- Jan 9 Gregory XV [Alessandro Ludovisi], Italian Catholic pope (1621-23) and Archbishop of Bologna, born in Bologna, Papal States (now Italy) (d. 1623)
- Jan 20 King Sebastian of Portugal (d. 1578)
- Mar 26 Charles, Duke of Mayenne, French military leader, born in Alençon, France (d. 1611)
- Mar 27 Eberhard Bronchorst, Dutch lawyer, born in Deventer, Netherlands (d. 1627)
- May 20 Paolo Bellasio, Italian composer, born in Verona, Republic of Venice (now Italy) (d. 1594)
- Jul 5 Elisabeth of Austria, Queen consort of France (1570-74), born in Vienna, Austria (d. 1592)
- Nov 30 Philip Sidney, English Elizabethan era poet (Arcadia) and soldier, born in Penshurst, Kent, England (d. 1586)
- Dec 17 Ernest of Bavaria, Prince-elector-archbishop of the Archbishopric of Cologne, born in Munich (d. 1612)
- Dec 19 Philip William, Prince of Orange (1584) and Knight of the Golden Fleece (1599), born in Buren, Gelderland (d. 1618)
Year of the Rat
Year of the Ox
Year of the Tiger
Year of the Rabbit
Year of the Dragon
Year of the Snake