#1Famous people · Dingwall, Highland
Kate Forbes tops a list of 14 famous people born in Dingwall
Most widely known is Kate Forbes, the Scottish politician, with articles in 21 languages. The largest group, 5, was born since 1970. The list runs from George Simpson, born in 1787, to Josh Reid, born in 2002. For every 10,000 residents there are 26.5 on the list, well above the typical Highland town’s 13.2.
Born here
14
notable people
Best known
Kate Forbes
in 21 Wikipedia languages
First
1787
George Simpson
Youngest
2002
Josh Reid
Most common field
Sports
5 people
What stands out about Dingwall’s famous people
★ What stands out · Through the years
When Dingwall’s famous people were born
The busiest decade was the 1860s, with 2 births.
SportsWriting & ArtsPolitics & LawScience & MedicineBusinessFilm, TV & Stage
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
The best known
Born in Dingwall
Two of the three are leaders.
#1
#2Politics & Law
George Simpson
1787–1860Scottish colonial administrator and explorer
10 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Science & Medicine
Thomas Simpson
1808–1840Scottish arctic explorer (1808–1840)
6 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Known for
What Dingwall is known for
Set against the usual town, writers and artists come out 1.9 times as common.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Dingwall
The other 11 span the years 1860 to 2002.
John Buchanan
born 1951Scottish former professional footballer and manager, born 1951
SportsWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
The longest list nearby is Inverness’, with 210.
Questions about famous people from Dingwall
Who is the most famous person from Dingwall?
Kate Forbes (Scottish politician) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 21 languages. Next come George Simpson and Thomas Simpson.
How many famous people were born in Dingwall?
14 people born in Dingwall have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 18 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Dingwall known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 5 of the 14. That is 36% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Dingwall?
George Simpson, born in 1787. The youngest on the list was born in 2002.
Who counts as from Dingwall?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Dingwall’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 (6)
- Kate Forbes: Scottish Government, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- George Simpson: Stephen Pearce, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas Simpson: John Cook, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Colin Calder: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Karen Gillan: Pedro Heshike for Galaxy Con, CC BY 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- David Forsyth: 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.