#1Faith
John Duns Scotus
1266–1308Priest, friar, philosopher, theologian, college teacher
78 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
Famous people · Duns, Scottish Borders
18 famous people were born in Duns, more of them writers and artists than in most towns
With articles in 78 languages, John Duns Scotus is the most widely known. The largest group, 7, was born in the Georgian era. Births span 1266 to 1971, from John Duns Scotus to Steve Brotherstone. Per head, the list is long: 57.7 for every 10,000 residents, where the typical town in Scottish Borders has 35.1.
Born here
18
notable people
Best known
John Duns Scotus
in 78 Wikipedia languages
First
1266
John Duns Scotus
Youngest
1971
Steve Brotherstone
Most common field
Writing & Arts
5 people
What stands out about Duns’ famous people
★ What stands out · The best known
Born in Duns
By how many languages cover them, John Duns Scotus comes first (78), then Thomas Boston (11) and Abraham Robertson (4).
#1
#2Faith
Thomas Boston
1676–1732Scottish church leader, theologian and philosopher
11 Wikipedia languagesRead more ↗
AR#3
Known for
What Duns is known for
The field furthest above the usual share is writers and artists, at 2.4 times.
The usual town: the share across everyone listed across UK towns. Tap a field to see its people.
Through the years
When Duns’s famous people were born
No decade has more births than the 1900s, at 4.
Writing & ArtsSportsScience & MedicineNotableFaith
Each dot is a person, stacked by the decade they were born.
Everyone
Everyone else born in Duns
15 more, 5 of them writers and artists.
Thomas M'Crie
1772–1835Scottish historian, writer, and preacher; (1772-1835)
Writing & ArtsWikipedia ↗
Robert Craik
1812–1867NotableWikipedia ↗
No one matches both filters.
Next door
Famous people from the towns next door
The best known from each town within 12 miles of Duns, with how many people each has.
Questions about famous people from Duns
Who is the most famous person from Duns?
John Duns Scotus (priest, friar, philosopher, theologian, college teacher) is the best known by our measure: Wikipedia has an article about them in 78 languages. Next come Thomas Boston and Abraham Robertson.
How many famous people were born in Duns?
18 people born in Duns have an English Wikipedia article that confirms the town as their birthplace. Wikidata places 21 people here; the rest aren’t listed because their article names somewhere else, or no town.
What is Duns known for?
Among its famous people, writers and artists: 5 of the 18. That is 28% of the town’s list, against 12% across UK towns.
Who is the earliest-born famous person from Duns?
John Duns Scotus, born in 1266. The youngest on the list was born in 1971.
Who counts as from Duns?
People Wikidata records as born in a place inside Duns’ 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)
- John Duns Scotus: Justus van Gent / Pedro Berruguete, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas Boston: Robert Scott, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- John Black: William Henry Worthington, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Thomas M'Crie: Sir John Watson Gordon, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Robert Ainslie: Professor Wilson. 1874, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
- Stephen Hislop: David Octavius Hill, Public domain, Wikimedia Commons
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