List of Swiss people
This is a list of people associated with the modern Switzerland and the Old Swiss Confederacy. Regardless of ethnicity or emigration, the list includes notable natives of Switzerland and its predecessor states as well as people who were born elsewhere but spent most of their active life in Switzerland. For more information see the articles Swiss people and Demographics of Switzerland.
Archaeology
- Eric Breuer, archaeologist
- Ferdinand Keller, archaeologist
- Heinrich Menu von Minutoli, archaeologist
- Jean-Marc Moret, archaeologist and art historian
- Fritz Puempin, archeologist and painter
- Karl Schefold, classical archaeologist
Architecture
- Adolphe Appia, architect and scenic designer
- Hans Auer, known for his design of the Federal Palace
- Erwin Friedrich Baumann, architect and sculptor
- Hans Benno Bernoulli, architect
- Melchior Berri, architect
- Max Bill, architect, artist, designer
- Francesco Borromini, architect in Italy
- Mario Botta, architect
- :it:Paolo Bürgi|Paolo Bürgi, landscape architect
- Le Corbusier , architect
- Ernst Cramer, renowned garden architect
- Justus Dahinden, architect, professor
- Albert Frey, architect
- Domenico Fontana, architect in Rome
- Carlo Fontana, architect in Italy
- Domenico Gilardi, architect charged with rebuilding Moscow after 1812
- Jacques Herzog, architect
- Jost Franz Huwyler-Boller, hotel architect
- Pierre Jeanneret, architect
- William Lescaze
- Carlo Maderno, architect in Italy
- Pierre de Meuron, architect
- Hannes Meyer, architect, director of the Bauhaus Dessau
- Flora Steiger-Crawford, first woman architect to graduate in Switzerland
- Domenico Trezzini, architect in Saint Petersburg
- Bernard Tschumi, architect associated with Deconstructivism
- Peter Zumthor, winner of the 2009 Pritzker Prize
Actors
- Ursula Andress, actress
- Giuseppe Bausilio, performs on Broadway in the titular role of Billy in the Tony-award-winning musical Billy Elliot
- Jean-Luc Bideau, comedian
- Dimitri, clown
- Annemarie Düringer, film, television and stage actress
- Bruno Ganz, actor
- Kat Graham, actress, singer, model
- Viktor Giacobbo, actor and comedian
- Mathias Gnädinger, actor
- Curt Goetz, actor and film director
- Grock, clown
- Gardi Hutter, clown, entertainer and actress
- Rebecca Indermaur, actress
- Irène Jacob, actress
- Marthe Keller, actress and opera director
- Mathis Künzler, film, television and stage actor
- Max Loong, actor and producer
- Vincent Pérez, actor and director
- Liselotte Pulver
- Maximilian Schell, actor and producer
- Michel Simon, actor and comedian
- Emil Steinberger, comedian
Art
- Jacques-Laurent Agasse, painter
- Cuno Peter Amiet
- Thomas Ammann, art dealer and collector
- Albert Anker
- Jean Arcelin, painter
- Jean Arp, sculptor, painter and poet
- René Auberjonois, painter
- John Bernhard, photographer
- François Bocion, painter
- Arnold Böcklin, painter
- Karl Bodmer, painter of the American West
- Ferdinand Brader, folk art sketch artist of rural farm life in USA
- Mark Staff Brandl, painter, installation artist, and critic
- Sonam Dolma Brauen, Swiss-Tibetan sculptor and painter
- Frank Buchser, painter
- Alexandre Calame, painter
- Jean Crotti, painter
- Adèle d'Affry, artist and sculptor
- Jean Dunand, decorative artist, sculptor
- Hans Erni
- Fischli & Weiss, artist duo
- Adrian Frutiger, typeface designer
- Henry Fuseli , painter
- Johann Caspar Füssli, portrait painter
- Johann Kaspar Füssli, entomologist
- Karl Gerstner, graphic designer and painter
- Salomon Gessner
- Alberto Giacometti, sculptor, painter
- H. R. Giger, illustrator
- Anton Graff, painter
- Eugène Grasset, decorative artist
- Willi Gutmann, sculptor
- Stefan Haenni, painter
- Andreas Heusser, conceptual artist and curator
- Ferdinand Hodler, painter
- Max Huber, graphic designer
- Robert Indermaur, painter and sculptor
- Angelica Kauffman, painter
- Jorg Khun, wildlife artist and illustrator
- Paul Klee, painter
- Rudolf Koller, painter
- Rosa Lachenmeier, contemporary artist
- Catherine Leutenegger, visual artist
- Albert "Lindi" Lindegger, illustrator and painter
- Rochus Lussi, artist
- Niklaus Manuel, painter
- Auguste de Niederhausern-Rodo, sculptor
- Sibylle Pasche, sculptor
- Roger Pfund, painter, graphic designer
- James Pradier, sculptor
- Oskar Reinhart, collector
- Iris von Roten-Meyer, lawyer and artist
- Jacques Sablet, painter
- Niki de Saint Phalle, sculptor, became Swiss in 1971
- Peter Schweri, painter, illustrator
- Nadja Sieger, comedian, actress, jazz-vocalist, known as Nadeschkin
- Gerold Späth, Swiss poet and writer
- Théophile Steinlen, painter and printmaker
- Harald Szeemann, curator
- Sophie Taeuber-Arp, painter, sculptor
- Myriam Thyes, new media artist
- Jean Tinguely, kinetic artist
- Rodolphe Toepffer
- Félix Vallotton, painter
- Isabelle Waldberg, sculptor
- Ricco Wassmer, painter
- Marianne von Werefkin, painter
Aviation
- Oskar Bider, aviation pioneer
- Alfred Comte, pilot, co-director Ad Astra Aero, engineer
- Armand Dufaux
- Henri Dufaux
- Ernest Failloubaz, pilot, instructor, Swiss pilot's brevet number 1
- René Grandjean, pilot, engineer
- Else Haugk, first Swiss woman to earn a pilot's licence in May 1914
- Walter Mittelholzer, pilot, director of Ad Astra Aero, Swissair
- Claude Nicollier, pilot, astronaut
- Bertrand Piccard, psychiatrist, balloonist, founder and pilot of Solar Impulse
- Yves Rossy, pilot, "jet-man"
- Eduard Spelterini, balloonist
- Emile Taddéoli, pilot, Swiss pilot's brevet number 2, chief pilot on seaplanes Ad Astra Aero
Business
- Carl Franz Bally, founder of the Bally Shoe company
- Ernesto Bertarelli, entrepreneur, founder of Team Alinghi
- Daniel Borel, founder of Logitech
- Abraham-Louis Breguet, watchmaker
- François-Louis Cailler, chocolatier
- Arthur Chevrolet, automobile engineer, race car driver, entrepreneur
- Louis Chevrolet, automobile engineer, race car driver, founder of Chevrolet
- Raphael H. Cohen, serial entrepreneur and business angel
- Gottlieb Duttweiler, entrepreneur, founder of Migros
- Alfred Escher, statesman, businessman and railway constructor
- Hans Conrad Escher von der Linth, architect of the Lint melioration
- Louis Favre, engineer of the Gotthard tunnel
- Nessim Gaon, financier, founder of the Noga company
- Adolf Guyer-Zeller, railway entrepreneur
- Nicolas Hayek, entrepreneur, chairman, Swatch Group
- Pierre Hemmer, one of the Internet pioneers in Switzerland
- Baron Jean-Conrad Hottinguer, banker
- Jürg Marquard, magazine publisher
- Henri Nestlé, founder of Nestlé S.A.
- Daniel Peter, inventor of milk chocolate
- Georges Edouard Piaget, watchmaker
- Beat Fischer von Reichenbach, held postal monopoly in Berne
- Werner Reinhart, industrialist, philanthropist, music and literature patron
- Philippe Suchard, chocolatier, involved in slavery
- Ernst Thomke in Biel/Bienne, turnaround manager, e.g. Swatch
Dancers
- Giuseppe Bausilio, performs on Broadway in the titular role in the Tony-award-winning musical Billy Elliot
- Flore Revalles, principal dancer with Ballets Russes c. 1915–1918
Filmmakers
- Arthur Cohn, film producer, received six Oscars
- Marc Forster, film director, Monster's Ball, Finding Neverland, and the James Bond movie Quantum of Solace
- Jean-Luc Godard, director, screenwriter and critic
- Claude Goretta, director
- Moritz de Hadeln, director, film festival director
- Markus Imhoof, director
- Xavier Koller, director
- Fred Roy Krug, American producer, director
- Daniel Schmid, director
- Alain Tanner, director
Mathematics
- Paul Bernays, made significant contributions to mathematical logic, axiomatic set theory, and the philosophy of mathematics
- Daniel Bernoulli, mathematician and physicist
- Jakob Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician
- Johann Bernoulli, Swiss mathematician
- Daniel Bleichenbacher, mathematician and cryptographer
- Armand Borel, mathematician
- Leonhard Euler, mathematician and geometer
- Hugo Hadwiger, mathematician
- Edward Kofler, mathematician
- Konrad Osterwalder, mathematician and physicist
- Michel Plancherel, mathematician
- Georges de Rham, mathematician
- Ludwig Schläfli, mathematician
- Jakob Steiner, mathematician and physicist
- Ernst Specker, mathematician
- Eduard Stiefel, mathematician
Military
- Pierre Victor Besenval de Bronstatt
- Guillaume-Henri Dufour, General, geographer
- Henri Guisan, General during World War II
- Hans Herzog, General 1870–1871
- Antoine-Henri Jomini, General, military writer
- Christophe Keckeis, Chief of the Armed Forces
- Elmar Mäder, commander of the Swiss Guard
- Pius Segmüller, commander of the Swiss Guard
- Theophil Sprecher von Bernegg
- Ulrich Wille, General during WWI, sympathiser of the german Emperor
Music
- Mia Aegerter, pop musician
- Martin Eric Ain, Celtic Frost bassist
- Ernest Ansermet, conductor
- Lys Assia, singer
- Chiara Banchini, violinist, conductor
- Rene Baumann, musician, dancer, known as DJ Bobo
- Bertrand Bitz, singer and songwriter
- Daniel Boemle, DJ and radio personality
- Urs Bühler, tenor, member of Il Divo
- Dominik Burkhalter, bandleader, composer, drummer
- Caroline Charrière, composer, flautist, choir director, educator
- Michel Corboz, conductor
- Rachel Kolly d'Alba, solo violinist
- Emile Jaques-Dalcroze, musician, educator, developer of Eurhythmics
- Philippe Decourroux, Christian singer and drummer
- Henri Dès, singer and songwriter
- Andy Egert, blues guitarist, singer and songwriter
- Electroboy, electronic music producer
- Edwin Fischer, pianist and conductor
- Thomas Gabriel Fischer, Celtic Frost guitarist, singer
- Peter Giger, percussionist and bandleader
- Peter-Lukas Graf, conductor
- Ernst Haefliger, tenor
- Heinz Holliger, oboist
- Arthur Honegger, composer
- Philippe Huttenlocher, bass
- Rahel Indermaur, opera singer
- Christian Jacob, jazz pianist
- Michael Jarrell, composer
- Daniel Kandlbauer, pop musician and MusicStars contestant
- Kuno Lauener, lead singer of Bernese rock band Züri West
- Carlos Leal, rapper and actor; best known as a member of the hip-hop group Sens Unik
- Pepe Lienhard, band leader and saxophone player
- Frank Martin, composer
- Mani Matter, singer
- Jojo Mayer, drummer
- Dieter Meier, singer of electronica band Yello, which had hits "Oh Yeah" and "The Race"
- Mandy Meyer, guitarist, played in bands Asia, Gotthard and Krokus
- Patrick Moraz, keyboardist with Yes and Moody Blues
- Paolo Pandolfo, violist
- Zlatko Perica, better known as "Slädu", played guitar in bands as Tangerine Dream or Gölä
- Carlos Perón, producer and former singer of electronica band Yello
- Werner Reinhart, industrialist, philanthropist, music and literature patron
- Othmar Schoeck, composer
- Ludwig Senfl, Renaissance composer
- Marc Storace, Maltese-Swiss rock vocalist and songwriter; best known as singer of hard rock band Krokus
- Eric Tappy, tenor
- Martin Tillman, film music composer
- Tina Turner, singer, dancer and actress
- Silvio Varviso, conductor, especially of opera
- Andreas Vollenweider, Grammy award-winning harpist
- Chris von Rohr, musician and producer; best known as bassist of hard rock band Krokus
- August Wenzinger, cellist, violist, pioneer of early music performance
- Roland Zoss, rock poetry musician
- Alberich Zwyssig, priest, composer of the Swiss Psalm
Philosophy
- Henri Frédéric Amiel, philosopher and poet
- Richard Avenarius, formulated the radical positivist doctrine of "empirical criticism"
- Peter Bieri, philosopher, author
- Benjamin Constant
- Jeanne Hersch, philosopher
- Henri Lauener, philosopher
- Dominik Perler, philosopher
- Hans A. Pestalozzi, social critic
- Alexandru Şafran, rabbi and philosopher
Psychology and pedagogy
- Peter Baumann, psychiatrist
- Ludwig Binswanger, psychologist
- Eugen Bleuler, psychiatrist
- Carl Gustav Jung, founder of analytical psychology
- Emma Jung, psychoanalyst and author
- Elisabeth Kübler-Ross, psychiatrist, pioneer in near-death studies
- Max Lüscher, inventor of the Lüscher color test
- Richard Meili, psychologist
- Johann Heinrich Pestalozzi, pedagogue
- Oskar Pfister, psychologist and pastor
- Jean Piaget, psychologist
- Hermann Rorschach, psychiatrist and psychoanalyst
Politics
- Rosa Bloch-Bollag, socialist and marxist activist
- Rudolf Brun, first mayor of Zurich
- Gaudenz Canova
- Étienne Clavière
- Joseph Deiss, Federal Councilor, President of the United Nations General Assembly
- Élie Ducommun, 1902 Nobel Peace Prize
- Henri Dunant, Founder of the Red Cross 1901 Nobel Peace Prize
- Nicholas of Flüe, diplomat, hermit, Catholic saint
- Albert Gallatin, US Secretary of the Treasury, diplomat
- Albert Gobat, 1902 Nobel Peace Prize
- Jörg Jenatsch, pastor, Protestant politician
- Ursula Koch, politician the first women president of the Social Democratic Party of Switzerland
- Carl Lutz, Vice-consul to Hungary during WWII, credited with saving over 62,000 Jews
- Jean-Paul Marat, revolutionary
- Giuseppe Motta, Federal Councilor and President of the League of Nations
- Napoleon III
- Jacques Necker, statesman and finance minister of Louis XVI
- Charles Pictet de Rochemont, statesman, diplomat
- Pompejus von Planta-Wildenberg
- Fritz Platten, Communist
- Carla del Ponte, Swiss attorney general, chief prosecutor of two international criminal law tribunals
- Elisabeth von Rapperswil, last Countess of the House of Rapperswil
- Trudy Späth, first woman to hold an elected office
- Katharina von Zimmern, last abbess of the Fraumünster Abbey
- List of 2005 office-holders in Switzerland
- List of Federal Chancellors of Switzerland
- List of the first female holders of political offices: Switzerland
- List of mayors of Aarau, Altstätten, Arbon, Baden, Basel, Bellinzona, Bern, Biel/Bienne, Brig, Brig-Glis, Bulle, Burgdorf, Carouge, Chur, Davos, Delémont, Frauenfeld, Fribourg, Geneva, Grenchen, Herisau, Köniz, Kreuzlingen, La Chaux-de-Fonds, La Tour-de-Peilz, Lausanne, Le Châtelard, Les Planches, Liestal, Locarno, Lucerne, Lugano, Martigny, Montreux, Morges, Murten, Naters, Neuchâtel, Nyon, Olten, Rapperswil-Jona, Rheinfelden, Schaffhausen, Sierre, Sion, Solothurn, St. Gallen, Thun, Trimbach, Uster, Vevey, Wädenswil, Wil, Winterthur, Yverdon, Zofingen, Zug, Zürich
- List of members of the Swiss Council of States
- List of members of the Swiss Federal Council
- List of members of the Swiss National Council
- List of officials of the Helvetic Republic
- List of Presidents of the Swiss Confederation
- List of Presidents of the Swiss Council of States
- List of Presidents of the Swiss Diet
- List of Presidents of the Swiss National Council
Religion
- Jakob Abbadie, Protestant preacher
- Gilberto Agustoni, cardinal
- Jacob Amman
- Karl Barth, theologian
- Heinrich Bullinger, reformer in Zurich
- Georges Cottier, cardinal, theologian
- Niklaus Manuel Deutsch, painter, dramatician, politician and reformer in Berne
- Johann Augustanus Faber, theologian and historian
- William Farel, reformer in Lausanne
- Theodosius Florentini
- Gaston Frommel
- Berchtold Haller, reformer in Berne
- Karl Rudolf Hagenbach
- Johann Jakob Herzog
- Hans Küng, theologian
- Johann Kaspar Lavater, pastor and physiognomist
- Oswald Myconius
- Johannes Oecolampadius, reformer in Basel
- Frère Roger, founder of Taizé
- Philip Schaff
- Henri Schwery, cardinal, former Bishop of Sion
- Erika Sutter medical missionary to South Africa
- Clemens Thoma
- Alexandre Rodolphe Vinet, theologian and critic
- Pierre Viret, reformer in Vaud Canton
- Lukas Vischer, theologian and writer
- Johann Jakob Wettstein, theologian
- John Joachim Zubly , pastor, delegate to the Continental Congress
- Huldrych Zwingli, reformer in Zurich
Science
A-F
- Alexander Emanuel Agassiz, American man of science
- Louis Agassiz, did work on ice ages, glaciers
- Jacob Amsler, mathematician and inventor of measuring instruments
- Werner Arber, 1978 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Johann Georg Baiter, philologist
- Adolph Francis Alphonse Bandelier, archaeologist
- Jean-François Bergier, historian
- Eugen Bleuler, psychiatrist
- Felix Bloch, 1952 Nobel Prize in Physics
- Hans Bluntschli, anatomist
- Charles Bonnet, botanist
- Daniel Bovet, 1957 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Joost Bürgi, mathematician and watchmaker
- Johann Büttikofer, zoologist
- Jean-André Deluc, geologist
- Paul Dirac, physicist
- Albert Einstein, 1921 Nobel Prize in Physics
- Richard R. Ernst, 1991 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Edmond H. Fischer, 1992 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Fritz Fischer, physicist
- Auguste Forel, myrmecologist, psychiatrist, neurologist
- François-Alphonse Forel, pioneer in the study of lakes
- Johann Kaspar Füssli, entomologist
G-O
- Conrad Gessner
- Jules Gonin, ophthalmologist
- Gustav Guanella, electronics engineer, inventor
- André Guignard, engineer
- Charles-Edouard Guillaume, 1920 Nobel Prize in Physics
- Albrecht von Haller
- Walter Hess, 1949 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Carl Hilty, jurist
- Albert Hofmann, chemist, discoverer of d-lysergic acid diethylamide
- Eugen Huber, jurist
- François Huber, naturalist
- Otto Frederick Hunziker, dairy professor and technical innovator
- Stefan Janos, low temperature physicist
- Paul Karrer, 1937 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Emil Theodor Kocher, 1909 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Jean Charles Galissard de Marignac, chemist
- Michel Mayor, astronomer
- Friedrich Miescher, physician and biologist, discovered DNA
- Johannes von Müller, historian
- K. Alex Müller, 1987 Nobel Prize in Physics
- Paul Müller, 1948 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Jean-Daniel Nicoud, computer scientist and researcher
- Johann Caspar von Orelli
P-Z
- Paracelsus , alchemist
- Wolfgang Pauli, 1945 Nobel Prize in Physics
- Jean Piaget, psychologist
- Auguste Piccard, physicist and balloonist
- Bertrand Piccard, psychiatrist and balloonist
- Jacques Piccard, engineer and underwater explorer
- Jean Piccard, balloonist
- François-Jules Pictet de la Rive, zoologist and paleontologist
- Raoul Pictet, physicist
- Adolf Portmann, zoologist
- Vladimir Prelog, 1975 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Didier Queloz, astronomer
- Tadeus Reichstein, chemist, 1950 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Eugene Renevier, geologist
- Heinrich Rohrer, 1986 Nobel Prize in Physics
- Heinz Rutishauser, mathematician, computer software pioneer
- Leopold Ružička, 1939 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Johann Jakob Scheuchzer, Swiss savant
- Louis Secretan, mycologist
- Jack Steinberger, 1988 Nobel Prize in Physics
- Ernst Stueckelberg, theoretical physicist
- Alfred Werner, 1913 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Niklaus Wirth, computer scientist, ACM Turing Award winner, inventor of the Pascal programming language
- Kurt Wüthrich, 2002 Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Daniel Albert Wyttenbach
- Alexandre Yersin, physician, isolated the Yersinia pestis
- Rolf M. Zinkernagel, 1996 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
- Fritz Zwicky, astronomer
- Theodor Zwinger, scholar
Sports
- Paul Accola, skiing champion
- David Aebischer, former National Hockey League goaltender
- Jeff Agoos, Swiss-born American soccer defender
- Daniel Albrecht, alpine skier
- Simon Ammann, gold medallist in ski jumping at the 2002 Winter Olympics, ski jumping at the 2010 Winter Olympics
- Sven Bärtschi, National Hockey League player for the Vancouver Canucks
- Madeleine Berthod, 1956 gold medallist in downhill skiing
- Denise Biellmann, world champion figure skater
- Sepp Blatter, FIFA president
- Clint Capela, NBA player for the Houston Rockets
- Ursula Bruhin, snowboarder
- Fabian Cancellara, cyclist
- Claudio Castagnoli, pro wrestler
- Stéphane Chapuisat, footballer
- Dario Cologna, cross-country skiing champion
- Didier Cuche, alpine skier
- Didier Défago,, alpine skier
- Johan Djourou, footballer
- Oscar Egg, cyclist
- Roger Federer, tennis champion: 20-time Grand Slam singles champion
- Michela Figini, alpine skiing champion
- Marcel Fischer, fencing champion, gold medallist in Athens Olympics
- Alexander Frei, footballer
- Tanja Frieden, snowboarder
- Martin Gerber, NHL goaltender for the Ottawa Senators
- Arnold Gerschwiler, skater
- Hans Gerschwiler, world champion figure skater
- Jack Gerschwiler, coach
- Stefan Grogg, ice hockey player, member of Swiss National Team 1997
- Franz Heinzer, alpine skier
- Stéphane Henchoz, footballer
- Erika Hess, alpine skiing champion
- Martina Hingis, tennis champion; five-time Grand Slam singles champion
- Nico Hischier, NHL forward for the New Jersey Devils; first Swiss player to be drafted #1 overall in the NHL Entry Draft
- Jakob Hlasek, tennis player
- Ambrosi Hoffmann, alpine skiing medalist
- Andy Hug, karate and kickboxing champion
- Benjamin Huggel, professional footballer
- Patrick Hürlimann, Olympic curling champion
- Roman Josi, NHL defenseman for the Nashville Predators
- Bruno Kernen, alpine skier, bronze medalist and former world champion in downhill
- Bruno Kernen, alpine skier, winner of the 1983 Kitzbühel downhill race
- Hugo Koblet, cycling champion
- Franz Krienbühl, speed skater
- Andreas Küttel, ski jumper
- Stéphane Lambiel, figure skater, Olympic silver medalist
- Peter Lüscher, alpine skiing champion
- Daniela Meuli, snowboarder
- Lise-Marie Morerod, alpine skiing champion
- Layla Schwarz, Professional Basketball Player
- Nicolas Müller, snowboarder
- Peter Müller, alpine skiing champion
- Xeno Müller, rower, Olympic gold medalist
- Marie-Theres Nadig, alpine skiing champion
- Sonja Nef, alpine skiing champion
- Maya Pedersen, skeleton athlete
- Manuela Pesko, snowboarder
- Alina Popa, IFBB professional bodybuilder
- Walter Prager, alpine skiing champion
- Clay Regazzoni, racing driver
- Corinne Rey-Bellet, alpine skier
- Tony Rominger, cyclist who won major tours four times in his career
- Marc Rosset, tennis player, gold medallist in Barcelona Olympics
- Bernhard Russi, alpine skiing champion
- Martina Schild, downhill skiing champion
- Hedy Schlunegger, downhill Olympic champion of 1948
- Vreni Schneider, alpine skiing champion
- Patty Schnyder, professional tennis player
- Thabo Sefolosha, NBA player for the Oklahoma City Thunder
- Philippe Senderos, footballer
- Mark Streit, NHL defenceman for the Philadelphia Flyers
- Alain Sutter, footballer
- Kubilay Türkyilmaz, footballer
- Maria Walliser, alpine skiing champion
- Stanislas Wawrinka, professional tennis player
- Jean Wicki, gold medallist in bobsleigh
- Granit Xhaka, footballer
- Hakan Yakin, footballer
- Murat Yakin, footballer
- Heidi Zurbriggen, skier
- Matthias Zurbriggen, mountain guide and alpinist
- Pirmin Zurbriggen, alpine skiing champion
- Silvan Zurbriggen, skier
Writers
- Peter Bichsel
- Silvio Blatter
- Charles Victor de Bonstetten
- Nicolas Bouvier
- Willy Bretscher, newspaper writer and editor
- Raymond Bruckert, writer of novels and educational books
- Hermann Burger, author, poet, literary scholar, editor
- Erika Burkart, poet
- Elias Canetti, 1981 Nobel Prize in Literature, Swiss resident
- Blaise Cendrars , author
- Victor Cherbuliez, member of the Académie française
- Jacques Chessex
- Anne Cuneo
- Erich von Däniken, Ancient Astronauts writer
- Martin R. Dean, writer
- Friedrich Dürrenmatt, author and dramatist
- Daniel Martin Eckhart, screenwriter and novelist
- Marianne Ehrmann, one of the first women novelists and publicists in the German-speaking countries
- Jürg Federspiel
- Max Frisch, author and architect
- Salomon Gessner
- Friedrich Glauser
- Jeremias Gotthelf , author and pastor
- Stefan Haenni
- Eveline Hasler
- Markus Hediger
- Hermann Hesse, 1946 Nobel Prize in Literature, Swiss resident
- Franz Hohler, author and comedian
- Mirjam Indermaur, writer and businesswoman
- Philippe Jaccottet
- Zoë Jenny
- Gottfried Keller, author
- Christian Kracht, author
- Hugo Loetscher, author
- Ella Maillart
- Niklaus Meienberg
- Conrad Ferdinand Meyer
- Adolf Muschg
- Suzanne Necker, née Suzanne Curchod
- Juste Olivier
- Giorgio Orelli, poet, translator
- Daniele Pantano, poet, translator, editor
- Erica Pedretti, author and artist
- Eugène Rambert
- Charles Ferdinand Ramuz, writer
- Grisélidis Réal
- William Ritter, novelist and music critic
- Alice Rivaz, writer
- Gustave Roud, poet
- Denis de Rougemont
- Léon Savary, writer and journalist
- Jakob Schaffner
- Josias Simmler, theologian, historian
- Carl Spitteler, 1919 Nobel Prize in Literature
- Johanna Spyri, author of Heidi
- Anne Louise Germaine de Staël
- Peter Stamm
- Albert Steffen, writer, anthroposophist
- Otto Steiger
- Martin Suter, columnist and novelist
- Rudolf Sutermeister
- Robert Walser
- Otto F. Walter, novelist
- Silja Walter, sister of Otto F. Walter; Benedictinian nun and writer
- Markus Werner
- Urs Widmer
- Johann David Wyss, author of The Swiss Family Robinson
- Albin Zollinger
- Fritz Zorn , author of Mars
- Roland Zoss
- Johann Heinrich Daniel Zschokke
Legendary and folk heroes
- Helvetia, personification of Switzerland
- Arnold von Melchtal, legendary founding father of Switzerland
- Ueli Rotach, legendary hero of the 1405 battle at Stoss
- William Tell, legendary 14th-century hero
- Arnold von Winkelried, legendary hero of the 1386 battle of Sempach
Others
- Sarah, Crown Princess of Brunei, wife of Crown Prince Al-Muhtadee Billah, half Swiss and half Bruneian
- Othmar Ammann, civil engineer, bridge engineer to the New York Port Authority
- Nick Auf der Maur, Canadian journalist, Swiss parents
- Louise Bachofen-Burckhardt, art collector
- Maximilian Bircher-Benner, physician and Muesli inventor
- Johann Georg Bodmer, inventor
- Johann Jakob Bodmer
- Hans Ormund Bringolf, adventurer and autobiographer
- Jacob Burckhardt, art historian
- Johann Ludwig Burckhardt, traveller and orientalist
- Michée Chauderon, the last person to be executed for sorcery in Geneva
- Arthur Cohn, film producer, received six Oscars
- Lydia Welti-Escher, Swiss patron of the arts and founder of the Gottfried Keller Stiftung
- Philipp Emanuel von Fellenberg
- Marie Grossholtz, known as Madame Tussaud
- Paul Grueninger, commander of police and humanitarian
- Felix Hemmerlin, theologian
- Michelle Hunziker, TV presenter previously married to the Italian singer Eros Ramazzotti
- Ingvar Kamprad, founder of IKEA, Swiss resident 1976-2014
- Carl Lutz, diplomat and humanitarian
- Robert Maillart, civil engineer, inventor of many concrete bridge techniques
- Peter Hildebrand Meienberg, missionary
- Christoph Meili, whistle-blower
- Christian Menn, civil engineer
- Max Miedinger, typeface designer, inventor of Helvetica
- Claude Nobs, founder and general manager of the Montreux Jazz Festival
- Rosa Rein, oldest living Swiss
- Werner Reinhart, philanthropist, music and literature patron
- Archibald Reiss, criminologist
- Beat Richner, pediatrician, founder of children's hospitals in Cambodia
- Niklaus Riggenbach, engineer
- Frithjof Schuon, Sufi writer, born in Basel
- John Sutter, California settler
- Stefi Talman, shoe designer
- Alain Tanner, film director
- Lukas Vischer, collector, traveler, artist