The Most Famous
PHYSICIANS from Belgium
This page contains a list of the greatest Belgian Physicians. The pantheon dataset contains 502 Physicians, 5 of which were born in Belgium. This makes Belgium the birth place of the 23rd most number of Physicians behind Ukraine and Greece.
Top 5
The following people are considered by Pantheon to be the most legendary Belgian Physicians of all time. This list of famous Belgian Physicians is sorted by HPI (Historical Popularity Index), a metric that aggregates information on a biography’s online popularity.
1. Andreas Vesalius (1514 - 1564)
With an HPI of 77.59, Andreas Vesalius is the most famous Belgian Physician. His biography has been translated into 69 different languages on wikipedia.
Andries van Wezel (31 December 1514 – 15 October 1564), latinised as Andreas Vesalius (), was an anatomist and physician who wrote De Humani Corporis Fabrica Libri Septem (On the fabric of the human body in seven books), what is considered to be one of the most influential books on human anatomy and a major advance over the long-dominant work of Galen. Vesalius is often referred to as the founder of modern human anatomy. He was born in Brussels, which was then part of the Habsburg Netherlands. He was a professor at the University of Padua (1537–1542) and later became Imperial physician at the court of Emperor Charles V.
2. Jacques Rogge (1942 - 2021)
With an HPI of 71.50, Jacques Rogge is the 2nd most famous Belgian Physician. His biography has been translated into 55 different languages.
Jacques Jean Marie Rogge, Count Rogge (French: [ʒɑk ʁɔɡ], Dutch: [ˈrɔɣə] ; 2 May 1942 – 29 August 2021) was a Belgian sports administrator and physician who served as the eighth President of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) from 2001 to 2013. In 2013, Rogge became the IOC's Honorary President, a lifetime position, which he held until his death in 2021.
3. Corneille Heymans (1892 - 1968)
With an HPI of 64.33, Corneille Heymans is the 3rd most famous Belgian Physician. His biography has been translated into 49 different languages.
Corneille Jean François Heymans (28 March 1892 – 18 July 1968) was a Belgian physiologist. He studied at the Jesuit College of Saint Barbara and then at Ghent University, where he obtained a doctor's degree in 1920. Heymans won the Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1938 for showing how blood pressure and the oxygen content of the blood are measured by the body and transmitted to the brain.
4. Rembert Dodoens (1517 - 1585)
With an HPI of 55.05, Rembert Dodoens is the 4th most famous Belgian Physician. His biography has been translated into 23 different languages.
Rembert Dodoens (born Rembert Van Joenckema, 29 June 1517 – 10 March 1585) was a Flemish physician and botanist, also known under his Latinized name Rembertus Dodonaeus. He has been called the father of botany. The standard author abbreviation Dodoens is used to indicate this person as the author when citing a botanical name.
5. Paul Janssen (1926 - 2003)
With an HPI of 51.63, Paul Janssen is the 5th most famous Belgian Physician. His biography has been translated into 17 different languages.
Paul Adriaan Jan, Baron Janssen (12 September 1926 – 11 November 2003) was a Belgian physician. He was the founder of Janssen Pharmaceutica, a pharmaceutical company with over 20,000 employees which is now a subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson.
Pantheon has 5 people classified as physicians born between 1514 and 1942. Of these 5, none of them are still alive today. The most famous deceased physicians include Andreas Vesalius, Jacques Rogge, and Corneille Heymans. As of April 2022, 1 new physicians have been added to Pantheon including Paul Janssen.
Deceased Physicians
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Andreas Vesalius
1514 - 1564
HPI: 77.59
Jacques Rogge
1942 - 2021
HPI: 71.50
Corneille Heymans
1892 - 1968
HPI: 64.33
Rembert Dodoens
1517 - 1585
HPI: 55.05
Paul Janssen
1926 - 2003
HPI: 51.63
Newly Added Physicians (2022)
Go to all RankingsWhich Physicians were alive at the same time? This visualization shows the lifespans of the 3 most globally memorable Physicians since 1700.
