List of Austrians

This is a list of notable Austrians.

Actors/actresses

• Helmut Berger (1944–2023), actor
• Senta Berger (born 1941), actress
• Klaus Maria Brandauer (born 1943), actor
• Wolfgang Cerny (born 1984), actor
• Marie Geistinger (1836–1903), actress and opera singer
• Gilla (born 1950), also known as Gisela Wuchinger; singer and actor from the disco era
• Käthe Gold (1907–1997), stage actress
• Liane Haid (1895–2000), first Austrian movie star
• Attila Hörbiger (1896–1987), actor
• Christiane Hörbiger (1938–2022), actress
• Paul Hörbiger (1894–1981), actor
• Maria Hofstätter (born 1964), actress
• Boris Kodjoe (born 1973), actor
• Melanie Kogler (born 1985), television and theatre actress
• Brigitte Kren (born 1954), actress
• Hedy Lamarr (1914–2000), actress; also co-inventor of spread spectrum radio technology; became U.S. citizen
• Karl Merkatz (1930–2022), actor (most notable for his role as a Viennese in "Mundl")
• Birgit Minichmayr (born 1977), actress
• Hans Moser (1880–1964), comedy actor
• Reggie Nalder (1907–1991), actor
• Nina Proll (born 1974), actress
• Maximilian Schell (1930–2014), actor
• Arnold Schwarzenegger (born 1947), bodybuilder, actor, became U.S. citizen, governor of the U.S. state of California (2003–2011)
• Ursula Strauss (born 1974), actress
• Erich von Stroheim (1885–1957), actor and film director
• Christoph Waltz (born 1956), actor
• Maria Weiss, mezzo-soprano and actress
• Oskar Werner (1922–1984), actor
• Sybil Danning 1952 Actor, producer, writer

Artists/architects

• Maria Auböck (born 1951), landscape architect
• Bernhard Cella (born 1969), conceptual artist
• Johann Georg Danninger, 19th-century bronzesmith
• Karl Duldig (1902–1986), Austrian-Australian sculptor
• Albin Egger-Lienz (1868–1926), painter
• Karl Ehn (1884–1957), architect, designer of the Karl-Marx-Hof
• Trude Fleischmann (1895–1990), photographer
• Ernst Fuchs (1930–2015), artist
• Xenia Hausner (born 1951), painter
• Gottfried Helnwein (born 1948), artist, born in Vienna
• Kurt Hentschlager (born 1960), new media artist
• Friedensreich Hundertwasser (1928–2000), artist
• Gustav Klimt (1862–1918), artist, helped found Vienna Secession
• Oskar Kokoschka (1886–1980), painter
• Alfred Kubin (1877–1959), graphic artist
• Adolf Loos (1870–1933), architect, born in Brno (Moravia, present-day Czech Republic)
• Josef Lorenzl (1892–1950), sculptor
• Hans Makart (1840–1884), history painter, designer and decorator
• Inge Morath (1923–2002), photographer
• Richard Neutra (1892–1970), architect
• Josef Pögl (1867–1956), painter, winner of the Vienna Arts Prize
• Wolf Prix (born 1942), architect, co-founder of Coop Himmelb(l)au
• Willy Puchner (born 1952), photographer
• Arnulf Rainer (1929–2025), painter
• Johann Michael Rottmayr (1656–1730), Baroque painter
• Egon Schiele (1890–1918), painter
• Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky (1897–2000), architect and political activist
• De Es Schwertberger (born 1942), artist
• Harry Seidler (1923–2006), architect
• Helmut Swiczinsky (1944–2025), architect, co-founder of Coop Himmelb(l)au
• Aloys Wach (1892–1940), painter
• Otto Wagner (1841–1918), Jugendstil architect behind much of turn-of-the-century Viennese architecture
• Ferdinand Georg Waldmüller (1793–1865), painter
• Felix de Weldon (1907–2003), sculptor
• Franz West (1947–2012), artist
• Olga Wisinger-Florian (1844–1926), painter

Composers/musicians

• Wolfgang Ambros (born 1952), pop musician
• Louie Austen (born 1946), composer and musician
• Ernst Bachrich (1892–1942), composer and conductor
• Caroline Bayer (1758–1803), 18th-century violinist and composer
• Alban Berg (1885–1935), composer
• Alfred Brendel (1931–2025), pianist
• Anton Bruckner (1824–1896), composer
• Friedrich Cerha (1926–2023), composer and conductor
• Carl Czerny (1791–1857), pianist and composer
• Anton Diabelli (1781–1858), publisher, editor and composer
• Carl Ditters von Dittersdorf (1739–1799), composer
• Karlheinz Essl (born 1960), composer and electronic musician
• Falco (1957–1998), pop musician
• Christian Fennesz (born 1962), electronic musician
• Bernhard Gál (born 1971), composer and artist
• Georg Friedrich Haas (born 1953), composer
• Natascha Hagen (born 1974), singer-songwriter
• Nikolaus Harnoncourt (1929–2016), conductor
• Joseph Haydn (1732–1809), composer
• Michael Haydn (1737–1806), composer, younger brother of Joseph Haydn
• Yung Hurn (born 1995), hip-hop musician
• Udo Jürgens (1934–2014), singer-songwriter
• Herbert von Karajan (1908–1989), conductor
• Bernhard Lang (born 1957), composer
• Thomas Lang (born 1967), drummer and composer
• Joseph Lanner (1801–1843), composer
• Left Boy (born 1988), singer
• Elisabeth Leonskaja (born 1945), pianist, Austrian Cross of Honour for Science and Art, First Class, in 2006
• Gustav Mahler (1860–1911), composer
• Marianne von Martinez (1744–1812), composer, singer
• Penny McLean (born 1948), singer with the disco group Silver Convention
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756–1791), musician and composer
• Olga Neuwirth (born 1968), composer
• Gerhard Potuznik, electronic musician
• César Sampson (born 1983), singer
• Franz Schmidt (1874–1939), composer
• Arnold Schoenberg (1874–1951), composer
• Franz Schubert (1797–1828), composer and musician
• Parov Stelar (born 1974), electronic musician
• Eduard Strauss (1835–1916), composer
• Johann Strauss Jr. (1825–1899), composer
• Johann Strauss Sr. (1804–1849), composer
• Josef Strauss (1827–1870), composer
• Franz von Suppé (1819–1895), composer
• Nathan Trent (born 1992), singer
• Anton Webern (1883–1945), composer
• Franz Welser-Möst (born 1960), conductor
• Hugo Wolf (1860–1903), composer
• Conchita Wurst (born 1988), pop musician
• Joe Zawinul (1932–2007), jazz musician, composer
• Eric Zeisl (1905–1959), composer
• Alexander von Zemlinsky (1871–1942), composer

Entrepreneurs

• Hannes Androsch (1938–2024), former minister of finance in the government of Bruno Kreisky
• Hikmet Ersek (born 1961), CEO of The Western Union Company, a Fortune 500 company
• Ignaz Glaser (1853–1916), entrepreneur
• Gaston Glock (1929-2023), inventor, founder of Glock Ges.m.b.H.
• Niki Lauda (1949–2019), Formula One race car driver and aviation entrepreneur
• Richard Lugner (1932–2024), entrepreneur and society figure
• Dietrich Mateschitz (1944–2022), businessman behind the Red Bull brand
• Ludwig (Louis) von Nathaniel (1882–1955), banker
• Ferdinand Porsche (1875–1951), automotive engineer, designed the Volkswagen (the "people's car"), born in Vratislavice nad Nisou (Austria-Hungary, Bohemia, present-day Czech Republic)
• Ferdinand Anton Ernst Porsche (1909–1998), automotive engineer and entrepreneur, he expanded the sports car manufacturer Porsche AG to what it is now
• Johann Puch (1862–1914), inventor, mechanic, co-founder of Steyr-Daimler-Puch
• Albert Salomon von Rothschild (1844–1911), banker
• Anselm von Rothschild (1803–1874), banker
• Ferdinand James von Rothschild (1839–1898), investor
• Nathaniel Mayer Anselm von Rothschild (1836–1905), banker
• Salomon Mayer von Rothschild (1774–1855), banker
• Robert Schlumberger (1814–1879), entrepreneur
• Frank Stronach (born 1932), entrepreneur, born in Austria
• Daniel Swarovski (1862–1956), founder of Swarovski AG, world-famous crystals, born in Jiřetín pod Bukovou, (Bohemia, present-day Czech Republic)

Filmmakers

• Barbara Albert (born 1970), film director, producer and writer
• Franz Antel (1913–2007), director, actor and writer
• Axel Corti (1933–1993), director
• Elfi von Dassanowsky (1924–2007), film producer, singer, pianist
• Andrea Maria Dusl (born 1961), film director and writer
• Amir Esmann (born 1965), director, director of photography, writer
• Max Fleischer (1883–1972), animator
• Michael Haneke (born 1942), film director (born in Germany, however lives and works in Austria)
• Fritz Lang (1890–1976), film director
• Francis Lawrence (born 1971), Austrian-American film director
• Otto Preminger (1905–1986), film director
• Stefan Ruzowitzky (born 1961), film director and writer
• Arnold Schwarzenegger (born 1947), actor and politician
• Ulrich Seidl (born 1952), film director and writer
• Josef von Sternberg (1894–1969), film director
• Erich von Stroheim (1885–1957), film director
• Wolfgang Suschitzky (1912–2016), director of photography
• Edgar G. Ulmer (1904–1972), film director
• Hans Weingartner (born 1977), film director, producer and writer
• Virgil Widrich (born 1967), film director, producer and writer
• Billy Wilder (1906–2002), film director, born in Austria-Hungary
• Fred Zinnemann (1907–1977), film director

Mountaineers

• Peter Aufschnaiter (1899–1973), mountaineer and co-traveller of Heinrich Harrer (Seven Years in Tibet)
• Karl Blodig (1859–1956), mountaineer (first to climb all alpine mountains above 4,000 m)
• Hermann Buhl (1924–1957), first ascent of Nanga Parbat on the 1953 German–Austrian Nanga Parbat expedition, first ascent of Broad Peak
• Kurt Diemberger (born 1932), first ascents of Broad Peak (1957) and Dhaulagiri (1960)
• Peter Habeler (born 1942), first ascent of Mount Everest without oxygen (together with Reinhold Messner)
• Heinrich Harrer (1912–2006), mountaineer (first ascent of the Carstensz Pyramid) and writer (Seven Years in Tibet)
• Gerlinde Kaltenbrunner (born 1970), first woman to ascend all eight-thousanders without oxygen (2011)
• Fritz Moravec (1922–1997), first ascent of Gasherbrum II (1956)
• Ludwig Purtscheller (1849–1900), first ascent of Kilimanjaro in 1889
• Marcus Schmuck (1925–2005), first ascent of Broad Peak in 1957 as expedition leader
• Herbert Tichy (1912–1987), geologist, journalist and mountaineer (first ascent of Cho Oyu)
• Luis Trenker (1892–1990), mountaineer, film director and writer (born in the southern part of Tyrol, then in Austria-Hungary)
• Fritz Wintersteller (1927–2018), first ascent of Broad Peak in 1957

Military leaders

• Haim Bar-Lev (1924–1994), Israeli general and government minister
• Leopold Josef Graf Daun (1705–1766), field marshal
• Joseph Radetzky von Radetz (1766–1858), military leader
• Prince Eugene of Savoy (1663–1736), general in the war against the Turks (17th–18th century)
• Philipp von Stadion und Thannhausen (1799–1868), field marshal
• Wilhelm von Tegetthoff (1827–1871), admiral
• Georg von Trapp (1880–1947), navy officer
• Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz (1787–1862), general
• Archduke Charles of Austria (1771–1847), fought against Napoleon

Politicians

• Kasimir Felix Graf Badeni (1846–1909), statesman and diplomat
• Leopold Graf Berchtold (1863–1942), foreign minister at the outbreak of the First World War
• Brigitte Bierlein (1949–2024), Chancellor 2019–2020
• Richard von Coudenhove-Kalergi (1894–1972), politician and writer
• Engelbert Dollfuß (1892–1934), Chancellor 1932–1934 (First Republic), established Austrofascism
• Leopold Figl (1902–1965), Chancellor 1945–1953, foreign minister 1953–1959
• Heinz Fischer (born 1938), former President
• Werner Faymann (born 1960), former Chancellor
• Jörg Haider (1950–2008), politician, governour of Carinthia until his death in 2008
• Adolf Hitler (1889–1945), leader of Nazi Germany 1933–1945, gained German citizenship in 1932, and became German Chancellor in 1933. In 1938, he annexed Austria with the Anschluß
• Joseph Hormayr Freiherr zu Hortenburg (1781–1848), statesman and historian
• Theodor Innitzer (1875–1955), cardinal archbishop of Vienna 1932–1955, minister of social affairs 1929–1930
• Ernst Kaltenbrunner (1903–1946), NSDAP politician
• Wenzel Anton Graf Kaunitz (1711–1794), statesman
• Christian Kern (born 1966), Chancellor 2016–2017
• Rudolf Kirchschläger (1915–2000), judge, diplomat and President 1974–1986
• Thomas Klestil (1932–2004), diplomat, President 1992–2004
• Teddy Kollek (1911–2007), Israeli Mayor of Jerusalem
• Bruno Kreisky (1911–1990), Chancellor 1970–1983, foreign minister 1959–1966
• Sebastian Kurz (born 1986), Chancellor 2017–2019, 2020–2021
• Klemens Wenzel von Metternich (1773–1859), diplomat and statesman
• Julius Raab (1891–1964), Chancellor 1953–1961 (1773–1859)
• Adolf Schärf (1890–1965), President 1957–1965
• Anton von Schmerling (1805–1893), statesman (liberal movement of the 19th century)
• Kurt Schuschnigg (1897–1977), Chancellor 1934–1938
• Wolfgang Schüssel (born 1945), Chancellor 2000–2007
• Arnold Schwarzenegger (born 1947), former governor of California
• Ignaz Seipel (1876–1932), Catholic priest, Chancellor 1922–1924 and 1926–1929
• Arthur Seyß-Inquart (1892–1946), NSDAP politician, last Chancellor before the Anschluss in 1938
• Johann Philipp von Stadion (1763–1824), statesman, foreign minister and diplomat 1763–1824
• Alexander Van der Bellen (born 1944), former chairman of the Austrian Green Party and President since 2017
• Kurt Waldheim (1918–2007), diplomat and politician, UN Secretary-General 1972–1982, President of Austria 1986–1992

Religious leaders

• Theodor Innitzer (1875–1955), cardinal archbishop of Vienna 1932–1955, minister of social affairs 1929–1930
• Gertraud Knoll (born 1958), Lutheran pastor, superintendent and politician
• Franz König (1905–2004), Cardinal Archbishop of Vienna (1956–1985)
• Christoph Schönborn (born 1945), archbishop and cardinal
• Ignaz Seipel (1876–1932), Catholic priest, Chancellor 1922–1924 and 1926–1929

Royalty

• Elisabeth, Empress-Consort of Austria, wife of Francis Joseph I
• Ferdinand I, Emperor of Austria
• Francis Joseph I, Emperor of Austria
• Francis II/I, Holy Roman Emperor, first Emperor of Austria
• Franz Ferdinand, Archduke (assassinated in 1914)
• Frederick II of Austria, last Babenberger duke of Austria
• Joseph II, Holy Roman Emperor, reformer (abolished the death penalty) 1780–1790
• Karl I, last Emperor of Austria
• Karl V, Holy Roman Emperor (1500–1558)
• Leopold V, Babenberg duke of Austria, participated in the Third Crusade
• Maria Leopoldina, Archduchess, became Empress of Brazil
• Maria Theresia, Archduchess of Austria, Holy Roman Empress-Consort, last male-line Habsburg
• Marie Antoinette, Archduchess, became Queen of France
• Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor (1459–1519)
• Maximilian I, Emperor of Mexico, Archduke of Austria
• Rudolf, Crown Prince of Austria, Archduke of Austria
• Rudolph I, King of Germany, first Habsburg king
• Rudolf IV of Austria, Duke of Austria, self-styled archduke 1358–1365 (Privilegium Maius)

Scientists

Economists

• Eugen von Böhm-Bawerk (1851–1914), economist and early member of the Austrian School of Economics
• Gottfried von Haberler (1900–1995), Austrian-American economist, born in Purkersdorf, Austria-Hungary
• Friedrich Hayek (1899–1992), economist and social scientist, Bank of Sweden Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 1974 (became a British citizen in 1938)
• Leopold Kohr (1909–1994), economist, jurist and political scientist
• Fritz Machlup (1902–1983), Austrian-American economist, born in Wiener Neustadt, Austria-Hungary
• Carl Menger (1840–1921), founder of the Austrian School of economics
• Ludwig von Mises (1881–1973), free-market economist
• Oskar Morgenstern (1902–1977), co-founder of game theory
• Otto Neurath (1882–1945), socialist, economist and philosopher
• Joseph Schumpeter (1883–1950), economist, born in Triesch, Austria-Hungary
• Friedrich von Wieser (1851–1926), economist of the Austrian School

Engineers/inventors

• Thomas Feichtner (born 1970), industrial designer
• Anselm Franz (1900–1994), pioneer in jet engine engineering, designed the world's first turbojet
• Gaston Glock (1929–2023), inventor, founder of firearms company GLOCK GmbH
• Eduard Haas (1897–1989), inventor of the Pez candy
• Viktor Kaplan (1876–1934), inventor of turbines for river power plants
• Wilhelm Kress (1836–1913), aviation pioneer, inventor of the stick control for airplanes
• Hedy Lamarr (1914–2000), co-inventor of spread spectrum wireless communications, along with George Antheil
• Ernst Lauda (1859–1932), hydraulic and bridge engineer
• Josef Madersperger (1768–1850), invented the sewing machine in 1818
• Siegfried Marcus (1831–1898), automobile pioneer, inventor of the first gasoline powered automobile (vehicles of 1870 and 1889)
• Alois Negrelli (1799–1858), engineer and railroad pioneer (created the plans for the Suez Canal)
• Ferdinand Porsche (1875–1951), automotive engineer, designed the Volkswagen (the "people's car"), inventor of the hybrid car, contributed to the design of the Tiger I and Tiger II tanks (born in Austria-Hungary)
• Josef Ressel (1793–1857), inventor of the marine screw propeller, pneumatic post and ball bearing
• Theodor Scheimpflug (1865–1911), inventor of Scheimpflug photography
• Alois Senefelder (1771–1834), inventor of the printing technique of lithography
• Josef Singer (1923–2009), Israeli aeronautical engineer and President of Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
• Max Valier (1895–1930), rocketry pioneer
• Carl Auer von Welsbach (1858–1929), inventor of gaslight

Philosophers

• Franz Brentano (1838–1917), philosopher and psychologist
• Martin Buber (1878–1965), philosopher
• Christian von Ehrenfels (1859–1932), philosopher
• Herbert Feigl (1902–1988), philosopher (member of the Vienna Circle)
• Paul Feyerabend (1924–1994), philosopher
• Philipp Frank (1884–1966), philosopher and physicist (member of the Vienna Circle)
• Edmund Husserl (1859–1938), philosopher (born in Prossnitz, Austria-Hungary)
• Wilhelm Jerusalem (1854–1923), philosopher, born in Drenitz, died in Vienna
• Hans Köchler (born 1948), philosopher, born in Schwaz
• Georg Kreisel (1923–2015), philosopher and mathematician
• Alexius Meinong (1853–1920), philosopher (theory of objects)
• Otto Neurath (1882–1945), socialist, economist and philosopher
• Karl Popper (1902–1994), philosopher (born in Austria, became British)
• Friedrich Waismann (1896–1959), mathematician, philosopher and physicist (member of the Vienna Circle)
• Otto Weininger (1880–1903), philosopher
• Felix Weltsch (1884–1964), journalist, philosopher, student of Christian von Ehrenfels
• Ludwig Wittgenstein (1889–1951), philosopher, born in Vienna

Physicists, mathematicians and chemists

• Emil Artin (1898–1962), mathematician (Artin's conjecture)
• Ludwig Boltzmann (1844–1906), physicist, born in Vienna (Boltzmann constant)
• Fritjof Capra (born 1939), physicist, born in Vienna
• Carl Cori (1896–1984), born in Prague, Austria-Hungary, biochemist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1947
• Carl Djerassi (1923-2015), chemist, inventor of the pill
• Christian Doppler (1803–1853), physicist, born in Salzburg (See Doppler effect)
• Paul Ehrenfest (1880–1933), physicist and mathematician
• Felix Ehrenhaft (1879–1952), maverick physicist
• Josef Finger (1841–1925), physicist and mathematician
• Heinz von Foerster (1911–2002), cyberneticist
• Kurt Gödel (1906–1978), mathematician (born in Austria-Hungary, became naturalized U.S. citizen)
• Hans Hahn (1879–1934), mathematician (member of the Vienna Circle)
• Friedrich Hasenöhrl (1874–1915), physicist
• Victor Franz Hess (1883–1964), physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics
• Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin (1727–1817), chemist
• Walter Kohn (1923–2016), Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1998
• Georg Kreisel (1923–2015), philosopher and mathematician
• Hans Kronberger (1920-1970), nuclear physicist
• Richard Kuhn (1900–1967), chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1938
• Robert von Lieben (1878-1913), physicist (Jewish father)
• Johann Josef Loschmidt (1821–1895), physicist and chemist
• Ernst Mach (1838–1916), physicist and philosopher (Mach number)
• Lise Meitner (1878-1968), physicist, discovered nuclear fission of uranium with * Otto Hahn, namegiver of element 109 * meitnerium
• Richard von Mises (1883–1953), physicist (younger brother of Ludwig von Mises)
• John von Neumann (1903–1957), mathematician (Hungarian, Budapest-born)
• Wolfgang Pauli (1900–1958), physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics 1945
• Max Ferdinand Perutz (1914–2002), chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1962
• Johanna Piesch (1898–1992), physicist, mathematician, pioneer in switching algebra
• Fritz Pregl (1869–1930), chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry 1923
• Erwin Schrödinger (1887–1961), physicist, Nobel Prize in Physics
• Heinrich Franz Friedrich Tietze (1880–1964), mathematician
• Leopold Vietoris (1891–2002), mathematician
• Victor Frederick Weisskopf (1908–2002), physicist; during World War II, worked at Los Alamos on the Manhattan Project to develop the atomic bomb; later campaigned against the proliferation of nuclear weapons
• Carl Auer von Welsbach (1858–1929), chemist
• Gernot Zippe (1917–2008), physicist (developed Zippe-type centrifuge to extract uranium-235 for nuclear weapons)
• Richard Adolf Zsigmondy (1865–1929), chemist, Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 1925 (Hungarian origin)

Physicians

• Alfred Adler (1870–1937), psychiatrist, father of Individual Psychology
• Hans Asperger (1906–1980), pediatrician who studied autism, person for whom Asperger syndrome is named
• Leopold Auenbrugger (1722–1809), physician (method of percussion)
• Robert Bárány (1876–1936), physician, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Josef Breuer (1842–1925), physician (forerunner in psychoanalysis)
• Ernst von Fleischl-Marxow (1846–1891), physician and physiologist (studies of nerves and the brain)
• Viktor Frankl (1905–1997), psychiatrist, father of logotherapy
• Sigmund Freud (1856–1939), psychiatrist, father of psychoanalysis
• Karl von Frisch (1886–1982), physician, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Leo Kanner (1894–1981), child psychiatrist
• Helen Singer Kaplan (1929-1995), sex therapist
• Karl Landsteiner (1886–1943), physician, serologist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Otto Loewi (1873–1961), pharmacologist (born in Germany, but spent 40 years of his life, from age 25, in Austria) Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Karol Ignacy Lorinser (1796–1853), physician
• Franz Mesmer (1734–1815), physician, developed an early form of hypnotism
• Paracelsus (1493–1541), (real name: Theophrast von Hohenheim), alchemist and physician
• Clemens von Pirquet (1874–1929), pediatrician and scientist in bacteriology and immunology
• Wilhelm Reich (1897–1957), psychiatrist
• Erwin Ringel (1921–1994), Austrian psychiatrist (presuicidal syndrome)
• Ignaz Semmelweis (1818–1865), physician (born in Hungary, Austria-Hungary)
• Julius Wagner-Jauregg (1857–1940), physician, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 1927

Psychologists

• Alfred Adler (1870-1937), founding member of the Vienna Psychoanalytic Society and founder of the school of individual psychology
• Viktor Frankl (1905-1997), psychiatrist and psychologist
• Anna Freud (1895-1982), Vienna-born child psychologist and daughter of Sigmund Freud
• Sigmund Freud (1856-1939), Moravian-born founder of psychoanalysis and neurologist
• Marie Jahoda (1907-2001), psychologist
• Helen Singer Kaplan (1929-1995), sex therapist
• Melanie Klein (1882-1960), psychotherapy
• Heinz Kohut (1913-1981), psychiatrist and psychoanalyst
• Wilhelm Reich (1897-1957), psychiatry and psychoanalysis
• Paul Watzlawick (1921–2007), communication theory

Other scientists

• Othenio Abel (1875–1946), paleontologist
• Karl von Czyhlarz (1833–1914), Czech-Austrian jurist
• Sir Otto Frankel (1900-1998), geneticist
• Martin Gerzabek (born 1961), ecologist and soil scientist
• Helene Gröger-Wurm (1921–2005), Austrian-born Australian ecologist
• Hans Hass (1919–2013), biologist and diving pioneer
• Max Hecker (1879–1964), Austrian-born Israeli President of the Technion – Israel Institute of Technology
• Eric Kandel (born 1929), neuroscientist, winner of 2000 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Hans Kelsen (1881–1973), jurist (father of the Austrian constitution)
• Konrad Lorenz (1903–1989), zoologist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
• Gregor Mendel (1822–1884), pioneer of genetics
• Karl Koller (1857-1944), ophthalmologist; first to use cocaine as an anaesthetic
• Julius Pokorny (1887–1970), linguist
• Leo Reinisch (1832–1919), linguist, Africanist and Egyptologist
• Rupert Riedl (1925–2005), zoologist
• Doris Vickers (born 1980), archaeoastronomer
• Maria Wähnl (1908–1989), astronomer

Sports

• Margarete Adler (1896–1990), swimmer, Olympic bronze medalist (4x100m freestyle relay)
• David Alaba (born 1992), footballer, winner of 2012–13 UEFA Champions League with FC Bayern Munich
• Felix Baumgartner (born 1969), world record setting skydiver
• Gerhard Berger (born 1959), racing driver
• Richard Bergmann (1919–1970), seven-time world table tennis champion, ITTF Hall of Fame
• Hedy Bienenfeld (1907–1976), Austrian-American Olympic swimmer
• Albert Bogen (Albert Bógathy) (1882–1961), saber fencer, Olympic silver medalist
• Fritzi Burger (1910–1999), figure skater, two-time Olympic silver medalist, two-time World silver medalist
• Hans Dobida (1929–2025), inductee into the IIHF Hall of Fame
• Michaela Dorfmeister (born 1973), alpine skier
• Eva Duldig (born 1938), Austrian-born Australian and Dutch tennis player, author
• Erich Eliskases (1913–1997), chess grandmaster
• Robert Fein (1907–1975), Olympic Champion weightlifter
• Otto Fischer (1901–1941), footballer and coach
• Siegfried Flesch (1872–1939), sabre fencer, Olympic bronze medalist
• Toni Fritsch (1945–2005), soccer and football player who won the Super Bowl in 1972
• Michael Grabner (born 1987), NHL player
• Ernst Grünfeld (1893–1962), chess grandmaster
• Gunther (wrestler) (born 1987), professional wrestler signed to WWE
• Alfred Guth (1908–1996), Austrian-born American water polo player, swimmer, and Olympic modern pentathlete
• Hans Haas (1906–1973), Olympic champion weightlifter (lightweight), silver medalist
• Tunç Hamarat (born 1946), correspondence chess world champion (2004)
• Ernst Happel (1925–1992), football player and coach
• Judith Haspel (born "Judith Deutsch"; 1918–2004), held every Austrian women's middle and long-distance freestyle record in 1935
• Otto Herschmann (1877–1942), two-time Olympic silver medalist (in saber fencing/team sabre and 100m freestyle)
• Hansi Hinterseer (born 1954), skier, singer, actor, entertainer
• Nickolaus Hirschl (1906–1991), two-time Olympic bronze medalist in wrestling (heavyweight freestyle and Greco-Roman), shot put and discus junior champion, weightlifting junior champion, and pentathlon champion
• Felix Kaspar (1915–2003), figure skater, Olympic bronze medalist
• Franz Klammer (born 1953), Olympic alpine ski champion
• Alfred König (1913–1987), Austrian-Turkish Olympic sprinter
• Hans Krankl (born 1953), football player and coach
• Ruth Langer (1921–1999), Austrian national champion swimmer who refused to attend the 1936 Summer Olympics, along with Judith Haspel and Lucie Goldner
• Niki Lauda (1949–2019), Formula One race car driver and aviation entrepreneur
• Fritzi Löwy (1910–1994), Austrian Olympic swimmer
• Hermann Maier (born 1972), Olympic alpine ski champion
• Alex Manninger (born 1977), professional footballer for Arsenal F.C., winner of 1997–98 FA Premier League title
• Helmut Marko (1943–), former driver and current advisor to Red Bull Racing
• Klara Milch (born 1970), swimmer, Olympic bronze medalist (4x100m freestyle relay)
• Uberto De Morpurgo (1896–1961), Austrian-born Italian tennis player
• Annemarie Moser-Pröll (born 1953), alpine skier
• Thomas Muster (born 1967), tennis champion
• Paul Neumann (1875–1932), Olympic champion swimmer (500m freestyle)
• Fred Oberlander (born 1996), wrestler; world champion (freestyle heavyweight); Maccabiah champion
• Eva Pawlik (1927–1983), European figure skating Champion, World and Olympic runner-up, show star, actress, the world's first female sports commentator on TV (from 1962–1972)
• Felix Pipes (1887–1983), tennis player, Olympic silver medalist (doubles)
• Maxim Podoprigora (born 1978), Olympic swimmer
• Jakob Pöltl (born 1995), basketball player; played two seasons of U.S. college basketball at Utah before declaring for the 2016 NBA draft
• Ellen Preis (1912–2007), foil fencer, three-time world champion (1947, 1949, and 1950), Olympic champion, 17-time Austrian champion
• Herbert Prohaska (born 1955), football player and coach
• Roland Ratzenberger (1960–1994), race car driver, Formula One driver
• Jochen Rindt (1942–1970), race car driver, 1970 Formula One World Champion (posthumous)
• Marcel Sabitzer (born 1994), footballer
• Toni Sailer (1935–2009), Alpine skier, earned the Triple Crown of Alpine Skiing (by winning all three gold medals) at 1956 Olympic Games
• Otto Scheff (born "Otto Sochaczewsky"; 1889–1956), Olympic champion swimmer (400m freestyle) and two-time bronze medalist (400m freestyle, 1,500m freestyle)
• Max Scheuer (1895–1941), footballer; national team
• Werner Schlager (born 1972), 2003 Table Tennis World Champion
• Carl Schlechter (1874–1918), chess grandmaster
• Gregor Schlierenzauer (born 1990), ski jumper, Olympic bronze medalist, World and 4 Hills Tournament champion
• Heinrich Schönfeld (1900–1976), football player
• Matthias Sindelar (1903–1939), footballer
• Wilhelm Steinitz (1836–1900), winner of first-ever world chess championship in 1886
• Josephine Sticker (1894–1963), swimmer, Olympic bronze medalist (4x100m freestyle relay)
• Rudolf Spielmann (1883–1942), chess grandmaster
• Herma Szabo (1902–1986), Olympic and five-time World figure skating champion
• Dominic Thiem (born 1993), top-20 tennis player and Grand Slam Champion (Men's Singles, US Open 2020)
• Nicole Trimmel (born 1982), kickboxing champion
• Thomas Vanek (born 1984), NHL hockey player for the Montreal Canadiens
• Anita Wachter (born 1967 in Schruns), Olympic alpine ski champion
• Otto Wahle (1879–1963), swimmer, two-time Olympic silver medalist (1,000m freestyle, 200m obstacle race) and Olympic bronze medalist (400m freestyle); inducted into International Swimming Hall of Fame
• Walter Wasservogel (1919–1993), inductee into the IIHF Hall of Fame
• Toto Wolff (1972–), motorsport executive, currently team principal of Mercedes-Benz

Writers

• Ingeborg Bachmann (1926–1973), poet
• Hermann Bahr (1863–1934), playwright, novelist
• Ludwig Bemelmans (1898–1962), author of the Madeline books
• Thomas Bernhard (1931–1989), dramatist, novelist, poet, born in Cloister Heerlen, Netherlands
• Hermann Broch (1886–1951), novelist
• Max Brod (1884–1968), writer, born in Prague, Austria-Hungary, (Bohemia, present-day Czech Republic), wrote in German
• Heimito von Doderer (1896–1966), writer, born in Hadersdorf-Weidlingau near Vienna
• Marie von Ebner-Eschenbach (1830–1916), writer (style: psychological novelist)
• Franz Grillparzer (1791–1872), poet, Vienna
• Robert Hamerling (1830–1889), poet
• Peter Handke (born 1942), author, born in Griffen (Carinthia)
• Hugo von Hofmannsthal (1874–1929), dramatist, writer
• Martin Horváth (born 1967), writer
• Franz Kafka (1883–1924), novelist, born in Prague, Austria-Hungary
• Marie-Thérèse Kerschbaumer (born 1936), novelist, poet
• Werner Kofler (1947–2011), novelist and dramatist
• Karl Gottfried Ritter von Leitner (1800–1890), poet, writer, born in Graz
• Alexander Lernet-Holenia (1897–1976), novelist, poet, dramatist, critic
• Olga Misař (1876–1950), peace activist, feminist, writer
• Robert Musil (1880–1942), writer
• Johann Nestroy (1801–1862), playwright
• Christine Nöstlinger (1936–2018), writer (especially literature for children)
• Ferdinand Raimund (1790–1836), writer and dramatist
• Christoph Ransmayr (born 1954), writer
• Rainer Maria Rilke (1875–1926), poet and novelist, born in Prague, (Bohemia, present-day Czech Republic)
• Peter Rosegger (1843–1918), writer, teacher & Styrian hero and visionary
• Joseph Roth (1894–1939), novelist
• Arthur Schnitzler (1862–1931), novelist and playwright
• Adalbert Stifter (1805–1868), poet and artist
• Bertha von Suttner (1843–1914), writer and pacifist Nobel Peace Prize winner, born in Prague, (Bohemia, present-day Czech Republic)
• Georg Trakl (1887–1914), poet
• Josef Weinheber (1892–1945), poet and essayist
• Marion Wiesel (born Mary Renate Erster; 1931–2025), Austrian-American Holocaust survivor, humanitarian, writer, and translator

People of the Nazi Party and regime

• Critic of the Nazi Regime: Stefan Zweig (1881–1942), novelist and playwright

• Amon Göth (1908–1946), commandant of the Kraków-Płaszów concentration camp and executed Nazi war criminal
• Aribert Heim (1914–1992), physician ("Dr. Death") in the Mauthausen concentration camp
• Adolf Hitler (1889–1945), leader of the Nazi Party and Nazi Germany
• Ernst Kaltenbrunner (1903–1946), high ranking SS officer and Nazi war criminal
• Arthur Seyss-Inquart (1892–1946), Reich Commissioner of the Netherlands

Other notables

• Maria Altmann (1916–2011), niece of Adele Bloch-Bauer
• Oscar Baumann (1864–1899), explored the interior of German East Africa (present-day Tanzania, Rwanda and Burundi)
• Robert Bernardis (1908–1944), resistance fighter during WW2 (July 20 Plot)
• Edward Bernays (1891–1995), Austrian-American pioneer in public relations, referred to in his obituary as "the father of public relations"
• Adele Bloch-Bauer (1881–1925), subject of famous painting by Gustav Klimt
• Josefine Brunner (1909–1943), socialist, resistance member and victim of the Nazi regime
• Josef Fritzl (born 1935), notorious rapist
• Hugo Haberfeld (1875–1946), Jewish art dealer and gallery owner
• Otto von Habsburg (1912–2011), politician, writer, heir to the thrones of Austria-Hungary
• Theodor Herzl (1860–1904), founder of the ideology of Zionism, lived most of his life in Austria
• Alois Hitler (1837–1903), father of Adolf Hitler
• Klara Hitler (1860–1907), mother of Adolf Hitler
• Andreas Hofer (1767–1810), Tyrolian freedom fighter (against Napoleon)
• Sylvie di Giusto, professional Speaker, Consultant and Author
• Heinrich Kanner (1864–1930), journalist and editor of the newspaper "Die Zeit" in the k.u.k. Monarchy
• Alma Mahler (1879–1964), wife and muse to Mahler, Gropius, Werfel
• Andreas Maislinger (born 1955), founder of the Austrian Holocaust Memorial Service
• Erna Patak (1871–1955), Zionist, social worker
• Julius von Payer (1841–1915), polar explorer
• Wolfgang Puck (born 1949), celebrity chef and restaurateur
• Max Reinhardt (1873–1943), renowned theatre director
• Sister Maria Restituta (1894–1943), nun and nurse murdered by the Nazis
• Günther Schifter (1923–2008), radio personality
• Oskar Schindler (1908–1974), industrialist and famous World War II hero (saved his Jewish factory workers from Auschwitz), born in Svitavy, Moravia
• Otto Skorzeny (1908–1975), Nazi commando (rescuer of Benito Mussolini)
• Wolfgang Streitenberger (born 1952), European Commission senior official
• Carl Szokoll (1915–2004), resistance fighter ("saviour of Vienna"), author and film producer
• Georg Ludwig von Trapp (1880–1947), head of The Sound of Music family
• Franz Viehböck (born 1960), cosmonaut
• Hede von Trapp (1877–1947), painter artist
• Karl Weyprecht (1838–1881), polar explorer
• Simon Wiesenthal (1908–2005), pre-eminent Nazi hunter
• Walter Wolf (born 1939), business person

See also

• List of Austrian Jews
• List of Austrian inventors and discoverers
• List of Germans
• List of Slovenians
• List of Hungarians
• List of Croatians
• List of Serbs
• List of Czechs
• List of Slovaks
• List of Poles
• List of Swiss
• List of people by nationality

References