Who are some famous persons?

Answer 1

Actors/Actresses

• Inga Abel (1946-2000), actress
• Mario Adorf (born 1930), actor , writer
• Hans Albers (1891-1960), actor
• Mark Bellinghaus (born 1963), activist, actor, poet, writer
• Moritz Bleibtreu (born 1971), actor
• Eric Braeden (born Hans Gudegast, 1941), actor
• Daniel Brühl (born 1978), actor
• Horst Buchholz (1933-2003), actor
• Sandra Bullock (born 1964), actor
• Vicco von Bülow, aka Loriot, actor and comedian
• Hans Clarin (1930-2005), actor
• George Dzundza (born 1945), actor
• Marlene Dietrich (1901-1992), actress
• August Diehl (born 1976), actor
• Heinz Erhardt (1909-1979), actor and comedian
• Gert Fröbe (1913-1988), actor
• Martina Gedeck (born 1961), actress
• Götz George (born 1938), actor
• Heinrich George (1893-1946), actor
• Gustaf Gründgens (1899-1963), actor
• Eva Habermann (born 1976), actress and model
• Brigitte Helm (1908-1996), actress
• Emil Jannings (1884-1950), actor
• Klaus Kinski (1926-1991), actor, Polish-German father, German mother
• Nastassja Kinski (born 1959), actress, daughter of Klaus Kinski
• Heidi Klum (born 1973), model and actress
• Hildegard Knef (1925-2002), actress, singer, writer
• Diane Kruger (born 1976), model and actress
• Sebastian Koch (born 1962) actor
• Alexandra Maria Lara (born 1978), actress
• Heike Makatsch (born 1971), actress
• Willy Millowitsch (1909-1999), actor
• Armin Mueller-Stahl (born 1930), actor
• Luise Neumann (1818-1905)
• Uwe Ochsenknecht (born 1956), actor
• Christian Oliver, actor
• Franka Potente (born 1974), actress
• Jürgen Prochnow (born 1941), actor
• Heinz Rühmann (1902-1994), actor
• Otto Sander (born 1941), actor
• Romy Schneider, actress
• Hanna Schygulla (born 1943), actress
• Kristina Söderbaum (1912-2001), actress and photographer
• Claudia Schiffer (born 1970), actress and supermodel
• Til Schweiger (born 1963), actor
• Xenia Seeberg (born 1972), actress and model
• Barbara Sukowa (born 1950), actress
• Nadja Uhl (born 1972), actress

Artists

• Hans von Aachen (1552-1615), mannerist painter
• Albrecht Altdorfer (1480-1538), painter
• Ernst Barlach (1870-1938), sculptor (and writer)
• Günther Behnisch (born 1922) architect
• Peter Behrens (1868-1940) architect
• Joseph Beuys (1921-1986), artist
• Arnold Böcklin (1827-1901), painter
• Gottfried Böhm (born 1920) architect
• Arno Breker (1900-1991), sculptor
• Lovis Corinth (1858-1925), painter
• Lucas Cranach the Elder (1472-1553), painter
• Lucas Cranach the Younger (1515-1586), painter
• Albrecht Dürer (1471-1528), painter
• Egon Eiermann (1904-1970), architect and designer
• Max Ernst (1891-1976), surrealist painter
• Caspar David Friedrich (1774-1840), painter
• Walter Gropius (1883-1969), architect
• George Grosz (1893-1959), artist
• Hannah Höch - artist
• Hans Holbein the Elder (c. 1465-1524), painter
• Hans Holbein the Younger (c. 1497-1543), illustrator, painter
• Harro Magnussen (1861-1908), sculptor
• Jörg Immendorff, painter
• Helmut Jahn (born 1940) architect and designer
• Anselm Kiefer (born 1945), painter
• Martin Kippenberger (1953-1997), painter
• Leo von Klenze (1784-1864) architect
• Hans Kollhoff (born 1946) architect
• Käthe Kollwitz (1867-1945), painter
• Max Liebermann, painter
• Markus Lüpertz (born 1941), painter and sculptor
• Franz Marc (1880-1916), painter
• Ludwig Mies van der Rohe (1886-1969) architect, designer
• Frei Otto (born 1925) architect and research scientist
• Sigmar Polke (born 1941), painter
• Gerhard Richter (born 1932), painter
• Karl Friedrich Schinkel, architect, painter
• Oskar Schlemmer (1888-1943), choreographer, painter, sculptor, stage & costume designer
• Eberhard Schlotter (born 1921), painter
• Kurt Schwitters, painter, poet
• Fritz Schumacher (1869-1947) architect and urban designer
• Max Slevogt, painter
• Carl Spitzweg (1808-1885), painter
• Birgit Stauch (born 1961) Sculptor
• Franz Stuck, painter

Composers

• Carl Friedrich Abel (1725-1787), composer
• Martin Agricola (1466-1506), composer
• Siegfried Alkan (1858-1941), composer
• Carl Philipp Emanuel Bach (1714-1788), composer, son of J. S. Bach
• Johann Sebastian Bach (1685-1750), composer
• Ludwig van Beethoven (1770-1827), composer
• Martin Boettcher (born 1927), film-composer (Karl May movies)
• Johannes Brahms (1833-1897), composer
• Max Bruch (1838-1920), composer
• Hanns Eisler (1898-1962), composer
• Friedrich von Flotow (1812-1883), composer
• Georg Friedrich Händel (1685-1759), composer, opera composer
• Fanny Hensel, composer
• Paul Hindemith (1895-1963), composer
• Engelbert Humperdinck (1854-1921), composer
• Albert Lortzing (1801-1851), composer
• Giacomo Meyerbeer (1791-1864), composer
• Felix Mendelssohn Bartholdy (1809-1847), composer
• Wolfgang Amadeus Mozart (1756-1791), composer and musician
• Jacques Offenbach (1819-1880), composer
• Carl Orff (1895-1982), composer
• Johann Pachelbel (1653-1706), composer
• Hans Pfitzner (1869-1949), composer
• Max Reger (1873-1916), composer
• Wolfgang Rihm (born 1952), composer
• Leopold Schefer (1784-1862), writer and composer
• Heinrich Schütz (1585-1672), composer
• Clara Schumann (1819-1896), composer
• Robert Schumann (1810-1856), composer, songwriter
• Karlheinz Stockhausen (1928-2007), modern composer
• Richard Strauss (1864-1949), composer, opera composer
• Georg Philipp Telemann (1681-1767), composer
• Richard Wagner (1813-1883), composer
• Carl Maria von Weber (1786-1826), composer
• Kurt Weill (1900-1950), composer (Threepenny Opera, "September Song")
• Hans Zimmer (born 1957), film-composer

Filmmakers

• Andreas Deja, animator
• Uwe Boll, film director
• Florian Henckel von Donnersmarck, film director, academy award winner
• Doris Dörrie, female film director
• Roland Emmerich, film director
• Rainer Werner Fassbinder (1945-1982), film director
• Werner Herzog (born 1942), film director
• Oliver Hirschbiegel, film director
• Carl Koch (1892-1963), film director and writer
• Fritz Lang (1890-1976), film director
• Ernst Lubitsch (1892-1947), film director
• F.W. Murnau (1888-1931), film director
• Wolfgang Petersen (born 1941), film director
• Leni Riefenstahl (1902-2003), female film director
• Volker Schlöndorff (born 1939), film director
• Andreas Schnaas (born 1968), film director
• Tom Tykwer (born 1965), film director
• Robert Wiene, film director
• Wim Wenders (born 1945), film director

Royalty

• Alix of Hesse and Rhine (1872-1918), was a German princess by birth before marrying Tsar Nicholas II to become a Russian tsarina.
• Albert of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1819-1861), Queen Victoria's husband & consort
• Albert (1828-1902), King of Saxony (1873-1902)
• Anton (1755-1836), King of Saxony (1827-1836)
• Carol I of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1839-1914), Prince (1867-1881) and King (1881-1914) of Romania
• Charles IV (1316-1378), King of Germany 1346, Holy Roman Emperor 1355-1378
• Charles V (1500-1558), King of Spain 1516, King of Germany 1519, Holy Roman Emperor 1530-1556
• Charles (1823-1891), King of Württemberg (1823-1891)
• Claus von Amsberg (1926-2002), diplomat and husband of Queen Beatrix of the Netherlands
• Ferdinand of Hohenzollern-Sigmaringen (1865-1927), King of Romania (1924-1927)
• Ferdinand of Saxe-Coburg-Gotha (1861-1948), Prince of Bulgaria (1887-1908), King (or Tsar) of the Bulgarians (1908-1918)
• Frederick I Barbarossa (1122-1190), King of Germany 1152, Holy Roman Emperor 1155-1190
• Frederick I of Prussia (1657-1713), Elector of Brandenburg (1688-1713), King in Prussia (1701-1713)
• Frederick I of Württemberg (1754-1816), Duke (1797-1803), Elector (1803-1806), and King (1806-1816) of Württemberg
• Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor (1194-1250), Holy Roman Emperor and King of Jerusalem
• Frederick II of Prussia (1712-1786), King of Prussia (1740-1786)
• Friedrich III (1831-1888), German Emperor and King of Prussia (1888)
• Frederick Augustus I (1750-1827), Elector (1763-1806) and King (1806-1827) of Saxony
• Frederick Augustus II (1797-1854), King of Saxony (1836-1854)
• Frederick Augustus III (1865-1932), King of Saxony (1904-1918)
• Frederick William I (1688-1740), King of Prussia (1713-1740)
• Frederick William II (1744-1797), King of Prussia (1786-1797)
• Frederick William III (1770-1840), King of Prussia (1797-1840)
• Frederick William IV (1795-1861), King of Prussia (1840-1861)
• George (1832-1904), King of Saxony (1902-1904)
• George V (1819-1878), King of Hanover (1851-1866)
• Henry I the Fowler (876-936), King of Germany 919
• Henry II (972-1024), King of Germany 1002, Holy Roman Emperor 1014-1024
• Henry III (1017-1056), King of Germany 1039, Holy Roman Emperor 1046-1056
• Henry IV (1050-1106), King of Germany 1056, Holy Roman Emperor 1084-1106
• Henry V (1081-1125), King of Germany 1106, Holy Roman Emperor 1111-1125
• Henry VI (1165-1197), King of Germany 1190, Holy Roman Emperor 1191-1197
• John (1801-1873), King of Saxony (1854-1873)
• Louis IV (1281-1347), King of Germany 1314, Holy Roman Emperor 1328-1347
• Ludwig I (1786-1868), King of Bavaria (1825-1848)
• Ludwig II (1845-1886), King of Bavaria (1864-1886)
• Ludwig III (1845-1921), King of Bavaria (1913-1918)
• Maximilian I (1459-1519), King of Germany 1486, Holy Roman Emperor 1508-1519
• Maximilian I (1756-1825), Elector (1799-1805) and King (1805-1825) of Bavaria
• Maximilian II (1811-1864), King of Bavaria (1848-1864)
• Otto I the Great (912-973), King of Germany 936, Holy Roman Emperor 962-973
• Otto II (955-983), Holy Roman Emperor 973-983
• Otto III (980-1002), King of Germany 983, Holy Roman Emperor 996-1002
• Otto of Greece King of Bavaria (1815-1867), King of the Hellenes (1833-1862)
• Otto of Bavaria (1848-1916), King of Bavaria (1886-1913)
• Wilhelm I (1797-1888), German Emperor (1871-1888) and King of Prussia (1861-1888)
• Wilhelm II (1859-1941), German Emperor and King of Prussia (1888-1918)
• William I (1781-1864), King of Württemberg (1816-1864)
• William II (1848-1921), King of Württemberg (1891-1918)

Fashion models

• Nadja Auermann (born 1971), supermodel
• Eugen Bauder (born 1986)
• Charlott Cordes (born 1988)
• Toni Garrn (born 1991)
• Lena Gercke (born 1988), winner of Germany's Next Topmodel 2006
• Jennifer Hof (born 1991), winner of Germany's Next Topmodel 2008
• Alexandra Kamp (born 1966)
• Heidi Klum (born 1973), model and host of Project Runway and Germany's Next Topmodel
• Diane Kruger (born 1976) model turned actress
• Barbara Meier (born 1986), winner of Germany's Next Topmodel 2007
• Sara Nuru (born 1989), winner of Germany's Next Topmodel 2009
• Uschi Obermaier (born 1946), model and actress
• Eva Padberg (born 1980)
• Nico (1938-1988), model, singer and actress
• Tatjana Patitz (born 1966), supermodel
• Claudia Schiffer (born 1970), supermodel
• Nico Schwanz (born 1978)
• Julia Stegner (born 1984)
• Manon von Gerkan (born 1972)

Musicians and singers

• Accept
• ATB
• Hans Albers
• Thomas Anders
• Amon Düül
• Wolf Biermann (born 1936), singer-songwriter and East German dissident
• Böhse Onkelz
• Bushido
• Rolf Köhler
• Fritz Busch (1890-1951), conductor
• Sarah Connor, pop/soul singer
• Michael and Sandra Cretu, founder-performers of Enigma (musical project) and Sandra (group)
• DJ Tomekk
• Frank Farian
• Wilhelm Furtwängler (1886-1954), conductor and composer
• Herbert Grönemeyer (born 1956)
• Heino, popular singer
• Bill Kaulitz, lead singer of Tokio Hotel
• LaFee
• Reinhard Mey (born 1942)
• Marius Müller-Westernhagen
• Anne-Sophie Mutter (born 1963), violinist
• Karl Münchinger, conductor
• Xavier Naidoo
• Nena (born 1960)
• Meshell Ndegeocello (born 1969)American parents not German.
• Klaus Nomi (1944-1983)
• Kool Savas, half German, half Turkish
• Lisa Otto, opera singer
• Michael Schenker (born 1955), guitar player of UFO and solo career
• Sandra
• Rammstein
• Paffendorf
• Sido (rapper)
• Tokio Hotel
• Hannes Wader
• Bruno Walter (1876-1962), conductor and composer
• Konstantin Wecker
• Paul Van Dyk
• Willy Hess, violinist
• Yvonne Catterfeld
• Dieter Bohlen (born 1954), music-producer

Philosophers

• Theodor Adorno (1903-1969), philosopher, sociologist and composer
• Albertus Magnus (c. 1193-1280), medieval philosopher and theologian
• Hannah Arendt (1906-1975), political theorist
• Bruno Bauer (1809-1882), political theorist and philosopher
• Walter Benjamin (1892-1940)
• Ernst Bloch (1885-1977)
• Jakob Böhme (1575-1624), mystic philosopher
• Rudolf Carnap (1891-1970), philosopher
• Ernst Cassirer (1874-1945)
• Friedrich Engels (1820-1895), philosopher, political economist
• Ludwig Feuerbach (1804-1872), philosopher
• Johann Gottlieb Fichte (1762-1814), philosopher
• Gottlob Frege (1848-1925), mathematician, logician and philosopher
• Erich Fromm (1900-1980)
• Hans-Georg Gadamer (1900-2002), philosopher
• Jürgen Habermas (born 1929), philosopher, social theorist
• Eduard von Hartmann (1842-1906), philosopher
• Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel (1770-1831), philosopher
• Martin Heidegger (1889-1976), philosopher
• Max Horkheimer (1895-1973)
• Karl Jaspers (1883-1969), philosopher
• Immanuel Kant (1724-1804), philosopher
• Ludwig Klages (1872-1956), philosopher
• Gottfried Leibniz (1646-1716), physicist, philosopher
• Leo Löwenthal (1900-1993)
• Karl Löwith (1897-1973)
• Herbert Marcuse (1898-1979)
• Karl Marx (1818-1883), philosopher and sociologist
• Nikolaus Cusanus (1401-1462), philosopher, theologian, mathematician
• Friedrich Nietzsche (1844-1900), early existentialist philosopher
• Bernhard Philberth (born 1927), physicist, engineer, philosopher, theologian
• Johann Karl Friedrich Rosenkranz (1805-1879)
• Franz Rosenzweig (1886-1929)
• Max Scheler (1874-1928), philosopher
• Friedrich Schelling (1775-1854), philosopher
• Moritz Schlick (1882-1936), philosopher
• Carl Schmitt (1888-1985), political theorist
• Arthur Schopenhauer (1788-1860), philosopher
• Georg Simmel (1859-1918) philosopher and sociologist
• Ferdinand Tönnies (1855-1936), philosopher, founder of German sociology
• Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker (1912-2007), philosopher and physicist

PoliticiansMiscellaneous

• Arminius (Herman the German) (18 or 17 BC - AD 21)
• August Bebel (1840-1913), co-founder of the SPD
• Rudolf von Bennigsen (1824-1902), founder of the National Liberal Party.
• Eduard Bernstein (1850-1932), Social Democratic leader
• Julius Curtius (1877-1948), Foreign Minister (DVP)
• Matthias Erzberger (1875-1921), Catholic Center party leader
• Joschka Fischer (born 1948), Foreign Minister and vice chancellor 1998-2005 (Bündnis 90/Die Grünen)
• Hans-Dietrich Genscher (born 1927), former minister for foreign affairs (FDP)
• Jakob Grimm (1785-1863), parliamentarian
• Wilhelm Grimm (1786-1859), parliamentarian
• Gregor Gysi (born 1948), former leader of the Party of Democratic Socialism (Germany)
• Alfred Hugenberg )1865-1951), leader of the DNVP
• Johann Jacoby (1805-1877), radical democrat in Prussia
• Karl Kautsky (1854-1938), Social Democratic leader and theoretician
• Petra Kelly (1947-1992), cofounder of the German Green Party
• Roland Koch (born 1958), Minister-President of Hesse
• Ferdinand Lassalle (1825-1864), democrat and socialist
• Karl Liebknecht (1871-1919), Socialist
• Wilhelm Liebknecht (1826-1900), co-founder of the SPD
• Rosa Luxemburg (1870-1919), left wing Social Democratic leader
• Jakob Maria Mierscheid (born 1933), virtualparliamentarian (SPD)
• Hermann Müller (1876-1931), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (SPD)
• Hans Modrow (born 1928), former leader of GDR, honorary chairman of PDS
• Walther Rathenau (1867-1922), foreign minister (DDP)
• Eugen Richter (1838-1906), liberal politician
• Carlo Schmid (1896-1979), politician, who had vast influence on the content of the German Basic Law after WW2.
• Kurt Schumacher (1895-1952), leader of the Social Democratic Party of Germany in the early years of the FRG
• Baron Heinrich vom Stein (1757-1831)
• Edmund Stoiber - party leader of the CSU and former minister president of Bavaria
• Franz Josef Strauß (1915-1988), Bavarian Politician (CSU)
• Ernst Thälmann (1886-1944), leader of the Communist Party of Germany during the Weimar period
• Guido Westerwelle - party leader of the liberal party (FDP)
• Clara Zetkin (1857-1933), socialist and fighter for women's rights

Chancellors of Germany 1871-1945

• Gustav Bauer (1870-1944), chancellor of the Weimar Republic (SPD)
• Theobald von Bethmann Hollweg (1856-1921), Imperial Chancellor
• Otto Von Bismarck (1815-1898), Imperial Chancellor
• Heinrich Brüning (1885-1970), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (Centre Party)
• Bernhard von Bülow (1849-1929), Imperial Chancellor
• Leo von Caprivi (1831-1899), Imperial Chancellor
• Wilhelm Cuno (1876-1933), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic
• Konstantin Fehrenbach (1852-1926), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (Centre)
• Georg von Hertling (1843-1919), Imperial Chancellor
• Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), combining legally both offices, President and Chancellor ("Führer und Reichskanzler") 1934-1945
• Prince Chlodwig zu Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst (1819-1901), Imperial Chancellor
• Hans Luther (1885-1962), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic
• Wilhelm Marx (1863-1946), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (Centre)
• Prince Maximilian of Baden (1867-1929), Last Imperial Chancellor
• Georg Michaelis (1857-1936), Imperial Chancellor
• Franz von Papen (1879-1969), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic
• Philipp Scheidemann (1865-1939), Chancellor of Weimar Republic (SPD)
• Kurt von Schleicher (1882-1934), last Chancellor of the Weimar Republic
• Gustav Stresemann (1878-1929), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (DVP)
• Joseph Wirth (1879-1956), Chancellor of the Weimar Republic (Centre)

Chancellors of Germany (after World War II)

• Konrad Adenauer (1876-1967), first democratically elected Federal Chancellor in Western Germany (after the second world war) from 1949 to 1963 (Christian-Democratic Union, CDU)
• Ludwig Erhard (1897-1977), Federal Chancellor from 1963 to 1966 (CDU)
• Kurt Georg Kiesinger (1904-1988), Federal Chancellor from 1966 to 1969 (CDU)
• Willy Brandt (1913-1992), Federal Chancellor from 1969 to 1974 (Social Democratic Party, SPD)
• Helmut Schmidt (born 1918), Federal Chancellor from 1974 to 1982 (SPD)
• Helmut Kohl (born 1930), Federal Chancellor from 1982 to 1998 (CDU)
• Gerhard Schröder (born 1944), Federal Chancellor from 1998 to 2005 (SPD)
• Angela Merkel (born 1954), Federal Chancellor since 2005 (CDU)

Presidents of Germany

• Friedrich Ebert (1871-1925), First President of the Weimar Republic (SPD) 1919-1925
• Paul von Hindenburg (1847-1934), Field Marshal, President 1925-1934
• Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), combining legally both offices, President and Chancellor ("Führer und Reichskanzler") 1934-1945
• Karl Dönitz (1891-1980), Admiral of the Fleet, after Hitler's death, President for 22 days, 1945

Presidents of the Federal Republic of Germany since 1949:

• Theodor Heuss (1884-1963), Federal President 1949-1959 (Liberal-Democratic Party, FDP)
• Heinrich Lübke (1894-1972), Federal President 1959-1969 (CDU)
• Gustav Heinemann (1899-1976), Federal President 1969-1974 (SPD)
• Walter Scheel (born 1919), Federal President 1974-1979 (FDP)
• Karl Carstens (1914-1992), Federal President 1979-1984 (CDU)
• Richard von Weizsäcker (born 1920), Federal President 1984-1994 (CDU)
• Roman Herzog (born 1934), Federal President 1994-1999 (CDU)
• Johannes Rau (1931-2006), Federal President 1999-2004 (SPD)
• Horst Köhler (born 1943), Federal President 2004-2010 (CDU)
• Jens Böhrnsen (born 1949), acting President since resignation of Köhler in 2010 (SPD)

Politicians of the East German Communist Party and regime

• Otto Grotewohl (1894-1964), minister president of the GDR
• Erich Honecker (1912-1994), leader of the GDR until 1989
• Egon Krenz (born 1937), leader of the GDR after Honecker
• Erich Mielke (1907-2000), head of the Stasi
• Wilhelm Pieck (1876-1960), first president of the GDR
• Heinrich Rau (1899-1961), chairman of the German Economic Commission (predecessor of the East German government)
• Günter Schabowski (born 1929), member of politburo
• Willy Stoph (1914-1999), Premier of the GDR
• Walter Ulbricht (1893-1973), leader of the GDR

Personalities of the Nazi Party and regime

• Klaus Barbie (1913-1991), the "Butcher of Lyon"
• Martin Bormann (1900-1945), nazi leader
• Eva Braun (1912-1945), Hitler's mistress and finally his wife
• Karl Brandt (1904-1948)
• Karl Dönitz (1891-1980), Admiral of the Fleet, briefly Hitler's successor as President
• Anton Drexler (1884-1942), founder of German Workers Party, which became the NSDAP
• Hans Frank (1900-1946), Governor-General of Poland
• Roland Freisler (1893-1945), infamous Nazi-judge
• Wilhelm Frick (1877-1946), Minister of the Interior
• Walter Funk (1890-1960), Minister of Economics
• Joseph Goebbels (1897-1945), Chancellor of Germany, propaganda chief for the Nazis
• Hermann Göring (1893-1946), Nazi, Reich Marshal and chief of Luftwaffe
• Rudolf Hess (1894-1987), Hitler's private secretary, later Deputy Führer
• Reinhard Heydrich (1904-1942), Nazi officer, head of the Sicherheitsdienst and Gestapo
• Heinrich Himmler (1900-1945), Nazi head of the SS
• Adolf Hitler (1889-1945), Reichskanzler and Nazi leader
• Rudolf Höss (1900-1947), commandant of Auschwitz.
• Ernst Kaltenbrunner (1903-1946), Heydrich's successor at the SD
• Hans Kammler (1901-1945?), author and organiser of first Death Camps
• Wilhelm Keitel (1882-1946), Field Marshal, head of the OKW (1939-45)
• Karl Otto Koch (1897-1945), German first commandant of the Buchenwald concentration camp
• Robert Ley (1890-1945), head of the German Labour Front
• Erich von Manstein (1885-1973), Field Marshal and commander of the Eleventh Army (1941-42), Army Group Don (1942-43), and Army Group South (1943-44)
• Erhard Milch (1892-1972), Göring's second-in-command, Air Inspector General
• Konstantin von Neurath (1873-1956), Foreign Minister in the early years of the regime
• Franz von Papen (1879-1969), Deputy Chancellor in Hitler's first cabinet.
• Erich Raeder (1876-1960), Admiral of the Fleet
• Joachim von Ribbentrop (1893-1946), Nazi foreign minister
• Ernst Röhm (1887-1934), head of the SA
• Alfred Rosenberg (1893-1946), Nazi ideologist
• Gerd von Rundstedt (1875-1953), Field Marshal, Commander-in-Chief East (1939-40), commander of Army Group South (1939-41), Commander-in-Chief West (1942-45)
• Hjalmar Schacht, Minister of Finance
• Baldur von Schirach (1907-1974), Hitler Youth leader
• Arthur Seyss-Inquart (1892-1946), Austrian Nazi leader
• Albert Speer (1905-1981), "Hitler's architect", Minister of Armaments
• Gregor Strasser (1892-1934), Left-wing Nazi leader
• Julius Streicher (1885-1946), Nazi Party leader in Franconia

Scientists and engineersA-G

Nicolaus Copernicus

• Otto Wilhelm Hermann von Abich (1806-1886), mineralogist, geologist
• Peter Apian (1495-1552), mathematician, astronomer and cartographer
• Manfred von Ardenne (1907-1997), physicist
• Anton de Bary (1831-1888), surgeon, botanist, microbiologist
• Johann Bayer (1572-1625), astronomer
• Karl Benz (1844-1929), inventor and engineer
• Friedrich Bessel (1784-1846), mathematician
• Hans Bethe (1906-2005), physicist
• Max Born (1882-1970), physicist
• Robert Bosch (1861-1942), industrialist
• Carl Ferdinand Braun, physicist
• Wernher von Braun (1912-1977), space engineer, rocket scientist
• Robert Wilhelm Bunsen (1811-1899), chemist
• Georg Cantor (1845-1918), mathematician
• Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543), astronomer
• Hans Gerhard Creutzfeldt, neuropathologist
• Gottlieb Daimler (1834-1900), inventor and engineer
• Carl Duisberg (1861-1935), chemist and industrialist
• Rudolf Diesel (1858-1913), inventor of the Diesel engine
• Albert Einstein (1879-1955), physicist
• Hans Jürgen Eysenck (1916-1997), psychologist
• Joseph von Fraunhofer (1787-1826), physicist
• Gottlob Frege (1848-1925), mathematician and logicist
• Wilhelm Siegmund Frei (1885-1943), dermatologist
• Erich Fromm (1900-1980), psychologist
• Klaus Fuchs (1911-1988), physicist and spy
• Carl Friedrich Gauss (1777-1855), mathematician.

H-J

Johannes Hevelius

• Fritz Haber (1868-1934), chemist
• Ernst Haeckel (1834-1919), physician
• Otto Hahn (1879-1968), chemist
• Bernhard Hantzsch (1875-1911), ornithologist
• Georg Hartmann (geographer) (1865-1946), geographer
• Felix Hausdorff (1868-1942), mathematician
• Robert Havemann (1910-1982), chemist
• Ernst Heinkel (1888-1958), Aircraft engineer
• Werner Karl Heisenberg (1901-1976), physicist
• Hermann Helmholtz, physicist
• Heinrich Rudolf Hertz (1857-1894), physicist
• Johannes Hevelius (1611-1687), astronomer
• David Hilbert (1862-1943), mathematician
• Johann Homann (1664-1724), geographer
• Erich Hueckel (1896-1980), physicist
• Alexander von Humboldt
• Carl Gustav Jakob Jacobi (1804-1851), mathematician
• Alfons Maria Jakob (1884-1931), neurologist
• Hugo Junkers (1859-1935), Aircraft engineer

K-L

• Theodor Kaluza (1885-1954), mathematician, theoretical physicist
• Friedrich August Kekulé von Stradonitz (1829-1896), chemist
• Johannes Kepler (1571-1630), astronomer
• Gustav Robert Kirchhoff (1824-1887), physicist
• Felix Klein (1849-1925), mathematician
• Wolfgang Franz von Kobell (1803-1882), mineralogist
• Robert Koch (1843-1910), physician
• Walter Karl Koch (1880-1962), surgeon
• Adolph Wilhelm Hermann Kolbe (1818-1884), chemist
• Leopold Kronecker (1823-1891), mathematician
• Ernst Eduard Kummer (1810-1893), mathematician
• Edmund Landau (1877-1938), mathematician
• Max von Laue (1879-1960), physicist
• Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz (1646-1716), mathematician
• Philipp Eduard Anton von Lenard (1862-1947), physicist
• August Leskien (1840-1916), linguist
• Justus von Liebig (1803-1873), chemist
• Otto Lilienthal (1848-1896), the aviation pioneer
• Ferdinand von Lindemann (1852-1939), mathematician
• Alexander Lippisch (1894-1976), aerodynamicist
• Johann Josef Loschmidt (1821-1895), physicist, chemist
• Reimar Lüst (born 1923), astrophysicist

M-R

• (Albertus Magnus see "A")
• Ludwig Immanuel Magnus, mathematician
• Siegfried Marcus (1831-1898), automobile pioneer
• Wilhelm Maybach (1846-1929), car-engine and automobile constructor
• Wilhelm Messerschmitt (1898-1978), Aircraft engineer
• Lothar Meyer (1830-1895), chemist
• Franz Mertens (1840-1927), mathematician
• August Ferdinand Möbius (1790-1868), mathematician, theoretical astronomer
• Johannes Müller (1801-1858), physiologist
• Walther Nernst (1864-1941), physicist
• Franz Ernst Neumann (1798-1895), mathematician
• Carl Gottfried Neumann (1832-1925), mathematician
• Claus Noé (1938-2008), economist
• Emmy Noether (1882-1935), mathematician
• Georg Ohm (1789-1854), physicist
• Wilhelm Ostwald, Nobel prize winning chemist, philosopher
• Nikolaus Otto (1832-1891), coinventor of the Otto cycle
• Bernhard Philberth (born 1927), physicist, engineer, philosopher, theologian
• Jesco von Puttkamer (born 1933), space-scientist (NASA-Manager), engineer and author
• Max Planck (1858-1947), physicist
• Bernhard Riemann (1826-1866) mathematician
• Adam Riese (1492-1559), mathematician
• Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen (1845-1923), physicist

S-V

• Carl Wilhelm Scheele (1742-1786), chemist
• Matthias Jakob Schleiden (1804-1881), botanist
• Heinrich Schliemann (1822-1890), archaeologist
• Christian Friedrich Schonbein (1799-1868), chemist
• Friedrich Hermann Schottky (1851-1935), mathematician
• Theodor Schwann (1810-1882), physiologist
• Hermann Amandus Schwarz (1843-1921), mathematician
• Karl Schwarzschild (1873-1916), physicist
• Carl Semper (1832-1893), ecologist
• Rolf Singer (1906-1994), mycologist
• Arnold Sommerfeld (1868-1951), physicist
• Eduard Adolf Strasburger (1844-1912), German-Polish professor, one of the most famous botanists of the 19th century
• Georg Steller (1709-1746), naturalist
• William Stern (1871-1938), psychologist, philosopher
• Alfred Stock (1876-1946), chemist
• Levi Strauss (1829-1902), jeans
• Werner von Siemens (1816-1892), inventor, industrialist
• Max Vasmer (1886-1962), linguist
• Rudolf Virchow (1821-1902), pioneer of medicine

W-Z

• Otto Wallach, physicist
• Hellmuth Walter (1900-1980), propulsion
• Felix Wankel (1902-1988), inventor of the Wankel engine
• Alfred Wegener (1880-1930), geologist, meteorologist
• Karl Weierstrass (1815-1897), mathematician
• August Weismann (1834-1914), biologist
• Carl Friedrich von Weizsäcker (born 1912), physicist
• Hermann Weyl (1885-1955), mathematician
• Maximilian zu Wied-Neuwied (1782-1867), zoologist
• Wilhelm Wien (1864-1928), physicist
• MieczysÅ‚aw Wolfke (1883-1947), Polish physicist of German descent
• Wilhelm Wundt (1832-1920), physiologist, psychologist
• Christian Zeller (1822-1899, Rektor; mathematician
• Ferdinand von Zeppelin (1838-1917), inventor of the Zeppelin
• Ernst Zermelo (1871-1953), mathematician
• Konrad Zuse (1910-1995), computer pioneer

Sportspersons

• Adolf Anderssen (1818-1879), chess grandmaster
• Michael Ballack (born 1976), football player
• Karin Balzer (born 1938), hurdler
• Dieter Baumann (born 1965), athlete
• Franz Beckenbauer (born 1945), football player
• Boris Becker (born 1967), tennis player
• Elly Beinhorn (born 1907), aviatrix
• Stefan Bellof (1957-1985), race car driver
• Frank Biela (born 1964), race car driver
• Oliver Bierhoff (born 1968), football player
• Heike Drechsler (born 1964), athlete
• Timo Boll, table tennis player
• Paul Breitner (born 1951), football player
• Kai Budde (born 1979), professional Magic: The Gathering player
• Bettina Bunge (born 1963), tennis player
• Rudolf Caracciola (1901-1959), race car driver
• Ursula "Uschi" Disl (born 1970), biathlete
• Christian Ehrhoff, German Olympian and NHL hockey player currently playing for the Vancouver Canucks.
• Erich Gottlieb Eliskases (1913-1997) leading chess player of the 1930s-40s, represented Austria, Germany and Argentina in international competition
• Harald Ertl (1948-1982), race car driver
• Jürgen Fanghänel (born 1951), boxer
• Rudi Fink (born 1958), boxer
• Birgit Fischer (born 1962), kayaker
• Sven Fischer (born 1971), biathlete
• Torsten Frings (born 1976), football player
• Marcel Goc, German Olympian and NHL hockey player currently playing for the Nashville Predators.
• Steffi Graf (born 1969), tennis player
• Michael Greis (born 1976), biathlete
• Michael Groß (born 1964), swimmer
• Ricco Groß (born 1970), biathlete
• Georg Hackl (born 1966), luger
• Sven Hannawald (born 1974), ski jumper
• Armin Hary (born 1937), athlete
• Nick Heidfeld (born 1977), racing driver
• Peter Hussing (born 1948), boxer
• Robert Hübner (born 1948), chess grandmaster
• Reinhold Joest (born 1937), race car driver and racing team owner
• Klaus Junge (1924-1945), one of the youngest German chess grandmasters
• Oliver Kahn (born 1969), football player
• Andy Kapp (born 1967), curler
• Jutta Kleinschmidt, rally driver
• Jürgen Klinsmann (born 1964), football player and coach
• Miroslav Klose (born 1978), football player
• Georg Koch (born 1972), football player
• Andreas Köpke (born 1962), football player (goalkeeper)
• Olaf Kölzig (born 1970), German Olympian and NHL goalie currently playing for the Tampa Bay Lightning
• Louis Krages (1949-2001), racing driver who raced under the pseudonym of "John Winter"
• Philipp Lahm (born 1983), football player
• André Lange, Bobsledding champion
• Hermann Lang (1909-1987), Champion race car driver
• Bernhard Langer (born 1957), golfer
• Emanuel Lasker (1868-1941), the second World Chess Champion (1894-1921)
• Jens Lehmann (born 1969), football player (goalkeeper)
• Ellen Lohr, racing driver
• Klaus Ludwig, racing driver
• Marion Lüttge (born 1941), javelin thrower
• Sepp Maier (born 1944), football player
• Henry Maske (born 1964), boxer
• Jochen Mass, racing driver
• Lothar Matthäus (born 1961), football player
• Georg Meier (1910-1999) Motor-Cycle Racer
• Christoph Metzelder (born 1980), football player
• Ulrike Meyfarth (born 1956), high jumper
• Rosi Mittermaier (born 1950), alpine ski champion
• Gerd Müller (born 1945), football player
• Jörg Müller, race car driver
• Petra Müller (born 1965), athlete
• Patricia Neske (born 1966), figure skater
• Gunda Niemann-Stirnemann (born 1966), speed skater
• Dirk Nowitzki (born 1978), NBA star
• Aron Nimzowitsch (1886-1935) Latvian-Danish German chess master and chess writer
• Sylke Otto (born 1969), luger
• Claudia Pechstein (born 1972), speed skater
• Uta Pippig (born 1965), athlete
• Birgit Prinz (born 1977), football player
• Lina Radke (1903-1983), athlete
• Teodor RegedziÅ„ski (aka Theodor Reger) (1894-1954) Polish chess master of German origin, fathers name was Reger
• Annegret Richter (born 1950), athlete
• Lars Riedel (born 1967), athlete
• Walter Röhrl, rally and racing driver (2-times Rally World Champion)
• Bernd Rosemeyer (1909-1938), racing driver
• Karl-Heinz Rummenigge, football player
• Max Schmeling (1905-2003), World Heavyweight Boxing Champion
• Martin Schmitt (born 1978), ski jumper
• Paul Felix Schmidt (1916-1984), an Estonian-German chess master.
• Bernd Schneider, racing driver
• Bernd Schneider,football player
• Detlef Schrempf (born 1963), former NBA star
• Rainer Schüttler, tennis player
• Michael Schumacher (born 1969), racing driver (7-times Formula One World Champion)
• Ralf Schumacher (born 1975), racing driver, brother of Michael
• Harald Schumacher (born 1954), football player
• Ralf Schumann (born 1962), pistol shooter
• Bastian Schweinsteiger (born 1984),football player
• Uwe Seeler (born 1936),football player
• Werner Seelenbinder (1904-1944), wrestler
• Katja Seizinger, alpine ski champion
• Renate Stecher (born 1950), athlete
• Michael Stich (born 1968), tennis player
• Rolf Stommelen (died 1983), racing driver
• Hans Stuck (died 1978), racing driver
• Hans Joachim Stuck, racing driver and son of Hans
• Siegbert Tarrasch (1862-1934), chess grandmaster
• Axel Teichmann (born 1979), cross-country skier
• Richard Teichmann (1868-1925), leading German chess player, easily of grandmaster strength
• Toni Turek (1919-1984), football player
• Jan Ullrich (born 1973), cyclist
• Wolfgang Unzicker (1925-2006), chess grandmaster
• Franziska van Almsick (born 1978), swimmer
• Sebastian Vettel, Formula One driver
• Berti Vogts, football player and coach
• Rudi Völler (born 1960), football player
• Ralf Waldmann, motorcycle racer
• Fritz Walter (1920-2002), football player
• Fritz Walter (born 1960), football player
• Jens Weissflog (born 1964), ski jumper
• Kati Wilhelm (born 1976), biathlete
• Joachim Winkelhock, racing driver
• Manfred Winkelhock (1951-1985), racing driver, brother of Joachim
• Katarina Witt (born 1965), figure skater
• Sigrun Wodars (born 1965), athlete
• Erik Zabel (born 1970), cyclist
• Johannes Hermann Zukertort (1842-1888), German Polish-Jewish chessmaster

Theologians, saints, beatified personsSee also List of German popes

• Heinrich Abeken (1809-1872), theologian
• Johannes Agricola (1494-1566), Protestant reformer
• Albertus Magnus, medieval philosopher and theologian
• Eusebius Amort (1692-1775)
• Pope Benedict XVI, a.k.a. Joseph Ratzinger (born 1927)
• Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945), Theologian
• Johannes Bugenhagen (1485-1558) Protestand Reformer of Pomerania and Denmark, Theologian
• Rudolf Bultmann
• Alfred Delp
• Johann Eck (1486-1543)
• Matthias Faber (1586-1653)
• Adolf Harnack (1851-1930)
• Hedwig of Andech (1174-1243)
• Johann Gottfried Herder, poet, translator, philosopher and theologian
• Dietrich von Hildebrand (1889-1977)
• Clemens August Graf von Galen, beatified, cardinal
• Adolph Kolping (1813-1865), beatified, priest
• Hans Küng
• Karl Lehmann
• Martin Luther (1483-1546), of the Protestant Reformation
• Philipp Melanchthon (1497-1560), Protestant Reformation
• Moses Mendelssohn
• Jürgen Moltmann (born 1926), theologian
• Bernhard Philberth (born 1927), physicist, engineer, philosopher, theologian
• Karl Rahner, theologian
• Friedrich Schleiermacher (1768-1834), theologian, philosopher
• Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965), musician, physician, pastor, philosopher and theologian
• Dorothee Sölle (1929-2003)
• Edith Stein (1891-1942), saint, nun, victim of Holocaust
• Carsten Peter Thiede (1952-2004), theologian, New Testament historian, chaplain
• Helmut Thielicke, theologian
• Paul Tillich, theologian, philosopher

Writers

• Ernst Moritz Arndt - poet, songwriter, and patriot
• Achim von Arnim (1781-1831), poet
• Bettina von Arnim (1785-1859), writer and novelist
• Heinrich Böll (1917-1985), author
• Bertolt Brecht (1898-1956), playwright, poet
• Clemens Brentano (1778-1842), poet and novelist
• Georg Büchner, dramatist and author
• Wilhelm Busch (1832-1908), poet and satirist
• Matthias Claudius (1740-1815), poet and writer
• Annette von Droste-Hülshoff (1797-1848), poet
• Michael Ende (1929-1995), author of fantasy novels and children's books
• Joseph von Eichendorff (1788-1857), poet
• Hans Magnus Enzensberger (born 1929), essayist and poet
• Theodor Fontane (1819-1898), novelist and poet
• Paul Gerhardt (c. 1606-1676), hymn writer
• Johann Wolfgang Goethe (1749-1832), author, poet
• Joseph Görres (1776-1848), essayist
• Günter Grass (born 1927), author, Nobel Prize in Literature 1999
• Brothers Grimm, famous collectors of fairy tales
• Peter Härtling, (born 1933), author
• Wilhelm Hauff (1802-1827), writer
• Heinrich Heine (1797-1856), poet
• Johann Gottfried Herder (1744-1803), essayist and poet
• Hermann Hesse (1877-1962), author
• Rolf Hochhuth (born 1931), playwright
• E.T.A. Hoffmann (1776-1822), author
• Friedrich Hölderlin (1770-1843), poet
• Ernst Jünger (1895-1998), writer, novelist
• Wladimir Kaminer (born 1967), short story writer
• Erich Kästner (1899-1974), novelist
• Daniel Kehlmann (born 1975), novelist
• Friedrich Kellner (1885-1970, diarist My Opposition
• Heinrich von Kleist (1777-1811), poet, dramatist, novelist
• Siegfried Lenz (born 1926), author
• Gotthold Lessing (1729-1781), writer
• Golo Mann (1909-1994), author, historian (second-oldest of Thomas Mann)
• Heinrich Mann (1871-1950), author (brother of Thomas Mann)
• Klaus Mann (1906-1949), author (oldest son of Thomas Mann)
• Thomas Mann (1875-1955), author (brother of Heinrich Mann)
• Karl May (1842-1912), author
• Christian Morgenstern (1871-1914), poet
• Friedrich de la Motte Fouqué (1777-1843), writer
• Novalis (1772-1801), poet and novelist
• Prince Hermann von Pückler-Muskau (1785-1871), writer and landscape gardener
• Wilhelm Raabe (1831-1910), novelist
• Erich Maria Remarque (1898-1970), novelist
• Rainer Maria Rilke (1875-1926), poet
• Peter Rühmkorf (1929-2008), poet
• Leopold Schefer (1784-1861), writer, poet, and composer
• Friedrich Schiller (1759-1805), poet, playwright
• August Wilhelm Schlegel (1767-1845), poet, translator
• Bernhard Schlink (born 1944), author, professor of law
• Arno Schmidt (1914-1979), writer
• Theodor Storm (1817-1888), author
• Patrick Süskind (born 1949), author, screenwriter
• Ludwig Tieck (1773-1853), poet, editor, novelist
• Kurt Tucholsky (1890-1935), writer, satirist
• Ludwig Uhland (1787-1862), poet, writer, playwright
• Martin Walser (born 1927), playwright and novelist
• Walter von der Vogelweide (c. 1170 - c. 1230), poet
• Gero von Wilpert (born 1933), essayist
• Christa Wolf (born 1929), novelist and essayist
• Wolfram von Eschenbach (died 1220), poet

Military

• Carl von Clausewitz (1780-1831), Prussian professional soldier, military historian, and influential military theorist
• Erich von Falkenhayn (1861-1922), General, Prussian Minister of War (1913-15) and Chief of General Staff (1914-16)
• August von Gneisenau (1760-1831), Prussian field marshal and chief of the Prussian General Staff (1813-14)
• Heinz Guderian (1888-1954), Military theorist and innovative General (1907-1945)
• Erich Hartmann (1922-1993), fighter pilot and air ace (1941-1970)
• Alfred Jodl (1890-1946), general, operations chief of the OKW
• Günther von Kluge (1882-1944), field marshal and commander of the Fourth Army (1939-41) and Army Group Center (1941-43)
• Erich Ludendorff (1865-1937), General and Quartermaster General (1916-18)
• Erich von Manstein (1887-1973), Field Marshal and professional soldier (1906-1944)
• Friedrich Lauther (1890-1957), General and commander of the German Sixth Army, later promoted to Field Marshal (1910-1943)
• Manfred von Richthofen, also known as the Red Baron, (1892-1918), fighter pilot and air ace
• Erwin Rommel (1891-1944), field marshal and commander of Afrika Korps (1942-43) and Army Group B (1944)
• Hans-Ulrich Rudel (1916-1982), Stuka dive-bomber pilot and air ace (1936-1945)
• Gerd von Rundstedt (1875-1953), Field Marshal and famed commander (1892-1945)
• Alfred von Schlieffen (1833-1913), Field Marshall, Strategist and Chief of General Staff (1891-1905)
• Gerhard von Scharnhorst (1755-1813), General and Prussian Minister of War (1808-10)
• Michael Wittmann (1914-1944), SS-Captain and celebrated tank ace (1934-1944)

Others

• Rodolphus Agricola (1443-1485)
• Franz Borkenau (1900-1957), social scientist
• Hugo Boss, fashion designer
• Dieter Claessens (1921-1997), sociologist
• Gudrun Ensslin (1940-1977), terrorist
• Adolf Eugen Fick, inventor of contact lenses
• Anne Frank (1929-1945), diarist and victim of the Holocaust
• Reinhard Furrer (1940-1995), astronaut
• Herschel Grynszpan
• Johann Gutenberg (c. 1390s - 1468), printer
• Hildegard von Bingen (1098-1179), abbess, mystic
• August Horch (1868-1951), car designer and manufacturer
• Karen Horney, psychoanalyst
• Heribert Illig (born 1947), historian
• Sigmund Jähn (born 1937), the first German in space
• René König (1906-1992), sociologist
• Siegfried Kracauer
• Ulrike Meinhof (1934-1976), journalist and terrorist
• Ulf Merbold (born 1941), astronaut
• Christian Frederick Martin (1796-1867), Inventor of the steel-string guitar
• Heinrich Meyerfreund, founder of Garoto, a chocolate company in Brazil
• Carl von Ossietzky (1889-1938), journalist and pacifist
• Ferdinand Porsche (1875-1951), designer and founder of Porsche
• Ferry Porsche (1909-1998), automobile designer and son of Ferdinand Porsche
• Ferdinand Alexander Porsche (born 1935), designer and member of the Porsche family
• Ferdinand Oliver Porsche (born 1961), lawyer, executive and family member of Porsche
• Ludwig Quidde (1858-1941), historian and pacifist
• Leopold von Ranke (1795-1886), historian
• Mathias Rust (born 1968), aviator who landed on Moscow's Red Square in 1987
• Helmut Schelsky (1912-1984), sociologist
• Hannelore Schmatz, mountaineer
• Sophie Scholl (1921-1943), member of the German resistance in WW2
• Heffa Schücking, environmentalist
• Albert Schweitzer (1875-1965), physician, humanitarian
• Henry Shultz (1776-1851), emigrant to USA, entrepreneur
• Edith Stein (1891-1942), nun, victim of Holocaust
• Johann Tetzel (1465-1519), monk
• Ulrich Walter (born 1954), astronaut
• Alfred Weber, sociologist
• Max Weber, sociologist
• Diedrich Hermann Westermann (1875-1956), linguist
• Adi Dassler (1900-1978), founder of Adidas