#1Writing & Arts
J. M. Barrie
1860–1937Scottish writer and playwright (1860–1937)
100 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Famous people · Kirriemuir, Angus
J. M. Barrie leads the 12 famous people born in Kirriemuir
J. M. Barrie, the Scottish writer and playwright, has articles in 100 languages. Behind the leader come Scott McKenna and William Kermack. In the Victorian era, 5 were born, the most of any period. For its size the list is short: 20 for every 10,000 residents, against 30.7 in the typical Angus town.
Born here
12
notable people
Best known
J. M. Barrie
in 100 Wikipedia languages
First
1808
James Aitken Wylie
Youngest
1996
Scott McKenna
Most common field
Sports
3 people
What stands out about Kirriemuir’s famous people
★ What stands out · The best known
Born in Kirriemuir
First, J. M. Barrie (100 languages), then Scott McKenna (32) and William Kermack (8).
#1SM#2
Sports
Scott McKenna
born 1996Scottish association football player (born 1996)
32 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
WK#3
Science & Medicine
William Kermack
1898–1970British biochemist and epidemiologist
8 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Through the years
When Kirriemuir’s famous people were born
The busiest decade was the 1890s, with 2 births.
SportsFaithWriting & ArtsScience & MedicinePolitics & LawMusic
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Known for
What Kirriemuir is known for
Ministers and preachers stand out most, at 14.2 times the usual share.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Kirriemuir
9 more, from 1808 to 1932.
Mary Davidson Gunn
1899–1989South African librarian and biographer (1899–1989)
Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
James Aitken Wylie
1808–1890Scottish Presbyterian minister and historian of religion (1808–1890)
FaithWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Around it, Forfar has the most people on record, 52 of them.
Questions about famous people from Kirriemuir
Who is the most famous person from Kirriemuir?
J. M. Barrie (Scottish writer and playwright (1860–1937)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 100 languages. Next come Scott McKenna and William Kermack.
How many famous people were born in Kirriemuir?
12 people born in Kirriemuir have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 14 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Kirriemuir known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 3 of the 12. That is 25% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Kirriemuir?
James Aitken Wylie, born in 1808. The youngest on the list was born in 1996.
Who counts as from Kirriemuir?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Kirriemuir’s locality (the NRS 2022 locality boundary), 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.
Why is someone missing?
Their Wikidata birthplace may be a bigger area (“London”), 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) and English Wikipedia (each person’s article confirms the birthplace; linked, not quoted). Birthplaces are placed in the town by National Records of Scotland’s Census 2022 locality boundaries (Open Government Licence v3.0). Ranked by how many Wikipedia languages cover each person. Fields are read from Wikidata’s description and occupations. “The usual town”: everyone listed across UK towns. Portraits: each person’s Wikidata image, from Wikimedia Commons under the licence below (our copy, resized).
Photo credits (5)
- J. M. Barrie: Herbert Rose Barraud, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Mary Davidson Gunn: SANBI-Adela Romanowski, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Alexander Whyte: John Moffat, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- James Aitken Wylie: Hill & Adamson, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Bon Scott: Elfast, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
Contains public sector information licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Contains HM Land Registry data © Crown copyright and database right 2026. Contains OS data © Crown copyright and database right 2026 (ONS boundaries). Northern Ireland: Source: NISRA; contains Land & Property Services data and Ordnance Survey of Northern Ireland information, © Crown copyright, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0. Scotland: contains National Records of Scotland data, Registers of Scotland data and SEPA data, © Crown copyright / © SEPA 2025, licensed under the Open Government Licence v3.0.