List of Famous people born in January

Rie Shibata is a Japanese actress and comedian who has appeared in a number of television programmes, feature films and stage productions. She is also the special deputy mayor of Toyama, Toyama.

Shinichi Shinohara is a retired Japanese judo and winner of the gold medal at the 1999 World Judo Championships in Birmingham. To Shinohara's disappointment, French champion David Douillet did not compete at Birmingham due to back injury; Shinohara was quoted as saying, "Even though I lifted the double crown at the worlds, it won't mean anything as long as people say it was won in Douillet's absence." Douillet had previously been declared victor at the 1997 championships in Paris after a French judge gave Shinohara a controversial penalty.

Sunitha Krishnan is an Indian social activist and chief functionary and co-founder of Prajwala, a non-governmental organization that rescues, rehabilitates and reintegrates sex-trafficked victims into society.

Tokihiro Nakamura is a Japanese politician and the current governor of Ehime Prefecture, located in the Shikoku region of Japan. He succeeded Moriyuki Kato in the 2010 Ehime gubernatorial election. Nakamura has previously served as the mayor of Matsuyama, the largest city in Ehime and Shikoku, from 1999 to 2010. He has also represented Ehime in the national House of Representatives from 1993 to 1996 and before that in the Ehime Prefectural Assembly from 1987 to 1990.

Homaidan Ali Al-Turki is a Saudi national convicted in a Colorado court for sexually assaulting his Indonesian housekeeper and keeping her as a virtual slave for four years. On August 31, 2006, Al-Turki was sentenced to 28 years in prison on twelve felony counts of false imprisonment, unlawful sexual contact, theft and criminal extortion. On February 25, 2011, he was re-sentenced from 28 to eight years for his good behavior in prison. Al-Turki maintains his innocence and blames anti-Muslim sentiment for the charges that led to his 2006 conviction and sentence in a case that has strained relations between the U.S. and the Saudi government.

Jean-Marie Pallardy is a French movie director.

Bishnu Prasad Rabha was an Indian cultural figure from Assam, known for his contributions in the fields of music, dance, painting, literature as well as political activism. As an advocate of people's cultural movement, he drew heavily from different genres of classical and folk cultural traditions. Considered a doyen of the Culture of Assam, the Assamese people affectionately call him Kalaguru. He is also called by Marxists as Sainik Silpi for his active participation in the armed struggle, led by the Revolutionary Communist Party of India (RCPI).

Yann Trégouët is a French actor. He appeared in more than thirty films since 1993.

Ahmet Aslan is a Turkish musician of Zaza descent. He performs classical songs in Turkish, Zazaki and Kurdish.

Patrick Chappatte is a Lebanese-Swiss cartoonist known for his work for Le Temps, Neue Zürcher Zeitung, the German news magazine Der Spiegel, and The New York Times International Edition. He also worked as an illustrator for the New York Times and as cartoonist for Newsweek. Many of his cartoons reflect events in Swiss and international news, such as the September 11 attacks, the rise of the Swiss People's Party, and the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.