Famous Scots

The great nation of Scotland has produced many famous people: artists, scientists and writers. Take a look at some of the greatest citizens of Scotland.

James Watt (1736-1819) - was a Scottish inventor and mechanical engineer whose improvements to the steam engine were fundamental to the changes brought by the Industrial Revolution in both Britain and the world.

James Clerk Maxwell (1831-1879) - one of the greatest physicists and mathematicians, the father of electromagnetic theory, one of the fundaments of modern quantum physics. Maxwell proved that electricity and magnetism are manifestation of the electromagnetic field.

Alexander Graham Bell (1847-1922) was an extraordinary talented scientist, inventor and innovator who is widely credited with the invention of the telephone. Bell's research on hearing and speech led him to an amazing discovery of telephone.

Daniel Rutherford (1749-1819) was a Scottish chemist and physician. He is well known for his experiment which led to isolation of nitrogen gas. Rutherford kept a mouse in a confined quantity of air till it died. He then burned a candle in what was left until the candle went out. Next, the air was passed through a solution that had the ability to absorb carbon dioxide.

Sir Alexander Fleming (1881-1955) - was a famous Scottish biologists and pharmacologist. He is the author of many publications on bacteriology, immunology, and chemotherapy. He is known for discovering penicillin (by accident) and the enzyme lysozyme. He was awarded Nobel Prize in 1945.

Robert Burns (1759-1796) - the favourite poet of Scotland. Often referred to as the Bard of Ayrshire or the Ploughman Poet is regarded as a pioneer of the Romantic movement, best known of all the poets writing in Scottish language.

Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1881-1955) - was a Scottish dramatist, novelist and journalist. Barrie became world famous with his play and story about Peter Pan. He first caught public attention with a selection of Scottish sketches, Auld Licht Idylls and A Window On Thrums

David Hume (1711-1776) - one of the most influential Scottish writer and philosopher. He was also a great historian and economist. Hume became a major figure in Western Philosophy. Together with John Locke, George Berkeley, and a handful of others, Hume is one of the principal early philosophers of empiricism

Joanne Kathleen (J.K.) Rowling (1965 - ) - the author of 7 Harry Potter novels. Although she was not born in Scotland, she has lived for many years in the country and wrote all of her famous "Harry Potter" books there.

Irvine Welsh ( 1958,- ) is a contemporary Scottish novelist, best known for his Trainspotting novel. He has also written plays and screenplays, and directed several short films.