58 Notable alumni of Sorbonne University
Updated: June 06, 2026 EliteDegrees
Sorbonne University is 6968st in the world, 1st in North America, and 155st in the United States by aggregated alumni prominence. Below is the list of 58 notable alumni from Sorbonne University sorted by their wiki pages popularity. The directory includes famous graduates and former students along with research and academic staff. Many individuals affiliated with Sorbonne University won Nobel Prizes for Peace, in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Economics.
1. Mohamed Hamouda Bensai
1902-1998 (aged 96)
writer
philosopher
Mohamed Hamouda Hamouda Bensaï was an Algerian philosopher and essayist. He studied philosophy at Sorbonne, and was one of the major Algerian thinkers from the 1930s onward. He chaired the circle of the Association of Franco-North Africa, founded by Marcellin Piel.
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2. Joseph-Christian-Ernest Bourret
1827-1896 (aged 69)
Catholic priest
Catholic bishop
Joseph Christian Ernest Bourret was a French churchman, bishop and cardinal.
3. Catherine Plaisant
1957-. (aged 69)
computer scientist
author
university teacher
researcher
Catherine Plaisant is a French/American Research Scientist Emerita at the University of Maryland, College Park and assistant director of research of the University of Maryland Human–Computer Interaction Lab.
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4. Nguyễn Hồng Giáp
1934-. (aged 92)
academic
Nguyễn Hồng Giáp is a Vietnamese scholar.
5. Vionette Negretti
1947-. (aged 79)
journalist
Vionette Giovanna Negretti is a Puerto Rican journalist and writer who, between 1976 and 2008, worked as reporter for several newspapers as well as in radio and television stations in San Juan and became co-anchor of a televised newscast. Negretti has also worked as communications and press aide to Puerto Rico's House Speaker and for a Senator from San Juan...
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6. Camille Guerre
1996-. (aged 30)
swimmer
synchronized swimmer
Camille Guerre is a French synchronized swimmer who competed in the 2014 FINA World Junior Synchronised Swimming Championships.
7. Indrajit Banerjee
1964-2019 (aged 55)
communication scholar
social scientist
Indrajit Banerjee was an author on media and communication and the director of the Knowledge Societies Division at UNESCO.
8. Anne-Antoine-Jules de Clermont-Tonnerre
1749-1830 (aged 81)
Catholic priest
politician
Anne Antoine Jules de Clermont-Tonnerre was a French prelate of the Catholic Church. He was made a cardinal by Pope Pius VII in 1822.
9. Christina Petrowska-Quilico
1948-. (aged 78)
pianist
Christina Petrowska Quilico CM OOnt FRSC is a Canadian pianist. She is a professor emerita, senior scholar at York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. She was appointed to the Order of Canada in 2020 "For her celebrated career as a classical and contemporary pianist and for championing Canadian music." In 2021, she was named a Fellow of the Royal Society...
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10. Lise Gauvin
1940-. (aged 86)
man of letters
university teacher
literary scholar
literary critic
essayist
Lise Gauvin is a Canadian writer and literary critic from Quebec.
11. Robert Kühner
1903-1996 (aged 93)
secondary school teacher
university teacher
mycologist
botanist
professeur agrégé
Robert Kühner was a French mycologist most notable for reviewing many forms of agaric (mushroom fungus) genera.
12. Lluís Quintana-Murci
1970-. (aged 56)
biologist
human evolution
professor
university teacher
researcher
Lluís Quintana-Murci is a French-Spanish biologist and population geneticist known for his research on human evolution, population genomic diversity and its relationship with immune diversity and infectious diseases.
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13. Vincent Chauvet
1987-. (aged 39)
entrepreneur
consultant
politician
cadres de la fonction publique
Vincent Chauvet is a French politician serving as Mayor of Autun since 2017. A member of the Democratic Movement (MoDem), he has presided over the party's Saône-et-Loire federation since 2015. Chauvet is the co-founder of the first submitted European Citizens' Initiative (ECI), One Single Tariff.
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14. Benoît-Marie Langénieux
1824-1905 (aged 81)
Catholic deacon
Catholic bishop
Catholic priest
Benoît-Marie Langénieux was a French Archbishop of Reims and Cardinal.
15. Lotfi Achour
theatrical director
screenwriter
film director
Lotfi Achour is a Tunisian writer, producer and director for theater and cinema. He is the author of more than 25 theater productions on different stages (London, Paris, Festival In d'Avignon, Tunis, Carthage, Hammamet, Byblos, Kinshasa, Yaoundé…). His last show was co-produced by the Royal Shakespeare Company for the 2012 Olympic Games London.
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16. Hélé Béji
1948-. (aged 78)
writer
Hélé Béji is a Tunisian writer.
17. Sandrine Mazetier
1966-. (aged 60)
politician
Sandrine Mazetier is a member of the National Assembly of France. She represents the city of Paris, and is a member of the Socialiste, radical, citoyen et divers gauche.
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18. Oleksandra Skoropadska
1878-1952 (aged 74)
Oleksandra Petrivna Skoropadska was a Russian and Ukrainian noblewoman, the spouse of Ukrainian political and military leader Pavlo Skoropadskyi.
19. Vassilis Tsabropoulos
1967-. (aged 59)
composer
pianist
conductor
jazz musician
Vassilis Tsabropoulos is a Greek pianist, conductor, and composer.
20. Robert Piper
1966-. (aged 60)
civil servant
Robert Andrew Piper is an Australian development aid coordinator for the United Nations. Between December 2018 and May 2022, he was Assistant Secretary-General of the United Nations Development Coordination Office. In May 2022, he was appointed Special Adviser to the Secretary-General on Solutions to Internal Displacement. He is currently based in Geneva.
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21. Rustam Haidar
1889-1940 (aged 51)
economist
teacher
politician
Rustam Haidar was an Iraqi politician of Lebanese descent who served as Minister of Finance of the Kingdom of Iraq from 1930 to 1932 and from 1938 to 1940. He also was an aide to King Faisal I, Defense Minister, and Finance Minister of Iraq. Rustam Haidar is considered an important figure in the history of the modern Iraqi state...
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22. José Manuel Losada
1962-. (aged 64)
literary theorist
university teacher
José Manuel Losada is a Spanish literary theorist with a specialization in the fields of myth criticism and comparative literature. Within these fields he has published several books in Spanish, French and English.
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23. André Choulika
1965-. (aged 61)
businessperson
virologist
André Choulika is a biotechnologist, the inventor of nuclease-based genome editing and a pioneer in the analysis and use of meganucleases to modify complex genomes.
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24. Maelle Gavet
1978-. (aged 48)
entrepreneur
Maëlle Gavet is a French businesswoman, author, and entrepreneur.
25. Bertrand Badré
1968-. (aged 58)
banker
official
Bertrand Badré was born on 10 May 1968. He is the son of Denis Badré, Senator of Hauts-de-Seine until 2011 and mayor of Ville d'Avray. Bertrand Badré is the CEO and founder of BlueOrange Capital, an investment fund that focuses on investments aligned with the Sustainable Development Goals with market level financial returns. Previously, Badré served as managing director and...
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26. Emma Rafowicz
1995-. (aged 31)
activist
politician
communications manager
Emma Rafowicz is a French politician of the Socialist Party (PS). She was elected member of the European Parliament in 2024. She is currently serving as president of the Young Socialist Movement and municipal councillor of the 11th arrondissement of Paris, after having served as Deputy mayor from 2020 to 2024.
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27. Corinne Le Quéré
1966-. (aged 60)
physicist
climatologist
meteorologist
university teacher
Corinne Le Quéré CBE FRS is a Canadian scientist. She is Royal Society Research Professor of Climate Change Science at the University of East Anglia and former Director of Tyndall Centre for Climate Change Research. She was the founding chair of the French High Council on Climate (2018-2024) and is a member of the UK Climate Change Committee since 2016....
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28. David Diop
1966-. (aged 60)
man of letters
docent
literary scholar
writer
David Diop is a French novelist and academic, who specializes in 18th-century French and Francophone African literature. His research, at the University of Pau in south-west France, focuses on representations of Africa in 18th-century accounts and images by travellers. Diop received the 2021 International Booker Prize for his novel At Night All Blood Is Black as the first French author...
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29. Mina Khosrovani
film actor
Mina Khosrovani (Persian: مینا خسروانی; born May 23 1989 known professionally as Mina Kavani (مینا کاوانی), is an Iranian-French actress. She is best known for her role in No Bears (2022), which won the Special Jury Prize at the 79th Venice International Film Festival.
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30. Olivier François
1961-. (aged 65)
manager
Olivier François is a French business executive and the CEO of Fiat and Abarth since 2011. He is global chief marketing officer for Stellantis, and a member of the company's Group Executive Council, a position he has held since September 2011. Due to his attention to creativity, he has been referred to as "Chrysler's Don Draper". In 2024, François was...
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31. Delphine Minoui
1974-. (aged 52)
journalist
Delphine Minoui is a French journalist specializing in the Iranian world.
32. Ludovic Chaker
1979-. (aged 47)
politician
consultant
martial arts teacher
yoga instructor
official
Ludovic Chaker is a French government official. A former diplomat and politician, he is chiefly known as a political advisor to French President Emmanuel Macron and the first secretary of his political movement, En Marche!.
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33. Bernard de La Villardière
1958-. (aged 68)
journalist
radio personality
Bernard Berger de La Villardière is a French journalist, radio and television presenter.
34. Gabriel Lippmann
1845-1921 (aged 76)
inventor
physicist
professor
photographer
Gabriel Lippmann was a French applied physicist who received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1908 for his invention of the Lippmann plate, a method of photographically reproducing colours based on the interference phenomenon.
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35. Henri Moissan
1852-1907 (aged 55)
pharmacist
chemist
pharmacologist
university teacher
Ferdinand Frédéric Henri Moissan was a French chemist and pharmacist who won the 1906 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for his work in isolating fluorine from its compounds. Among his other contributions, Moissan discovered moissanite and contributed to the development of the electric arc furnace. Moissan was one of the original members of the International Atomic Weights Committee.
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36. Dariush Shayegan
1935-2018 (aged 83)
theorist
intellectual
university teacher
writer
translator
Dariush Shayegan was one of the most consequential thinkers of contemporary Iran and the Near East.
37. Asaf Zamir
1980-. (aged 46)
diplomat
lawyer
politician
Asaf Zamir is an Israeli politician, lawyer and diplomat. He served as Deputy Mayor of Tel Aviv from 2008 until 2013 and Acting Mayor in charge of education from 2013 to 2018. He was elected to the Knesset in 2019, serving in two spells until 2021. He also held the post of Minister of Tourism from May to October 2020....
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38. Romane Dicko
1999-. (aged 27)
judoka
Romane Dicko is a French judoka. In 2021, she won one of the bronze medals in the women's +78 kg event at the 2020 Summer Olympics held in Tokyo, Japan. She also won bronze at the 2024 Summer Olympics in Paris, France. Dicko won gold in her event at the 2022 World Judo Championships held in Tashkent, Uzbekistan and she...
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39. Charles Richet
1850-1935 (aged 85)
playwright
writer
physiologist
immunologist
psychologist
Charles Robert Richet was a French physiologist at the Collège de France and immunology pioneer. In 1913, he won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine "in recognition of his work on anaphylaxis". Richet devoted many years to the study of paranormal and spiritualist phenomena, coining the term "ectoplasm". He believed in the inferiority of black people, was a proponent...
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40. Hichem Rostom
1947-2022 (aged 75)
television actor
film actor
Hichem Rostom was a Tunisian actor. He appeared in more than 70 films and television shows since 1987. He starred in Golden Horseshoes, which was screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1989 Cannes Film Festival. He also directed the Carthage Theatre Festival for two sessions.
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41. Pinaki Bhattacharya
1967-. (aged 59)
physician
author
social activist
Pinaki Bhattacharya is a Bangladeshi activist and physician known for his criticism of Sheikh Hasina, Awami League and BNP.
42. Claire Hédon
1962-. (aged 64)
journalist
group activist
Claire Hédon is a French journalist, who was appointed the 2020 Defender of Rights in France.
43. Jean Perrin
1870-1942 (aged 72)
university teacher
physicist
theoretical physicist
composer
chemist
Jean Baptiste Perrin was a French atomic physicist who, in his studies of the Brownian motion of minute particles suspended in liquids (sedimentation equilibrium), verified Albert Einstein's explanation of this phenomenon and thereby confirmed the atomic nature of matter. For this work, he was awarded the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1926.
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44. Frédéric Beigbeder
1965-. (aged 61)
literary critic
film director
actor
novelist
publisher
Frédéric Beigbeder is a French writer, literary critic and television presenter. He won the Prix Interallié in 2003 for his novel Windows on the World and the Prix Renaudot in 2009 for his book A French Novel. He is also the creator of the Flore and Sade Awards. In addition, he is the executive director of Lui, a French adult...
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45. Louis de Broglie
1892-1987 (aged 95)
physicist
Louis Victor Pierre Raymond, 7th Duc de Broglie was a French theoretical physicist and aristocrat known for his contributions to quantum theory. In his 1924 Ph.D. thesis, he postulated the wave nature of electrons and suggested that all matter has wave properties. This concept is known as the de Broglie hypothesis, an example of wave–particle duality, and forms a central...
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46. Yann Le Cun
1960-. (aged 66)
artificial intelligence researcher
computer scientist
software engineer
professor
electrical engineer
Yann André Le Cun is a French–American computer scientist working in the fields of artificial intelligence, machine learning, computer vision, robotics and image compression. He is the Jacob T. Schwartz Professor of Computer Science at the Courant Institute of Mathematical Sciences at New York University. He served as Chief AI Scientist at Meta Platforms before leaving to work on his...
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47. Julia Ducournau
1983-. (aged 43)
screenwriter
director
film director
Julia Ducournau is a French film director and screenwriter. She made her feature film debut in 2016 with Raw. At the 2021 Cannes Film Festival, she won the Palme d'Or for her film Titane, which made her the second female director to win the award as well as the first to win the award solo. Additionally, Ducournau also received a...
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48. Noor Ali Tabandeh
1927-2019 (aged 92)
Muslim
lawyer
ummah
Noor-Ali Tabandeh was the spiritual leader or Qutb of the Ni'matullah (Sultan Ali Shahi) Gonabadi Order in Iran (Gonabadi Dervishes), which is the largest Sufi order in Iran. He was born in Beydokht, Gonabad, Iran and died in Mehr Hospital in Tehran on 24 December 2019 after two years of house arrest.
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49. Christophe Beaugrand-Gerin
1977-. (aged 49)
journalist
radio personality
Christophe Beaugrand is a French television presenter and journalist.
50. Anne Genetet
1963-. (aged 63)
politician
Anne Genetet is a French medical doctor and politician of Renaissance (RE) who briefly served as the Minister of National Education in the Barnier government from September to December 2024. She represented the 11th constituency for French residents overseas in the National Assembly from 2017 to 2024.
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51. Clémence Botino
1997-. (aged 29)
beauty pageant contestant
Clémence Botino is a French beauty pageant titleholder who was crowned Miss France 2020. She represented France at Miss Universe 2021 and Miss World 2023, where she reached the top 10 and top 40, respectively. Botino was previously crowned Miss Guadeloupe 2019, and was the third woman representing Guadeloupe to become Miss France.
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52. Marie Curie
1867-1934 (aged 67)
university teacher
chemist
physicist
Maria Salomea Skłodowska Curie, better known as Marie Curie, was a Polish and naturalised-French physicist and chemist. She shared the 1903 Nobel Prize in Physics with her husband Pierre Curie "for their joint researches on the radioactivity phenomena discovered by Professor Henri Becquerel". She won the 1911 Nobel Prize in Chemistry " the discovery of the elements radium and polonium,...
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53. Mubashir Husain Rehmani
1983-. (aged 43)
computer scientist
scientist
university teacher
Mubashir Husain Rehmani is a Pakistani researcher and computer scientist. His areas of work are computer networking, telecommunications, wireless communications and blockchain. He was recognised in 2020 and 2021 as one of the Highly Cited Researchers in computer science by Clarivate.
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54. Valérie Petit
1976-. (aged 50)
politician
Valérie Petit is a French politician who served as a member of the French National Assembly from 2017 elections until 2022, representing the 9th constituency of the department of Nord. From 2016 until 2020, she was a member of La République En Marche! (LREM).
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55. Céline Calvez
1979-. (aged 47)
cadres de la fonction publique
politician
Céline Calvez is a French politician of Renaissance (RE) who has represented the 5th constituency of the Hauts-de-Seine department in the National Assembly since 2017.
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56. Pedro Simon
1930-. (aged 96)
lawyer
politician
Pedro Jorge Simon is a Brazilian politician, lawyer and professor. He represented Rio Grande do Sul in the Federal Senate for over 30 years. Prior to that, he served as the governor of Rio Grande do Sul from 1987 to 1990. Simon also served as Minister of Agriculture from 1985 to 1986. He is a member of the Brazilian Democratic...
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57. Bernadette Sanou Dao
1952-. (aged 74)
minister
teacher
politician
writer
poet
Bernadette Sanou Dao is a Burkinabé author and politician. At age 11, her family returned to Upper Volta from Mali. She attended Kolog-Naba college in Ouagadougou and later Ohio University in the United States and the Sorbonne in Paris, France. From 1986 to 1987 she was Burkina Faso's Minister for Culture. She lives in Ouagadougou. She writes poetry, short-stories and...
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58. Sofiane Mimouni
1957-. (aged 69)
diplomat
Sofiane Mimouni has been the Permanent Representative of Algeria to the United Nations since October 2019. Director General for Africa at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, from 2015 to 2019. He has also served as Algeria’s Ambassador to Iran from 2009 to 2014, Director‑General of the Asia-Oceania Department at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs from 2005 to 2009 and Ambassador...
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