List of Latin Americans
Encyclopedia
Actors
- Norma Aleandro
Norma AleandroNorma Aleandro Robledo is an Argentine actress and screenwriter, born in Buenos Aires to Pedro Aleandro and María Luisa Robledo, both actors. Her sister, María Vaner, was a famous actress in Argentina.- Life and career :...
(born 1936) - Héctor Alterio (born 1929)
Adrian Bellani
Adrian BellaniAdrian Bellani is an American actor. He is best known as the second actor to play the role of Miguel Lopez-Fitzgerald on the NBC daytime drama, Passions.Of Salvadoran and Italian descent, as a child Bellani moved to El Salvador with his family...
(born 1982)
Marco Aponte
Marco AponteMarco Aponte Moreno is a Venezuelan/French actor and academic born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela.-Acting career:Aponte's acting career started in the late 1990s in the off-off Broadway theater scene of New York City. He studied drama at the HB Studio and at the Lee Strasberg Theatre Institute...
(born 1966)- Imperio Argentina
Imperio ArgentinaMagdalena Nile del Río was a professional singer and movie actress who was better known as Imperio Argentina. Although born in Buenos Aires, Argentina, she became a citizen of Spain....
(1906–2003) - Pedro Armendáriz
Pedro ArmendárizPedro Armendáriz was a Mexican actor of the cinema of Mexico and Hollywood.-Early life:Born Pedro Gregorio Armendáriz Hastings in Mexico City, Distrito Federal, Mexico to Pedro Armendáriz García-Conde and Adela Hastings . He was also the cousin of actress Gloria Marín...
(1912–1963) - Diego Bertie
Diego BertieDiego Felipe Bertie Brignardello is a contemporary Peruvian actor of British and Italian descent. He studied at Markham College in Lima, Peru...
(born 1967) - Sônia Braga
Sônia BragaSônia Maria Campos Braga is a Brazilian actress. She has been nominated for both a Golden Globe Award and an Emmy Award.-Early life:...
(born 1950) - Bárbara Carrera
Barbara CarreraBarbara Carrera is a Nicaraguan-born American film and television actress as well as a former model. She is best known for her roles as Bond girl Fatima Blush in Never Say Never Again and as Angelica Nero on the soap opera Dallas.-Early life:Barbara Kingsbury was born in San Carlos, Río San Juan,...
(born 1951) - Cindy Crawford
Cindy CrawfordCynthia Ann "Cindy" Crawford is an American model. Known for her trademark mole just above her lip, Crawford has adorned hundreds of magazine covers throughout her career. She was named #3 on VH1's 40 Hottest Hotties of the 90s...
(born 1966) - Christy Turlington
Christy TurlingtonChristy Turlington Burns is an American model best known for representing Calvin Klein from 1987 to 2007. She has worked on dozens of modeling contracts with companies including Maybelline Cosmetics and Versace. Turlington starred in her fashion documentary Catwalk and Isaac Mizrahi's Unzipped...
(born 1969) - María Montez
María MontezMaría Montez was a Dominican-born motion picture actress who gained fame and popularity in the 1940s as an exotic beauty starring in a series of filmed-in-Technicolor costume adventure films. Her screen image was that of a hot-blooded Latin seductress, dressed in fanciful costumes and sparkling...
(born 1912) - CantinflasCantinflasFortino Mario Alfonso Moreno Reyes , was a Mexican comic film actor, producer, and screenwriter known professionally as Cantinflas. He often portrayed impoverished campesinos or a peasant of pelado origin...
(1911–1993) - Andy García
Andy GarcíaAndrés Arturo García Menéndez , professionally known as Andy García, is a Cuban American actor. He became known in the late 1980s and 1990s, having appeared in several successful Hollywood films, including The Godfather: Part III, The Untouchables, Internal Affairs and When a Man Loves a Woman...
(born 1956) - Miguel A. Núñez, Jr. (born 1964)
- Gael García BernalGael García BernalGael García Bernal is a Mexican film actor and director.-Early life:García Bernal was born in Guadalajara, Mexico, the son of Patricia Bernal, an actress and former model, and José Ángel García, an actor and director. His stepfather is Sergio Yazbek, whom his mother married when García Bernal was...
(born 1978) - Salma HayekSalma HayekSalma Valgarma Hayek Jiménez de Pinault is a Mexican film actress, director and producer. She received an Oscar nomination for Best Actress for her role as Frida Kahlo in the film Frida.-Early life:...
(born 1966) - Pedro InfantePedro InfanteJosé Pedro Infante Cruz , better known as Pedro Infante, is the most famous actor and singer of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema and is an idol of the Latinamerican people, together with Jorge Negrete and Javier Solís, who were styled the Tres Gallos Mexicanos . He was born in Mazatlán, Sinaloa,...
(1917–1957) - Raúl Juliá
Raúl JuliáRaúl Rafael Juliá y Arcelay was a Puerto Rican actor.Born in San Juan, he gained interest in acting while still in school. Upon completing his studies, Juliá decided to pursue a career in acting. After performing in the local scene for some time, he was convinced by entertainment personality Orson...
(1940–1994) - Katy JuradoKaty JuradoKaty Jurado , born María Cristina Estela Marcela Jurado García in Mexico, D.F., was a Mexican actress who had a successful film career both in Mexico and in Hollywood....
(1924–2002) - Libertad LamarqueLibertad LamarqueLibertad Lamarque was an Argentine-Mexican actress and singer. Originally from Argentina, she reached fame throughout Latin America while living in Mexico and working in Mexican cinema.-Career:...
(1908–2000) - John LeguizamoJohn LeguizamoJonathan Alberto "John" Leguizamo is an Colombian-American actor, producer, voice artist, and comedian.-Early life:...
(born 1964) - Mauricio Merino, Jr.
Mauricio Merino, Jr.Mauricio Merino Jr is a Professional Actor and Model best known for his role as Simon Freedman on the soap opera Neighbours and re-curring role on HBO's mini series The Pacific.-Personal life:...
(born 1991) - Maribel Guardia
Maribel GuardiaMaribel del Rocío Fernández García is a Costa Rican actress, who works in Mexico, and currently lives and resides in Miami, Florida.-Miss Universe and Miss World:...
(born 1959) - Federico Luppi (born 1936)
- Santiago MagillSantiago MagillSantiago Magill is a Peruvian actor who participates in soap-opera, TV series and films.-Selected filmography:*Corazón voyeur *Eva del Edén *Amiga .... Mariano...
(born 1977) - Christian MeierChristian MeierChristian Dietrich Meier Zender is a well-known Peruvian actor and singer in Latin America.-Biography:Christian Dietrich Meier Zender was born in Lima, Peru, the youngest of four children. He is the son of Gladys Zender, Miss Universe 1957, and Antonio Meier. His father is from Peru and his mother...
(born 1970) - Carmen MirandaCarmen MirandaCarmen Miranda, GCIH was a Portuguese-born Brazilian samba singer, Broadway actress and Hollywood film star popular in the 1940s and 1950s. She was, by some accounts, the highest-earning woman in the United States and noted for her signature fruit hat outfit she wore in the 1943 movie The Gang's...
(1909–1955) - Ricardo MontalbánRicardo MontalbánRicardo Gonzalo Pedro Montalbán y Merino, KSG was a Mexican radio, television, theatre and film actor. He had a career spanning six decades and many notable roles...
(born 1920) - Rita MorenoRita MorenoRita Moreno is a Puerto Rican singer, dancer and actress. She is the only Hispanic and one of the few performers who have won an Emmy, a Grammy, an Oscar, and a Tony, and was the second Puerto Rican to win an Academy Award....
(born 1931) - Jorge NegreteJorge NegreteJorge Alberto Negrete Moreno is considered one of the most popular Mexican singers and actors of all time....
(1911–1953) - Gianella NeyraGianella NeyraGianella Neyra Magagna , is a Peruvian actress and model.-Career:Neyra began acting at the age of seven and, while a girl, attended the Lee Strasberg studio in New York City...
(born 1977) - Manny PerezManny PerezManuel "Manny" Pérez Batista is a Dominican actor, who has appeared in the television series Third Watch and in the film Washington Heights. Pérez was born in Santiago, Dominican Republic, and currently resides in Manhattan's Washington Heights neighborhood.Pérez is one of 11 siblings...
(born 1969) - Anthony QuinnAnthony QuinnAntonio Rodolfo Quinn-Oaxaca , more commonly known as Anthony Quinn, was a Mexican American actor, as well as a painter and writer...
(1915–2001) - Dania RamirezDania RamirezDania Ramirez is a Dominican-American TV and film actress.She is most recently known for playing Alex in Entourage, Maya Herrera in Heroes and Blanca during the last season of The Sopranos. She also played antagonist Callisto in X-Men: The Last Stand.-Early life:Ramirez was born in Santo Domingo,...
(born 1980) - Dolores del RíoDolores del RíoDolores del Río was a Mexican film actress. She was a star of Hollywood films during the silent era and in the Golden Age of Hollywood...
(1905–1983) - Jade Esteban EstradaJade Esteban EstradaJade Esteban Estrada is a successful Latin pop singer, comedian, choreographer, actor, political commentator, and human rights activist...
(born 1975) - Benicio del ToroBenicio del ToroBenicio Monserrate Rafael del Toro Sánchez is a Puerto Rican and Spanish actor and film producer. He won an Academy Award, a Golden Globe Award, a Screen Actors Guild Award, and a BAFTA Award for his role as Javier Rodríguez in Traffic . He is also known for his roles as Fred Fenster in The Usual...
(born 1967) - Zoë SaldañaZoe SaldanaZoe Saldana , sometimes stylized Zoë Saldaña, is an American actress. She had her breakthrough role in the 2000 film Center Stage and later gained prominence for her roles as Anamaria in Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl and Uhura in the 2009 film Star Trek, and a starring role...
(born 1978)
Architects and urbanists
Ricardo Alvarez-DiazRicardo Alvarez-Diaz
Ricardo Alvarez-Diaz is the founder and managing partner of Alvarez-Diaz+Group, PSC , a consulting and design firm with offices in San Juan, Puerto Rico...
, (1973)
- Luis BarragánLuis BarragánLuis Barragán Morfin was a Mexican architect. He was self-trained.-Early life:Educated as an engineer, he graduated from the Escuela Libre de Ingenieros in Guadalajara in 1923 and was self-trained as an architect.After graduation, he travelled through Spain, France , and...
(1902–1988), 1980 Pritzker PrizePritzker PrizeThe Pritzker Architecture Prize is awarded annually by the Hyatt Foundation to honour "a living architect whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built...
Laureate. - Lúcio CostaLúcio CostaLucio Costa was a Brazilian architect and urban planner.-Career:Costa was born in Toulon, France.Educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle upon Tyne, England and in Montreux until 1916, he graduated as an architect in 1924 from the School of Fine Art in Rio de Janeiro...
(1902–1998), architect and urbanist, creator of BrasíliaBrasíliaBrasília is the capital city of Brazil. The name is commonly spelled Brasilia in English. The city and its District are located in the Central-West region of the country, along a plateau known as Planalto Central. It has a population of about 2,557,000 as of the 2008 IBGE estimate, making it the...
. - Mathias Klotz
Mathias KlotzMathias Klotz Germain is a Chilean architect, born in Viña del Mar on 13 April 1965. Studied at the Faculty of Architecture of the Pontifical Catholic University of Chile, where he graduated in 1991...
(1965), - Rogelio SalmonaRogelio SalmonaRogelio Salmona was a Colombian architect of Sephardic and Occitan descent. He was noted for his extensive use of red brick in his buildings and for using natural shapes like spirals, radial geometry and curves in his designs...
(1929–2007), 2003 Alvar Aalto MedalAlvar Aalto MedalThe Alvar Aalto Medal was established in 1967 by the Museum of Finnish Architecture and the Finnish Association of Architects . The Medal has been awarded intermittently since 1967 when the medal was created in honour of Alvar Aalto. The award is given in recognition of a significant contribution...
. - Enrique PeñalosaEnrique PeñalosaEnrique Peñalosa Londoño is a Colombian politician and New Urbanist. He was mayor of Bogotá, from 1998 until 2001, and was runner-up in 2007. He is running in 2011 for mayor as the Green Party candidate. He has also worked as a journalist and consultant on urban and transportation policy...
(1955), former mayor of Bogotá. - Ricardo LegorretaRicardo LegorretaRicardo Legorreta Vilchis is a Mexican architect. He was born in Mexico City on May 7, 1931. He was awarded the prestigious UIA Gold Medal in 1999 and the Praemium Imperiale in 2011.He studied architecture at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México....
(born 1931), 2000 AIA Gold MedalAIA Gold MedalThe AIA Gold Medal is awarded by the American Institute of Architects conferred "by the national AIA Board of Directors in recognition of a significant body of work of lasting influence on the theory and practice of architecture."...
Laureate. - Paulo Mendes da RochaPaulo Mendes da RochaPaulo Mendes da Rocha is a Brazilian architect, honored with the Mies van der Rohe Prize and the Pritzker Prize .Paulo attended the Universidade Presbiteriana Mackenzie College of Architecture, graduating in 1954...
(born 1928), architect, winner of the 2006 Pritzker PrizePritzker PrizeThe Pritzker Architecture Prize is awarded annually by the Hyatt Foundation to honour "a living architect whose built work demonstrates a combination of those qualities of talent, vision and commitment, which has produced consistent and significant contributions to humanity and the built...
. - Oscar NiemeyerOscar NiemeyerOscar Ribeiro de Almeida Niemeyer Soares Filho is a Brazilian architect specializing in international modern architecture...
(born 1907), architect of international renown, designer of BrasiliaBrasíliaBrasília is the capital city of Brazil. The name is commonly spelled Brasilia in English. The city and its District are located in the Central-West region of the country, along a plateau known as Planalto Central. It has a population of about 2,557,000 as of the 2008 IBGE estimate, making it the...
. - César PelliCésar PelliCésar Pelli is an Argentine architect known for designing some of the world's tallest buildings and other major urban landmarks. In 1991, the American Institute of Architects listed Pelli among the ten most influential living American architects...
(born 1926), 1995 AIA Gold MedalAIA Gold MedalThe AIA Gold Medal is awarded by the American Institute of Architects conferred "by the national AIA Board of Directors in recognition of a significant body of work of lasting influence on the theory and practice of architecture."...
Laureate, Petronas Towers architect. - Carlos Raúl VillanuevaCarlos Raúl VillanuevaCarlos Raúl Villanueva was the most prominent Venezuelan architect of the 20th century and one of the great Modernists. He played a major role in the development and modernization of Caracas, Maracay and other cities across the country...
(1900–1975), designed the Ciudad UniversitariaCiudad Universitaria de CaracasThe University City of Caracas is the main Campus of the Central University of Venezuela. It was designed by the Venezuelan architect Carlos Raúl Villanueva and was declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 2000...
of CaracasCaracasCaracas , officially Santiago de León de Caracas, is the capital and largest city of Venezuela; natives or residents are known as Caraquenians in English . It is located in the northern part of the country, following the contours of the narrow Caracas Valley on the Venezuelan coastal mountain range...
, declared World Heritage by UNESCOUNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
in 2000. - Rafael Viñoly
Rafael ViñolyRafael Viñoly is an Uruguayan architect living in the United States.-Biography:He was born in Montevideo, Uruguay to Román Viñoly Barreto, and Maria Beceiro ....
(born 1944), designed the Tokyo International ForumTokyo International ForumThe is a multi-purpose center in Tokyo, Japan.One of its halls seats 5,000. In addition to seven other halls, it includes exhibition space, a lobby, restaurants, shops, and other facilities....
.
Artists and Designers
- See also List of Latin American artists.
- Tarsila do AmaralTarsila do AmaralTarsila do Amaral, , known simply as Tarsila, is considered to be one of the leading Latin American modernist artists, described as "the Brazilian painter who best achieved Brazilian aspirations for nationalistic expression in a modern style." She was a member of the Grupo dos Cinco , which...
(1886–1973), painter. - Fernando BoteroFernando BoteroFernando Botero Angulo is a Colombian figurative artist. His works feature a figurative style, called by some "Boterismo", which gives them an unmistakable identity...
(born 1932), painter and sculptor. - José CampecheJosé CampecheJosé Campeche , born in San Juan, Puerto Rico, is the first known Puerto Rican visual artist and considered by many as one of the best rococo artists in the Americas.-Early years:...
(1751–1809), painter. - Francesca MirandaFrancesca MirandaFrancesca Miranda is a Salvadoran fashion designer. She is one of five children of Gloria Gonzales de Miranda, an Ohioan entrepreneur of Spanish parents, and of Spanish-Italian lawyer and politician Ruy Cesar Miranda Lupone of an affluent family in the Central American country . Her eldest sister,...
Fashion Designer - Roberto MattaRoberto MattaRoberto Sebastián Antonio Matta Echaurren , better known as Roberto Matta, was one of Chile's best-known painters and a seminal figure in 20th century abstract expressionist and surrealist art....
(1911-2002), painter - Frida KahloFrida KahloFrida Kahlo de Rivera was a Mexican painter, born in Coyoacán, and perhaps best known for her self-portraits....
(1907–1954), realistRealism (arts)Realism in the visual arts and literature refers to the general attempt to depict subjects "in accordance with secular, empirical rules", as they are considered to exist in third person objective reality, without embellishment or interpretation...
and symbolistSymbolism (arts)Symbolism was a late nineteenth-century art movement of French, Russian and Belgian origin in poetry and other arts. In literature, the style had its beginnings with the publication Les Fleurs du mal by Charles Baudelaire...
painter. - Jade Jagger
Jade JaggerJade Sheena Jezebel Jagger is an English jewelry designer, socialite and former model.-Early life:Jagger was born in Paris, France. She is the only child of Bianca , a Nicaraguan-born actress and philanthropist, and Mick Jagger, an English musician and actor...
(born 1971), fashion designer - Francisco OllerFrancisco OllerFrancisco Manuel Oller y Cestero was a Puerto Rican visual artist. Oller is considered to be the only Latin American painter to have played a role in the development of Impressionism.-Early years:...
(1833–1917), impressionistImpressionismImpressionism was a 19th-century art movement that originated with a group of Paris-based artists whose independent exhibitions brought them to prominence during the 1870s and 1880s...
painter. - José Clemente OrozcoJosé Clemente OrozcoJosé Clemente Orozco was a Mexican social realist painter, who specialized in bold murals that established the Mexican Mural Renaissance together with murals by Diego Rivera, David Alfaro Siqueiros, and others...
(1883–1949), muralMuralA mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
painter and lithographerLithographyLithography is a method for printing using a stone or a metal plate with a completely smooth surface...
. - Diego RiveraDiego RiveraDiego María de la Concepción Juan Nepomuceno Estanislao de la Rivera y Barrientos Acosta y Rodríguez was a prominent Mexican painter born in Guanajuato, Guanajuato, an active communist, and husband of Frida Kahlo . His large wall works in fresco helped establish the Mexican Mural Movement in...
(1886–1957), muralMuralA mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
ist. - David Alfaro SiqueirosDavid Alfaro SiqueirosJosé David Alfaro Siqueiros was a social realist painter, known for his large murals in fresco that helped establish the Mexican Mural Renaissance, together with works by Diego Rivera and José Clemente Orozco, and also a member of the Mexican Communist Party who participated in an...
(1896–1974), social realistSocial realismSocial Realism, also known as Socio-Realism, is an artistic movement, expressed in the visual and other realist arts, which depicts social and racial injustice, economic hardship, through unvarnished pictures of life's struggles; often depicting working class activities as heroic...
painter and muralMuralA mural is any piece of artwork painted or applied directly on a wall, ceiling or other large permanent surface. A particularly distinguishing characteristic of mural painting is that the architectural elements of the given space are harmoniously incorporated into the picture.-History:Murals of...
ist. - Rufino TamayoRufino TamayoRufino Tamayo was a Mexican painter of Zapotec heritage, born in Oaxaca de Juárez, Mexico. Tamayo was active in the mid-20th century in Mexico and New York, painting figurative abstraction with surrealist influences....
(1899–1991), painter. - Marcela DonosoMarcela DonosoMarcela Donoso is an important painter in the Latin American current of "Magic Realism", where Jose Donoso and Isabel Allende belong in literature, or Fernando Botero in sculpture....
(1961-), painter. - Martín ChambiMartín ChambiMartín Chambi Jiménez or Martín Chambi de Coaza, was a photographer, originally from southern Peru...
(1891-1973), photographer. - Cândido PortinariCândido PortinariCandido Portinari was one of the most important Brazilian painters and also a prominent and influential practitioner of the neo-realism style in painting....
(1903–1962), painter. - Hélio OiticicaHélio OiticicaHélio Oiticica was a Brazilian visual artist, best known for his participation in the Neo-Concrete group, for his innovative use of color, and for what he later termed "environmental art", which included Parangolés and Penetrables, like the famous Tropicália.- Early work :Oiticica's early works,...
(1937–1980), painter. - Julio Abril (1911-1979), sculptor.
Fashion
- Oscar de la RentaOscar de la RentaOscar de la Renta is one of the world's leading fashion designers. He was named to the International Best Dressed List Hall of Fame in 1973.-Career:...
(born 1932), fashion designer - Nina GarciaNina GarciaNina García, is a Colombian fashion journalist and critic who has held the post of Fashion Director at Elle and Marie Claire magazines, and is currently a judge on the Lifetime reality television program Project Runway....
(born 1965), fashion editor - Alexandre HerchcovitchAlexandre HerchcovitchAlexandre Herchcovitch is a Brazilian fashion designer. He's of Jewish descent, his grandparents emigrated from Poland and Romania.-Overview:...
(born 1971), fashion designer - Carolina HerreraCarolina Herrera (fashion designer)Carolina Herrera Carolina Herrera Carolina Herrera (born María Carolina Josefina Pacanins y Niño (born January 8, 1939) is a Venezuelan and naturalized American fashion designer and entrepreneur who founded her eponymous company in 1980.-Early life:...
(born 1939), fashion designer - Mario TestinoMario Testino-Early Life:Testino grew up in Lima, the eldest son of a businessman. When he was young he wanted to be a priest. Testino recalls being unpopular at school because of his flamboyance. He was good at math and went on to study economics at Universidad del Pacífico, where his insistence on wearing...
(born 1954), fashion photographer
Film directors
- Alejandro AmenábarAlejandro AmenábarAlejandro Fernando Amenábar Cantos is a Spanish- Chilean film director. Amenábar was born in Santiago, Chile to a Spanish mother and Chilean father, but the family moved to Spain just one year after his birth...
(born 1972) - Alfonso ArauAlfonso Arau-Biography:Arau was born in Mexico City, the son of a doctor. He directed the films Zapata: The Dream of a Hero, Like Water for Chocolate , A Walk in the Clouds with Keanu Reeves and Anthony Quinn, and the Hallmark Hall of Fame production A Painted House, adapted from the John Grisham novel of the...
(born 1932) - Adolfo AristarainAdolfo AristarainAdolfo Aristarain is an Argentine film director whom Variety has deemed a "master filmmaker."After leaving Argentina Aristarain started working as assistant director in the Arcente cinema, and then in Europe during his short exile for Mario Camus, Giorgio Stegani and Lewis Gilbert before...
(born 1943) - Héctor BabencoHector BabencoHéctor Eduardo Babenco is an Argentine-born Brazilian film director, screenwriter, producer and actor.He has worked in several countries including Argentina, Brazil and the United States....
(born 1946) - Luis BuñuelLuis BuñuelLuis Buñuel Portolés was a Spanish-born filmmaker — later a naturalized citizen of Mexico — who worked in Spain, Mexico, France and the US..-Early years:...
(1900–1983) - Alfonso CuarónAlfonso CuarónAlfonso Cuarón Orozco is a Mexican film director, screenwriter and film producer, best known for his films Children of Men, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, Y tu mamá también, and A Little Princess.- Early life :...
(born 1961) - Juan DowneyJuan Downey- Biography :Juan Downey was born in Santiago, Chile. His father David Downey V. was a distinguished architect in Chile and following in his father’s footsteps Juan Downey studied and completed a Bachelor of Arts degree in architecture at the Pontificia Universidad Católica of Chile...
(1940–1993) - Alejandro González IñárrituAlejandro González IñárrituAlejandro González Iñárritu is a Mexican film director.González Iñárritu is the first Mexican director to be nominated for the Academy Award for Best Director and by the DGA of America for Best Director. He is also the first and only Mexican born director to have won the Prix de la mise en scene...
(born 1963) - Alexandro Jodorowsky (born 1929)
- León KlimovskyLeón KlimovskyLeón Klimovsky was an Argentine film director.A trained dentist, born in Buenos Aires, his real passion was always the cinema. He pioneered Argentine cultural movement known as cineclub and financed the first movie theater to show art movies...
(1906–1996) - Fernando MeirellesFernando MeirellesFernando Ferreira Meirelles is a Brazilian film director, producer and screenwriter.He was nominated for an Academy Award for Best Director in 2004 for his work in the Brazilian film City of God, released in 2002 in Brazil and in 2003 in the U.S. by Miramax Films...
(born 1955) - Franco de PeñaFranco de PeñaFranco de Peña is a Polish-Venezuelan film director.-Early years and education:Born and raised in Caracas, Venezuela, in 1981 de Peña began studying economics at the Caracas Universidad Central University, but after two years left Venezuela for Montreal, where he settled...
(born 1966) - Arturo RipsteinArturo RipsteinArturo Ripstein y Rosen is a Mexican film director.-Life and career:Ripstein got his break into movies working as an uncredited assistant director for Luis Buñuel. In 1965, he directed his first feature, Tiempo de Morir...
(born 1943) - Raul Ruiz (born 1941)
- Walter SallesWalter SallesWalter Moreira Salles, Jr. is a Brazilian filmmaker and film producer of international prominence.-Life and career:Salles was born in Rio de Janeiro. He is the son of Elizinha Goncalves and Walter Moreira Salles, a Brazilian banker and ambassador, and the brother of João Moreira Salles, also a...
(born 1956) - Guillermo del ToroGuillermo del ToroGuillermo del Toro is a Mexican director, producer, screenwriter, novelist and designer. He is mostly known for his acclaimed films, Blade II, Pan's Labyrinth and the Hellboy film franchise. He is a frequent collaborator with Ron Perlman, Federico Luppi and Doug Jones...
(born 1964)
Leaders and politicians
- Óscar Arias SánchezÓscar AriasÓscar Arias Sánchez is a Costa Rican politician who was President of Costa Rica from 2006 to 2010. He previously served as President from 1986 to 1990 and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his efforts to end civil wars then raging in several other Central American countries.He is also a...
(born 1940), statesman, Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
Laureate (1987). - Simón BolívarSimón BolívarSimón José Antonio de la Santísima Trinidad Bolívar y Palacios Ponte y Yeiter, commonly known as Simón Bolívar was a Venezuelan military and political leader...
(1783–1830), LibertadorLibertadoresLibertadores refers to the principal leaders of the Latin American wars of independence from Spain. They are named that way in contrast with the Conquistadors, who were so far the only Spanish peoples recorded in the South American history...
and statesman, leader in the Spanish American wars of independence. - Anastasio BustamanteAnastasio BustamanteAnastasio Bustamante y Oseguera was president of Mexico three times, from 1830 to 1832, from 1837 to 1839 and from 1839 to 1841. He was a Conservative. He first came to power by leading a coup against president Vicente Guerrero...
(1780–1853), President of MexicoPresident of MexicoThe President of the United Mexican States is the head of state and government of Mexico. Under the Constitution, the president is also the Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces...
(1930–1932; 1837–1841). - Plutarco Elías CallesPlutarco Elías CallesPlutarco Elías Calles was a Mexican general and politician. He was president of Mexico from 1924 to 1928, but he continued to be the de facto ruler from 1928–1935, a period known as the maximato...
(1877–1945), founder of the PRIInstitutional Revolutionary PartyThe Institutional Revolutionary Party is a Mexican political party that held power in the country—under a succession of names—for more than 70 years. The PRI is a member of the Socialist International, as is the rival Party of the Democratic Revolution , making Mexico one of the few...
(1929); President of Mexico (1924–1928). - Alberto Lleras CamargoAlberto Lleras CamargoAlberto Lleras Camargo was an important Colombian diplomat and political figure.He was a member of the Liberal Party of Colombia; he served as congressman , Minister of Education, Minister of the Interior and Minister of Foreign Affairs, during the governments of Alfonso López Pumarejo and Eduardo...
(1906–1990), first Organization of American StatesOrganization of American StatesThe Organization of American States is a regional international organization, headquartered in Washington, D.C., United States...
Secretary (1948) and 28th President of Colombia. - Fidel CastroFidel CastroFidel Alejandro Castro Ruz is a Cuban revolutionary and politician, having held the position of Prime Minister of Cuba from 1959 to 1976, and then President from 1976 to 2008. He also served as the First Secretary of the Communist Party of Cuba from the party's foundation in 1961 until 2011...
(born 1926), marxistMarxismMarxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
revolutionary and CubaCubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
's state ruler since 1959. - Alfonso García RoblesAlfonso García RoblesAlfonso García Robles was a Mexican diplomat and politician who, in conjunction with Sweden's Alva Myrdal, received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1982....
(1911–1991), diplomat and politician, Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
Laureate (1982). - Ernesto "Che" GuevaraChe GuevaraErnesto "Che" Guevara , commonly known as el Che or simply Che, was an Argentine Marxist revolutionary, physician, author, intellectual, guerrilla leader, diplomat and military theorist...
(1928–1967), marxistMarxismMarxism is an economic and sociopolitical worldview and method of socioeconomic inquiry that centers upon a materialist interpretation of history, a dialectical view of social change, and an analysis and critique of the development of capitalism. Marxism was pioneered in the early to mid 19th...
revolutionary. - Miguel Hidalgo y CostillaMiguel HidalgoMiguel Gregorio Antonio Ignacio Hidalgo y Costilla y Gallaga Mandarte Villaseñor , more commonly known as Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla or simply Miguel Hidalgo, was a Mexican priest and a leader of the Mexican War of Independence.In 1810 Hidalgo led a group of peasants in a revolt against the dominant...
(1753–1811), cleric and statesman, chief instigator of Mexico's war of independenceMexican War of IndependenceThe Mexican War of Independence was an armed conflict between the people of Mexico and the Spanish colonial authorities which started on 16 September 1810. The movement, which became known as the Mexican War of Independence, was led by Mexican-born Spaniards, Mestizos and Amerindians who sought...
against Spain. - Benito JuárezBenito JuárezBenito Juárez born Benito Pablo Juárez García, was a Mexican lawyer and politician of Zapotec origin from Oaxaca who served five terms as president of Mexico: 1858–1861 as interim, 1861–1865, 1865–1867, 1867–1871 and 1871–1872...
(1806–1872), President of MexicoPresident of MexicoThe President of the United Mexican States is the head of state and government of Mexico. Under the Constitution, the president is also the Supreme Commander of the Mexican armed forces...
(1861–1863; 1867–1872). - Juscelino KubitschekJuscelino Kubitschek de OliveiraJuscelino Kubitschek de Oliveira , known also by his initials JK, was a prominent Brazilian politician of gypsy Czech origin who was President of Brazil from 1956 to 1961. He was born in Diamantina, Minas Gerais, and died in 1976...
(1902–1976), President of BrazilPresident of BrazilThe president of Brazil is both the head of state and head of government of the Federative Republic of Brazil. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the Brazilian Armed Forces...
(1956–1961). - José MartíJosé MartíJosé Julián Martí Pérez was a Cuban national hero and an important figure in Latin American literature. In his short life he was a poet, an essayist, a journalist, a revolutionary philosopher, a translator, a professor, a publisher, and a political theorist. He was also a part of the Cuban...
(1853–1895), writer and leader of the CubaCubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
n Independence movement. - Rigoberta Menchú
Rigoberta MenchúRigoberta Menchú Tum is an indigenous Guatemalan, of the K'iche' ethnic group. Menchú has dedicated her life to publicizing the plight of Guatemala's indigenous peoples during and after the Guatemalan Civil War , and to promoting indigenous rights in the country...
(born 1959), activist, UNESCO Goodwill AmbassadorUNESCO Goodwill AmbassadorUNESCO Goodwill Ambassadors are celebrity advocates of UNESCO who use their talent or fame to spread the UNESCO ideals, especially attracting media attention...
, Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
Laureate (1992). - Chico MendesChico MendesFrancisco Alves Mendes Filho, better known as Chico Mendes , was a Brazilian rubber tapper, trade union leader and environmentalist. He fought to preserve the Amazon rainforest, and advocated for the human rights of Brazilian peasants and indigenous peoples...
(1944–1988), murdered rural leader and martyr of ecological movements in the Amazon. - Pedro I (1798–1834), Emperor of Brasil (1822–1831).
- Pedro IIPedro II of BrazilDom Pedro II , nicknamed "the Magnanimous", was the second and last ruler of the Empire of Brazil, reigning for over 58 years. Born in Rio de Janeiro, he was the seventh child of Emperor Dom Pedro I of Brazil and Empress Dona Maria Leopoldina and thus a member of the Brazilian branch of...
(1825–1891), Emperor of Brasil (1831–1889). - Javier Pérez de CuéllarJavier Pérez de CuéllarJavier Pérez de Cuéllar y de la Guerra is a Peruvian diplomat who served as the fifth Secretary-General of the United Nations from January 1, 1982 to December 31, 1991. He studied in Colegio San Agustín of Lima, and then at Pontificia Universidad Católica del Perú. In 1995, he ran unsuccessfully...
(born 1920), diplomat, United Nations Secretary-GeneralUnited Nations Secretary-GeneralThe Secretary-General of the United Nations is the head of the Secretariat of the United Nations, one of the principal organs of the United Nations. The Secretary-General also acts as the de facto spokesperson and leader of the United Nations....
(1982–1991). - Adolfo Pérez EsquivelAdolfo Pérez EsquivelAdolfo Pérez Esquivel is an Argentine sculptor, architect and pacifist. He was the recipient of the 1980 Nobel Peace Prize.-Biography:Pérez Esquivel was born in Buenos Aires to a Spanish fisherman who emigrated to Argentina...
(born 1931), activist, Nobel Peace PrizeNobel Peace PrizeThe Nobel Peace Prize is one of the five Nobel Prizes bequeathed by the Swedish industrialist and inventor Alfred Nobel.-Background:According to Nobel's will, the Peace Prize shall be awarded to the person who...
Laureate (1980). - Juan Domingo PerónJuan PerónJuan Domingo Perón was an Argentine military officer, and politician. Perón was three times elected as President of Argentina though he only managed to serve one full term, after serving in several government positions, including the Secretary of Labor and the Vice Presidency...
(1895–1974), President of ArgentinaPresident of ArgentinaThe President of the Argentine Nation , usually known as the President of Argentina, is the head of state of Argentina. Under the national Constitution, the President is also the chief executive of the federal government and Commander-in-Chief of the armed forces.Through Argentine history, the...
(1946–1952; 1952–1955; 1973–1974). - Carlos Saavedra LamasCarlos Saavedra LamasCarlos Saavedra Lamas was an Argentine academic and politician, and in 1936, the first Latin American Nobel Peace Prize recipient.-Biography:...
(1878–1959), academic and politician, Nobel Peace Prize Laureate (1936). - Augusto Sandino (1985–1934), guerilla leader and revolutionary.
- José de San MartínJosé de San MartínJosé Francisco de San Martín, known simply as Don José de San Martín , was an Argentine general and the prime leader of the southern part of South America's successful struggle for independence from Spain.Born in Yapeyú, Corrientes , he left his mother country at the...
(1778–1850), LibertadorLibertadoresLibertadores refers to the principal leaders of the Latin American wars of independence from Spain. They are named that way in contrast with the Conquistadors, who were so far the only Spanish peoples recorded in the South American history...
and statesman, leader in the Spanish American wars of independence. - Pancho VillaPancho VillaJosé Doroteo Arango Arámbula – better known by his pseudonym Francisco Villa or its hypocorism Pancho Villa – was one of the most prominent Mexican Revolutionary generals....
(1878–1923), guerrillaGuerrilla warfareGuerrilla warfare is a form of irregular warfare and refers to conflicts in which a small group of combatants including, but not limited to, armed civilians use military tactics, such as ambushes, sabotage, raids, the element of surprise, and extraordinary mobility to harass a larger and...
leader of the Mexican RevolutionMexican RevolutionThe Mexican Revolution was a major armed struggle that started in 1910, with an uprising led by Francisco I. Madero against longtime autocrat Porfirio Díaz. The Revolution was characterized by several socialist, liberal, anarchist, populist, and agrarianist movements. Over time the Revolution...
(1910–1917). - Emiliano ZapataEmiliano ZapataEmiliano Zapata Salazar was a leading figure in the Mexican Revolution, which broke out in 1910, and which was initially directed against the president Porfirio Díaz. He formed and commanded an important revolutionary force, the Liberation Army of the South, during the Mexican Revolution...
(1879–1919), leading figure of the Mexican Revolution (1910–1917). - Leopoldo Lopez LopezLeopoldo LópezLeopoldo López Mendoza is a Venezuelan politician and economist. From 2000 until 2008, López was the mayor of the Chacao Municipality of Caracas. A 2006 Los Angeles Times article describes López as an immensely popular leader of the opposition to Venezuelan President Hugo Chávez, as well as a...
(1971) Mayor of Chacao, Venezuela - Ali Lenin AguileraAli Lenin AguileraAli Lenin Aguilera is a Venezuelan entrepreneur , corporate financial advisor and lawyer.-Professional life:...
(1967) The youngest Venezuelan congressperson
Musicians
- Gilberto GilGilberto GilGilberto Passos Gil Moreira , better known as Gilberto Gil or , is a Brazilian singer, guitarist, and songwriter, known for both his musical innovation and political commitment...
(born 1942), singer and composer; founder of the Tropicália movement. - Chabuca GrandaChabuca GrandaMaría Isabel Granda Larco , better known as Chabuca Granda, was a Peruvian singer and composer. She created and interpreted a vast number of Criollo waltzes with Afro-Peruvian rhythms...
(1920–1983), singer and composer. - Rafael Hernández (1892–1965), composer.
- Antonio Carlos JobimAntônio Carlos JobimAntônio Carlos Brasileiro de Almeida Jobim , also known as Tom Jobim , was a Brazilian songwriter, composer, arranger, singer, and pianist/guitarist. He was a primary force behind the creation of the bossa nova style, and his songs have been performed by many singers and instrumentalists within...
(1927–1994), pianist, singer and composer. - Agustín LaraAgustín LaraAgustín Lara was a Mexican singer and songwriter.-Biography:Lara was born in Tlacotalpan, Veracruz. Later, the Lara family had to move again to Mexico City, establishing their house in the borough of Coyoacán. After Lara's mother died, Agustín and his siblings lived in a hospice run by their...
(1900–1970), composer. - Ernesto LecuonaErnesto LecuonaErnesto Lecuona y Casado was a Cuban composer and pianist of Canarian father and Cuban mother, and worldwide fame. He composed over six hundred pieces, mostly in the Cuban vein, and was a pianist of exceptional quality....
(1896–1963), composer, pianist and conductor. - Vinicius de MoraesVinicius de MoraesMarcus Vinicius de Moraes , known as Vinicius de Moraes and nicknamed O Poetinho , was born in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. Son of Lydia Cruz de Moraes and Clodoaldo Pereira da Silva Moraes, he was a seminal figure in contemporary Brazilian music...
(1913–1980), singer and composer. - Ástor PiazzollaÁstor PiazzollaÁstor Pantaleón Piazzolla was an Argentine tango composer and bandoneón player. His oeuvre revolutionized the traditional tango into a new style termed nuevo tango, incorporating elements from jazz and classical music...
(1921–1992), tangoTango musicTango is a style of ballroom dance music in 2/4 or 4/4 time that originated among European immigrant populations of Argentina and Uruguay . It is traditionally played by a sextet, known as the orquesta típica, which includes two violins, piano, double bass, and two bandoneons...
composer. - Tito PuenteTito PuenteTito Puente, , born Ernesto Antonio Puente, was a Latin jazz and Salsa musician. The son of native Puerto Ricans Ernest and Ercilia Puente, of Spanish Harlem in New York City, Puente is often credited as "El Rey de los Timbales" and "The King of Latin Music"...
(1923–2000), Latin jazzLatin jazzLatin jazz is the general term given to jazz with Latin American rhythms.The three main categories of Latin Jazz are Brazilian, Cuban and Puerto Rican:# Brazilian Latin Jazz includes bossa nova...
and mambo musician. - Omar Rodríguez-LópezOmar Rodriguez-LopezOmar Alfredo Rodríguez-López is a multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, producer, writer, actor and film director who was born in Bayamón, Puerto Rico...
(born 1975), guitarist. - Carlos SantanaCarlos SantanaCarlos Augusto Alves Santana is a Mexican rock guitarist. Santana became famous in the late 1960s and early 1970s with his band, Santana, which pioneered rock, salsa and jazz fusion...
(born 1947), composer, songwriter and guitarist. - Lalo SchifrinLalo SchifrinLalo Schifrin is an Argentine composer, pianist and conductor. He is best known for his film and TV scores, such as the "Theme from Mission: Impossible". He has received four Grammy Awards and six Oscar nominations...
(born 1932), composer and pianist. - Pedro Suarez VertizPedro Suarez VertizPedro Martín José María Suárez-Vértiz Alva is a Peruvian singer-songwriter-guitarist.He learned to play the piano and the guitar before he began school. At the age of 18, he attended the University of Lima, graduating with a degree in communications...
(1966), pianist, singer and composer. - Caetano VelosoCaetano VelosoCaetano Emanuel Viana Teles Veloso , better known as Caetano Veloso, is a Brazilian composer, singer, guitarist, writer, and political activist. Veloso first became known for his participation in the Brazilian musical movement Tropicalismo which encompassed theatre, poetry and music in the 1960s,...
(born 1942), singer and composer; founder of the Tropicália movement. - Lito VitaleLito VitaleHéctor Facundo Vitale, known as Lito Vitale, is an Argentine musician, born in Villa Adelina, Buenos Aires province on December 1, 1961.A talented piano player, he was coached by his mother, renowned music teacher Esther Soto, since childhood...
(born 1961), composer and performer. - Atahualpa YupanquiAtahualpa YupanquiAtahualpa Yupanqui was an Argentine singer, songwriter, guitarist, and writer. He is considered the most important Argentine folk musician of the 20th century....
(1908–1992), folk musicFolk musicFolk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
ian.
Classical
- Claudio ArrauClaudio ArrauClaudio Arrau León was a Chilean pianist known for his interpretations of a vast repertoire spanning from the baroque to 20th-century composers, especially Beethoven, Schubert, Chopin, Schumann, Liszt, Brahms and Debussy...
(1903–1991), pianist. - Daniel BarenboimDaniel BarenboimDaniel Barenboim, KBE is an Argentinian-Israeli pianist and conductor. He has served as music director of several major symphonic and operatic orchestras and made numerous recordings....
(born 1942), pianist and conductorConductingConducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
. - Eduardo MarturetEduardo MarturetEduardo Marturet is a Venezuelan conductor and composer.Born in Caracas, Marturet studied in Cambridge, England, where he obtained a degree in piano, percussion, conducting, and composition...
(born 1953), conductorConductingConducting is the art of directing a musical performance by way of visible gestures. The primary duties of the conductor are to unify performers, set the tempo, execute clear preparations and beats, and to listen critically and shape the sound of the ensemble...
and composer. - Eduardo MataEduardo MataEduardo Mata was a Mexican conductor and composer.Mata was born in Mexico City. He studied guitar privately for three years before enrolling in the National Conservatory of Music. From 1960 to 1963 he studied composition under Carlos Chávez, Héctor Quintanar and Julián Orbón. In 1964 he received a...
(1942–1995), conductor and composer. - Heitor Villa-LobosHeitor Villa-LobosHeitor Villa-Lobos was a Brazilian composer, described as "the single most significant creative figure in 20th-century Brazilian art music". Villa-Lobos has become the best-known and most significant Latin American composer to date. He wrote numerous orchestral, chamber, instrumental and vocal works...
(1887–1959), composer. - Opera singers
- Luigi AlvaLuigi AlvaLuis Ernesto Alva y Talledo, better known as Luigi Alva is a Peruvian operatic tenor, active in the third quarter of the 20th century. He was admired for his purity of tone, the elegance of his phrasing and the clarity of his diction...
(born 1927), tenorTenorThe tenor is a type of male singing voice and is the highest male voice within the modal register. The typical tenor voice lies between C3, the C one octave below middle C, to the A above middle C in choral music, and up to high C in solo work. The low extreme for tenors is roughly B2...
. - Fabiana BravoFabiana BravoFabiana Bravo , is an acclaimed Argentine operatic soprano, who has achieved international success both through her interpretation of concert literature and in her powerful portrayals of operatic heroines.-Life and work:...
, soprano. - José CuraJosé CuraJosé Cura is a prominent operatic tenor known for his intense and original interpretations of his characters, notably Verdi’s Otello and Saint-Saëns’ Samson, as well as for his unconventional and innovative concert performances. He is also able to perform high baritone roles with the extended...
(born 1962), tenor. - Juan Diego FlórezJuan Diego FlórezJuan Diego Flórez is a Peruvian operatic tenor, particularly known for his roles in bel canto operas. On June 4, 2007, he received his country's highest decoration, the Gran Cruz de la Orden del Sol del Perú....
(born 1973), tenor.
Singers
- Desi ArnazDesi ArnazDesi Arnaz was a Cuban-born American musician, actor and television producer. While he gained international renown for leading a Latin music band, the Desi Arnaz Orchestra, he is probably best known for his role as Ricky Ricardo on the American TV series I Love Lucy, starring with Lucille Ball, to...
(1917–1986), salsaSalsa musicSalsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
singer. - Celia CruzCelia CruzCelia Cruz was a Cuban-American salsa singer, and was one of the most successful Salsa performers of the 20th century, having earned twenty-three gold albums...
(1924–2003), salsaSalsa musicSalsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
singer. - Gloria EstefanGloria EstefanGloria María Milagrosa Fajardo García de Estefan; known professionally as Gloria Estefan is a Cuban-born American singer, songwriter, and actress. Known as the "Queen Of Latin Pop", she is in the top 100 best selling music artists with over 100 million albums sold worldwide, 31.5 million of those...
(born 1957), singer and songwriter. - José FelicianoJosé FelicianoJosé Feliciano is a Puerto Rican singer, virtuoso guitarist and composer known for many international hits including the 1970 holiday single "Feliz Navidad".-Childhood:...
(born 1945), singer-songwriter. - Ruben Blades
Rubén BladesRubén Blades Bellido de Luna is a Panamanian salsa singer, songwriter, lawyer, actor, Latin jazz musician, and politician, performing musically most often in the Afro-Cuban and Latin jazz genres...
(born 1948), salsaSalsa musicSalsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
singer. - Juan GabrielJuan GabrielAlberto Aguilera Valadez , better known by his stage name Juan Gabriel , is a Mexican singer and songwriter who is one of the most famous living representatives of the Mexican ranchera, ballad, mariachi, and pop music....
(born 1950), rancheraRancheraRanchera is a genre of the traditional music of Mexico originally sung by only one performer with a guitar. It dates to the years of the Mexican Revolution in the early 20th century. It later became closely associated with the mariachi groups which evolved in Jalisco. Ranchera today is also played...
and balladBalladA ballad is a form of verse, often a narrative set to music. Ballads were particularly characteristic of British and Irish popular poetry and song from the later medieval period until the 19th century and used extensively across Europe and later the Americas, Australia and North Africa. Many...
singer-songwriter. - Carlos VivesCarlos VivesCarlos Alberto Vives Restrepo is a Grammy Award and three-time Latin Grammy Award winning-Colombian singer, composer and actor.-Biography:...
(1961), Vallenato singer and composer. - Juan Luis GuerraJuan Luis GuerraJuan Luis Guerra is a singer, songwriter and producer from the Dominican Republic who has sold over 30 million records, and won numerous awards including 12 Latin Grammy Awards, two Grammy Awards, and two Latin Billboard Music Awards...
(born 1957), Singer and songwriter. - Pedro InfantePedro InfanteJosé Pedro Infante Cruz , better known as Pedro Infante, is the most famous actor and singer of the Golden Age of Mexican cinema and is an idol of the Latinamerican people, together with Jorge Negrete and Javier Solís, who were styled the Tres Gallos Mexicanos . He was born in Mazatlán, Sinaloa,...
(1917–1957) - Víctor JaraVíctor JaraVíctor Lidio Jara Martínez was a Chilean teacher, theatre director, poet, singer-songwriter, political activist and member of the Communist Party of Chile...
(1932–1973), singer-songwriter. - JuanesJuanesJuan Esteban Aristizábal Vásquez , better known as Juanes is a Colombian musician who was a member of heavy metal band Ekhymosis and is now a solo artist. In 2000, his solo debut album Fíjate Bien won three Latin Grammy Awards.Juanes has sold more than 13 million albums...
(born 1972), singer-songwriter. - Jorge NegreteJorge NegreteJorge Alberto Negrete Moreno is considered one of the most popular Mexican singers and actors of all time....
(1911–1953) - Willie RiveraWillie RiveraWillie Rivera is a Peruvian Salsa singer who is responsible for the hit "El Cariño Es Como Una Flor". He and his brother have produced for other bands. His beginnings are with Oscar "Pitin" Sanchez in the Salsa orchestra "La 990" of Peru.- References :...
(1970), composer, salsaSalsa musicSalsa music is a genre of music, generally defined as a modern style of playing Cuban Son, Son Montuno, and Guaracha with touches from other genres of music...
singer. - Roberto CarlosRoberto Carlos (singer)Roberto Carlos Braga is a Grammy Award-winning Brazilian singer and composer, who has achieved a great deal of success and recognition in his 50 year career, also known as King of Latin Music....
(born 1941), singer and songwriter. - Ivete SangaloIvete SangaloIvete Maria Dias de Sangalo is a Latin Grammy Award-winning Brazilian Axé and MPB singer, songwriter, and occasional actress and television show host...
(born 1972) singer and songwriter. - ShakiraShakiraShakira Isabel Mebarak Ripoll , known professionally as Shakira , is a Colombian singer who emerged in the music scene of Colombia and Latin America in the early 1990s...
(born 1977), Latin PopLatin popLatin pop generally refers to pop music that has what may be perceived a Latin American influence...
singer and songwriter. - Allison IrahetaAllison IrahetaAllison Iraheta is an American singer from Los Angeles, California, who was the fourth place finalist on the eighth season of American Idol. Prior to Idol, Iraheta won the Telemundo competition Quinceañera: Mamá Quiero Ser Artista. Following the conclusion of Idol, Iraheta was signed to a record...
, winner of Telemundo reality show, Quinceañera and finalist in the eighth seasonAmerican Idol (season 8)The eighth season of American Idol premiered on January 13, 2009, and concluded on May 20, 2009. Judges Simon Cowell, Paula Abdul, and Randy Jackson continued to judge the show's contestants, along with Ryan Seacrest as host. The season introduced Kara DioGuardi as the fourth judge on the Idol...
of American IdolAmerican IdolAmerican Idol, titled American Idol: The Search for a Superstar for the first season, is a reality television singing competition created by Simon Fuller and produced by FremantleMedia North America and 19 Entertainment...
. - Jennifer LopezJennifer LopezJennifer Lynn Lopez is an American actress, singer, record producer, dancer, television personality, and fashion designer. Lopez began her career as a dancer on the television comedy program In Living Color. Subsequently venturing into acting, she gained recognition in the 1995 action-thriller...
(born 1969), Latin popLatin popLatin pop generally refers to pop music that has what may be perceived a Latin American influence...
, singer, dancer,Actress, record producer, movie producer song writer, model, fashion designer - Kat DeLunaKat DeLunaKathleen Emperatriz "Kat" DeLuna is an American pop singer of Dominican heritage. DeLuna has a soprano vocal range. Her debut single, "Whine Up", reached the top ten in Belgium and France, peaked inside the top forty of the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart. Her...
(born 1987), Singer
Philosophers and humanists
- Juan Bautista AlberdiJuan Bautista AlberdiJuan Bautista Alberdi was an Argentine political theorist and diplomat. Although he lived most of his life in exile in Montevideo and Chile, he was one of the most influential Argentine liberals of his age.-Biography:...
(1810–1884), political theorist. - Andrés BelloAndrés BelloAndrés de Jesús María y José Bello López was a Venezuelan humanist, poet, lawmaker, philosopher, educator and philologist, whose political and literary works constitute an important part of Spanish American culture...
(1781–1865), humanist, poet, lawmaker, philosopher, educator and philologistPhilologyPhilology is the study of language in written historical sources; it is a combination of literary studies, history and linguistics.Classical philology is the philology of Greek and Classical Latin...
. - Leonardo BoffLeonardo BoffLeonardo Boff was born 14 December 1938 in Concórdia, Santa Catarina state, Brazil. He is a theologian, philosopher and writer, known for his active support for the rights of the poor and excluded....
(born 1938), one of the most known first Liberation theologiansLiberation theologyLiberation theology is a Christian movement in political theology which interprets the teachings of Jesus Christ in terms of a liberation from unjust economic, political, or social conditions...
. - Mario BungeMario BungeMario Augusto Bunge is an Argentine philosopher and physicist mainly active in Canada.-Biography:Bunge began his studies at the National University of La Plata, graduating with a Ph.D. in physico-mathematical sciences in 1952. He was professor of theoretical physics and philosophy,...
(born 1919), philosopher, author of the Treatise on Basic Philosophy (8 volumes, 1974–1989). - Miguel Antonio CaroMiguel Antonio CaroMiguel Antonio Caro Tobar was a Colombian scholar, poet, journalist, philosopher, orator, philologist, lawyer and politician.- Biographic data :Miguel Antonio Caro was born in Bogotá on November 10, 1845, and he died in the same city on August 5, 1909....
(1843–1909), humanist, linguistLinguisticsLinguistics is the scientific study of human language. Linguistics can be broadly broken into three categories or subfields of study: language form, language meaning, and language in context....
and politician. - Rufino José CuervoRufino José CuervoRufino José Cuervo Urisarri , was a Colombian writer, linguist and philologist.He studied Latin and Greek, but the main part of his work was dedicated to the study of the dialectal variations of Spanish spoken in Colombia...
(1844–1911), philologist and linguist. - José IngenierosJosé IngenierosJosé Ingenieros was an Argentine physician, pharmaceutic, positivist philosopher and essayist.He was born Giuseppe Ingegneri in Palermo , and graduated from the University of Buenos Aires School of Medicine in 1900...
(1877–1925), philosopher, sociologist and science theoreticianPhilosophy of scienceThe philosophy of science is concerned with the assumptions, foundations, methods and implications of science. It is also concerned with the use and merit of science and sometimes overlaps metaphysics and epistemology by exploring whether scientific results are actually a study of truth...
. - Enrique KrauzeEnrique KrauzeEnrique Krauze Kleinbort is a Mexican historian, essayist and publisher. He is president of the publisher Editorial Clío and director of the cultural magazine ....
(born 1947), historian, political and social essayist and publisher. - Manuel de LandaManuel de LandaManuel De Landa, , is a writer, artist and philosopher who has lived in New York since 1975. He is presently the Gilles Deleuze Chair of Contemporary Philosophy and Science at the European Graduate School in Saas-Fee, Switzerland; a lecturer at the Canisius College in Buffalo, New York; a lecturer...
(born 1952), philosopher, professor at Columbia UniversityColumbia UniversityColumbia University in the City of New York is a private, Ivy League university in Manhattan, New York City. Columbia is the oldest institution of higher learning in the state of New York, the fifth oldest in the United States, and one of the country's nine Colonial Colleges founded before the...
. - Humberto MaturanaHumberto MaturanaHumberto Maturana is a Chilean biologist and philosopher. He is considered a member of the second wave of cybernetics, known for developing a theory of autopoiesis about the nature of reflexive feedback control in living systems.- Biography :After completing secondary school at the Liceo Manuel de...
(born 1928), major proponent of the embodied philosophy. - Edmundo O'GormanEdmundo O'GormanEdmundo O'Gorman O'Gorman was an Irish-Mexican writer, historian and philosopher....
(1906–1995), philosopher. - Francisco VarelaFrancisco VarelaFrancisco Javier Varela García , was a Chilean biologist, philosopher and neuroscientist who, together with his teacher Humberto Maturana, is best known for introducing the concept of autopoiesis to biology.-Biography:...
(1946–2001), major proponent of the embodied philosophy. - José VasconcelosJosé VasconcelosJosé Vasconcelos Calderón was a Mexican writer, philosopher and politician. He is one of the most influential and controversial personalities in the development of modern Mexico. His philosophy of "indigenismo" affected all aspects of Mexican sociocultural, political, and economic...
(1882–1959), thinker, educator and essayist. - Antonio NariñoAntonio NariñoAntonio de la Santísima Concepción Nariño y Álvarez was an ideological Colombian precursor and one of the early political and military leaders of the independence movement in the New Granada - Early political activity :Nariño was born to an aristocratic family...
(1765-1824).
Science and technology
- Manuel de AbreuManuel de AbreuManuel Dias de Abreu was a Brazilian physician and scientist, the inventor of abreugraphy, a rapid radiography of the lungs for screening tuberculosis...
(1894–1962), physicianPhysicianA physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
and scientist, inventor of abreugraphyAbreugraphyChest photofluorography, or abreugraphy is a photofluorography technique for mass screening for tuberculosis using a miniature photograph of the screen of a x-ray fluoroscopy of the thorax, first developed in 1935.-History:Abreugraphy receives its name from its inventor, Dr...
. - Joseph M. AcabaJoseph M. AcabaJoseph Michael "Joe" Acaba is an educator, hydrogeologist, and NASA astronaut. In May 2004 he became the first person of Puerto Rican heritage to be named as a NASA astronaut candidate, when he was selected as a member of NASA Astronaut Training Group 19...
(born 1967), First Puerto Rican astronaut. - Luis AgoteLuis AgoteLuis Agote was an Argentine physician and researcher. He was one of the first to perform a non-direct blood transfusion using sodium citrate as an anticoagulant...
(1868–1954), physician and researcher, first doctor in Latin America to perform a non-direct blood transfusionBlood transfusionBlood transfusion is the process of receiving blood products into one's circulation intravenously. Transfusions are used in a variety of medical conditions to replace lost components of the blood...
using sodium citrateSodium citrateTrisodium citrate has the chemical formula of Na3C6H5O7. It is sometimes referred to simply as sodium citrate, though sodium citrate can refer to any of the three sodium salts of citric acid. It possesses a saline, mildly tart flavor. For this reason, citrates of certain alkaline and alkaline earth...
as an anticoagulantAnticoagulantAn anticoagulant is a substance that prevents coagulation of blood. A group of pharmaceuticals called anticoagulants can be used in vivo as a medication for thrombotic disorders. Some anticoagulants are used in medical equipment, such as test tubes, blood transfusion bags, and renal dialysis...
. - José SantanaJosé SantanaJosé Manuel Santana Silvestre, is the Executive Director of the Dominican Republic Presidential Commission of Science and Technology and Research Associate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology...
(born 1962) specialist in technology and development; Executive Director of the Dominican Republic Presidential Commission of Science and Technology and Research Associate of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. - Ricardo AlegríaRicardo AlegríaRicardo Alegría was a Puerto Rican scholar, cultural anthropologist and archeologist known as the "Father of Modern Puerto Rican Archaeology".-Early years:...
(born 1921), physical anthropologistPhysical anthropologyBiological anthropology is that branch of anthropology that studies the physical development of the human species. It plays an important part in paleoanthropology and in forensic anthropology...
, pioneer in the anthropolic studies of the TainoTaíno peopleThe Taínos were pre-Columbian inhabitants of the Bahamas, Greater Antilles, and the northern Lesser Antilles. It is thought that the seafaring Taínos are relatives of the Arawak people of South America...
culture. - Baruj BenacerrafBaruj BenacerrafBaruj Benacerraf was a Venezuelan-born American immunologist, who shared the 1980 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine for the "discovery of the major histocompatibility complex genes which encode cell surface protein molecules important for the immune system's distinction between self and...
(born 1920), immunologist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
Laureate (1980). - Francisco Jose de CaldasFrancisco José de CaldasFrancisco José de Caldas was a Colombian lawyer, naturalist, and geographer who died a martyr by orders of Pablo Morillo during the Reconquista for being a precursor of the Independence of New Granada ....
(1768-1818), commonly known as "el sabio" (the wise)
- Fernando CaldeiroFernando CaldeiroFernando "Frank" Caldeiro was an Argentine-American astronaut with a degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Arizona and the University of Central Florida....
(born 1958), NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
astronaut. - Nabor Carrillo FloresNabor Carrillo FloresNabor Carrillo Flores is the third son of Mexican composer Julián Carrillo Trujillo. He did his first studies in Mexico City and he continued them in New York. On his return to Mexico, he made his studies of preparatory and those of civil engineering at the National University , where he graduated...
(1911–1967), nuclear physicistNuclear physicsNuclear physics is the field of physics that studies the building blocks and interactions of atomic nuclei. The most commonly known applications of nuclear physics are nuclear power generation and nuclear weapons technology, but the research has provided application in many fields, including those...
. - Franklin Chang-Diaz (born 1950), NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
astronaut who flown seven spaceflights. - Nitza Margarita CintronNitza Margarita CintronDr. Nitza Margarita Cintron is a scientist who is currently the Chief of Space Medicine and Health Care Systems Office at NASA's Johnson Space Center.-Early years:...
(born 1950), chief of NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's (JSCLyndon B. Johnson Space CenterThe Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center is the National Aeronautics and Space Administration's center for human spaceflight training, research and flight control. The center consists of a complex of 100 buildings constructed on 1,620 acres in Houston, Texas, USA...
) Space and Health Care Systems Office. - Jacinto ConvitJacinto ConvitJacinto Convit García is a Venezuelan Medic and Scientist. In 1987, he received a Prince of Asturias Award in the Scientific and Technical Research category....
(born 1913), medical scientist, discoverer of vaccines against leprosyLeprosyLeprosy or Hansen's disease is a chronic disease caused by the bacteria Mycobacterium leprae and Mycobacterium lepromatosis. Named after physician Gerhard Armauer Hansen, leprosy is primarily a granulomatous disease of the peripheral nerves and mucosa of the upper respiratory tract; skin lesions...
and leishmaniasisLeishmaniasisLeishmaniasis is a disease caused by protozoan parasites that belong to the genus Leishmania and is transmitted by the bite of certain species of sand fly...
. - Oswaldo CruzOswaldo CruzOswaldo Gonçalves Cruz, better known as Oswaldo Cruz |São Paulo]] state, Brazil – February 11, 1917, Petrópolis, Rio de Janeiro state) was a Brazilian physician, bacteriologist, epidemiologist and public health officer and the founder of the Oswaldo Cruz Institute.He also occupied the 5th chair of...
(1872–1917), physicianPhysicianA physician is a health care provider who practices the profession of medicine, which is concerned with promoting, maintaining or restoring human health through the study, diagnosis, and treatment of disease, injury and other physical and mental impairments...
, bacteriologistBacteriologyBacteriology is the study of bacteria. This subdivision of microbiology involves the identification, classification, and characterization of bacterial species...
, epidemiologistEpidemiologyEpidemiology is the study of health-event, health-characteristic, or health-determinant patterns in a population. It is the cornerstone method of public health research, and helps inform policy decisions and evidence-based medicine by identifying risk factors for disease and targets for preventive...
and public healthPublic healthPublic health is "the science and art of preventing disease, prolonging life and promoting health through the organized efforts and informed choices of society, organizations, public and private, communities and individuals" . It is concerned with threats to health based on population health...
officer. - René FavaloroRené FavaloroDr. René Gerónimo Favaloro was an Argentine cardiac surgeon who created the technique for coronary bypass surgery....
(1923–2000), cardiologistCardiologyCardiology is a medical specialty dealing with disorders of the heart . The field includes diagnosis and treatment of congenital heart defects, coronary artery disease, heart failure, valvular heart disease and electrophysiology...
, he created the technique for coronary bypass surgeryCoronary artery bypass surgeryCoronary artery bypass surgery, also coronary artery bypass graft surgery, and colloquially heart bypass or bypass surgery is a surgical procedure performed to relieve angina and reduce the risk of death from coronary artery disease...
(1967). - Orlando FigueroaOrlando FigueroaOrlando Figueroa , previously the NASA Mars Czar Director for Mars Exploration and the Director for the Solar System Division in the Office of Space Science at NASA Headquarters and the Deputy Center Director for Science and Technology of the Goddard Space Flight Center...
(born 1955), Director for Mars Exploration and Director for the Solar System Division in the Office of Space Science at NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
Headquarters. - Carlos FinlayCarlos FinlayCarlos Juan Finlay was a Cuban physician and scientist recognized as a pioneer in yellow fever research.- Early life and education :...
(1833–1915), medical scientist, prominent researcher on the yellow feverYellow feverYellow fever is an acute viral hemorrhagic disease. The virus is a 40 to 50 nm enveloped RNA virus with positive sense of the Flaviviridae family....
disease. - Julio Garavito ArmeroJulio Garavito ArmeroJulio Garavito Armero was a Colombian astronomer.Born in Bogotá, he was a child prodigy in science and mathematics. He obtained his degrees as mathematician and civil engineer in the Escuela Nacional de Ingeniería...
(1865-1920), Colombian astronomer. - Guillermo González CamarenaGuillermo González CamarenaGuillermo González Camarena , was a Mexican engineer who was the inventor of a color-wheel type of color television, and who also introduced color television to Mexico....
(1917–1965), inventor of an early color television transmission system. - Juan GundlachJuan GundlachJuan Cristóbal Gundlach , born Johannes Christoph Gundlach was a Cuban naturalist and taxonomist.-Biography:...
(1810–1896), naturalistNatural historyNatural history is the scientific research of plants or animals, leaning more towards observational rather than experimental methods of study, and encompasses more research published in magazines than in academic journals. Grouped among the natural sciences, natural history is the systematic study...
and taxonomist; over sixty species were named after him. - Guillermo HaroGuillermo HaroProfessor Guillermo Haro was born in Mexico City where he grew during the time of the Mexican Revolution. He studied philosophy at the National Autonomous University of Mexico...
(1913–1988), astrophysicistAstrophysicsAstrophysics is the branch of astronomy that deals with the physics of the universe, including the physical properties of celestial objects, as well as their interactions and behavior...
, made many important contributions to observational AstronomyAstronomyAstronomy is a natural science that deals with the study of celestial objects and phenomena that originate outside the atmosphere of Earth...
. - Bernardo HoussayBernardo Houssay-External links:* * . WhoNamedIt.* . Nobel Foundation....
(1887–1971), physiologist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
Laureate (1947). - Miguel de IcazaMiguel de IcazaMiguel de Icaza is a Mexican free software programmer, best known for starting the GNOME and Mono projects.-Early years:Miguel de Icaza was born in Mexico City and studied at the Universidad Nacional Autonoma de México but never received a degree. He came from a family of scientists in which his...
(born 1972), free softwareFree softwareFree software, software libre or libre software is software that can be used, studied, and modified without restriction, and which can be copied and redistributed in modified or unmodified form either without restriction, or with restrictions that only ensure that further recipients can also do...
programmer, best known for starting the GNOMEGNOMEGNOME is a desktop environment and graphical user interface that runs on top of a computer operating system. It is composed entirely of free and open source software...
and MonoMono (software)Mono, pronounced , is a free and open source project led by Xamarin to create an Ecma standard compliant .NET-compatible set of tools including, among others, a C# compiler and a Common Language Runtime....
projects. - Luis Federico LeloirLuis Federico LeloirLuis Federico Leloir was an Argentine doctor and biochemist who received the 1970 Nobel Prize in Chemistry. He was the first Spanish-speaking scientist to ever receive the award...
(1906–1987), biochemist, Nobel Prize in ChemistryNobel Prize in ChemistryThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
Laureate (1970). - Humberto MaturanaHumberto MaturanaHumberto Maturana is a Chilean biologist and philosopher. He is considered a member of the second wave of cybernetics, known for developing a theory of autopoiesis about the nature of reflexive feedback control in living systems.- Biography :After completing secondary school at the Liceo Manuel de...
(born 1928), biologist, co-author of the theory of autopoiesis. - César MilsteinCésar MilsteinCésar Milstein FRS was an Argentine biochemist in the field of antibody research. Milstein shared the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1984 with Niels K. Jerne and Georges Köhler.-Biography:...
(1927–2002), biochemist, Nobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineNobel Prize in Physiology or MedicineThe Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine administered by the Nobel Foundation, is awarded once a year for outstanding discoveries in the field of life science and medicine. It is one of five Nobel Prizes established in 1895 by Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel, the inventor of dynamite, in his will...
Laureate (1984). - Luis E. MiramontesLuis E. MiramontesLuis Ernesto Miramontes Cárdenas , was a Mexican chemist known as the co-inventor of the progestin used in one of the first two oral contraceptives....
(1925–2004), chemist, co-inventor of the first oral contraceptive (1951). - Mario J. MolinaMario J. MolinaMario José Molina-Pasquel Henríquez is a Mexican chemist and one of the most prominent precursors to the discovering of the Antarctic ozone hole. He was a co-recipient Mario José Molina-Pasquel Henríquez (born March 19, 1943 in Mexico City) is a Mexican chemist and one of the most prominent...
(born 1943), chemist, Nobel Prize in ChemistryNobel Prize in ChemistryThe Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature,...
Laureate (1995). - Rodolfo Neri VelaRodolfo Neri VelaRodolfo Neri Vela is a Mexican scientist and astronaut who flow aboard a NASA Space Shuttle mission in 1985. He is the first and only Mexican, and then the second Latin-American, to have traveled to space.-Personal :...
(born 1952), Ph.D., NASANASAThe National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
payload specialistPayload SpecialistA Payload Specialist ' was an individual selected and trained by commercial or research organizations for flights of a specific payload on a NASA Space Shuttle mission...
and astronaut. - Carlos I. NoriegaCarlos I. NoriegaCarlos Ismael Noriega is a Peruvian born NASA employee, a former NASA astronaut and a retired U.S. Marine Corps lieutenant colonel.-Personal:...
(born 1959), NASA astronaut. - Manuel Elkin PatarroyoManuel Elkin PatarroyoManuel Elkin Patarroyo is a Colombian pathologist who made the world's first attempt of synthetic vaccine for malaria, a disease transmitted by mosquitoes that affects millions of people in tropical and subtropical regions, including parts of the Americas, Asia, and Africa...
(born 1947), pathologist, works on improving a vaccine for malariaMalariaMalaria is a mosquito-borne infectious disease of humans and other animals caused by eukaryotic protists of the genus Plasmodium. The disease results from the multiplication of Plasmodium parasites within red blood cells, causing symptoms that typically include fever and headache, in severe cases...
. - Felipe PoeyFelipe Poey-Biography:Poey was born in Havana, the son of French and Spanish parents. He spent several years of his life in Pau then studied law in Madrid. He became a lawyer in Spain but was forced to leave due to his liberal ideas, returning to Cuba in 1823. He began to concentrate on the study of the...
(1799–1891), zoologistZoologyZoology |zoölogy]]), is the branch of biology that relates to the animal kingdom, including the structure, embryology, evolution, classification, habits, and distribution of all animals, both living and extinct...
, specialist in ichthyologyIchthyologyIchthyology is the branch of zoology devoted to the study of fish. This includes skeletal fish , cartilaginous fish , and jawless fish...
. - Andrés Manuel del RíoAndrés Manuel del RíoAndrés Manuel del Río Fernández was a Spanish–Mexican scientist and naturalist who discovered the chemical element vanadium.-Education:...
(1764–1849), geologistGeologyGeology is the science comprising the study of solid Earth, the rocks of which it is composed, and the processes by which it evolves. Geology gives insight into the history of the Earth, as it provides the primary evidence for plate tectonics, the evolutionary history of life, and past climates...
and chemistChemistryChemistry is the science of matter, especially its chemical reactions, but also its composition, structure and properties. Chemistry is concerned with atoms and their interactions with other atoms, and particularly with the properties of chemical bonds....
, discovered vanadiumVanadiumVanadium is a chemical element with the symbol V and atomic number 23. It is a hard, silvery gray, ductile and malleable transition metal. The formation of an oxide layer stabilizes the metal against oxidation. The element is found only in chemically combined form in nature...
(as vanadiniteVanadiniteVanadinite is a mineral belonging to the apatite group of phosphates, with the chemical formula Pb53Cl. It is one of the main industrial ores of the metal vanadium and a minor source of lead. A dense, brittle mineral, it is usually found in the form of red hexagonal crystals. It is an uncommon...
) in 1801. - Wilfredo Santa-GómezWilfredo Santa-GómezWilfredo Santa-Gómez is a Puerto Rican author who has published numerous books in Spanish on self help, short stories, and poetry.-Biography:Santa-Gómez was born in the city of Caguas, Puerto Rico in 1949...
, psychiatrist. - Arnaldo Tamayo MéndezArnaldo Tamayo MéndezArnaldo Tamayo Méndez was the first Cuban citizen and the first person from a country in the Western Hemisphere other than the United States to travel into earth orbit...
(born 1942), First Cuban cosmonaut - Francisco VarelaFrancisco VarelaFrancisco Javier Varela García , was a Chilean biologist, philosopher and neuroscientist who, together with his teacher Humberto Maturana, is best known for introducing the concept of autopoiesis to biology.-Biography:...
(1946–2001), biologist, co-author of the theory of autopoiesis. - Klaus von StorchKlaus von StorchKlaus Bernhard von Storch Krüger is a Chilean aerospace engineer and astronaut trainee.Von Storch was born in Osorno, in southern Chile. In 1992, he was selected by the Chilean Space Agency for the preparation for the flight on the Space Shuttle...
(born 1962), Chilean aerospace engineer.
Social scientists
- Eugenio María de HostosEugenio María de HostosEugenio María de Hostos known as "El Ciudadano de América" , was a Puerto Rican educator, philosopher, intellectual, lawyer, sociologist and independence advocate....
(1839–1903), educatorEducationEducation in its broadest, general sense is the means through which the aims and habits of a group of people lives on from one generation to the next. Generally, it occurs through any experience that has a formative effect on the way one thinks, feels, or acts...
and sociologistSociologySociology is the study of society. It is a social science—a term with which it is sometimes synonymous—which uses various methods of empirical investigation and critical analysis to develop a body of knowledge about human social activity...
. - Miguel León-PortillaMiguel León-PortillaMiguel León-Portilla is a Mexican anthropologist and historian, and a prime authority on Nahuatl thought and literature.He wrote a doctoral thesis on Nahua philosophy under the tutelage of Fr...
(born 1926), anthropologistCultural anthropologyCultural anthropology is a branch of anthropology focused on the study of cultural variation among humans, collecting data about the impact of global economic and political processes on local cultural realities. Anthropologists use a variety of methods, including participant observation,...
and historian, prime authority on Nahuatl thought and literature. - Milton SantosMilton SantosMilton Almeida dos Santos was a Brazilian geographer who had a degree in law.-Biography:Santos was born in Brotas de Macaúbas, Bahia, Brazil on May 3, 1926. Santos' parents were teachers at elementary school and taught him at home how to read and write...
(1926–2001), geographerHuman geographyHuman geography is one of the two major sub-fields of the discipline of geography. Human geography is the study of the world, its people, communities, and cultures. Human geography differs from physical geography mainly in that it has a greater focus on studying human activities and is more...
, writer and university professor. - Hernando de SotoHernando de Soto (economist)Hernando de Soto is a Peruvian economist known for his work on the informal economy and on the importance of business and property rights. He is the president of the Institute for Liberty and Democracy , located in Lima, Peru.-Childhood and education:Hernando de Soto was born in 1941 in Arequipa,...
(born 1941), economist, known for his work on the informal economyInformal economyThe informal sector or informal economy as defined by governments, scholars, banks, etc. is the part of an economy that is not taxed, monitored by any form of government, or included in any gross national product , unlike the formal economy....
. - Julio César TelloJulio C. TelloJulio César Tello was a Peruvian archaeologist. Tello is considered the "father of Peruvian archeology" and was America's first indigenous archaeologist...
(1880–1947), archeologist, specialist in Pre-ColumbianPre-ColumbianThe pre-Columbian era incorporates all period subdivisions in the history and prehistory of the Americas before the appearance of significant European influences on the American continents, spanning the time of the original settlement in the Upper Paleolithic period to European colonization during...
AndeanAndesThe Andes is the world's longest continental mountain range. It is a continual range of highlands along the western coast of South America. This range is about long, about to wide , and of an average height of about .Along its length, the Andes is split into several ranges, which are separated...
cultures.
Sports
- Athletics
- Iván PedrosoIván PedrosoIván Lázaro Pedroso Soler is a retired Cuban athlete, specializing in long jump.In July 1990, still at the age of 17, Pedroso jumped more than 8 meters for the first time. Facing tough competition from Carl Lewis, Mike Powell and others, he still won numerous gold medals in international...
(born 1972), long jumpLong jumpThe long jump is a track and field event in which athletes combine speed, strength, and agility in an attempt to leap as far as possible from a take off point...
Gold medalist: 1995, 1997, 1999 and 2001 World Champion, and 2000 Olympic ChampionAthletics at the 2000 Summer OlympicsAt the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, 46 events in athletics were contested, 24 for men and 22 for women. There were a total number of 2134 participating athletes from 193 countries.-Men's events:...
. - Felix SanchezFelix SanchezFélix Sánchez —nicknamed Super Felix, the Invincible and the Dictator— is a track and field athlete from New York City, United States who competes for The Dominican Republic...
(born 1977), 400m hurdles Gold medalist: 2001 and 2003 World Champion, and 2004 Olympic ChampionAthletics at the 2004 Summer OlympicsAt the 2004 Summer Olympics, the athletics events were held at the Athens Olympic Stadium from August 18 to August 29, except for the marathons , the race walks , and the shot put...
. - Javier SotomayorJavier SotomayorJavier Sotomayor Sanabria is a Cuban former track and field athlete who specialized in the high jump and is the current world record holder. The 1992 Olympic champion, he was the dominant high jumper of the 1990s; he is the only person ever to have cleared 8 feet . He is widely regarded as the...
(born 1967), high jumpHigh jumpThe high jump is a track and field athletics event in which competitors must jump over a horizontal bar placed at measured heights without the aid of certain devices in its modern most practiced format; auxiliary weights and mounds have been used for assistance; rules have changed over the years....
Gold (1992 OlympicsAthletics at the 1992 Summer OlympicsAt the 1992 Summer Olympics in Barcelona, 43 events in athletics were contested, 24 events by men and 19 by women. The competition ran from July 31, 1992 to August 9, 1992. Fourteen world record-holders were among the contenders...
) and Silver (2000 OlympicsAthletics at the 2000 Summer OlympicsAt the 2000 Summer Olympics in Sydney, 46 events in athletics were contested, 24 for men and 22 for women. There were a total number of 2134 participating athletes from 193 countries.-Men's events:...
) medalist; World Recordman (since July 23, 1993).
- Baseball
- Juan MarichalJuan MarichalJuan Antonio Marichal Sánchez is a former right-handed pitcher in Major League Baseball. Playing for the San Francisco Giants most of his career, Marichal was known for his high leg kick, pinpoint control and intimidation tactics, which included aiming pitches directly at the opposing batters'...
(born 1937), Major LeagueMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
pitcherPitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
; member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. - Luis AparicioLuis AparicioLuis Ernesto Aparicio Montiel is a former shortstop in professional baseball. His career in Major League Baseball spanned three decades, from through . Aparicio played for the Chicago White Sox , Baltimore Orioles and Boston Red Sox . He batted and threw right-handed...
(born 1934), Major LeagueMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
shortstopShortstopShortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...
; member of the Baseball Hall of Fame. - Roberto ClementeRoberto ClementeRoberto Clemente Walker was a Puerto Rican Major League Baseball right fielder. He was born in Carolina, Puerto Rico, the youngest of seven children. Clemente played his entire 18-year baseball career with the Pittsburgh Pirates . He was awarded the National League's Most Valuable Player Award in...
(1934–1972), Major League right fielderRight fielderA right fielder, abbreviated RF, is the outfielder in baseball or softball who plays defense in right field. Right field is the area of the outfield to the right of a person standing at home plate and facing towards the pitcher's mound...
, NL MVP AwardMLB Most Valuable Player AwardThe Major League Baseball Most Valuable Player Award is an annual Major League Baseball award, given to one outstanding player in the American League and one in the National League. Since 1931, it has been awarded by the Baseball Writers Association of America...
winner (1966). - Dennis MartínezDennis MartínezJosé Dennis Martínez Emilia , nicknamed "El Presidente" , is a former Major League Baseball pitcher...
(born 1955) First Latino to pitch a perfect gamePerfect gameA perfect game is defined by Major League Baseball as a game in which a pitcher pitches a victory that lasts a minimum of nine innings and in which no opposing player reaches base. Thus, the pitcher cannot allow any hits, walks, hit batsmen, or any opposing player to reach base safely for any...
in major league history. - Pedro MartínezPedro MartínezPedro Jaime Martínez is a retired Major League Baseball pitcher. He is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Cy Young Award winner, and 2004 World Series champion...
(born 1971) 3 Cy YoungCy YoungDenton True "Cy" Young was an American Major League Baseball pitcher. During his 22-year baseball career , he pitched for five different teams. Young was elected to the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1937...
Award winning pitcherPitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
; Major League BaseballMajor League BaseballMajor League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
All-Star GameAll-star gameAn all-star game is an exhibition game played by the best players in their sports league, except in the circumstances of professional sports systems in which a democratic voting system is used...
MVP award winner (1999). - Sammy SosaSammy SosaSamuel Peralta "Sammy" Sosa is a Dominican former professional baseball right fielder. Sosa played with four Major League Baseball teams over his career which spanned from 1989-2007....
(born 1968), MVP award winning Right Fielder; First LatinoLatinoThe demonyms Latino and Latina , are defined in English language dictionaries as:* "a person of Latin-American descent."* "A Latin American."* "A person of Hispanic, especially Latin-American, descent, often one living in the United States."...
to ever hit 500 Home runs; Ranked 5th on the list of the 500 home run club500 home run clubIn Major League Baseball , the 500 home run club is a term applied to the group of batters who have hit 500 or more regular-season home runs in their careers. On August 11, 1929, Babe Ruth became the first member of the club. Ruth ended his career with 714 home runs, a record which stood from 1935...
; - José Reyes (born 1983), Major League shortstop.
- Fernando ValenzuelaFernando ValenzuelaFernando Valenzuela Anguamea is a Mexican former left-handed pitcher, most notably with the Los Angeles Dodgers.In 1981, the 20-year-old Valenzuela took Los Angeles by storm, winning his first 8 decisions and leading the Dodgers to the World Championship...
(born 1960), Major League pitcherPitcherIn baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
.
- Basketball
- Carlos Alberto ArroyoCarlos ArroyoCarlos Alberto Arroyo Bermúdez is a Puerto Rican professional basketball point guard who last played for the Boston Celtics. Arroyo is the fifth player from Puerto Rico to play in the NBA...
(born 1979), Detroit PistonsDetroit PistonsThe Detroit Pistons are a franchise of the National Basketball Association based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. The team's home arena is The Palace of Auburn Hills. It was originally founded in Fort Wayne, Indiana as the Fort Wayne Pistons as a member of the National Basketball League in 1941, where...
point guardPoint guardPoint guard , also called the play maker or "the ball-handler", is one of the standard positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position – essentially, he is expected to run the team's offense by controlling the ball and making sure that...
. - Leandro BarbosaLeandro BarbosaLeandro Mateus Barbosa is a Brazilian professional basketball player, who plays at the guard position with Flamengo Basketball in Brazil. He is also under contract with the National Basketball Association's Toronto Raptors, and is expected to return to that team once the 2011 NBA lockout ends...
, Phoenix SunsPhoenix SunsThe Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US... - , Jose Juan BareaJose Juan BareaJosé Juan "J.J." Barea Mora is a Puerto Rican professional basketball player. He most recently played as a point guard for the National Basketball Association's 2011 champion Dallas Mavericks. Barea has played in the NBA, NBA Development League, NCAA and the BSN with Indios de Mayagüez and the...
, Dallas MavericksDallas MavericksThe Dallas Mavericks are a professional basketball team based in Dallas, Texas. They are members of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference of the National Basketball Association , and the reigning NBA champions, having defeated the Miami Heat in the 2011 NBA Finals.According to a 2011... - Emanuel "Manu" Ginóbili (born 1977), NBA ChampionNBA FinalsThe NBA Finals is the championship series of the National Basketball Association . The series was named the NBA World Championship Series until 1986....
(with San Antonio SpursSan Antonio SpursThe San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio, Texas. They are part of the Southwest Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association ....
, 2003 and 2005) and Olympic ChampionBasketball at the 2004 Summer OlympicsBasketball at the 2004 Summer Olympics took place at the Helliniko Olympic Indoor Arena in Athens, Greece for the preliminary rounds, with the latter stages being held in the Olympic Indoor Hall at the Athens Olympic Sports Complex....
(with ArgentinaArgentina national basketball teamThe Argentina national basketball team represents Argentina in basketball international competitions, and is controlled by the Argentine Basketball Federation....
, 2004). - , Horacio LlamasHoracio LlamasHoracio Llamas Grey , known in non-Spanish-speaking countries as Horacio Llamas, is a Mexican professional basketball player. He is a 7'0" and 250 lb center....
, Phoenix SunsPhoenix SunsThe Phoenix Suns are a professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona. They are members of the Pacific Division of the Western Conference in the National Basketball Association and the only team in their division not to be based in California. Their home arena since 1992 has been the US... - Eduardo NajeraEduardo NájeraEduardo Alonso Nájera Pérez is a Mexican professional basketball player in the NBA, currently playing for the Charlotte Bobcats.-Personal information:...
, New Jersey NetsNew Jersey NetsThe New Jersey Nets are a professional basketball team based in Newark, New Jersey. They are members of the Atlantic Division of the Eastern Conference in the National Basketball Association...
- Boxing
- Rosendo AlvarezRosendo ÁlvarezRosendo José Álvarez Hernández is a flyweight boxer, and is well known for giving Mexican legend Ricardo Lopez two tough fights. He is the only person to hold the undefeated flyweight champion to a draw....
(born 1970) World champion and the only person to hold the undefeated flyweight champion to a draw. - Alexis ArgüelloAlexis ArgüelloAlexis Argüello , also known by the stage name El Flaco Explosivo , was a Nicaraguan professional boxer and politician...
(born 1952) World champion, member of the International Boxing Hall of FameInternational Boxing Hall of FameThe modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...
. - Wilfred BenítezWilfred BenitezWilfred Benítez , is a Puerto Rican boxer. He is remembered best as a skilled and aggressive fighter with exceptional defensive abilities who won world championships in three separate weight divisions, and was the youngest world champion in boxing history at the age of 17...
(born 1958), World Champion in three separate weight divisions, member of the International Boxing Hall of FameInternational Boxing Hall of FameThe modern International Boxing Hall of Fame is located in Canastota, New York, United States, within driving distance from the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Cooperstown and the National Soccer Hall of Fame in Oneonta...
since 1996. - Jorge CastroJorge Castro (boxer)Jorge Fernando "Locomotora" Castro , is an Argentine boxer and former middleweight champion of the world, who is best known for his second defense of the title against John David Jackson in 1994....
(born 1967), World middleweightMiddleweightMiddleweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In the bare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was between Tom Chandler and Dooney Harris in 1897...
Champion. - Carlos "El Famoso" Hernández, retired Boxer and former holder of both the WBC Latino Super featherweight and IBC Super featherweight titles.
- Julio César ChávezJulio César ChávezJulio César Chávez is a retired Mexican professional boxer.He is a six-time world champion in three weight divisions, and for several years he was considered the best pound-for-pound boxer in the world...
(born 1962), World Champion (5 titles in 3 different divisions). - Juan Martin CoggiJuan Martin CoggiJuan Martin Coggi is a former boxer from Argentina. A native of Santa Fe , which was also the birthplace of Carlos Monzón, Coggi was a three time world light welterweight champion. He had 75 wins, 5 losses and 2 draws, with 44 wins by knockout...
(born 1961), three time WBAWorld Boxing AssociationThe World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...
's World Jr. Welterweight Champion. - Oscar De La HoyaOscar de la HoyaOscar De La Hoya is a retired American boxer of Mexican descent. Nicknamed "The Golden Boy", De La Hoya won a gold medal at the Barcelona Olympic Games shortly after graduating from Garfield High School. De La Hoya comes from a boxing family. His grandfather Vicente, father Joel Sr., and brother...
, (born 1972) first six division world champion in boxing history. - Carlos De LeónCarlos De LeonCarlos De León, also known as "Sugar" De Leon, is a Puerto Rican former boxer who made history by becoming the first Cruiserweight to win the world title twice. Subsequently, he kept breaking his own record for the most times as Cruiserweight champion by regaining it twice more.- Career :De León,...
, 4 time world Cruiserweight Champion - Roberto DuránRoberto DuránRoberto Durán Samaniego is a retired professional boxer from Panama, widely regarded as one of the greatest boxers of all time. A versatile brawler in the ring, he was nicknamed "Manos de Piedra" during his career....
(born 1951), World Champion (6 titles in 4 different divisions); first Hispanic to be four time World Champion. - Víctor GalíndezVíctor GalíndezVíctor Emilio Galíndez was an Argentine boxer who was the third Latin American to win the world Light Heavyweight championship, after Puerto Rico's José Torres and Venezuela's Vicente Rondon.Galíndez was born in Vedia in the Leandro N...
(1948–1980), World light heavyweightLight heavyweightIn boxing, the light heavyweight is a weight division above 168 pounds [12 Stone or 76.204 kilograms] and up to 175 pounds [12.5 stone or 79.38 kilograms]), falling between super middleweight and cruiserweight...
Champion. - Wilfredo GómezWilfredo GómezWilfredo Gómez , sometimes referred to as Bazooka Gómez, is a former boxer and three time world champion.-Biography:...
(born 1956), three time World Champion. - Carlos Cruz (1937–1970), world LightweightLightweightLight-weight is a class of athletes in a particular sport, based on their weight.-Professional boxing:The lightweight division is over 130 pounds and up to 135 pounds weight class in the sport of boxing....
champion. - Santos LaciarSantos LaciarSantos Benigno Laciar , known familiarly as Santos Laciar and nicknamed Falucho, was an Argentine world flyweight champion.-Biography:Laciar was born in Huinca Renancó, in the province of Córdoba, Argentina....
, Three time world Champion - Raul MaciasRaul MaciasRaúl Macías Guevara was a former Mexican boxer, actor, and boxing trainer. Born in the same Mexico City barrio as Rubén Olivares, Macías had always expressed pride at being Mexican...
World Bantamweight Champion. - Ricardo MayorgaRicardo MayorgaRicardo Mayorga , is a Nicaraguan professional boxer. He is the former WBA/WBC Welterweight champion and the former WBC light middleweight champion. He holds a record of 29-8 with 23 knockouts and 1 draw 1 no contest. He was featured for the first time on the cover of Ring Magazine on the December...
(born 1973) Former WBAWorld Boxing AssociationThe World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...
/WBC Welterweight champion and former WBCWorld Boxing CouncilThe World Boxing Council was initially established by 11 countries: the United States, Argentina, United Kingdom, France, Mexico, Philippines, Panama, Chile, Peru, Venezuela and Brazil plus Puerto Rico, met in Mexico City on February 14, 1963, upon invitation of the then President of Mexico, Adolfo...
Junior Middleweight champion of the world. - Carlos MonzónCarlos MonzónCarlos Monzón was an Argentine professional boxer who held the undisputed world middleweight title for 7 years, during which he successfully defended the title 14 times....
(1942–1995), World middleweightMiddleweightMiddleweight is a division, or weight class, in boxing. Early boxing history is less than exact, but the middleweight designation seems to have begun in the 1840s. In the bare-knuckle era, the first middleweight championship fight was between Tom Chandler and Dooney Harris in 1897...
Champion. - Jose Luis RamírezJosé Luis RamírezJosé Luis Ramírez is a retired Mexican boxer. He was a two-time World Lightweight Champion.-Career:A native of Huatabampo, Sonora and a resident of Culiacán, Ramírez made his professional debut on March 25, 1973 at the age of 15. He climbed slowly but steadily on boxing's rankings...
, 2 time World Lightweight Champion. - John RuizJohn RuizJohn "The Quietman" Ruiz , is a former American professional boxer. Ruiz is the first Latino heavyweight champion and former two-time WBA heavyweight champion. After a professional career spanning over 18 years, Ruiz officially announced his retirement from the sport at a press conference on April...
(born 1972), two-time WBAWorld Boxing AssociationThe World Boxing Association is a boxing organization that sanctions official matches, and awards the WBA world championship title at the professional level. It was previously known as the National Boxing Association before changing its name in 1962...
's World Heavyweight Champion, first Latino to be world Heavyweight champion in history. - Félix TrinidadFélix TrinidadFélix 'Tito' Trinidad, Jr. is a Puerto Rican professional boxer, considered one of the best in Puerto Rico's history. After winning five National Amateur Championships in Puerto Rico, he debuted as a professional when he was 17. He won his first world championship when he defeated Maurice Blocker...
(born 1973), World Champion. - José TorresJosé TorresJosé Torres , was a Puerto Rican professional boxer. As an amateur boxer, he won a silver medal in the junior middleweight at the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne. In 1965, he defeated Willie Pastrano to win the WBC and WBA light heavyweight championships...
, first Latino world Light Heavyweight champion in boxing history. - Kina MalpartidaKina MalpartidaKina Malpartida Dyson is a Peruvian female professional boxer. She is the 2009 World Boxing Association Champion in the Super Featherweight class.-Personal life:Malpartida was born in Lima, Peru in 1980 to Susy Dyson and Oscar Malpartida...
, World Boxing Association Champion in the Super Featherweight.
- Chess
- Esteban CanalEsteban CanalEsteban Canal was a leading Peruvian chess player who had his best tournament results in the 1920s and 1930s.-Birth and life:Born in Chiclayo, Peru, he moved to Italy in the 1920s and remained there.-As a chess player:...
(1896–1981), honorary International GrandmasterInternational GrandmasterThe title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....
(1977), creator of the Peruvian ImmortalPeruvian ImmortalThe Peruvian Immortal is the name given to a spectacular chess game played by the Peruvian master Esteban Canal against an unknown amateur in a simultaneous exhibition he gave at Budapest in 1934...
game. - José Raúl CapablancaJosé Raúl CapablancaJosé Raúl Capablanca y Graupera was a Cuban chess player who was world chess champion from 1921 to 1927. One of the greatest players of all time, he was renowned for his exceptional endgame skill and speed of play...
(1888–1942), International GrandmasterInternational GrandmasterThe title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....
, World ChampionWorld Chess ChampionshipThe World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. Men and women of any age are eligible to contest this title....
(1921–1927).
- Cycling
- Santiago BoteroSantiago BoteroSantiago Botero Echeverry is a Colombian former professional road bicycle racer. He was a pro from 1996 to 2010, during which time he raced in three editions of the Tour de France and four editions of the Vuelta a España...
(born 1972), 2002 World Time-Trial ChampionWorld Cycling ChampionshipThe UCI Road World Championships, often referred to as the World Cycling Championships, is the annual world championship for bicycle road racing organized by the Union Cycliste Internationale . The UCI Road World Championships include championships for elite men's road race and individual time trial...
.
- Football (Soccer)
- Alfredo Di StéfanoAlfredo Di StéfanoAlfredo Stéfano Di Stéfano Laulhé, born into a family of Italian immigrants from Capri, is a former Argentinian footballer and coach, widely regarded as one of the greatest players of all time...
(born 1926), 5 consecutive times European ChampionUEFA Champions LeagueThe UEFA Champions League, known simply the Champions League and originally known as the European Champion Clubs' Cup or European Cup, is an annual international club football competition organised by the Union of European Football Associations since 1955 for the top football clubs in Europe. It...
(with Real MadridReal MadridReal Madrid Club de Fútbol , commonly known as Real Madrid, is a professional football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club have won a record 31 La Liga titles, the Primera División of the Liga de Fútbol Profesional , 18 Copas del Rey, 8 Spanish Super Cups, 1 Copa Eva Duarte and 1 Copa de la...
, 1956–1960; scored 49 goals). - Diego Armando MaradonaDiego MaradonaDiego Armando Maradona is a retired Argentine football player and widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. Over the course of his professional club career Maradona played for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli, Sevilla and Newell's Old Boys, setting...
(born 1960) - PeléPeléHowever, Pelé has always maintained that those are mistakes, that he was actually named Edson and that he was born on 23 October 1940.), best known by his nickname Pelé , is a retired Brazilian footballer. He is widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time...
(Edson Arantes do Nascimento, born 1940), FIFAFIFAThe Fédération Internationale de Football Association , commonly known by the acronym FIFA , is the international governing body of :association football, futsal and beach football. Its headquarters are located in Zurich, Switzerland, and its president is Sepp Blatter, who is in his fourth...
best football player of the century (people's choice in 2000).
- Golf
- Juan "Chi-Chi" Rodríguez (born 1935), 8 PGA TourPGA TourThe PGA Tour is the organizer of the main men's professional golf tours in the United States and North America...
and 22 Champions TourChampions TourThe Champions Tour, a golf tour run by the PGA Tour, hosts a series of events annually in the United States and the United Kingdom for golfers 50 years of age and older. Many of the PGA Tour's most successful golfers have gone on to play on the Champions Tour.The Senior PGA Championship, founded in...
titles winner; World Golf Hall of Famer (1992).
- Motor sports
- Juan Manuel FangioJuan Manuel FangioJuan Manuel Fangio , nicknamed El Chueco or El Maestro , was a racing car driver from Argentina, who dominated the first decade of Formula One racing...
(1911–1995), five times Formula OneFormula OneFormula One, also known as Formula 1 or F1 and referred to officially as the FIA Formula One World Championship, is the highest class of single seater auto racing sanctioned by the Fédération Internationale de l'Automobile . The "formula" designation in the name refers to a set of rules with which...
World Champion. - Emerson FittipaldiEmerson FittipaldiEmerson Fittipaldi |São Paulo]], Brazil) is a Brazilian automobile racing driver who throughout a long and successful career won the Indianapolis 500 twice and championships in both Formula One and CART.-Early and personal life:...
(born 1946), 1972 and 1974 Formula One World Champion. - Carlos LavadoCarlos LavadoCarlos Lavado is a two-time 250cc World Champion motorcycle road racer. He joins Johnny Cecotto as the only two Venezuelans to win motorcycle Grand Prix World Championships....
(born 1956), 250cc GP motorcycle racingGrand Prix motorcycle racingRoad Racing World Championship Grand Prix is the premier championship of motorcycle road racing currently divided into three distinct classes: 125cc, Moto2 and MotoGP. The 125cc class uses a two-stroke engine while Moto2 and MotoGP use four-stroke engines. In 2010 the 250cc two-stroke was replaced...
World Champion (1983 and 1986). - Juan Pablo MontoyaJuan Pablo MontoyaJuan Pablo Montoya Roldán is a Colombian race car driver known internationally for participating and winning in Formula One and CART race competitions. He has enjoyed great success. Currently, he competes in NASCAR, driving the #42 Target Chevrolet Impala for Earnhardt Ganassi Racing in the Sprint...
(born ?), Indianapolis 500 winner, also won Formula One and NASCAR races. - Nelson PiquetNelson PiquetNelson Piquet Souto Maior , known as Nelson Piquet, is a Brazilian former racing driver. He was Formula One world champion in , and . He is one of eight drivers to win three or more world championships, the others being Jack Brabham, Jackie Stewart, Niki Lauda, Ayrton Senna , Alain Prost , Juan...
, (born 1952), triple Formula One World Champion (1981, 1983 and 1987). - Ayrton SennaAyrton SennaAyrton Senna da Silva was a Brazilian racing driver. A three-time Formula One world champion, he is widely regarded as one of the greatest F1 drivers of all time...
(1960–1994), triple Formula One World Champion (1988, 1990 and 1991).
- Surfing
- Sofia MulanovichSofia MulanovichSofía Mulánovich Aljovín is a Peruvian surfer. She is the first Peruvian surfer ever to win an Association of Surfing Professionals World Championship Tour event. She is the first South American ever to win the World Title. In 2004, she won three out of the six World Championship Tour events, and...
(1983-), 2004 Women's World Champion. - Phil RajzmanPhil RajzmanPhil Rajzman, born in 27 June 1982, is a professional surfer from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.As a disciple of one of the pioneers and biggest names in Brazilian surfing, Rico de Souza, Phil Rajzman began catching waves at six years old and was recognized as one of the greatest promises in Brazilian...
(1982–), 2007 ASP OXBOW World Championship.
- Tennis
- Maria BuenoMaria BuenoMaria Esther Andion Bueno is a former professional tennis player from Brazil. During her 11-year career , she won 19 Major titles ....
(born 1939), 19 Grand Slam titles winner (7 singles, 12 doubles); International Tennis Hall of FameInternational Tennis Hall of FameThe International Tennis Hall of Fame is located in Newport, Rhode Island, United States. The hall of fame and honors players and contributors to the sport of tennis and includes a museum, grass tennis courts, an indoor tennis facility, and a court tennis facility.-History:The hall of fame and...
r since 1978. - Gigi FernándezGigi FernándezBeatriz "Gigi" Fernández is a former professional tennis player, the first female athlete from her native Puerto Rico to turn professional, the first Puerto Rican woman to ever win an Olympic gold medal and the first to be inducted into the International Tennis Hall of Fame.Fernandez won 17 Grand...
, Wimbledon doubles Champion - Gastón GaudioGastón GaudioGastón Norberto Gaudio is a former tennis player from Argentina. His career-high ATP ranking was World No. 5 in 2005...
(born 1978), 2004 French Open2004 French OpenThe 2004 French Open was the 103rd edition of the tournament. Gastón Gaudio became the first men's Open Era Grand Slam title winner to save match points in the final; the last time that had happened was 70 years earlier. Gaudio also became the first Argentine man since Guillermo Vilas to win a...
Men's Singles Champion. - Mary Joe FernándezMary Joe FernándezMary Joe Fernández Godsick is an American former professional tennis player...
(born 1971), 2 Grand Slam Dobles titles winner; Won 2 Olympic Gold Medals and 1 Olympic Bronze Medal. - Andrés Gómez
Andrés GómezAndrés Gómez Santos is a former professional tennis player from Ecuador. He is best remembered for winning the men's singles title at the French Open in 1990.-Career:...
(born 1960), 1990 French Open1990 French OpenList of the 1990 French Open Champions.-Men's singles: Andrés Gómez def. Andre Agassi, 6–3, 2–6, 6–4, 6–4*It was Gómez's 3rd title of the year, and his 20th overall. It was his 1st career Grand Slam title....
Men's Singles Champion. - Rosemary CasalsRosemary CasalsRosemary "Rosie" Casals is a former American professional tennis player.Rosemary Casals earned her reputation as a rebel in the staid tennis world when she began competing in the early 1960s. During a tennis career that spanned more than two decades, she won more than 90 tournaments and worked for...
, former tennis player and winner of multiple Grand SlamsGrand Slam (tennis)The four Major tennis tournaments, also called the Slams, are the most important tennis events of the year in terms of world tour ranking points, tradition, prize-money awarded, strength and size of player field, and public attention. They are the Australian Open, the French Open, Wimbledon, and...
. - Gustavo KuertenGustavo KuertenGustavo Kuerten is a retired former World No. 1 tennis player from Brazil. He won the French Open three times between 1997 and 2001, and was the Tennis Masters Cup champion in 2000...
, (born 1976), three-time French Open Men's Singles Champion (19971997 French Open - Men's SinglesGustavo Kuerten defeated Sergi Bruguera 6-3 6-4 6-2 in the final to win the Men's Singles title at the 1997 French Open. See also:-Key:* Q = Qualifier* WC = Wild Card* LL = Lucky Loser* r. = retired-Finals:-Section 1:-Section 2:-Section 3:...
, 20002000 French Open - Men's SinglesAndre Agassi was the defending champion, but lost in the second round to Karol Kučera.Gustavo Kuerten won in the final 6–2, 6–3, 2–6, 7–6, against Magnus Norman.-Seeds:# Andre Agassi # Pete Sampras ...
and 20012001 French Open - Men's SinglesGustavo Kuerten was the defending champion, and won in the final 6–7, 7–5, 6–2, 6–0, against Àlex Corretja.-Seeds:# Gustavo Kuerten # Marat Safin # Andre Agassi ...
). - David NalbandianDavid NalbandianDavid Pablo Nalbandian is an Argentine professional tennis player and former world no. 3. He was runner-up at the 2002 Wimbledon Championships and the winner of the Tennis Masters Cup in 2005.-Biography:...
(born 1982), 2005 Tennis Masters Cup2005 Tennis Masters CupThe 2005 Tennis Masters Cup was a tennis tournament played on indoor carpet courts. It was the 36th edition of the year-end singles championships, the 31st edition of the year-end doubles championships, and was part of the 2005 ATP Tour...
Champion. - Alex OlmedoAlex OlmedoAlejandro "Alex" Rodríguez Olmedo is a former tennis player from Peru, who was ranked as the top amateur player in the world in 1959. Although born and raised in Peru, he came to Southern California and was mentored by Perry T. Jones, President of the Southern California Tennis Association at the...
(born 1936), 3 Grand Slam titles winner (2 singles, 1 doubles). - Rafael OsunaRafael OsunaRafael Osuna Herrera is the most successful tennis player in the history of Mexico. He was born in Mexico City, Mexico, and is best remembered for his singles victory at the U.S. Open Championships in 1963, winning Wimbledon Doubles championships twice, the U.S...
(1938–1969), 4 Grand Slam titles winner (1 singles, 3 doubles). - Gabriela SabatiniGabriela SabatiniGabriela Beatriz Sabatini is a former professional Argentine tennis player. She was one of the leading players on the women's circuit in the late-1980s and early-1990s...
(born 1970), 1990 US Open Women's Singles and 1988 Wimbledon Women's Doubles Champion. - Pancho SeguraPancho SeguraPancho Segura, born Francisco Olegario Segura , was a leading tennis player of the 1940s and 1950s, both as an amateur and as a professional. In 1950 and 1952, as a professional, he was the World Co-No. 1 player...
(born 1921), International Tennis Hall of Famer since 1984. - Paola SuárezPaola SuárezPaola Suárez was a top 10 tennis player in the early 2000s. She gained prominence in 2004 by reaching the finals of nine straight WTA doubles tournaments, and by reaching the singles semifinals of the French Open tournament, held in Paris."La Negra" Suárez began playing professional tennis at the...
(born 1976), 8 Grand Slam Doubles titles winner. - Marcelo RíosMarcelo RíosMarcelo Andrés Ríos Mayorga is a former World No. 1 tennis player from Chile. Nicknamed El Chino and El zurdo de Vitacura , he became the first Latin American player to reach the top position on the Association of Tennis Professionals singles rankings in 1998. He held the World No...
(born 1975), ATP World Number One, 1998. Australian Open finalist - Fernando GonzálezFernando González----Fernando Francisco González Ciuffardi is a professional tennis player from Chile. He is known for having one of the hardest forehands on the circuit. In Spanish he is called El Bombardero de La Reina and Mano de Piedra...
2007 Australian Open2007 Australian OpenThe 2007 Australian Open was a Grand Slam tennis tournament held in Melbourne, Australia from 15 January until 28 January 2007.The total prize pool was set at exactly A$20 million, with the winners of both the men's and women's singles competition each receiving A$1,281,000. Over 500 players...
Finalist and double olympic medalist. - Nicolas MassúNicolás MassúNicolás Alejandro Massú Fried , nicknamed Vampiro , is a Chilean tennis player, a former world number nine in singles, and a two-time Olympic gold medalist...
double olympic gold medalist winner. - Guillermo VilasGuillermo VilasGuillermo Apolinario Vilas is a retired and former World No. 2 professional tennis player from Argentina. He was the second Latin-American to win a Grand Slam tournament.-Career:...
(born 1952), 4 Grand Slam Singles titles winner.
A-L
- Juan Ruiz de AlarcónJuan Ruiz de AlarcónJuan Ruiz de Alarcón y Mendoza , one of the greatest Novohispanic dramatists of the Golden Age, was born in New Spain .-Genealogy:...
(c. 1581–1639), dramatist. - Isabel AllendeIsabel AllendeIsabel Allende Llona is a Chilean writer with American citizenship. Allende, whose works sometimes contain aspects of the "magic realist" tradition, is famous for novels such as The House of the Spirits and City of the Beasts , which have been commercially successful...
(born 1942), best sellingBestsellerA bestseller is a book that is identified as extremely popular by its inclusion on lists of currently top selling titles that are based on publishing industry and book trade figures and published by newspapers, magazines, or bookstore chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and...
novelist. - Julia Julia ÁlvarezJulia ÁlvarezJulia Alvarez is a Dominican-American poet, novelist, and essayist. Born in New York of Dominican descent, she spent the first ten years of her childhood in the Dominican Republic, until her father's involvement in a political rebellion forced her family to flee the country.Alvarez rose to...
(born 1950), poet, novelist, and essayist. - Jorge AmadoJorge AmadoJorge Leal Amado de Faria was a Brazilian writer of the Modernist school. He was the best-known of modern Brazilian writers, his work having been translated into some 49 languages and popularized in film, notably Dona Flor and her Two Husbands in 1978...
(1912–2001), modernistModernismModernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
writer. - Mário de AndradeMário de AndradeMário Raul de Morais Andrade was a Brazilian poet, novelist, musicologist, art historian and critic, and photographer. One of the founders of Brazilian modernism, he virtually created modern Brazilian poetry with the publication of his Paulicéia Desvairada in 1922...
(1893–1945), poetPoetryPoetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
, novelNovelA novel is a book of long narrative in literary prose. The genre has historical roots both in the fields of the medieval and early modern romance and in the tradition of the novella. The latter supplied the present generic term in the late 18th century....
ist, musicologistMusicologyMusicology is the scholarly study of music. The word is used in narrow, broad and intermediate senses. In the narrow sense, musicology is confined to the music history of Western culture...
, art historianArt historyArt history has historically been understood as the academic study of objects of art in their historical development and stylistic contexts, i.e. genre, design, format, and style...
and criticArt criticAn art critic is a person who specializes in evaluating art. Their written critiques, or reviews, are published in newspapers, magazines, books and on web sites...
. - Angel Luis Arambilet AlvarezArambiletAngel Luis Arambilet Alvarez [ARAMBILET] is a writer, screenplayer, painter, graphic artist, filmmaker and systems engineer....
(born 1957), creator of the first Latin American short story using computerized linetext art or ASCII art. - José María ArguedasJosé María ArguedasJosé María Arguedas Altamirano was a Peruvian novelist, poet, and anthropologist who wrote mainly in Spanish, although some of his poetry is in Quechua...
(1911–1969), novelist. - Roberto ArltRoberto ArltRoberto Arlt was an Argentine writer.-Biography:He was born Roberto Godofredo Christophersen Arlt in Buenos Aires on April 2, 1900. His parents were both immigrants: his father Karl Arlt was a Prussian from Posen and his mother was Ekatherine Iobstraibitzer, a native of Trieste and Italian speaking...
(1900–1942), short-story writer, novelist, and playwright. - Miguel Ángel AsturiasMiguel Ángel AsturiasMiguel Ángel Asturias Rosales was a Nobel Prize–winning Guatemalan poet, novelist, playwright, journalist and diplomat...
(1899–1974), Nobel PrizeNobel Prize in LiteratureSince 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
Laureate (1967). - Mario BenedettiMario BenedettiMario Benedetti was an Uruguayan journalist, novelist, and poet....
(born 1920), novelist and poet. - Adolfo Bioy CasaresAdolfo Bioy CasaresAdolfo Bioy Casares was an Argentine fiction writer, journalist, and translator. He was a friend and collaborator with his fellow countryman Jorge Luis Borges, and wrote what many consider one of the best pieces of fantastic fiction, the novella The Invention of Morel.-Biography:Adolfo Bioy...
(1914–1999), novelist, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1990). - Roberto BolañoRoberto BolañoRoberto Bolaño Ávalos was a Chilean novelist and poet. In 1999 he won the Rómulo Gallegos Prize for his novel Los detectives salvajes , and in 2008 he was posthumously awarded the National Book Critics Circle Award for Fiction for his novel 2666, which was described by board member Marcela Valdes...
(1953–2003), novelist, Rómulo Gallegos PrizeRómulo Gallegos PrizeThe Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize was created on 6 August 1964 by a presidential decree enacted by Venezuelan President Raúl Leoni, in honor of the Venezuelan politician and President Rómulo Gallegos, the author of Doña Bárbara....
Laureate (1999). - Jorge Luis BorgesJorge Luis BorgesJorge Francisco Isidoro Luis Borges Acevedo , known as Jorge Luis Borges , was an Argentine writer, essayist, poet and translator born in Buenos Aires. In 1914 his family moved to Switzerland where he attended school, receiving his baccalauréat from the Collège de Genève in 1918. The family...
(1899–1986), Cervantes Prize Laureate (1979). - Alfredo Bryce EcheniqueAlfredo BryceAlfredo Bryce Echenique is a Peruvian-Spanish writer born in Lima. He has written several books and short stories.-Early days:...
(born 1939), novelist and short stories writer. - Guillermo Cabrera InfanteGuillermo Cabrera InfanteGuillermo Cabrera Infante was a Cuban novelist, essayist, translator, and critic; in the 1950s he used the pseudonym G. Caín.A one-time supporter of the Castro regime, Cabrera Infante went into exile to London in 1965...
(1929–2005), novelist, essayist, translator, and critic, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1997). - Alejo CarpentierAlejo CarpentierAlejo Carpentier y Valmont was a Cuban novelist, essayist, and musicologist who greatly influenced Latin American literature during its famous "boom" period. Born in Lausanne, Switzerland, Carpentier grew up in Havana, Cuba; and despite his European birthplace, Carpentier strongly self-identified...
(1904–1980), novelist and essay writer, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1977). - Julio CortázarJulio CortázarJulio Cortázar, born Jules Florencio Cortázar, was an Argentine writer. Cortázar, known as one of the founders of the Latin American Boom, influenced an entire generation of Spanish speaking readers and writers in the Americas and Europe.-Early life:Cortázar's parents, Julio José Cortázar and...
(1914–1984), novelist and short storiesShort storyA short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
writer. - Sor Juana Inés de la CruzSor JuanaSor Juana Inés de la Cruz , fully Juana Inés de Asbaje y Ramírez de Santillana, was a self-taught scholar and poet of the Baroque school, and nun of New Spain...
(1648/1651–1695), poet and dramatist. - Rubén DaríoRubén DaríoFélix Rubén García Sarmiento , known as Rubén Darío, was a Nicaraguan poet who initiated the Spanish-American literary movement known as modernismo that flourished at the end of the 19th century...
(1867–1916), modernistModernismModernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
poet. - Virgilio DávilaVirgilio DávilaVirgilio Dávila , was a Puerto Rican poet, educator, politician and businessman. He is considered by many to be one of Puerto Rico's greatest representatives of the modern literary era.-Early years:...
(1869–1943), poet. - Jorge EdwardsJorge EdwardsJorge Edwards Valdés is a Chilean novelist, journalist and diplomat. He is currently the Chilean ambassador to France.-Life and career:...
(born 1931), Cervantes Prize Laureate (1999). - Laura EsquivelLaura EsquivelLaura Esquivel is a Mexican author making a noted contribution to Latin-American literature. She was born the third of four children of Julio César Esquivel, a telegraph operator, and Josefa Valdés.-Literary career:...
(born 1950), novelist. - Rosario FerréRosario FerréDr. Rosario Ferré is a Puerto Rican writer, poet and essayist. Her father, Luis A. Ferré, was the third elected Governor of Puerto Rico, and the founding father of the New Progressive Party. When her mother, Lorenza Ramírez de Arellano, died in 1970...
(born 1938), poet and essayist. - Carlos FuentesCarlos FuentesCarlos Fuentes Macías is a Mexican writer and one of the best-known living novelists and essayists in the Spanish-speaking world. He has influenced contemporary Latin American literature, and his works have been widely translated into English and other languages.-Biography:Fuentes was born in...
(born 1928), novelist and essayist, Rómulo GallegosRómulo Gallegos PrizeThe Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize was created on 6 August 1964 by a presidential decree enacted by Venezuelan President Raúl Leoni, in honor of the Venezuelan politician and President Rómulo Gallegos, the author of Doña Bárbara....
(1977), Cervantes (1987) and Prince of Asturias (1994) awards Laureate. - Rómulo GallegosRómulo GallegosRómulo Ángel del Monte Carmelo Gallegos Freire was a Venezuelan novelist and politician. For a period of some nine months during 1948, he was the first cleanly elected president in his country's history....
(1884–1969), novelist. - Gabriel García MárquezGabriel García MárquezGabriel José de la Concordia García Márquez is a Colombian novelist, short-story writer, screenwriter and journalist, known affectionately as Gabo throughout Latin America. He is considered one of the most significant authors of the 20th century. He was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in...
(born 1928), novelist and journalist, Nobel PrizeNobel Prize in LiteratureSince 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
Laureate (1982). - Nicolás GuillénNicolás GuillénNicolás Cristóbal Guillén Batista was a Cuban poet, journalist, political activist, and writer. He is best remembered as the national poet of Cuba.Guillén was born in Camagüey, Cuba...
(1902–1989), poet. - José Hernández (1834–1886), poet and journalist, author of the epic poem Martín FierroMartín FierroMartín Fierro is a 2,316 line epic poem by the Argentine writer José Hernández. The poem was originally published in two parts, El Gaucho Martín Fierro and La Vuelta de Martín Fierro . The poem is, in part, a protest against the modernist tendencies of Argentine president Domingo Faustino Sarmiento...
. - Vicente HuidobroVicente HuidobroVicente García-Huidobro Fernández was a Chilean poet born to an aristocratic family. He was an exponent of the artistic movement called Creacionismo , which held that a poet should bring life to the things he or she writes about, rather than just describe them.Huidobro was born into a wealthy...
(1893–1948), poet, initiator of the CreacionismoCreacionismoCreationism was a literary movement, initiated by Chilean poet Vicente Huidobro around 1912. Creationism is based on the idea of a poem as a truly new thing, created by the author for the sake of itself — that is, not to praise another thing, not to please the reader, not even to be...
movement. - José Lezama LimaJosé Lezama LimaJosé Lezama Lima was a Cuban writer and poet who is considered one of the most influential figures in Latin American literature....
(1910–1976), novelist. - Luis Llorens TorresLuis Lloréns TorresLuis Llorens Torres , was a Puerto Rican poet, playwright, and politician. He was an advocate for the independence of Puerto Rico.-Early years:...
(1878–1944), poet. - Luis López NievesLuis López NievesLuis López Nieves is one of the most influential and best-selling Puerto Rican authors ever. He has won the National Literature Prize on two occasions: first, in 2000, with his book of historical short stories ; second, in 2005, with his novel . He published two other books including Seva, and ...
(born 1950), best-sellingBestsellerA bestseller is a book that is identified as extremely popular by its inclusion on lists of currently top selling titles that are based on publishing industry and book trade figures and published by newspapers, magazines, or bookstore chains. Some lists are broken down into classifications and...
novelist and tale writer. - Dulce María LoynazDulce María LoynazDaughter of the famous General Enrique Loynaz del Castillo, a hero of the Cuban Liberation Army and author of Cuban National Anthem lyrics; and sister of poet Enrique Loynaz Muñoz...
(1902–1997), poet, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1992). - Leopoldo LugonesLeopoldo LugonesLeopoldo Lugones Argüello was an Argentine writer and journalist.-Early life:Born in Villa de María del Río Seco, a city in Córdoba Province, in Argentina's Catholic heartland, Lugones belonged to a family of landed gentry...
(1874–1938), poet. - Clarice LispectorClarice LispectorClarice Lispector was a Brazilian writer. Acclaimed internationally for her innovative novels and short stories, she was also a journalist...
(1925–1977), novelist.
M-Z
- Joaquim Maria Machado de AssisJoaquim Maria Machado de AssisJoaquim Maria Machado de Assis , often known as Machado de Assis, Machado, or Bruxo do Cosme Velho , was a Brazilian novelist, poet, playwright and short story writer. He is widely regarded as the greatest writer of Brazilian literature, but he did not gain widespread popularity outside Brazil in...
(1839–1908), realistLiterary realismLiterary realism most often refers to the trend, beginning with certain works of nineteenth-century French literature and extending to late-nineteenth- and early-twentieth-century authors in various countries, towards depictions of contemporary life and society "as they were." In the spirit of...
novelist, poet and short-story writer. - Jorge MajfudJorge Majfud-Life:He was born in Tacuarembó, Uruguay. He majored in and in 1996 graduated from the in Montevideo. He travelled extensively to gather material that would later become part of his novels and essays, and was a professor at the of Costa Rica and at , where he taught art and mathematics.In 2003...
(1970), novelist and essayist writer. - José MartíJosé MartíJosé Julián Martí Pérez was a Cuban national hero and an important figure in Latin American literature. In his short life he was a poet, an essayist, a journalist, a revolutionary philosopher, a translator, a professor, a publisher, and a political theorist. He was also a part of the Cuban...
(1853–1895), poet and essayist. - Gregório de Matos (1636–1696), baroqueBaroqueThe Baroque is a period and the style that used exaggerated motion and clear, easily interpreted detail to produce drama, tension, exuberance, and grandeur in sculpture, painting, literature, dance, and music...
poet. - Leopoldo MinayaLeopoldo MinayaLeopoldo Minaya is a Dominican poet. He is well known as a member of the Generation of 1980 literary movement in the Dominican Republic. He won the 201 Miguel de Cervantes Cultural Association Award that is awarded annually in Barcelona, Spain. His works have been published by various Spanish and...
(born 1963), Miguel de Cervantes Cultural Association Award winner (2001). - Pedro MirPedro MirPedro Julio Mir Valentín was a Dominican poet and writer, named Poet Laureate of the Dominican Republic by Congress in 1984, and a member of the generation of "Independent poets of the 1940s" in Dominican poetry.His father, a Cuban mechanical engineer, migrated from Cuba to the Dominican Republic...
(1913–2000), poet and writer, named Poet LaureateLaureateIn English, the word laureate has come to signify eminence or association with literary or military glory. It is also used for winners of the Nobel Prize.-History:...
of the Dominican RepublicDominican RepublicThe Dominican Republic is a nation on the island of La Hispaniola, part of the Greater Antilles archipelago in the Caribbean region. The western third of the island is occupied by the nation of Haiti, making Hispaniola one of two Caribbean islands that are shared by two countries...
by Congress in 1984. - Gabriela MistralGabriela MistralGabriela Mistral was the pseudonym of Lucila de María del Perpetuo Socorro Godoy Alcayaga, a Chilean poet, educator, diplomat, and feminist who was the first Latin American to win the Nobel Prize in Literature, in 1945...
(1889–1957), poet, Nobel PrizeNobel Prize in LiteratureSince 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
Laureate (1945). - Augusto MonterrosoAugusto Monterroso"The Dinosaur" redirects here. For the song by Was , see Walk the Dinosaur. For other uses, see Dinosaur Augusto Monterroso Bonilla was a Guatemalan writer.-Life:...
(1921–2003), short storiesShort storyA short story is a work of fiction that is usually written in prose, often in narrative format. This format tends to be more pointed than longer works of fiction, such as novellas and novels. Short story definitions based on length differ somewhat, even among professional writers, in part because...
writer, Prince of Asturias Award Laureate (2000). - Manuel Mujica LáinezManuel Mujica LaínezManuel Mujica Láinez was an Argentine novelist, essayist and art critic.-Biography:...
(1910–1984), novelist, essayist, journalist and short stories writer; author of BomarzoBomarzo (Mujica Laínez)Bomarzo is a novel by the Argentine writer Manuel Mujica Láinez, written in 1962 and later adapted by its author to an opera libretto set by Alberto Ginastera, which had its premiere in Washington, D.C., in 1967....
(1962). - Álvaro MutisÁlvaro MutisÁlvaro Mutis Jaramillo is a Colombian poet, novelist, and essayist and author of the compendium The Adventures and Misadventures of Maqroll.-Early life:...
(born 1923), poet, novelist, and essayist; Cervantes Prize (2001) and Prince of Asturias AwardsPrince of Asturias AwardsThe Prince of Asturias Awards are a series of annual prizes awarded in Spain by the Prince of Asturias Foundation to individuals, entities or organizations from around the world who make notable achievements in the sciences, humanities, and public affairs....
(1997) Laureate. - Pablo NerudaPablo NerudaPablo Neruda was the pen name and, later, legal name of the Chilean poet, diplomat and politician Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. He chose his pen name after Czech poet Jan Neruda....
(1904–1973), poet, Nobel PrizeNobel Prize in LiteratureSince 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
Laureate (1971). - Amado NervoAmado NervoAmado Nervo also known as Juan Crisóstomo Ruiz de Nervo was the Mexican Ambassador to Argentina and Uruguay, journalist, poet, and educator. His poetry was known for its use of metaphor and reference to mysticism, presenting both love and religion, as well as Christianity and Hinduism...
(1870–1919), modernistModernismModernism, in its broadest definition, is modern thought, character, or practice. More specifically, the term describes the modernist movement, its set of cultural tendencies and array of associated cultural movements, originally arising from wide-scale and far-reaching changes to Western society...
poet. - Juan Carlos OnettiJuan Carlos OnettiJuan Carlos Onetti was an Uruguayan novelist and author of short stories.A high school drop-out, Onetti's first novel, El pozo, published in 1939, met with his close friends' immediate acclaim, as well as from some writers and journalists of his time...
(1909–1994), novelist and short-story writer, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1980). - Fernando del PasoFernando del PasoFernando del Paso Morante is a Mexican novelist, essayist and poet.Del Paso was born in Mexico City and took two years in economics at the Universidad Nacional Autónoma de México...
(born 1935), novelist, essayist and poet, Rómulo Gallegos PrizeRómulo Gallegos PrizeThe Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize was created on 6 August 1964 by a presidential decree enacted by Venezuelan President Raúl Leoni, in honor of the Venezuelan politician and President Rómulo Gallegos, the author of Doña Bárbara....
Laureate (1982). - Octavio PazOctavio PazOctavio Paz Lozano was a Mexican writer, poet, and diplomat, and the winner of the 1990 Nobel Prize for Literature.-Early life and writings:...
(1914–1998), Cervantes Prize (1981) and Nobel PrizeNobel Prize in LiteratureSince 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
(1990) Laureate. - Nicanor ParraNicanor ParraNicanor Parra Sandoval is a mathematician and poet born in San Fabián de Alico, Chile, who has been considered to be a popular poet in Chile with enormous influence and popularity in Latin America, and also considered one of the most important poets of the Spanish language literature...
(1914-), anti-poet. - Sergio PitolSergio PitolSergio Pitol Demeneghi is a prominent Mexican writer, translator and diplomat. In 2005 he received the Cervantes Prize, the most prestigious literary award in the Spanish-speaking world....
(born 1933), novelist, short stories writer and translator, Cervantes Prize Laureate (2005). - Elena PoniatowskaElena PoniatowskaElena Poniatowska is a Mexican journalist and author. Her generation of writers include Carlos Fuentes, José Emilio Pacheco and Carlos Monsiváis.-Life:Poniatowska was born in Paris to Prince Jean Joseph Evremont Sperry Poniatowski and Paula Amor Yturbe...
(born 1932), novelist. - Manuel PuigManuel PuigManuel Puig was an Argentine author...
(1932–1990), novelist, author of The Kiss of the Spider WomanKiss of the Spider Woman (novel)Kiss of the Spider Woman is a novel by the Argentine writer Manuel Puig. It is considered his most successful....
(1976). - Horacio QuirogaHoracio QuirogaHoracio Silvestre Quiroga Forteza was an Uruguayan playwright, poet, and short story writer....
(1878–1937), short story writer. - José Eustasio RiveraJosé Eustasio RiveraJosé Eustasio Rivera Salas was a Colombian lawyer and poet primarily known for his national epic The Vortex.-Early life:...
(1888–1928), poet and novelist. - Augusto Roa Bastos
Augusto Roa BastosAugusto Roa Bastos, was a noted Paraguayan novelist and short story writer, and one of the most important Latin American writers of the 20th century. As a teenager he fought in the Chaco War between Paraguay and Bolivia, and he later worked as a journalist, screenwriter and professor...
(1917–2005), novelist, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1989). - Gonzalo RojasGonzalo RojasGonzalo Rojas Pizarro was a Chilean poet. His work is part of the continuing Latin American avant-garde literary tradition of the twentieth century.- Biography :...
(born 1917), poet, Cervantes Prize Laureate (2003). - Juan RulfoJuan RulfoJuan Rulfo was a Mexican author and photographer. One of Latin America's most esteemed authors, Rulfo's reputation rests on two slim books, the novel Pedro Páramo , and El Llano en llamas...
(1917–1986), novelist, Prince of Asturias Award Laureate (1983). - Ernesto SabatoErnesto SabatoErnesto Sabato , was an Argentine writer, painter and physicist. According to the BBC he "won some of the most prestigious prizes in Hispanic literature" and "became very influential in the literary world throughout Latin America"...
(born 1911), novelist and essay writer, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1984). - Jaime SabinesJaime SabinesJaime Sabines Gutiérrez was a Mexican contemporary poet. Known as “the sniper of Literature” as he formed part of a group that transformed literature into reality, he wrote ten volumes of poetry, and his work has been translated into more than twelve languages...
(1926–1999), poet. - Alfonsina StorniAlfonsina StorniAlfonsina Storni was one of the most important Latin-American poets of the modernist period.-Life:Storni was born in Sala Capriasca, Switzerland to an Argentine beer industrialist living in Switzerland for a few years. There, Storni learned to speak Italian...
(1892–1938), postmodernistPostmodernismPostmodernism is a philosophical movement evolved in reaction to modernism, the tendency in contemporary culture to accept only objective truth and to be inherently suspicious towards a global cultural narrative or meta-narrative. Postmodernist thought is an intentional departure from the...
poet. - Lygia Fagundes TellesLygia Fagundes TellesLygia Fagundes Telles is a Brazilian novelist and short-story writer. She was born in São Paulo and is one of Brazil's most important living writers....
(born 1923), novelist and short-story writer; Camoens Prize Laureate (2005). - Arturo Uslar-Pietri (1906–2001), novelist, Prince of Asturias Award Laureate (1990).
- César VallejoCésar VallejoCésar Abraham Vallejo Mendoza was a Peruvian poet. Although he published only three books of poetry during his lifetime, he is considered one of the great poetic innovators of the 20th century in any language. Thomas Merton called him "the greatest universal poet since Dante"...
(1892–1938), poet. - Fernando VallejoFernando VallejoFernando Vallejo Rendón is a novelist, filmmaker and essayist, born in Colombia. He obtained Mexican nationality in 2007.Vallejo was born and raised in Medellín, though he left his hometown early in life...
(born 1942), novelist, Rómulo Gallegos PrizeRómulo Gallegos PrizeThe Rómulo Gallegos International Novel Prize was created on 6 August 1964 by a presidential decree enacted by Venezuelan President Raúl Leoni, in honor of the Venezuelan politician and President Rómulo Gallegos, the author of Doña Bárbara....
Laureate (2003). - Mario Vargas LlosaMario Vargas LlosaJorge Mario Pedro Vargas Llosa, 1st Marquis of Vargas Llosa is a Peruvian-Spanish writer, politician, journalist, essayist, and Nobel Prize laureate. Vargas Llosa is one of Latin America's most significant novelists and essayists, and one of the leading authors of his generation...
(born 1936), novelist and essayist, Cervantes Prize Laureate (1994) and Nobel PrizeNobel Prize in LiteratureSince 1901, the Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded annually to an author from any country who has, in the words from the will of Alfred Nobel, produced "in the field of literature the most outstanding work in an ideal direction"...
Laureate (2010). - "El Inca" Garcilaso de la Vega (1539–1616), first mestizoMestizoMestizo is a term traditionally used in Latin America, Philippines and Spain for people of mixed European and Native American heritage or descent...
author in Spanish language. - Xavier VillaurrutiaXavier VillaurrutiaXavier Villaurrutia y González was a Mexican poet and playwright, whose most famous works are the short theatrical dramas, called Autos profanos, compiled in the work Poesía y teatro completos published in 1953....
(1903–1950), poet. - Gabriel ZaidGabriel ZaidGabriel Zaid is a Mexican writer, poet and intellectual.He was born in the city of Monterrey, Nuevo León, in 1934. He studied Engineering at the Tecnológico de Monterrey....
(born 1934), poet and essayist.
Others
- Carlos CastanedaCarlos CastanedaCarlos Castaneda was a Peruvian-born American anthropologist and author....
(1925–1998), New AgeNew AgeThe New Age movement is a Western spiritual movement that developed in the second half of the 20th century. Its central precepts have been described as "drawing on both Eastern and Western spiritual and metaphysical traditions and then infusing them with influences from self-help and motivational...
and Shamanism author. - Enrique GratasEnrique GratasEnrique Gratas is an award winning journalist and the former anchor of Univision's Última Hora , the second most popular Spanish newscast in the United States. Gratas was fired in March 2009 along with 300 other Univision employees...
, television journalistElectronic journalismElectronic journalism or electronic news-gathering is most associated with broadcast news where television producers, reporters and editors make use of electronic video production recording devices for gathering and presenting information in telecasts and radio transmissions reaching the public...
. - María Julia Mantilla García (born 1983), Miss WorldMiss WorldThe Miss World pageant is the oldest surviving major international beauty pageant. It was created in the United Kingdom by Eric Morley in 1951...
2004. - Ali Lenin AguileraAli Lenin AguileraAli Lenin Aguilera is a Venezuelan entrepreneur , corporate financial advisor and lawyer.-Professional life:...
(born 1967), businessman. - Gladys ZenderGladys ZenderGladys Rosa Zender de Meier is a beauty queen from Peru who became the first Latin American woman to win the Miss Universe title.-Miss Universe:...
(born 1940), first Hispanic Miss UniverseMiss UniverseMiss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
1957. - Denise QuiñonesDenise QuiñonesDenise Marie Quiñones August is a Puerto Rican actress and beauty pageant titleholder who was the fourth woman from her country to win the Miss Universe contest...
(born 1980), Miss UniverseMiss UniverseMiss Universe is an annual international beauty contest that is run by the Miss Universe Organization. The pageant is the most publicized beauty contest in the world with 600 million viewers....
2001. - Geraldo RiveraGeraldo RiveraGeraldo Rivera is an American attorney, journalist, author, reporter, and former talk show host...
(born 1943), television journalist. - Ricardo Salinas PliegoRicardo Salinas PliegoRicardo Benjamín Salinas Pliego is a Mexican businessman and one of Forbes World's Richest People since 2000. He serves as President and CEO of Grupo Salinas and Grupo Elektra, two holdings with interests vested in telecommunications, media and retail stores, among those TV Azteca, Elektra,...
(born 1956), businessman. - Carlos Slim HelúCarlos Slim HelúCarlos Slim Helú is a Mexican business magnate and philanthropist who as of 2011 is the richest person in the world, for the second year in a row...
(born 1940), businessman, Latin America's richest man and #1 in the world (according to ForbesForbesForbes is an American publishing and media company. Its flagship publication, the Forbes magazine, is published biweekly. Its primary competitors in the national business magazine category are Fortune, which is also published biweekly, and Business Week...
August 2007 ranking).
Lists by nationality
- Argentines
- Bolivians
- Brazilians
- Chileans
- Colombians
- Costa Ricans
- Cubans
- Dominicans
- Ecuadorians
- Guatemalans
See also
- List of Hispanic and Latin American Britons
- List of Eastern Caribbean people
- List of Latin American Jews
- Notable U.S.A. Hispanics