List of Famous people who died in 2016

Xavier de Planhol was a Professor of Geography at the University of Paris-Sorbonne and a widely acknowledged authority on political geography. From 1958, when he began to publish monographs and articles during his first fieldwork in Azerbaijan, and later in the Alborz region of Iran, to his monumental and highly acclaimed, Les Nations du Prophète (1993) and Minorités en Islam (1997), he has maintained his deep interest in Persia and the Iranian civilization. He was also a contributor to Encyclopædia Iranica, submitting articles ranging from "Abadan" to "Boundaries", "Cholera", "Darya?", "Earthquakes", "Famines", and a series of forthcoming articles on "Geography". A bibliography of de Planhol’s wide-ranging publications up to 1995 has been compiled and published by Professor Daniel Balland in Geographie Historique et Culturelle de l’Europe: Hommage au Professor Xavier de Planhol, by Jean-Robert Pitte (1995).

Ulf Grenander was a Swedish statistician and professor of applied mathematics at Brown University.

Mac Cocker was an English-born Australian radio announcer, who worked for the Australian Broadcasting Corporation radio network for 33 years, with stints on Radio Australia, Triple J, Radio National and 105.7 ABC Darwin. He was also known for being the father of Jarvis Cocker, the lead singer of the English rock band Pulp.

Anita Brookner was an English novelist and art historian. She was Slade Professor of Fine Art at the University of Cambridge from 1967 to 1968 and was the first woman to hold this visiting professorship. She was awarded the 1984 Booker–McConnell Prize for her novel Hotel du Lac.

Gérard Auguste Bourbotte was a French professional footballer who played as a forward. He is the third top scorer in the history of Lille.