MM#1
Politics & Law
Michel Meylan
1939–2020French politician (1939–2020)
3 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
Photo: Matti Blume · CC BY-SA 4.0Famous people · Ferney-Voltaire, Ain
From 1835 to 1939, Ferney-Voltaire was the birthplace of 4 famous people
Michel Meylan, the French politician, is the most widely known, written about in 3 languages. Second and third on the list are Adolphe Fraisse and Roland Ruet. For every 10,000 residents the town has 3.3, while at least half the towns in Ain list nobody born there. The list’s best known name, Michel Meylan, dates from 1939.
Born here
4
confirmed by Wikipedia
Best known
Michel Meylan
3 Wikipedia and sister-site articles
First
1835
Adolphe Fraisse
Youngest
1939
Michel Meylan
Most common field
Politics & Law
2 people
The best known
Born in Ferney-Voltaire
Leaders take two of the three places.
AF#2
Writing & Arts
Adolphe Fraisse
1835–1900Swiss architect (1835-1900)
3 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia (French) ↗
RR#3
Politics & Law
Roland Ruet
1921–2001French politician (1921–2001)
3 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia (French) ↗
Through the years
When Ferney-Voltaire’s famous people were born
No decade has more births than the 1930s, at 1.
Politics & LawWriting & Arts
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Known for
What Ferney-Voltaire is known for
Leaders are the most numerous, 2 of them.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed in French towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Ferney-Voltaire
1 more, best known first.
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
The best known from each town within 12 mi of Ferney-Voltaire, with how many people each has.
Ambilly · 7 miAntonin Guigonnat & 20 moreJPDivonne-les-Bains · 7 miJacqueline Porel & 4 more
Gex · 6 miAmédée Girod de l'Ain & 2 more
Prévessin-Moëns · 1 miÉmile Guers & 1 more
Thoiry · 6 miJacques Benoit-Gonnin & 1 more
Cessy · 5 miJean-Louis Girod de l'AinMTGaillard · 7 miMyriam Tanant
Veigy-Foncenex · 7 miHector IsabellaQuestions about famous people from Ferney-Voltaire
Who is the most famous person from Ferney-Voltaire?
Michel Meylan (French politician (1939–2020)) is the best known by our measure: 3 Wikipedia and sister-site articles in different languages. Next come Adolphe Fraisse and Roland Ruet.
How many famous people were born in Ferney-Voltaire?
4 people born in Ferney-Voltaire have a French Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace (and an English one that agrees, when there is one).
What is Ferney-Voltaire known for?
Among its famous people, leaders: 2 of the 4. That is 50% of the town’s list, against 24% across French towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Ferney-Voltaire?
Adolphe Fraisse, born in 1835. The youngest on the list was born in 1939.
Who counts as from Ferney-Voltaire?
People whose Wikidata birthplace is Ferney-Voltaire itself, matched by its INSEE code (a commune merged into it counts when the dates allow), whose French Wikipedia article agrees, and their English article too when they have one. A hospital or neighbourhood recorded without its commune isn’t matched. People who only lived here, adult performers and people known mainly for crimes aren’t listed.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata birthplace may be a hospital, a neighbourhood or a wider area, another commune, or missing, or their articles may not name a birthplace. We only list people the sources agree on; editing Wikidata or Wikipedia changes this page at the next refresh.
From Wikidata (CC0: birthplaces, descriptions, years, occupations, how many Wikipedia and sister-site articles cover each person) and French and English Wikipedia (each person’s articles confirm the birthplace; linked, not quoted). Birthplaces are matched to the commune by INSEE code and its history of mergers (INSEE COG 2026). Ranked by the number of articles. Fields are read from Wikidata’s description and occupations. “The usual town”: everyone listed across French towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the license below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (6)
- Antonin Guigonnat: Pavel Hrdlička (Czech Wikipedia user Packa ), CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Amédée Girod de l'Ain: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Émile Guers: Atelier Boissonnas, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Jacques Benoit-Gonnin: This illustration was made by Peter Potrowl ., CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Jean-Louis Girod de l'Ain: anonymous, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Hector Isabella: Utilisateur124, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.