List of Famous people born in Thuringia, Germany

Dr. Ulf Dietrich Merbold is the first West German citizen and second German native to have flown in space. He is also the first member of the European Space Agency Astronaut Corps to participate in a spaceflight mission and the first non-US citizen to reach orbit in a US spacecraft. In 1983, he and Byron Lichtenberg became the first Payload Specialists to fly on the Space Shuttle. Merbold is also the second western European in space.

Thomas Linke is a retired German professional footballer who played as a central defender who last worked as the director of football of FC Ingolstadt 04.

Michael Seidenbecher is a German track cyclist, riding for the national team. He competed at the 2006, 2007, 2008 and 2010 UCI Track Cycling World Championships.

Christian Hirte is a German lawyer and politician of the Christian Democratic Union (CDU) who has been serving as member of the German Bundestag since 2008. Since 2020, he has been the chairman of CDU in Thuringia.

Margit Schumann was an East German luger who competed during the 1970s and early 1980s. Competing in three Winter Olympics, she won two medals in the women's singles event with a gold in 1976 and a bronze in 1972.

Johanna Christiana Sophie Vulpius von Goethe was the longtime lover and later wife of Johann Wolfgang von Goethe.

Helmut Recknagel is an East German former ski jumper who was active in the late 1950s and early 1960s.

Alexander "Sascha" Anderson is a German writer and artist who was an influential figure in the alternative scene in pre-unification East Berlin in the 1980s. Anderson was nicknamed "the culture minister" due to his role in organising cultural events and promoting young artists. In 1991, it was revealed that he had been an informal collaborator for the East German Stasi since 1975.

Mark Kirchner is a German former biathlete.

Tankred Dorst was a German playwright and storyteller.