#1Famous people · Wantage, Oxfordshire
Wantage, birthplace of Alfred the Great and 15 more famous people
102 languages have an article about the king of Wessex Alfred the Great. In the 20th century, 9 were born, the most of any period. Only 8 of the 68 towns in Oxfordshire with anyone on record list more. From Alfred the Great to Leigh Bedwell, the births on the list run from 849 to 1994.
Born here
16
notable people
Best known
Alfred the Great
in 102 Wikipedia languages
First
849
Alfred the Great
Youngest
1994
Leigh Bedwell
Most common field
Sports
6 people
What stands out about Wantage’s famous people
★ What stands out · The best known
Born in Wantage
Counted by languages, Alfred the Great is ahead of Joseph Butler and Frances O'Connor: 102, 34 and 28.
#1
#2Faith
Joseph Butler
1692–1752English bishop and philosopher (1692–1752)
34 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
#3Through the years
When Wantage’s famous people were born
The 1960s alone account for 3 of the births charted here.
SportsPolitics & LawFaithScience & MedicineFilm, TV & StageWriting & ArtsNotable
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Known for
What Wantage is known for
The field furthest above the usual share is leaders, at 2.1 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Wantage
Here are 13 more, born from 1831 to 1994.
John Harris
1874–1940British politician (1874-1940), anti-slavery campaigner
Politics & LawWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
The longest list nearby is Harwell’s, with 2.
Questions about famous people from Wantage
Who is the most famous person from Wantage?
Alfred the Great (king of Wessex (r. 872–901)) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 102 languages. Next come Joseph Butler and Frances O'Connor.
How many famous people were born in Wantage?
16 people born in Wantage have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 20 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Wantage known for?
Among its famous people, athletes: 6 of the 16. That is 38% of the town’s list, against 49% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Wantage?
Alfred the Great, born in 849. The youngest on the list was born in 1994.
Who counts as from Wantage?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Wantage’s built-up area (the ONS 2022 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 the ONS 2022 built-up-area boundary (Office for National Statistics, 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 (12)
- Alfred the Great: CNG - Classical Numismatic Group, CC BY-SA 2.5, Wikimedia Commons
- Joseph Butler: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Frances O'Connor: Robert Connolly, CC BY-SA 2.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Lester Piggott: Ragge Strand / Bjørn Fjørtoft / Rolf Engesland, CC BY 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Mike Parker Pearson: H-stt, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Caroline Voaden: ©House of Commons, CC BY 3.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Theodore Andrea Cook: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Henry Hayward: Mary Rischgitz (died 1939), Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Colin Wilson: Royal Society uploader, CC BY-SA 4.0, Wikimedia Commons
- Job Caudwell: Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Jane Austen: Cassandra Austen, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Empress Matilda: PurpleHz, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
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