DD#1
Famous people · Burntisland, Fife
Burntisland’s famous people span 166 years: 11 births from 1752 to 1918
Most widely known is David Danskin, the Scottish footballer, with articles in 11 languages. Bob Bonthron is second and Robert Boog Watson third. 5 of them were born in the Georgian era, more than in any other period. The list’s best known name, David Danskin, dates from 1863.
Born here
11
notable people
Best known
David Danskin
in 11 Wikipedia languages
First
1752
Robert Pitcairn
Youngest
1918
Tom Mackie
Most common field
Sports
5 people
What stands out about Burntisland’s famous people
★ What stands out · Through the years
When Burntisland’s famous people were born
The 1880s alone account for 3 of the births charted here.
SportsWriting & ArtsPolitics & LawMilitaryScience & Medicine
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Burntisland
Athletes take two of the three places.
BB#2
RW#3
Politics & Law
Robert Boog Watson
1823–1910Scottish malacologist and minister of the Free Church of Scotland (1823–1910)
5 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Known for
What Burntisland is known for
Writers and artists stand out most, at 2.4 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 Burntisland
Here are 8 more, born from 1752 to 1918.
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
Kirkcaldy and Dysart has the longest list next door: 192.
Kirkcaldy and Dysart · 5 miAdam Smith & 191 more
Dunfermline · 8 miAndrew Carnegie & 185 more
Cowdenbeath and Lumphinnans · 6 miJim Baxter & 49 more
Lochgelly · 5 miAlexander Wood & 21 moreSGInverkeithing · 7 miSamuel Greig & 7 more
Kelty · 8 miStephen Husband & 5 moreDPBallingry · 8 miDavid Pratt & 5 moreBBCrossgates · 5 miBob Birrell & 1 moreQuestions about famous people from Burntisland
Who is the most famous person from Burntisland?
David Danskin (Scottish footballer (1863-1948)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 11 languages. Next come Bob Bonthron and Robert Boog Watson.
How many famous people were born in Burntisland?
11 people born in Burntisland have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace.
What is Burntisland known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 5 of the 11. That is 45% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Burntisland?
Robert Pitcairn, born in 1752. The youngest on the list was born in 1918.
Who counts as from Burntisland?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Burntisland’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 (7)
- Henry Brougham Farnie: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Percival Lancaster: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Adam Smith: Etching created by Cadell and Davies (1811), John Horsburgh (1828) or R.C. Bell (1872)., Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Andrew Carnegie: Theodore C. Marceau, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Jim Baxter: Paul McIlroy, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Alexander Wood: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Stephen Husband: Ceaton89, CC BY-SA 3.0, 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.