List of Austrians

This list is rather generous -- many people on this list can also claim other nationalities; some were born in Austria, but spent the most important part of their lives outside Austria (e.g. Hitler, Schwarzenegger), others were born outside Austria or even outside of Austria-Hungary, but spent the most important part of their lives in Austria (e.g. Beethoven, Elisabeth of Austria).

Famous Austrians include:

Alfred Adler father of Individual Psychology
Franz Antel, filmmaker
Marie Antoinette born in Vienna, became Queen of France
Leon Askin, actor
Ingeborg Bachmann, poet, 1926-1973
Ludwig van Beethoven composer, born in Bonn but spent most of his life in Vienna
Alban Berg, composer, 1885-1935, born in Vienna
Thomas Bernhard, dramatist, novelist, poet, 1931-1989, born in Cloister Heerlen, Netherlands
Ludwig Boltzmann, physicist, 1844-1906, born in Vienna
Klaus Maria Brandauer actor
Martin Buber, philosopher, 1878-1965, born in Vienna
Fritjof Capra, physicist
Heimito von Doderer, writer, 1896-1966, born in Hadersdorf-Weidlingau near Vienna
Engelbert Dolfuss, politician, 1892-1934, born in Texing
Christian Andreas Doppler, physicist, 1803-1853, born in Salzburg
Paul Ehrenfest, physicist & mathematician
Elisabeth of Austria ("Sisi") born in Munich (Bavaria)
Falco, pop musician
Viktor Frankl father of logotherapy
Sigmund Freud father of psychoanalysis
Ernst Fuchs, painter and sculptor, born in Vienna, 1930
Kurt Gödel mathematician (born in Austria-Hungary, became naturalized U.S. citizen)
Heinrich Gomperz, philosopher, 1873-1942, born in Vienna
Friedrich Gulda, pianist and composer, born in 1930 in Vienna
Eduard Haas inventor of PEZ
Otto Habsburg-Lothringen
Liane Haid, first Austrian movie star
Peter Handke, author, born in 1942 in Griffen (Carinthia)
Rudolf Hausner, painter and graphic artist, 1914-1995
Joseph Haydn Composer of the former "Imperial Hymn" now German Hymn
Friedrich Hayek, nobel prize winner (economics)
Gottfried Helnwein, artist, born in Vienna, 1948
Theodor Herzl "founder" of Israel, lived most of his life in Austria
Adolf Hitler, dictator of Germany from 1933-1945, born on April 20, 1889 in Braunau am Inn
Alfred Hrdlicka, sculptor and graphic artist, born in Vienna, 1928
Friedensreich Hundertwasser, artist, 1928-2000, born in Vienna
Udo Jürgens, singer-songwriter
Walter Jurmann, composer
Franz Kafka, writer, born in Prague, Austria-Hungary (wrote in German)
Viktor Kaplan inventor of turbines for river power plants
Gustav Klimt artist, helped found Vienna Secession
Franz Klammer, downhill skier, born in Mooswald (Carinthia), 1953
Ludwig von Köchel writer, composer, botanist, music historian
Franz Cardinal König, Archbishop of Vienna (1956-1985)
Oskar Kokoschka, painter, 1886-1980, born in Pöchlarn (Lower Austria)
Johann Korbuly inventor of matador (special wooden toy)
Karl Kraus, essayist, poet, dramatist, 1874-1936
Bruno Kreisky, Chancellor of Austria (1970-1983)
Hedy Lamarr actress
Karl Landsteiner, physician, serologist, Nobel Prize winner, 1886-1943
Niki Lauda race car driver
Konrad Zacharias Lorenz zoologist, Nobel prize 1973 (physiology/medicine)
Josef Madersberger invented the sewing-machine in 1818
Alma Mahler, wife and muse to Mahler, Gropius, Werfel
Gustav Mahler composer
Sigfried Marcus inventor of automobile in 1864 in Vienna, lived most of his life in Austria
Lise Meitner physicist
Gregor Mendel pioneer of genetics
Klemens Wenzel von Metternich diplomat
Ludwig von Mises free-market economist
Inge Morath, photographer
Leopold Mozart composer & musician
Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart composer & musician
Robert Musil writer
Hermann Nitsch, artist, painter, born in Vienna, 1938
Wolfgang Pauli Nobel prize winner (Physics, 1945)
Alf Poier artist and stand-up comedian
Karl Popper philosopher (born in Austria, became British)
Ferdinand Porsche automotive engineer, designed the Volkswagen (the "people's car"), born in Austria-Hungary
Otto Preminger, film director
Arnulf Rainer, painter, born 1929
Otto Rank pioneer psychologist
Jochen Rindt race car driver
Toni Sailer, 1956 Olympic Games - Won all three gold medals earning himself the Triple Crown of Alpine Skiing ; born 1935
Egon Schiele, painter, 1890-1918
Günther Schifter, radio personality
Arthur Schnitzler writer
Erwin Schrödinger physicist and Nobel Prize winner
Franz Schubert composer & musician
Margarete Schütte-Lihotzky, architect and political activist
Arnold Schwarzenegger, bodybuilder, actor, and politician, born 1955, in Graz (became naturalized U.S. citizen)
Romy Schneider, actress (Sissi)
Paul Schwarzkopf, inventor of powder metallurgy
Othmar Spann, philosopher and economist
Fritz Spiegl, journalist
Rudolf Steiner mystic & philosopher
Josef von Sternberg, film director, 1894-1969
Johann Strauss, Sr, 1809-1849, Johann Strauss, Jr, 1825-1899, and Josef Strauss, 1827-1870, the "Waltz Kings" of the latter 19th century
Berta von Suttner, Nobel Prize winner
Friedrich Torberg, narrative writer, essayist, script author 1908-1979, born in Vienna
Georg Trakl poet
Georg Ritter von Trapp head of Sound of Music family
Kurt Waldheim, diplomat and politician; former Secretary-General of the United Nations from 1972 to 1982, former President of Austria from 1986 to 1992 born 1918
Otto Weininger, philosopher
Auer von Welsbach inventor of gaslight
Oskar Werner, actor
Simon Wiesenthal, b.1908, Nazi hunter
Billy Wilder, film director, 1906-2002, born in Austria-Hungary
Ludwig Wittgenstein, philosopher, born 1889 in Vienna
Fritz Wotruba, sculptor, 1907-1975, born in Vienna
Joe Zawinul, jazz musician, composer, born in Vienna, 1932
Fred Zinnemann film director
Stefan Zweig, writer, 1881-1942, born in Vienna