayreuth. *

Klaus Wowereit Klaus Wowereit (born 1 October 1953) is a German politician of the Social Democratic Party (SPD) and was the Governing Mayor of Berlin from 21 October 2001 to 11 December 2014. In 2001 state elections his party won a plurality of the votes, 29 ...

(born 1953), politician (SPD),

from 2001 to 2014

Entrepreneurs

Jacob Hilsdorf - Carl Friedrich von Siemens

Ellen Allien Ellen Fraatz, known professionally as Ellen Allien, is a German electronic musician, music producer, and the founder of BPitch Control music label. Her album ''Stadtkind'' was dedicated to the city of Berlin, and she cites the culture of reunif ...

, musician, DJ, founder of music label BPitch Control *

Heinz Berggruen Heinz Berggruen (6 January 1914 – 23 February 2007) was a German art dealer and collector who sold 165 works of art to the German federal government to form the core of the Berggruen Museum in Berlin, Germany. Biography Berggruen was born in ...

(1914–2007), art dealer *

Ernst Dümmler Ernst Ludwig Dümmler (2 January 183011 September 1902) was a German historian. Biography Ernst Ludwig was born in Berlin, the son of (1777–1846), a Berlin bookseller. He studied law, classical philology and history, among other things, at ...

(1830–1902), bookseller and historian. *

Alexander Duncker Alexander Friedrich Wilhelm Duncker (February 18, 1813 – August 23, 1879) was a German publisher and bookseller. Life and family He was descended from a successful Berlin family of booksellers, born in Berlin, the son of Carl Friedrich Wilhelm ...

(1813–1897), publisher and bookseller * Friedrich Karl Flick (1927–2006), industrialist and billionaire * Albert Göring (1895–1966), engineer and business manager * Klaus and Eva Herlitz (born 1947 and 1952 respectively), business people and the initiators of the

Buddy Bear ''Buddy Bears'' are painted, life-size fiberglass bear sculptures developed by German businesspeople Klaus and Eva Herlitz, in cooperation with sculptor Roman Strobl. They have become a landmark of Berlin and are considered unofficial ambassado ...

s *

Günter Herlitz Günter Herlitz (February 9, 1913 – September 11, 2010) was born in Berlin as the son of Carl Herlitz, founder of the Herlitz stationery company. Biography Following the founding of the company by his father in 1904, Günter Herlitz took over ...

(1913-2010), business people *

Bernhard Koehler Bernhard Koehler (born 7 November 1849 in Berlin; died 30 March 1927 in Berlin) was a German industrialist and art collector. Life Koehler, who came from a family of merchants, grew up in Berlin. In 1876, Koehler founded the ''Mechanische Werk ...

(1849-1927), industrialist and art collector *

Gustav Langenscheidt Gustav Langenscheidt (October 21, 1832 – November 11, 1895) was a German language teacher, book publisher, and the founder of Langenscheidt Publishing Group. Life Gustav Langenscheidt was the son of Johann Ludwig Langenscheidt, a decorator, ...

(1832–1895), language teacher, book publisher, and the founder of Langenscheidt Publishing Group * Ernst Litfaß (1816–1874), publisher, inventor of the Litfaßsäule *

Joseph Mendelssohn Joseph Mendelssohn (11 August 1770 – 24 November 1848) was a German Jewish banker. He was the oldest son of the influential philosopher Moses Mendelssohn. In 1795, he founded his own banking house. In 1804, his younger brother, Abraham Mendel ...

(1770–1848), banker. * Franz Oppenheim (1852-1929), industrialist and chemist *

Harald Quandt Harald Quandt (1 November 1921 – 22 September 1967) was a German industrialist, the son of industrialist Günther Quandt and Magda Behrend Rietschel. His parents divorced and his mother was later married to Joseph Goebbels. After World W ...

(1921–1967), industrialist *

Hasso Plattner Hasso Plattner (born 21 January 1944) is a German businessman. A co-founder of SAP SE software company, he has been chairman of the supervisory board of SAP SE since May 2003. As of August 2020, ''Forbes'' reported that he possessed a net worth ...

(born 1944), co-founder of

SAP SE Sap is a fluid transported in xylem cells (vessel elements or tracheids) or phloem sieve tube elements of a plant. These cells transport water and nutrients throughout the plant. Sap is distinct from latex, resin, or cell sap; it is a sepa ...

software company *

Emil Rathenau Emil Moritz Rathenau (11 December 1838 – 20 June 1915) was a German entrepreneur, industrialist, mechanical engineer. He was a leading figure in the early European electrical industry. Early life Rathenau was born in Berlin, into a w ...

(1838–1915), industrialist and founder of the

AEG Allgemeine Elektricitäts-Gesellschaft AG (AEG; ) was a German producer of electrical equipment founded in Berlin as the ''Deutsche Edison-Gesellschaft für angewandte Elektricität'' in 1883 by Emil Rathenau. During the Second World War, AEG ...

* Wolf Jobst Siedler (1926–2013), publisher and publicist *

Arnold von Siemens Arnold von Siemens (13 November 1853 in Berlin – 29 April 1918 in Berlin) was a German telecommunications industrialist of the Siemens family, one of the successors on his family's company Siemens. Life The eldest son of Werner von Siemens ...

(1853-1918), entrepreneur and industrialist *

Carl Friedrich von Siemens Carl Friedrich von Siemens (5 September 1872, in Berlin – 9 September 1941, in Heinendorf, near Potsdam) was a German Entrepreneur and politician. A member of the Siemens family, he became associated with Siemens & Halske AG in 1899, his family ...

(1872–1941), industrialist *

Georg Wilhelm von Siemens Georg Wilhelm von Siemens (30 July 1855, Berlin – 14 October 1919, Arosa, Switzerland) was a German telecommunications industrialist of the Siemens family. Known as Wilhelm von Siemens, he was the second son of Werner von Siemens by firs ...

(1855-1919), industrialist *

Georg Solmssen Georg Solmssen (born Georg Adolf Salomonsohn, 7 August 1869 – 10 January 1957) was a German banker. Life His father was German banker Adolph Salomonsohn and his mother was Sara Rinkel. His uncle was German banker Arthur Salomonsohn, and ...

(1869-1957), German banker *

Joachim Heinrich Wilhelm Wagener Joachim Heinrich Wilhelm Wagener (16 July 1782 in Berlin – 18 January 1861 in Berlin) was a German banker and patron of the arts. His collection formed the initial nucleus of the Alte Nationalgalerie in Berlin. Life and work