- May 2 Zikmund Kolešovský, Czech composer, born in Prague, Czech Republic (d. 1868)
- May 5 George Washington Julian, American politician, U.S. House of Representatives from Indiana, born in Centerville, Indiana (d. 1899)
- May 11 Fanny Cerrito, Italian ballet dancer (d. 1909)
- May 14 Alexander Kaufmann, German poet (d. 1893)
- May 15 Debendranath Tagore, Indian religious reformer (d. 1905)
- May 18 James William Denver, American lawyer, politician and Brigadier General (Union Army), born in Winchester, Virginia (d. 1892)
- May 31 Édouard Deldevez, French violinist and composer, born in Paris (d. 1897)
- May 31 Georg Herwegh, German poet, born in Stuttgart (d. 1875)