List of Famous people who died in 2003

Renato "Rene" Luna Cayetano, commonly known as Compañero, was a Filipino lawyer, television presenter, journalist, and politician. He served in the Regular Batasang Pambansa from 1984 until its abolishment in 1986. He then served as a Senator from 1998 to 2003. He also hosted the television program Compañero y Compañera from 1997 to 2001.

Monique Wittig was a French author, philosopher and feminist theorist who wrote about overcoming socially enforced gender roles and who coined the phrase "heterosexual contract". She published her first novel, L'Opoponax, in 1964. Her second novel, Les Guérillères (1969), was a landmark in lesbian feminism.

Lucie Favier was a French archivist, married to French historian Jean Favier.

Robert King Merton was an American sociologist who is considered a founding father of modern sociology, and a major contributor to the subfield of criminology. He spent most of his career teaching at Columbia University, where he attained the rank of University Professor. In 1994 he was awarded the National Medal of Science for his contributions to the field and for having founded the sociology of science.

John Francis Reuel Tolkien was an English priest and the eldest son of J. R. R. Tolkien. He served as a parish priest in Oxford, Coventry, Birmingham, and Stoke-on-Trent. He was also a chaplain at the University College of North Staffordshire and to two schools. During his lifetime and after his death, there were a number of allegations of child sexual abuse against him: he was questioned by the police but never charged or convicted.