List of people from Italy
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This is a list of notable Italians
In alphabetical order.
Scientists
A-F
- Francesco Alberoni, sociologist and journalist
- Amedeo Avogadro (1776-1856), physicist
- Eugenio Barsanti, inventor of the Internal combustion engine
- Giovanni Battista Beccaria (1716-1781)
- Renato Biasutti, geographer
- Enrico Bombieri (born 1940), mathematician
- Luigi Valentino Brugnatelli, chemist
- Giovanni Alfonso Borelli
- Ruggero Giuseppe Boscovich (1711-1787), physicist
- Giordano Bruno (1548-1600), philosopher
- Gerolamo Cardano (1501-1576), Renaissance polymath
- Benedetto Castelli, mathematician
- Giovanni Domenico Cassini (1625-1712), astronomer
- Luigi Luca Cavalli-Sforza, population geneticist
- Giuseppe Colombo, mathematician
- Realdo Colombo
- Renato Corsetti current president of the World Esperanto Association
- Jacopo Berengario da Carpi, physician
- Salvino D'Armate, inventor of eyeglasses
- Renato Dulbecco (born 1914), biologist
- Francesco Faà di Bruno (1825-1888), military officer, mathematician, priest
- Hieronymus Fabricius, anatomist
- Gabriele Falloppio, anatomist and physician
- Robert Fano (born 1917), computer scientist
- Luigi Fantappiè (1901-1956), mathematician, originator of the term "syntropy"
- Enrico Forlanini
- Bruno de Finetti (1906-1985), mathematician, statistician
- Enrico Fermi (1901-1954), physicist
- Leonardo Fibonacci, (c. 1175-1250) mathematician, eponym of the Fibonacci numbers
- Girolamo Fracastoro (1478-1553)
- Guido Fubini (1879-1943), mathematician, eponym of Fubini's theorem in measure theory
G-P
- Galileo Galilei (1564-1642), astronomy pioneer and physicist
- Luigi Galvani (1737-1798), physician and physicist, eponym of galvanization
- Agostino Gemelli (1878-1959), physician and priest
- Riccardo Giacconi (born 1931), astrophysicist
- Corrado Gini (1884-1965), statistician, demographer and sociologist, developer of Gini coefficient
- Camillo Golgi (1843-1926), physician
- Francesco Maria Grimaldi (1618-1663), physicist
- Giuseppe Ludovico Lagrangia (1736-1813), mathematician
- Innocenzo Manzetti
- Felice Matteucci
- Rita Levi-Montalcini (born 1909), neurologist
- Mario Liverani Ancient Near East historian
- Salvador Luria (1912-1991), microbiologist
- Ettore Majorana (1906-1938), physicist
- Gian Francesco Malfatti (1731-1807), mathematician
- Guglielmo Marconi (1874-1937), engineer, developer of wireless telegraphy
- Franco Modigliani (1918-2003), economist
- Maria Montessori (1870-1952), physician, teacher, creator of the Montessori method
- Antonio Santi Giuseppe Meucci (1808–1896), chemical and mechanical engineer, inventor of the telephone
- Giulio Natta (1903-1979), chemist
- Luca Pacioli, mathematician
- Vilfredo Pareto (1848-1923), sociologist, economist and philosopher, eponym of Pareto distribution, Pareto efficiency, Pareto index, Pareto principle
- Giuseppe Peano (1858-1932), mathematician
- Giuseppe Piazzi (1746-1826), astronomer
R-V
- Giovanni Battista Riccioli
- Mondino de Liuzzi, anatomist
- Gian-Carlo Rota (1932-1999), Italian-born American mathematician and philosopher
- Carlo Rubbia (born 1934), physicist
- Giovanni Gerolamo Saccheri (1667-1733), mathematician
- Giovanni Antonio Scopoli, physician
- Emilio Segrè (1905-1989), physicist
- Giuseppe Sergi, anthropologist
- Francesco Severi (1879-1961), mathematician
- Ascanio Sobrero, chemist
- Niccolo Fontana Tartaglia (1500-1557), mathematician
- Evangelista Torricelli (1608-1647), early scientist
- Giovanni Battista Venturi, (1746-1822), physicist
- Alessandro Volta (1745-1827), electricity pioneer, eponym of the volt
- Antonio Scarpa (1752-1832)
- Piero Sraffa, economist
Explorers
- Giacomo Beltrami
- Giovanni Caboto
- Sebastiano Caboto
- Cristoforo Colombo
- Niccolò Da Conti
- Antonio da Noli, explored the Cape Verde Islands for Portugal
- Giovanni da Pian del Carpine
- Giovanni da Verrazzano
- Henri de Tonti, (1649-1704), explored the Mississippi River Valley
- Alphonse de Tonty
- Pierre Savorgnan de Brazza
- Marco Polo
- Amerigo Vespucci, (1454-1512), discovered other parts of America and gave his name to the new continent. Discovered the Amazon river in South America.
Politicians
A-G
- Giulio Andreotti, politician
- Cesare Battisti, politician
- Camillo Benso, count of Cavour
- Enrico Berlinguer, (1922 - 1984), politician
- Mario Berlinguer
- Silvio Berlusconi, (born 1936)
- Fausto Bertinotti
- Emma Bonino
- Pierferdinando Casini
- Carlo Azeglio Ciampi, president of Italy
- Michele Columbu
- Francesco Cossiga, (b. 1928), president of Italy
- Francesco Crispi, prime minister
- Massimo D'Alema
- Alcide De Gasperi
- Enrico De Nicola, (1877-1959), president of Italy
- Lorenzo de Tonti, (1602-1684), former governor of Gaeta, Italy, inventor of tontine, a form of life insurance
- Luigi Einaudi, politician
- Amintore Fanfani
- Piero Fassino
- Gianfranco Fini
- Roberto Formigoni, (born 1947)
- Antonio Gramsci (1891-1937) writer and politician
L-T
- Giovanni Leone, president of Italy
- Franco Maria Malfatti, President of the European Commission, (1970-1972)
- Giuseppe Mazzini, (1805-1872), writer and politician
- Paolo Oss Mazzurana
- Aldo Moro, (1916-1978), politician
- Benito Mussolini, (1883-1945), dictator
- Giorgio Napolitano, president of Italy
- Antonio Negri, political philosopher
- Marco Pannella
- Sandro Pertini, president of Italy
- Romano Prodi (born 1939) Former President of the European Commissionand Prime Minister of Italy.
- Giuseppe Saragat, president of Italy
- Oscar Luigi Scalfaro, president of Italy
- Antonio Segni
- Palmiro Togliatti (1893-1964), communist leader
Writers
A-E
- Francesco Algarotti, philosopher and art critic
- Dante Alighieri (1265-1321), poet
- Ludovico Ariosto (1474-1533), poet
- Alessandro Baricco (born 1958), novelist and playwriter
- Giambattista Basile (?-1632), poet and writer
- Cesare Beccaria (1738-1794), philosopher and politician
- Pietro Bembo, cardinal and poet
- Stefano Benni (born 1947), novelist and playwriter
- Giovanni Boccaccio, (1313-1375), novelist
- Giovanni Botero, priest and poet
- Alfredo Bracchi (1897-1976), lyricists and scriptwriter
- Giordano Bruno (1548-1600), philosopher
- Gesualdo Bufalino (1920-1996), writer
- Dino Buzzati (1906-1972), novelist and journalist
- Aldo Buzzi (born 1910), author of travel and gastronomy books
- Italo Calvino (1923-1985), writer and novelist
- Andrea Camilleri (born 1925), writer
- Giosuè Carducci (1835-1907), poet
- Baldassarre Castiglione (1478-1529), writer
- Carlo Collodi (orig. Carlo Lorenzini), (1826-1890), novelist
- Benedetto Croce (1866-1952), philosopher
- Gabriele D'Annunzio (1863-1938), poet, dramatist and adventurer
- Lorenzo Da Ponte, librettist and poet
- Guittone d'Arezzo, poet
- Giacomo da Lentini, poet
- Grazia Deledda (1871-1936), novelist
- Francesco de Sanctis (1817-1883), writer and literary critic
- Antonia Donatiello (born 1950), poet and writer
- Umberto Eco (born 1932), semiotician and writer
- Valerio Evangelisti (born 1952), science fiction writer
F-M
- Oriana Fallaci, journalist and author
- Marsilio Ficino (1433-1499), philosopher
- Dario Fo (born 1926), dramatist and actor
- Ugo Foscolo (1778-1827), writer
- Carlo Emilio Gadda (1893-1973), writer
- Nikki Giovanni (born 1943) (half-Italian), poet and writer
- Giovanni Guareschi (1908-1968), novelist and satirist
- Francesco Guicciardini (1483-1540), historian
- Remo Gorrieri, (1916-2002), poet
- Carlo Goldoni (1707-1793), dramatist
- Giacomo Leopardi, (1798-1837), poet
- Primo Levi (1919-1987), writer
- Emilio Lussu (1890-1975), novelist and politician
- Niccolò Machiavelli (1469-1527), writer
- Scipione Maffei, writer and art critic
- Goffredo Mameli (1827-1849) patriot, poet and writer
- Alessandro Manzoni (1785-1873) writer, considered the father of modern Italian language
- Filippo Tommaso Marinetti (1876-1944), writer
- Girolamo Mei, historian and humanist
- Vittorio Messori (born 1941), writer and journalist
- Metastasio, writer and poet
- Maurizio Molinari (born 1964), writer and journalist
- Eugenio Montale (1896-1981), poet
- Indro Montanelli (1909-2001), journalist and historian
- Elsa Morante (1912-1985), writer
- Alberto Moravia (1907–1990), novelist
P-V
- Giuseppe Parini (1729-1799), satirist and poet
- Giovanni Pascoli (1855-1912), poet
- Francesco Petrarca (1304-1374), poet
- Roberto Pinotti (born 1944), journalist and author
- Luigi Pirandello (1867-1936), playwright
- Giovanni Prati, poet
- Salvatore Quasimodo (1901-1968), poet
- Ottavio Rinuccini, poet and librettist
- Antonio Rosmini-Serbati, philosopher
- Rafael Sabatini (1875-1950), writer
- Emilio Salgari (1862-1911), novelist
- Italo Svevo (orig. Aron Ettore Schmitz) (1861-1928), writer
- Antonio Tabucchi (born 1943), writer
- Torquato Tasso (1544-1595), poet
- Gian Giorgio Trissino, poet
- Giuseppe Ungaretti (1888-1970), poet
- Giorgio Vasari (1511-1571), architect and writer
- Giovanni Verga (1840-1922), writer
- Giambattista Vico (1668-1744), philosopher
Cartoonists
- Milo Manara
- Andrea Pazienza, (1956-1988)
- Hugo Pratt, (1927-1995), : Corto Maltese
- Bruno Bozzetto, (1938-)
- Lorenzo Mattotti
Filmmakers
- Dario Argento
- Pupi Avati
- Mario Bava
- Lamberto Bava
- Bernardo Bertolucci
- Andrea Bianchi
- Tinto Brass
- Frank Coraci
- Luigi Cozzi
- Joe D'Amato
- Vittorio De Sica
- Ruggero Deodato
- Luciano Ercoli
- Federico Fellini
- Lucio Fulci
- Pietro Germi
- Alberto Grimaldi
- Aldo Lado
- Umberto Lenzi
- Sergio Leone
- Antonio Margheriti
- Sergio Martino
- Bruno Mattei
- Nanni Moretti
- Pier Paolo Pasolini
- Roberto Rossellini
- Michele Soavi
- Dante Spinotti
- Luchino Visconti
- Franco Zeffirelli
- Michelangelo Antonioni
Actors and actresses
A-L
- Laura Antonelli (born 1941)
- Asia Argento (born 1975)
- Monica Bellucci (born 1964)
- Roberto Benigni (born 1952)
- Francesca Bertini (1892-1985)
- Lucia Bosé (born 1931)
- Raoul Bova (born 1971)
- Nicoletta Braschi (born 1960)
- Mario Brega (1923-1991)
- Andrea Bruschi (born 1968)
- Claudia Cardinale (born in Tunisia, 1938)
- Raffaella Carrà (born 1943)
- Maria Grazia Cucinotta (born 1969)
- Vittorio Gassmann (1922-2000)
- Giancarlo Giannini (born 1942)
- Gina Lollobrigida (born 1927)
- Sophia Loren (born 1934)
M-V
- Nino Manfredi (1921-2004)
- Silvana Mangano (1930-1989)
- Marcello Mastroianni (1924-1996)
- Rose McGowan (born 1973)
- Caterina Murino (born 1977)
- Natalino Otto, singer and actor (1912-1969)
- Moana Pozzi (1961-1994)
- Alberto Rabagliati (1906-1974)
- Stefania Sandrelli (born 1946)
- Delia Scala (1929-2004), ballerina, actress
- Rocco Siffredi (born 1964)
- Alberto Sordi (1920-2003)
- Bud Spencer (born 1929)
- Totò (1898-1967)
- Massimo Troisi (1953-1994)
- Rodolfo Valentino (1895-1926)
- Alida Valli (born 1921)
- Gian Maria Volontè (1933-1994)
Fashion models
- Anna Kanakis
- Bianca Balti
- Ludovico Benazzo
- Mariacarla Boscono
- Carla Bruni
- Elisabetta Canalis
- Marta Cecchetto
- Claudia Cedro
- Cristina Chiabotto
- Francesca Dani
- Alessia Fabiani
- Jacques Ficini
- Federica Fontana
- Vincenzo Galdi
- Gabriel Garko
- Vanessa Hessler
- Alessia Marcuzzi
- Francesca Martinez (Italian model)
- Denny Mendez
- Massimiliano Neri
- Anita Pallenberg
- Eva Riccobono
- Linda Jo Rizzo
- Isabella Rossellini
- Sabrina Salerno
- Melissa Satta
- Alena Šeredova
- Adriana Volpe
Artists
see also: List of Italian painters
A-C
- Leon Battista Alberti (1404-1472), architect
- Fra Angelico (1387-1445), (Giovanni da Fiesole)
- Baccio D'Agnolo (c. 1460-1543), sculptor, wood-carver, and architect
- Sisto Badalocchio (1581- c. 1647), painter and engraver
- Alessio Baldovinetti (1427-1499)
- Vanessa Beecroft, contemporary artist
- Sandro Botticelli (1445-1510), painter
- Michelangelo Buonarroti (1475-1564), painter,sculptor, architect, and poet
- Canaletto, painter
- Leonetto Cappiello (1875-1942), Poster designer and caricaturist
- Battistello Caracciolo, painter
- Vittore Carpaccio (c.1460-1525), painter
- Agostino Carracci (1560-1609), painter
- Caravaggio (1573-1610), painter
- Giovanni Battista Castello, painter
- Giuseppe Castiglione, painter
- Cimabue, (1240-1302), painter
- Giorgione da Castelfranco, (c. 1477-1510), (Giorgione)
- Benvenuto Cellini (1500-1571)
D-L
- Antonio da Correggio, (1488-1534), (often short Correggio)
- Gentile da Fabriano, (c.1370-1427), painter
- Antonello da Messina (c.1430-1479)
- Andrea da Monte San Savino (Andrea Sansovino or Sansovino)
- Masolino da Panicale (c.1383-1447)
- Antonio da Sangallo
- Giuliano da Sangallo (c.1443-1516)
- Leonardo da Vinci, (1452-1519), painter, sculptor and inventor
- Giorgio De Chirico, (1888-1978), painter
- Andrea del Castagno, (c.1421-1457)
- Niccolò dell'Abbate, painter
- Piero della Francesca, (c.1416-1492), painter and mathematician
- Luca della Robbia, (1400-1482), sculptor
- Andrea del Sarto, (1487-1531), painter
- Fortunato Depero
- Giotto, (1267-1337), painter
- Renato Guttuso, (1912-1987), painter
- Fra Filippo Lippi, (c.1406-1469), painter
- Filippino Lippi, (1457-1504), painter
- Lorenzo Lotto, (1480-1556), painter
M-Z
- Andrea Mantegna, (c.1431-1506), painter
- Marino Marini, sculptor
- Simone Martini, (c.1284-1344)
- Masaccio, (1401-1428), painter
- Amedeo Modigliani, (1884-1920), sculptor and painter
- Giorgio Morandi, (1890-1964), painter
- Ugo Nespolo, (born 1941), painter
- Andrea Orcagna, (Andrea di Cione), (1320-1368)
- Giovanni Paolo Pannini, painter and architect
- Perugino, (c.1445-1523), painter
- Baldassarre Peruzzi
- Giovanni Battista Piranesi
- Raphael, (Raffaello Sanzio), (1483-1520)
- Guido Reni, (1575-1642), painter
- Rosso (Rosso Fiorentino)
- Giovanni Segantini, painter
- Luca Signorelli, (c.1445-1523)
- Tiepolo, (1696-1770), painter
- Tintoretto, (1518-1594), painter
- Titian, (1488-1576), (Tiziano Vecellio)
- Oliviero Toscani, photographer
- Giovanni Tuccari
- Paolo Uccello, (1397-1475), painter
- Domenico Veneziano, (c.1400-1461)
- Paolo Veronese, painter
- Andrea del Verrocchio, (c.1435-1488), sculptor, painter
- Alessandro Vittoria
- Ettore Ximenes, (1855-1919), painter
Sculptors
- Umberto Boccioni
- Rembrandt Bugatti (1884-1916)
- Antonio Canova, (1757-1822)
- Donatello, (1386-1466)
- Antonello Gagini
- Antonio Gagini
- Domenico Gagini
- Silvio Gazzaniga, (born 1921)
- Vincenzo Gemito - (1852-1929)
- Tommaso Geraci, (born 1931)
- Giambologna
- Stefano Maderno (1576 – 1636)
- Carlo Marochetti, (1805-1867)
- Giovanni Angelo Montorsoli
- Costantino Nivola, (1911-1988)
- Pinuccio Sciola, (born 1942)
- Mauro Staccioli
- Eugenio Tavolara
Architects
- Leon Battista Alberti, (1404-1472), architect
- Gian Lorenzo Bernini, (1598 - 1680), architect, sculptor and painter
- Bartolommeo Berrecci
- Francesco Borromini, (1599 - 1667), architect
- Donato Bramante (1444-1514), architect
- Giovanni Branca, engineer and architect
- Filippo Brunelleschi, (1377 - 1446), architect
- Pietro da Cortona, (1596 - 1669), architect
- Giacomo Barozzi da Vignola
- Giacomo della Porta
- Domenico de' Rossi
- Giovanni Battista di Quadro
- Aristotile Fioravanti
- Francesco Florentino
- Carlo Fontana, (1634 or 1638 - 1714), architect
- Rosario Gagliardi
- Alessandro Galilei
- Andrea Giganti
- Camillo-Guarino Guarini
- Mateo Gucci
- Santi Gucci
- Stefano Ittar
- Filippo Juvarra
- Paolo Labisi
- Giulio Lasso
- Carlo Maderno, (1556 - 1629), architect
- Giuseppe Venanzio Marvuglia
- Michelozzo
- Riccardo Morandi, engineer
- Bernardo Morando
- Tomasso Napoli
- Alois Negrelli, engineer
- Pier Luigi Nervi, (1891 - 1979), architect and engineer
- Nicolò Pacassi
- Andrea Palladio, (1508 - 1580), architect
- Andrea Palma
- Alessandro Pasqualini
- Renzo Piano, (born 1937), architect
- Giò Ponti (Giovanni), (1891 - 1979), architect
- Andrea Pozzo, architect
- Francesco Primaticcio
- Giacomo Quarenghi
- Carlo Rainaldi, (1611 – 1691), architect
- Girolamo Rainaldi, architect
- Bartolomeo Rastrelli, (1700-1771), architect
- Antonio Rinaldi, (1710-1794), architect
- Aldo Rossi, (1931 - 1997), architect
- Francesco Sabatini, (1722 - 1797), architect
- Nicola Salvi
- Antonio Scaglione
- Carlo Scarpa, (1906 - 1973), architect
- Sebastiano Serlio
- Vincenzo Sinatra
- Giovanni Battista Vaccarini
- Luigi Vanvitelli, (1700 – 1773), architect
- Giorgio Vasari
- Tommaso Vincidor
Musicians and singers
- Lucio Battisti (1943-1998), singer-songwriter
- Mattia Battistini
- Andrea Bocelli (born 1958), singer and tenor
- Ernesto Bonino (born 1922), singer
- Faustina Bordoni, mezzo-soprano opera singer
- Fred Buscaglione (1921-1960), singer and actor
- Renato Carosone (1920-2001), pop musician and composer
- Enrico Caruso (1873-1921), tenor
- Lina Cavalieri (1874-1944), glamorous opera singer
- Adriano Celentano, (born 1938), pop singer
- Felice Chiusano (1922-1990), singer
- Pino Daniele (born 1955), singer-songwriter
- Fabrizio De André (1940-1999), singer-songwriter
- Enrico De Angelis, singer
- Francesco De Gregori (born 1951), singer-songwriter
- Mario Del Monaco (1915-1982), tenor
- Farinelli, soprano castrato singer
- Rino Gaetano (1950-1981)
- Peppino Gagliardi (born 1940), singer
- Enrico Gentile, singer
- Tata Giacobetti (1922-1988), singer and lyricist
- Francesco Guccini (born 1940), singer-songwriter
- Iacopo Jacomelli, singer
- Jovanotti (born 1966), singer-songwriter
- Gorni Kramer (1913-1995), bandleader and songwriter
- Luciano Ligabue (born 1960), singer-songwriter
- Lucia Mannucci (born 1920), singer
- Mina, singer
- Giorgio Moroder, Academy Award winning record producer, songwriter and performer.
- Ennio Morricone (born 1928), composer
- Paolo Negri, jazz organist
- Natalino Otto (1912-1969), singer and actor
- Adelina Patti
- Laura Pausini (born 1974), singer
- Luciano Pavarotti (born 1935), tenor
- Mauro Picotto, DJ
- Alberto Rabagliati (1906-1974), singer and actor
- Eros Ramazzotti (born 1963), singer
- Vasco Rossi (born 1952), singer-songwriter
- Virgilio Savona (born 1920), singer and songwriter
- Cristina Scabbia (born 1972), lead female singer in the Italian goth/symponic metal band Lacuna Coil
- Tito Schipa (1888-1965)
- Senesino, alto castrato
- Renata Tebaldi (1922-2004), soprano
- Luisa Tetrazzini
- Zucchero (born 1955), singer-songwriter
Composers
A-C
- Pasquale Anfossi, opera composer
- Giuseppe Apolloni (1822 - 1889), opera composer
- Emilio Arrieta, opera composer
- Jean-Baptiste Lully, (1632 - 1687), Italian-French composer
- Giovanni Battista Sammartini, (1700 or 1701 - 1775), composer
- Vincenzo Bellini (1801-1835), composer
- Luciano Berio (1925-2003), composer
- Luigi Boccherini, (1743 - 1805), composer
- Arrigo Boito (1842-1918), composer, opera composer
- Francesco Antonio Bonporti, composer
- Giulio Caccini, composer
- Florentine Camerata, composer
- Francesco Canova da Milano, (1497 - 1543), lute composer
- Giuseppe Carcani (1703-1779), composer
- Giacomo Carissimi, (1605 - 1674), composer
- Roberto Carnevale, Italian composer
- Ferdinando Carulli, (1770 - 1841), guitar composer
- Mario Castelnuovo-Tedesco (1895-1968), classical guitar composer
- Alfredo Catalani (1854-1893), opera composer
- Francesco Cavalli, composer
- Luigi Cherubini, (1760-1842), composer, opera composer
- Muzio Clementi, (1752 - 1832), composer
- Francesco Cilea (1866-1950), opera composer
- Domenico Cimarosa, (1749-1801), composer, opera composer
- Arcangelo Corelli, (1653 - 1713), composer
- Jacopo Corsi, composer
D-N
- Luigi Dallapiccola, (1904-1975), composer, opera composer
- Giovanni D'Anzi, (1906-1974), songwriter
- Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina
- Luigi de Rossi, 17th century composer
- Gaetano Donizetti, (1797-1848), composer, opera composer
- Ludovico Einaudi, composer and pianist
- Alberto Franchetti, opera composer
- Girolamo Frescobaldi, (1566 - 1638), lute composer
- Andrea Gabrieli, (1533 - 1586), composer
- Giovanni Gabrieli, (between 1553 and 1556 – 1612), composer
- Vincenzo Galilei, composer (the father of the astronomer Galileo Galilei)
- Baldassarre Galuppi, composer
- Francesco Gasparini, (1661 - 1727), composer
- Carlo Gesualdo, (1566 - 1613), madrigal composer
- Umberto Giordano, (1867-1948), composer, opera composer
- Mauro Giuliani, (1781 - 1829), guitar composer
- Niccolò Jommelli, composer
- Francesco Landini, (c.1325-1397), composer, organist
- Ruggero Leoncavallo, (1858-1919), opera composer
- Andrea Luchesi (1741-1801), composer, opera composer
- Cristofano Malvezzi, organist and composer
- Luca Marenzio, (1553 - 1599), madrigal composer
- Pietro Mascagni, (1863-1945), composer, opera composer
- Saverio Mercadante, (1795-1870), opera composer
- Claudio Monteverdi, (1567-1643), composer, opera composer
- Luigi Nono, (1924 - 1990), composer
P-T
- Giovanni Pacini, (1796-1867), composer, opera composer
- Niccolò Paganini, (1782 - 1840), composer
- Giovanni Paisiello, (1741-1816), opera composer
- Jacopo Peri, (1561 – 1633), composer, the inventor of opera
- Giovanni Pierluigi da Palestrina, (1525-1594), renowned composer of the late Renaissance
- Giovanni Battista Pergolesi, (1710-1736), composer, opera composer
- Goffredo Petrassi, opera composer
- Niccolò Piccinni, (1728-1800), opera composer
- Ildebrando Pizzetti, opera composer
- Amilcare Ponchielli, (1834-1886), opera composer
- Nicola Porpora, (1686-1768), opera composer
- Giacomo Puccini, (1858-1924), composer
- Ottorino Respighi, (1879-1936), composer, opera composer
- Salamone Rossi (c. 1530-c. 1630), early baroque composer
- Gioacchino Rossini, (1792-1868), composer, opera composer
- Nino Rota, (1911-1979), composer, opera composer
- Antonio Salieri, (1750-1825), Austrian composer
- Giuseppe Sarti, composer
- Alessandro Scarlatti, (1660-1725), composer, opera composer
- Domenico Scarlatti, (1685 - 1757), composer
- Giacinto Scelsi, (1905 - 1988), microtonal composer
- Salvatore Sciarrino, (b.1947), avant-garde composer
- Gaspare Spontini (1774-1851), opera composer
- Agostino Steffani (1653-1728), opera composer
- Pietro Strozzi, composer
- Giuseppe Tartini, composer
- Tommaso Traetta, composer
V-Z
- Francesco Maria Veracini (1690)-(1768), composer
- Giuseppe Verdi, (1813-1901), composer, opera composer
- Antonio Vivaldi, (1678 - 1741), composer
- Riccardo Zandonai, opera composer
Conductors (Direttori)
- Claudio Abbado, (born 1933)
- Victor de Sabata, (1892-1967)
- Gianandrea Gavazzeni
- Carlo Maria Giulini
- Riccardo Muti, (born 1942)
- Tullio Serafin
- Arturo Toscanini, (1867-1957)
- Niccolò Amati
- Bergonzi
- Nicolò Gagliano
- Giovanni Battista Guadagnini
- Giuseppe Guarneri
- Antonio Stradivari
Athletes and sports personalities
- Giacomo Agostini (born 1942), motorcycle racer
- Mario Andretti (born 1940), F1 driver
- Alberto Ascari (1918-1955), racecar driver
- Antonio Ascari (1888-1925), Grand Prix racecar driver
- Roberto Baggio (born 1967), footballer
- Stefano Baldini (born 1971), marathoner
- Franco Baresi (born 1960), footballer
- Andrea Bargnani, (born 1985) basketball player
- Gino Bartali (1914-2000), cyclist
- Stefania Belmondo (born 1963), cross-country skier
- Lorenzo Bernardi, volleyball player
- Nino Benvenuti (born 1938), boxer
- Paolo Bettini (born 1974), cyclist
- Max Biaggi (born 1971), motorcycle racer
- Alfredo Binda (1902-1986), cyclist
- Flavio Briatore, entrepreneur and managing director of the Renault Formula One team
- Gianluigi Buffon (born 1978), footballer
- Tullio Campagnolo, cyclist who invented the quick release skewer
- Giuseppe Campari (1892-1933), Grand Prix racecar driver
- Fabio Cannavaro (born 1973), footballer
- Primo Carnera (1906-1967), boxer
- Igor Cassina (born 1977), gymnast
- Jury Chechi (born 1969) , gymnast
- Mario Cipollini (born 1967) , cyclist
- Pierluigi Collina (born 1960), football referee
- Deborah Compagnoni (born 1970), Alpine skier
- Fausto Coppi (1919-1960), cyclist
- Mario D'Agata (born 1926) deaf-mute who became a world boxing champion
- Frankie Dettori (born 1970), jockey
- Alessandro Del Piero (born 1974), footballer
- Giuseppe Farina (1906-1966), Grand Prix racecar driver
- Enzo Ferrari, (1898-1988), founder of Scuderia Ferrari and Ferrari S.p.A
- Giancarlo Fisichella (born 1973), F1 driver
- Filippo Magnini (born 1982), swimmer
- Paolo Maldini (born 1968), footballer
- Dino Meneghin (born 1950), basketball player
- Reinhold Messner (born 1944), alpinist
- Carlton Myers (born 1971), basketball player
- Alessandro Nannini, racecar driver
- Aldo Notari, ex-president of IBAF
- Tazio Nuvolari (1892-1953), race car driver
- Marco Pantani (1970-2004), cyclist
- Riccardo Patrese, former Formula One (F1) racing driver
- Andrea Pirlo (born 1979), footballer
- Valentino Rossi (born 1979), motorcycle world champion
- Sara Simeoni (born 1954), athlete
- Alberto Tomba (born 1966), Alpine skier
- Luca Toni (born 1978), footballer
- Francesco Totti (born 1976), footballer
- Jarno Trulli (born 1974), F1 driver
- Trebisonda Valla (born 1916), athlete
- Achille Varzi (1904-1948), race car champion
- Christian Vieri (born 1973), footballer
- Luigi Villoresi (1909-1997), Grand Prix race car driver
- Alex Zanardi (born 1966), race car driver
- Dino Zoff (born 1942), footballer
- Gianfranco Zola (born 1966), footballer
Other
- Gianni Agnelli (1921-2003), industrialist
- Anselm of Canterbury (1033 or 1034 – April 21, 1109), philosopher and theologian
- Thomas Aquinas, philosopher and theologian
- Guido of Arezzo, music theorist
- Giorgio Armani, Italian fashion designer
- Ernesto Bertarelli, businessman
- Paolo Boi, chess player
- Charles Borromeo, saint and cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church
- Eugenio Calò (1906-1944), Jewish Italian partisan, Gold Medal for Military Valour.
- Aldo Capitini (1899-1968), philosopher, non-violent
- Francis Caracciolo, priest
- Antonio Benedetto Carpano, famous for having invented the Vermouth and consequently the apéritif
- Giacomo Casanova (1725-1798), memoirist, adventurer and womanizer.
- Leo Chiosso (born 1920), lyricist
- Cicciolina, porn actress who received international media attention in 1987 when she got elected into the Italian parliament.
- Bartolomeo Cristofori, inventor of the piano
- Ugolino della Gherardesca, count of Donoratico, naval commander, the chief Ghibelline house of Pisa
- Giuseppe Donati, inventor of the modern Italian-style ocarina
- Giulio Einaudi, publisher
- Giovanni Falcone, (1939-1992), judge
- Alessandro Farnese, Duke of Parma and Piacenza
- Mario J. Fratto, Comedic Icon
- Sonia Gandhi (born 1946) an Italian-born Indian politician and the president of the Indian National Congress (Congress Party), widow of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi.
- Giuseppe Garibaldi, (1807-1882), proponent of Italian unification
- Gioacchino Greco, chess player
- Francesco Griffo, punchcutter
- Aldus Manutius, printer, founder of the Aldine Press
- Alessia di Matteo (born 2003), who received eight organs with one transplant
- Fra Mauro, cartographer
- Giuseppe Caspar Mezzofanti, Catholic cardinal and famed linguist and hyperpolyglot
- Edgardo Mortara (1851-1940), Catholic priest, victim of a famous kidnapping, taken from his Jewish family at the age of 6
- Joe Petrosino (1860-1909), policeman
- Mario Raviglione, Director of the WHO Stop TB Department
- Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti
- Nicola Salerno (1910-1969), lyricist under the pseudonym Nisa
- Alessandro Salvio, chess player
- Girolamo Savonarola (1452-1498), book-burning priest, ruler of Florence
- Roberto Vittori, astronaut