List of Famous people who died in 1979

Ignatius Bedros XVI Batanian was Armenian Catholic Catholicos-Patriarch of Cilicia from 1962 until his resignation in 1976. His election came as replacement of cardinal patriarch Gregory-Petros XV Agagianian, who had been assigned responsibilities with the Roman Catholic Church at the Vatican.

Eliot Hyman (1904–1980) was an American film executive who helped co-found Seven Arts Productions.

Emory Parnell was an American vaudeville performer and actor who appeared in over 250 films in his 36-year career. He was nicknamed "The Big Swede" and was sometimes credited as "Emery" or "Parnel".

Enrico Sala was an Italian racing cyclist. He finished in eighth place in the 1909 Giro d'Italia.

Wang Yun-wu was an influential Chinese publisher, politician scholar of history and political science; He also invented the Shih Chiao Hao Ma, a method of Chinese lexicography also sometimes referred to as the Four Corner Method.