List of personalities of the city of Kempten (Allgäu)
This list contains personalities born in Kempten (Allgäu) as well as those who worked in Kempten but were born elsewhere. The list does not claim to be complete.
Personalities born in Kempten (Allgäu)
Until 1800
- Gordian Seuter (d. 1534), Mayor of Kempten, Imperial Councilor
- Johann von Faltzburg (1609–1681), councilor in Swedish Pomerania
- Christoph Jakob Mellin (1744–1817), doctor and non-fiction author
- Michael Müller (1639–1702), Protestant theologian as well as professor and rector at the University of Tübingen
- Franz Georg Hermann the Elder (1640–1689), court painter to the Prince of Kempten
- Franz Benedikt Hermann (1664–1735), painter and fresco artist
- Franz Georg Hermann (1692–1768), painter
- Balthasar Riepp (1703–1764), German-Austrian painter
- Johann Walch (1757–1815), printer, painter, draftsman, engraver, cartographer
- Caspar Zeller (1756–1823), founder of a Hamburg trading company
- Johann Jakob Weidenkeller (1789–1851), veterinarian and agricultural scientist
1801 to 1850
- Georg von Forndran (1807–1866), Mayor of Augsburg 1847–66, member of Bayer. Chamber of Deputies 1848–52
- Rupert Jäger (1809–1851), teacher and philologist in Speyer
- Ernst Fröhlich (1810–1882), painter and xylograph
- Albert von Jäger (1814–1884), Councilor
- Daniel Bonifaz von Haneberg (1816–1876), Benedictine abbot and bishop of Speyer
- Franz Xaver Glötzle (1816–1884), painter, lithographer and publisher
- Friedrich Albert Zorn (1816–1895), dancer, choreographer and dance theorist
- August Bernatz (1828–1905), master builder and building contractor
- Benedikt Mayr (1835–1902), opera singer and director
- Georg Birk (1839–1924), politician
1851 to 1900
- Adolf Hengeler (1863–1927), painter
- Franz Karl Hutter (1865–1924), officer and Africa explorer
- Heinrich Rippler (1866–1934), writer, journalist and politician
- Heinrich Gölzer (1868–1942), politician
- Karl von Düwell (1869–1930), royal Bavarian officer
- Leonhard Heydecker (1871–1958), architect
- Joseph Sickenberger (1872–1945), Catholic theologian
- Philipp Haeuser (1876–1960), Roman Catholic pastor and supporter of National Socialism
- Otto Merkt (1877–1951), local politician and local researcher
- Hanns Dorn (1878–1934), economist, social scientist and publicist
- Fidelis Weiss (1882–1923), Franciscan and mystic
- Claude Dornier (1884–1969), aircraft designer
- Karl Knappe (1884–1970), sculptor
- Otto Heydecker (1885–1960), architect
- Otto Ulitz (1885–1972), politician
- Hans Christoph Ade (1888–1981), writer
- Hermann Kraus (1888–1941), district administrator or district administrator of the district office of Ochsenfurt
- Rudolf Zorn (1893–1966), lawyer and politician
- Irene Kohl (1894–1990), actress
- Franz Kneer (1895–1935), pilot and aviation enthusiast
- Kurt Friedrich Reinsch (1895–1927), Austrian hydrobiologist and designer of microscopes
- Max Mayr (1896–1985), local politician (SPD) and resistance fighter against the Nazi regime
- Theodor Seibert (1896–?), Journalist and political writer
- Carl Rabus (1898–1983), artist
- Max Madlener (1898–1989), councilor, surgeon and chief physician
- Michl Lang (1899–1979), popular actor
1901 to 1950
- Benedikt Hummel (1901–1996), surgeon and university professor
- Josef Mayrhofer (1902–1962), painter
- Karl Saller (1902–1969), anthropologist and doctor
- Ernst Mayr (1904–2005), German-American biologist
- Walter Braun (1905–1977), headmaster, local politician and home nurse
- Erich Günther (1905–?), Architect and painter
- Albert Schöchle (1905–1998), gardener, non-fiction author and founder of Wilhelma and the Blooming Baroque
- Alfred Weitnauer (1905–1974), writer, home curator, historian and folklorist
- Alfred Kranzfelder (1908–1944), corvette captain and resistance fighter of July 20, 1944
- Alfred Barthelmeß (1910–1987), biologist and university professor
- Albert Bitterling (1910–1995), innkeeper and mountain guide
- Heinz Herrmannsdörfer (1923–1999), musician, composer and arranger
- Friedrich Spengelin (1925–2016), architect, urban planner and university professor
- Helmut Faissner (1928–2007), physicist
- Albert Kleemaier (1928–1992), mountaineer and climber
- Karl Braun (* 1930), clergyman, Bishop of Eichstätt, Archbishop of Bamberg
- Ignaz Kiechle (1930–2003), politician (CSU), Federal Minister
- Werner Hofmann (1931–2016), church lawyer
- Franz Meier (* 1933), painter
- Hubert Rabini (1933–1995), District Administrator of the Oberallgäu district
- Manfred Poschenrieder (* 1938), dirt track and speedway racing driver
- Günter Wirth (* 1940), politician (SPD)
- Georg Girardet (* 1942), lawyer and administrative officer
- Horst Heilmann (* 1944), painter
- Gerrick Freiherr von Hoyningen-Huene (* 1944), legal scholar
- Georg Meggle (* 1944), philosopher
- Reinhild Ruban (* 1944), lawyer
- Felizitas Mentel (* 1946), artist
- Dieter Rucht (* 1946), sociologist
- Chris Karrer (* 1947), musician and composer
- Heide Schmidt (* 1948), Austrian politician
- Gerhard Wucherer (* 1948), athlete
- Madeleine Lierck (* 1949), actress
- Uschi Reich (* 1949), film producer
From 1951
- Karl Heinz Bierlein (* 1951), Evangelical Lutheran pastor
- Bernadette Mayr (* 1952), patchwork and quilt artist
- Peter Scholz (* 1952), diplomat
- Detlef Untermann (* 1952), journalist and communications manager
- Wilhelm Huber (* 1954), architect
- Stefanie Gropper (* 1957), literary scholar and Scandinavian
- Jürgen Tomicek (* 1957), cartoonist
- Thomas Kreuzer (* 1959), politician (CSU), Bavarian. Minister of State
- Walter Müller (* 1959), game designer
- Günther Dollinger (* 1960), physicist
- Gerd Gradwohl (* 1960), skier
- Alfons Hörmann (* 1960), manager and sports official
- Susanne Mischke (* 1960), writer and screenwriter
- Franz Engstler (* 1961), racing driver
- Gerhard Immler (* 1961), archivist and historian
- Jörg Maria Ortwein (* 1961), saxophonist, music teacher, educational scientist and university director
- Thomas Feldkamp (* 1962), actor
- Thomas Gleixner (* 1962), programmer
- Alexander Hold (* 1962), judge, TV series actor
- Silvia Schmitt (* 1962), handball player
- Nicola Förg (* 1962), travel journalist and writer
- Robert Haas (* 1964), composer and songwriter
- Oliver Jahraus (* 1964), German studies and literature, culture and media scholar
- Elmar Giglinger (* 1965), journalist
- Dieter Lohr (* 1965), writer and audio book publisher
- Christian Abt (* 1967), racing car driver and entrepreneur
- Dominik Spitzer (* 1967), politician (FDP), MdL
- Christine Marek (* 1968), politician
- Stephan Thomae (* 1968), politician (FDP), member of the Bundestag
- Alexander Wöll (* 1968), Slavist and university professor
- Michael Fellmann (* 1969), sailor
- Markus Kennerknecht (1970–2016), politician (SPD)
- Volker Klüpfel (* 1971), crime writer
- Dieter Frey (* 1972), football player
- Thomas Wohlfahrt (* 1972), singer
- Michael Kobr (* 1973), crime writer
- Christian Ludwig Mayer (* 1974), pianist and composer
- Johannes Mayr (* 1974), radio play director, radio writer and musician
- Liane Forestieri (* 1975), actress
- İlhan Mansız (* 1975), Turkish actor, soccer player and figure skater
- Murat Parlak (* 1975), composer, pianist and singer
- Frank Gerster (* 1976), soccer player
- Rainer von viel (* 1977), musician
- Elmar Romanesen (* 1978), handball player and coach
- Matthias Schriefl (* 1981), jazz musician
- Peter Terting (* 1984), professional racing driver
- Thomas Rathgeber (* 1985), football player
- Daniel Manz (* 1987), Taekwondo fighter
- Lisa Brennauer (* 1988), racing cyclist
- Manuel Müller (* 1989), biathlete
- Michael Schwarzmann (* 1991), racing cyclist
- Daniel Abt (* 1992), racing car driver
- Paul Brändle (* 1992), jazz musician
- Roxanne Dufter (* 1992), speed skater
- Anne Fühner (* 1995), soccer player
Well-known residents of Kempten
- Primož Trubar (1508–1586), Protestant reformer and Bible translator, pastor at St. Mang's Church 1553–1561
- Ottmar Stab († 1585), Protestant pastor at St. Mang's Church, successor to Primož Trubar
- Anna Schwegelin (1729–1781), sentenced to death in 1775 as the last “witch” in Germany
- Carl von Linde (1842–1934), engineer, inventor and founder of Linde AG
- Johann Georg Grimm (1846–1887), landscape painter
- Franz Sperr (1878–1945), envoy of the Bavarian government in Berlin and resistance fighter of July 20, 1944
- Franz Xaver Unterseher (1888–1954), painter and medalist
- Josef Hengge (1890–1970), painter
- Siegfried Sambs (1912–2001), painter and graphic artist
- Sören Kam (1921–2015) was a member of the Danish SS units and wanted Nazi war criminal
- Hansheinrich Schmidt (1922–1994), politician (FDP), member of the Bundestag
- Dieter Lattmann (1926–2018), politician (SPD), writer
- Reinhard Furrer (1940–1995), physicist and astronaut, buried in Kempten
- Heidi Lück (* 1943), politician (SPD)
- Lothar Hübner (* 1955), politician (SPD), member of the state parliament
- Franz-Rasso Böck (* 1957) historian and archivist
- Martin Farkas (* 1964), cameraman and film director
- Michael Peinkofer (* 1969), author, film journalist and translator
- Daniel Mark Eberhard (* 1976 in Isny / Allgäu), professor of music education and music didactics, jazz musician