JS#1
Writing & Arts
John Millington Synge
1871–1909Irish playwright, poet, prose writer, and collector of folklore (1871-1909)
57 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
Famous people · Rathfarnham, Dublin
11 famous people were born in Rathfarnham, more of them writers and artists than in most towns
With articles in 57 languages, John Millington Synge is the most widely known. Behind the leader come Edward Bulfin and James Henthorn Todd. 5 of them were born between the Union and 1870, more than in any other period. Bríd Smith, born in 1961, is the youngest, and James Henthorn Todd, born in 1805, the first on record.
Born here
11
confirmed by Wikipedia
Best known
John Millington Synge
57 Wikipedia and sister-site articles
First
1805
James Henthorn Todd
Youngest
1961
Bríd Smith
Most common field
Writing & Arts
5 people
What stands out about Rathfarnham’s famous people
★ What stands out · Known for
What Rathfarnham is known for
Set against the usual town, writers and artists come out 3.9 times as common.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed in Irish towns. Tap a field to see its people.
The best known
Born in Rathfarnham
Writers and artists take two of the three places.
#2Military
Edward Bulfin
1862–1939British Army general (1862–1939)
10 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
#3Writing & Arts
James Henthorn Todd
1805–1869Irish historian (1805–1869)
5 Wikipedia and sister-site articlesWikipedia ↗
Through the years
When Rathfarnham’s famous people were born
The 1860s saw the most births of any decade: 4.
Writing & ArtsSportsMilitaryPolitics & LawScience & MedicineFilm, TV & Stage
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Rathfarnham
Another 8, the earliest born in 1863.
William Hayes
1913–1994Irish geneticist, physician and microbiologist (1913-1994)
Science & MedicineWikipedia ↗
Barbara Woodhouse
1910–1988British animal trainer and television personality
Film, TV & StageWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
The longest list nearby is Rathmines West’s, with 18.
AHRathmines West · 4 kmAndrew Cunningham, 1st Viscount Cunningham of Hyndhope & 17 moreLDRathgar · 2 kmLaura Delany & 8 more
Dundrum · 3 kmStephen Roche & 6 moreEWTempleogue · 2 kmEllen Walshe & 4 moreDKChurchtown · 2 kmDervla Kirwan & 2 moreAMKnocklyon · 3 kmAndrew Moran & 2 moreEBTerenure · 3 kmEdmund Charles Beard & 2 more
Ballyboden · 2 kmDamien Duff
Dundrum · 3 kmStephen Roche & 6 moreEWTempleogue · 2 kmEllen Walshe & 4 moreDKChurchtown · 2 kmDervla Kirwan & 2 moreAMKnocklyon · 3 kmAndrew Moran & 2 moreEBTerenure · 3 kmEdmund Charles Beard & 2 moreBallyboden · 2 kmDamien DuffQuestions about famous people from Rathfarnham
Who is the most famous person from Rathfarnham?
John Millington Synge (Irish playwright, poet, prose writer, and collector of folklore (1871-1909)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 57 languages. Next come Edward Bulfin and James Henthorn Todd.
How many famous people were born in Rathfarnham?
11 people born in Rathfarnham have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 12 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Rathfarnham known for?
Among its famous people, writers and artists: 5 of the 11. That is 45% of the town’s list, against 12% across Irish towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Rathfarnham?
James Henthorn Todd, born in 1805. The youngest on the list was born in 1961.
Who counts as from Rathfarnham?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Rathfarnham’s neighbourhood (its Census 2022 Small Areas), a hospital or district within it included, whose English Wikipedia article agrees. People who only lived here, adult performers and people known mainly for crimes aren’t listed. In Dublin, Cork, Limerick, Galway and Waterford a birth recorded only as the city stays on the city’s page; a neighbourhood lists only people recorded as born in it.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata birthplace may be a county or just “Ireland”, a townland or village we don’t list, another town, or missing, or their article may give no birthplace. We only list people both 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 English Wikipedia (each person’s article confirms the birthplace; linked, not quoted). A birthplace is placed in a town by its own Wikidata item, its Logainm place name, or a point inside its CSO 2022 outline; a birth recorded only as one of the five cities stays on the city’s page. Ranked by the number of articles. Fields are read from Wikidata’s description and occupations. “The usual town”: everyone listed across Irish towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (6)
- Edward Bulfin: James McBey, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- James Henthorn Todd: Stephen Catterson Smith the younger, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Bríd Smith: Houses of the Oireachtas, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Herbert Scaping: David Wright, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Stephen Roche: Eric HOUDAS, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Damien Duff: Mikhail Slain, CC BY-SA 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
Contains Central Statistics Office (CSO) data, Census 2022, and Tailte Éireann boundaries (CSO Urban Areas, Small Areas, local electoral areas, constituencies), under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 (CC BY 4.0).