- 1048 Emperor Shenzong of China (d. 1085)
- 1334 Emperor Sukō, Japanese Emperor of the Northern Court (1348-51)(d. 1398)
- 1458 Mahmud Begada, Sultan of Gujarat (d. 1511)
- 1494 Jacopo Pontormo II, Italian painter (Sepulture of Christ)
- 1550 Camillus de Lellis, Italian soldier/monastery founder/saint
- 1606 Charles Garnier, French Jesuit missionary (d. 1649)
- 1661 Claude Buffier, French philosopher and historian (d. 1737)
- 1713 John Stuart, 3rd earl of Bute, English premier (1760-63)
- 1725 Samuel Ward, American politician (d. 1776)
- 1729 Jean de Neufville, Dutch/US merchant (started 4th English war)
- 1779 Henry M Baron de Kock, Dutch officer/politician
- 1781 Ferdinand K J, archduke of Austria-Este/gov-gen (Sicily)
- 1783 Philip Pendleton Barbour, Virginia politician and U.S. Supreme Court justice (d. 1841)
Ralph Waldo Emerson
1803 Ralph Waldo Emerson, American essayist/philosopher (Concord Hymn), born in Boston, Massachusetts
Ralph Waldo Emerson
- 1818 Jacob Burckhardt, Swiss cultural historian
- 1830 Jules de Geyter, Belgian poet (International)
- 1839 John Eliot, English meteorologist
- 1846 Princess Helena of the United Kingdom, daughter of Queen Victoria (d. 1923)
- 1846 Naim Frashëri, Albanian poet and writer(d. 1900)
- 1847 John Alexander Dowie, [Elijah the Restorer], American evangelist
- 1856 Louis Franchet d'Espèrey, French general (d. 1942)
- 1860 James McKeen Cattell, American psychologist (d. 1944)
- 1865 Frederick Augustus III, King of Saxon (1904-18)
- 1865 John Raleigh Mott, organizer (YMCA, Nobel 1946)
- 1865 Pieter Zeeman, Dutch physicist (Zeeman effect, Nobel Prize 1902), born in Zonnemaire, Schouwen-Duiveland
- 1879 William Maxwell Aitken, Lord Beaverbrook, Canadian English newspaper publisher (Daily Express), born in Maple, Ontario (d. 1964)
- 1880 Jean Alexandre Barré, French neurologist who helped identify the Guillain-Barré-Strohl syndrome, born in Nantes, France (d. 1967)
- 1883 Elsa Maxwell, American writer (Jack Paar Show), born in Keokuk, Iowa (d. 1963)
- 1886 Philip Murray, founded Congress of Industrial Organizations (CIO)
- 1886 Rash Behari Bose, leader against the British Raj in India (d. 1945)
- 1887 Pio of Pietrelcina, Catholic saint (d. 1968)
Igor Sikorsky
1889 Igor Sikorsky, Russian-American pioneer of aviation in both helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft, born in Kiev, Ukraine (d. 1972)
Igor Sikorsky
- 1891 Robert W P Peereboom, Dutch editor in chief (Haarlem Newspaper)
- 1894 Dirk Vansina, Flemish playwright (Verschaeve Gives Evidence)
- 1896 Jan N Bakhuizen van den Brink, theologist/church historian
- 1898 Bennett Cerf, publisher (Random House) panelist (What's My Line)
- 1898 Gustav Regler, German writer, born in Merzig (d. 1963)
- 1900 Alain Grandbois, French Canadian poet (d. 1975)
- 1907 U Nu, Wakema, Myaungmya District, 1st Prime Minister of Burma (1948-56, 1960-62)
- 1908 Theodore Roethke, American poet (Words for the Wind)
- 1909 Alfred Kubel, German politician (d. 1999)
- 1910 Ernest Anderson, publicist
- 1912 Princess Dukhye of Korea (d. 1989)
- 1913 Joseph Peter Grace, businessman
- 1915 Daniel Wolf, journalist
- 1916 Lou van Rees, Dutch impresario [or May 29]
- 1923 John Weitz, spy/author/fashion designer (Friends in High Places)
- 1927 Robert Ludlum, American spy novelist (Bourne Identity), born in NYC, New York
- 1928 Mary Tuck, social researcher/civil servant
- 1929 David S Ruder, 23rd chairman of Security & Exchange Commission
- 1930 Sonia Rykiel, French fashion designer, born in Paris (d. 2016)
- 1931 Aili Jõgi, Estonian freedom fighter
- 1932 Georgi Mikhailovich Grechko, USSR, cosmonaut (Soyuz 17, 26, T-14)
- 1932 John Grogery Dunne, American writer (Up Close & Personal, True Confessions)
- 1934 David J Burke, writer, born in Liverpool, England
- 1934 Ron Nesson, press secretary (Gerald Ford)
- 1938 Raymond Carver, poet/short story writer (Furious Season)
- 1943 Sally Jesse Raphael, TV talk show host (Sally) [or Feb 25]
- 1943 Wynand C Malan, South African lawyer/NP/DP-politician
- 1944 Robert Michael Payton, pizza magnate
- 1944 Robert MacPherson, American mathematician
- 1945 Dave Lee Travis [David Griffin], British DJ and presenter (Top of the Pops], convicted of indecent assault, born in Buxton, Derbyshire
- 1946 Janet E[llen] Morris, American sci-fi author (Golden Sword, Tempus)
- 1946 Tommy Cecil, Irish ferryman, born Rathlin Island, County Antrim (d. 1997)
- 1946 David A. Hargrave, RPG designer
- 1947 Mitch Margo, American rocker (The Tokens, The Lion Sleeps Tonight), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 2017)
- 1949 Jamaica Kincaid, [Elaine P Richardson], Antigua/US journalist (NYer)
- 1952 Al Sarrantonio, American writer
- 1952 Gordon Smith, American politician
- 1952 Jeffrey Bewkes, American media executive
- 1953 Jane Priest, Prince Charles' lover, born in Perth, Australia
- 1953 Eve Ensler, American playwright
- 1953 Stan Sakai, Japanese-American cartoonist (Usagi Yojimbo)
- 1954 Alison Stern, wife of radio personality Howard Stern (Private Parts)
- 1955 Alistair Burt, British politician
- 1957 Edward Lee, American writer
- 1958 Dorothy Straight, 4 year old author (How World Begun)
- 1959 Manolis Kefalogiannis, Greek politician
- 1960 Amy Klobuchar, American politician (D), senator for Minnesota (2007-), born in Plymouth, Minnesota
- 1964 Ivan Bella, Slovak cosmonaut
- 1965 Yahya Jammeh, Gambian dictator (1994-2017), born in Kanilai, Gambia
- 1966 Princess Laurentien of the Netherlands
- 1967 Poppy Z. Brite [Billy Martin], American author (Lost Souls, Drawing Blood), born in Bowling Green, Kentucky
- 1969 Stacy London, American fashion consultant
- 1970 Michael B Enyaer, writer (Pilot One)
- 1970 Satsuki Yukino, Seiyuu
- 1971 Marco Cappato, Italian politician
- 1973 Daz Dillinger, American hip-hop performer
- 1977 Giel Beelen, Dutch radio DJ
- 1979 Carlos Bocanegra, American footballer
- 1993 Dilley sextuplets, American sextuplets
May in History
Memories of Elvis
Only one actor has appeared on film with both the Beatles and Elvis Presley: the little-known Norman Rossington.
May 21, 1999
President Falls From Grace
Paul Deschanel had the makings of a fine President of France – until a series of bizarre incidents culminated in him falling out the window of a moving train.
May 23, 1920
Ship that Changed the Face of Britain
Britain was on its knees after the Second World War, its economy and infrastructure in tatters. For help the Mother Country turned to the Commonwealth.
May 27, 1948
A Modern Major-General of Light Entertainment
William Gilbert, celebrated as the unique lyricist behind the highly popular Gilbert and Sullivan comic operas, met his death in highly unexpected circumstances.
May 29, 1911