List of Famous people who died in 1979

Alan Reynolds Stone, CBE, RDI, more commonly known as Reynolds Stone, was a noted English wood engraver, engraver, designer, typographer and painter.

YC Liang CBE was a businessman in British Hong Kong. He was an agent in the British Army Aid Group during World War II. He was the father of hydrofoil business between Hong Kong and Macau and a co-founder of Hang Seng Bank.

Émile Dewoitine was a French aviation industrialist.

Patrick Joseph McGilligan was an Irish Fine Gael politician who served as the 14th Attorney General of Ireland from 1954 to 1957, Minister for Finance from 1948 to 1951, Minister for External Affairs from 1927 to 1932 and Minister for Industry and Commerce from 1924 to 1932. He served as a Teachta Dála (TD) from 1923 to 1965.

Gheorghe Vrănceanu was a Romanian mathematician, best known for his work in differential geometry and topology. He was titular member of the Romanian Academy and Vice-President of the International Mathematical Union.

Yang Zhongjian, also Yang Chung-chien, courtesy name Keqiang (克强), also known as C.C. Young, was a Chinese paleontologist and zoologist. He was one of China's foremost vertebrate paleontologists. He has been called the "Father of Chinese Vertebrate Paleontology".

Nat Simon was an American composer, pianist, bandleader and songwriter. From the 1930s to 1950s his songs were used in over 20 films. Between 1931 and 1940 he also took part in the musical Vaudeville revue Songwriters on Parade, which featured hit songwriters of the day. It was considered one of the last Vaudevillian forays of this type.

Ernst Kolman or Arnošt Yaromirovich Kolman ; 6 December 1892 – 22 January 1979) was a Marxist philosopher, who renounced his former activities as an ideological enforcer in Soviet science. At the age of 84 he sought asylum in Sweden and published a retraction of his previous activity.