List of Famous people born in Denmark, Kingdom of Denmark

Absalon was a Danish statesman and prelate of the Catholic Church who served as the bishop of Roskilde from 1158 to 1192 and archbishop of Lund from 1178 until his death. He was the foremost politician and church father of Denmark in the second half of the 12th century, and was the closest advisor of King Valdemar I of Denmark. He was a key figure in the Danish policies of territorial expansion in the Baltic Sea, Europeanization in close relationship with the Holy See, and reform in the relation between the Church and the public. He combined the ideals of Gregorian Reform with loyal support of a strong monarchical power.

Jørgen Emil Hansen is a Danish cyclist who competed in the Summer Olympics three times. He took part in the men's 100 km team time trial in the 1968, 1972, and 1976 Olympic Games, and in the men's individual road race in 1968 and 1976. The 1976 100 km time trial team, which also included Verner Blaudzun, Gert Frank and Jørn Lund, won a bronze medal for Denmark. It finished ahead of West Germany and Czechoslovakia for third place, behind the Soviet Union and Poland.

David Mark Hillis is an American evolutionary biologist, and the Alfred W. Roark Centennial Professor of Biology at the University of Texas at Austin. He is best known for his studies of molecular evolution, phylogeny, and vertebrate systematics. He created the popular Hillis Plot depiction of the evolutionary tree of life.

Christian Jungersen is a Danish novelist whose works have been translated into 20 languages. He has published three novels in Danish – Krat (1999), Undtagelsen, and Du Forsvinder.

Hella Joof is a Danish actress and director. She was born to a Danish mother and an aristocratic Gambian father who belonged to the Joof dynasty.

Ebbe Sand is a former professional footballer from Denmark who played as a striker for Brøndby IF in Denmark and FC Schalke 04 in Germany. He was the German Bundesliga top scorer in 2001, and won the DFB-Pokal in 2001 and 2002 with Schalke. On the international stage, he represented the Denmark national football team at the 1998 and 2002 FIFA World Cup, as well as the 2000 and 2004 European Championships. At the 1998 World Cup, he scored the fastest-ever World Cup goal by a substitute – 16 seconds after entering the match.

Georg Morris Cohen Brandes was a Danish critic and scholar who greatly influenced Scandinavian and European literature from the 1870s through the turn of the 20th century. He is seen as the theorist behind the "Modern Breakthrough" of Scandinavian culture. At the age of 30, Brandes formulated the principles of a new realism and naturalism, condemning hyper-aesthetic writing and also fantasy in literature. His literary goals were shared by some other authors, among them the Norwegian "realist" playwright Henrik Ibsen.

Finn Salomonsen was a Danish ornithologist. He is best known for his work on the birds of Greenland.