Alumni in history

Photographer, broadcaster, geologist, traveller, pilot and Ireland's first female flight instructor.

January 29th marks the 93rd anniversary of the birth of Edward Abbey, the influential American writer whose work continues to inspire modern environmentalists, and who spent a year at the University of Edinburgh.

Scottish mathematician who discovered the first graph with 54 vertices and 81 edges while working at American Telephone and Telegraph. The innovative and useful graph is commonly known as the Gray graph.

Helen Adam was a Scottish-American poet and visual artist, whose work features tales of fatal romances, sadistic sexual affairs, jealous lovers and vengeful demons.

Indian biochemist, British Indian Army general and military physician who was also a nominated member of the Rajya Sabha, the Upper House of the Indian Parliament

Pioneering Nigerian surgeon, Inspector General of Medical Services, and former Chief Medical Adviser to the Federal Government of Nigeria.

Feminist, human rights campaigner and child welfare advocate.

Influential physician, botanist, and New York citizen who was the first person to bring European-style landscape architecture to the United States of America.

Irish mathematical physicist whose PhD from the University of Edinburgh made her the first Irish-born and -raised woman to receive a doctorate in the mathematical sciences

Accomplished English rugby union player and First World War sailor who studied medicine at Edinburgh.

Scottish physician, head of the Women's Army Auxiliary Corps, and the first woman to receive an MD from the University of Edinburgh.

In national LGBT History month, we look at the life of gay writer C. K. Scott Moncrieff, the twice-graduate of Edinburgh who became famous for his English translations of Proust.

Entomologist who became the first woman Fellow of the Meteorological Society and first woman to be given an honorary doctorate by University of Edinburgh.

November marks the centenary of the birth of Margaret Tait, the Orcadian medic turned film-maker and poet.

Scottish electrical engineer, and a pioneer in the field of electricity generation through wind power and his wind turbine.

Eminent surgeon and university dean turned political opponent who stood for unity in Ethiopia.

Scottish physicist and pioneer in X-rays and superconductivity.

As the NHS celebrates its 70th anniversary, we take a look at the life of Professor Norman Dott, who helped establish the University's neurology department in 1960.

Influential Scottish-Nigerian doctor, and the first woman of West African heritage to train and qualify in orthodox medicine.

One of the first woman MPs, prominent socialist, and leading founder of the Open University.

Sharp-witted poet famed for his wry commentaries on Edinburgh life.

The first woman to graduate with BD and PhD degrees from New College.

To commemorate the 40th anniversary of his death, we look at the life of John P. Mackintosh - politician, professor, writer, and proponent of Scottish devolution.

Eminent surgeon, pioneer of medical anaesthesia, and advocate for women working in surgery and medicine.

Regarded as one of New Zealand's greatest mathematicians and Chair of Mathematics at the University from 1946 to 1965.

Celebrated stage and film actor who played fellow graduate Eric Liddell in 'Chariots of Fire'.

Missionary, child health pioneer, and the first female Fellow of the Royal College of Physicians of Edinburgh

Judge, philosopher and founder of modern comparative historical linguistics.

Scottish theologian and Church of Scotland minister.

Following this month's General Election, we take a look at the life of former Prime Minister Viscount Palmerston.

Scottish poet and diarist, known for his ‘bairn rhymes’, and recently honoured by the City of Edinburgh.

Psychiatrist, psychoanalyst and the father of the object relations theory of psychoanalysis.

Industrialist, politician and inventor who became known for her battle with the US taxman.

Academy Award-winning screenplay writer, novelist and captain of Dundee United.

Celebrated Scottish astronomer, soldier and Governor of New South Wales.

Scottish naturalist, polar scientist and oceanographer who led the first and only Scottish National Antarctic Expedition.

October 2016 marks the tercentenary of the birth of James Lind, the Edinburgh alumnus who pioneered the use of citrus fruits to treat scurvy.

The first practising women surgeon in Scotland and a trailblazer for future generations of female medical students.

The founder of modern geology, James Hutton lived a colourful life before devoting himself to the study of the origins of the Earth.

Madras-born Scottish physician, pioneering botanist and forest conservationist in India.

A church minister who invented an engine that was two centuries ahead of its time and is just coming into its own.

The first British woman to qualify as a dentist and the first female president of the British Dental Association.

The most influential thinker of the Scottish Enlightenment and one of the greatest philosophers of all time.

German-born physicist and spy who was arrested and convicted for giving vital atomic-research secrets to the Soviet Union.

Sculptor and Edinburgh College of Art graduate who left her mark on Ashworth Laboratories at King’s Buildings.

A scholar and physician best known for publishing the Thesaurus of English Words and Phrases.

The first female member of the Edinburgh Mathematical Society and one of the first women to graduate from the University in 1893.

Prior to his infamous involvement in the Burke and Hare murders, Robert Knox was a renowned lecturer of anatomy, esteemed zoologist, ethnologist and doctor.

The world’s eighth longest serving monarch with a reputation for progressive thinking was also the only Maharaja to be awarded a degree.

A prominent career as a painter led her to be the first woman to become an Academician of the Royal Scottish Academy and an influential member of the Scottish art world.