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Famous people · Gignac, Hérault

4 famous people call Gignac their birthplace

Michel Marie Claparède, the French general, is the most widely known, written about in 7 languages. The French politician Jules Montels ranks second, ahead of Paul Pelisse. Over 100 years of births, the list goes from Michel Marie Claparède (1774) to Paul Pelisse (1874). For every 10,000 residents there are 6 on the list, well above the typical Hérault town’s 1.7.

#1 best knownMichel Marie ClaparèdeMilitary · 1774–1842
+2more
Born here
4
confirmed by Wikipedia
Best known
Michel Marie Claparède
7 Wikipedia and sister-site articles
First
1774
Michel Marie Claparède
Youngest
1874
Paul Pelisse
Most common field
Politics & Law
3 people
The best known

Born in Gignac

Leaders take two of the three places.

Michel Marie Claparède#1
Military

Michel Marie Claparède

1774–1842

French general (1774-1842)

7 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
Jules Montels#2
Politics & Law

Jules Montels

1843–1916

French politician (1843–1916)

2 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia (French) ↗
Paul Pelisse#3
Politics & Law

Paul Pelisse

1874–1938

French politician (1874–1938)

2 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia (French) ↗
Through the years

When Gignac’s famous people were born

The 1770s saw the most births of any decade: 1.

Ancien RégimeRevolution to Empire175018001850Jean CombescurePaul PelisseJules MontelsMichel Marie Claparède
Politics & LawMilitary

Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.

Known for

What Gignac is known for

Gignac has 3.2× the usual share of leaders.

The usual town: the share across everyone listed in French towns. Tap a field to see its people.

Everyone

Everyone else born in Gignac

1 more, best known first.

Next door

Famous people from the towns next door

Close by, the fullest list is Clermont-l'Hérault’s, at 7 names.

Questions about famous people from Gignac

Who is the most famous person from Gignac?

Michel Marie Claparède (French general (1774-1842)) is the best known by our measure: 7 Wikipedia and sister-site articles in different languages. Next come Jules Montels and Paul Pelisse.

How many famous people were born in Gignac?

4 people born in Gignac have a French Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace (and an English one that agrees, when there is one). Wikidata places 8 people here; the rest aren’t listed because an article names somewhere else or no town, or a check couldn’t be completed.

What is Gignac known for?

Among its famous people, leaders: 3 of the 4. That is 75% of the town’s list, against 24% across French towns.

Who is the earliest-born famous person from Gignac?

Michel Marie Claparède, born in 1774. The youngest on the list was born in 1874.

Who counts as from Gignac?

People whose Wikidata birthplace is Gignac 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 (8)

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.