List of Famous people born in Thuringia, Germany

Johannes "Macky" Steinhoff was a Luftwaffe fighter ace during World War II, German general, and NATO official. He was one of very few Luftwaffe pilots who survived to fly operationally through the whole of the war period 1939–45. Steinhoff was also one of the highest-scoring pilots with 176 victories, and one of the first to fly the Messerschmitt Me 262 jet fighter in combat as a member of the Jagdverband 44 squadron led by Adolf Galland. Steinhoff was decorated with the Knight's Cross of the Iron Cross with Oak Leaves and Swords, and later received the Grand Cross of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany and several foreign awards including the American Legion of Merit and the French Legion of Honour. He played a role in the so-called Fighter Pilots Conspiracy when several senior air force officers confronted Hermann Göring late in the war.

Ronny Ackermann is a successful German Nordic combined skier.

Athanasius Kircher was a German Jesuit scholar and polymath who published around 40 major works, most notably in the fields of comparative religion, geology, and medicine. Kircher has been compared to fellow Jesuit Roger Joseph Boscovich and to Leonardo da Vinci for his enormous range of interests, and has been honoured with the title "Master of a Hundred Arts". He taught for more than 40 years at the Roman College, where he set up a wunderkammer. A resurgence of interest in Kircher has occurred within the scholarly community in recent decades.

Erika Zuchold was an East German gymnast who competed at the European, World, and Olympic level from the mid-1960s to early 1970s.

Wolfgang Hoppe is an East German former decathlete, bob pilot and 36-time international medal winner who competed from the early 1980s to the late 1990s. Competing in four Winter Olympics, he won six medals with two golds, three silvers, and one bronze (1994).

Gerd Schultze-Rhonhof is a German author and former Generalmajor in the German Army of the Bundeswehr, who, like Udo Walendy, also disputes Germany's sole guilt for the Second World War.

Matthias Brenner is a German actor, director and writer.

Justus Jonas, the Elder, or simply Justus Jonas, was a German Lutheran theologian and reformer. He was a Jurist, Professor and Hymn writer. He is best known for his translations of the writings of Martin Luther and Philipp Melanchthon. He accompanied Martin Luther in his final moments.

Arno Rink was a German painter. He was accepted to the Hochschule für Grafik und Buchkunst Leipzig (HGB) in 1962 and studied under Werner Tübke, Hans Mayer-Foreyt and Harry Blume. He is associated with the second generation of the Leipzig School, which paints in a German figurative tradition.

Frank Luck is a former German and, before 1990, East German biathlete.