List of Israelis
Israelis are the citizens or permanent residents of the State of Israel. The largest ethnic groups in Israel are Jews, followed by Palestinians and Arabs and other minorities.
Academics
Archaeology
Biology and medicine
- Aaron Valero – Professor of Medicine, founder of Faculty of Medicine at the Technion, director of government hospital
- Aaron Ciechanover and Avram Hershko – ubiquitin system; Lasker Award, Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Moshe Feldenkrais – invented Feldenkrais Method used in movement therapy
- Hossam Haick – inventor of an electric nose for diagnosis of cancer
- Israel Hanukoglu – structures of cytoskeletal keratins, NADP binding proteins, steroidogenic enzymes, Epithelial Sodium Channels
- Gavriel Iddan – inventor of capsule endoscopy
- Danny Ionescu – aquatic microbial ecologist
- Benjamin Kahn – marine biologist, defender of the Red Sea reef
- Alexander Levitzki – cancer research; Wolf Prize in Medicine
- Yadin Dudai – memory research
- Gideon Mer – scientist, malaria control
- Saul Merin – ophthalmologist, author of Inherited Eye Diseases
- Raphael Mechoulam – chemist, discoverer of tetrahydrocannabinol and anandamide
- Leo Sachs – blood cell research; Wolf Prize in Medicine
- Asya Rolls – psychoneuroimmunologist
- Michael Sela and Ruth Arnon – developed Copaxone; Wolf Prize in Medicine
- Michal Schwartz – neuroimmunology of age-related neurological disease
- Rahel Straus – German-Jewish medical doctor and feminist
- Joel Sussman – 3D structure of acetylcholinesterase, Elkeles Prize for Research in Medicine
- Meir Wilchek – affinity chromatography; Wolf Prize in Medicine
- Ada Yonath – structure of ribosome, Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Amotz Zahavi – Handicap Principle
- Abraham Zangen – psycholobiology
Computing and mathematics
- Ron Aharoni – mathematician
- Noga Alon – mathematician, computer scientist, winner of the Gödel Prize
- Shimshon Amitsur – mathematician ring theory abstract algebra
- Robert Aumann – mathematician game theory; Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
- Amir Ban and Shay Bushinsky – programmers of Junior (chess)
- Yehoshua Bar-Hillel – machine translation
- Joseph Bernstein – mathematician
- Eli Biham – differential cryptanalysis
- Yair Censor – mathematician
- Aryeh Dvoretzky – mathematician, eighth president of the Weizmann Institute of Science
- Uriel Feige – computer scientist, winner of the Gödel Prize
- Abraham Fraenkel – ZF set theory
- Hillel Furstenberg – mathematician; Wolf Prize in Mathematics
- Shafi Goldwasser – computer scientist, winner of the Gödel Prize
- David Harel – computer science; Israel Prize
- Gad M. Landau – computer scientist
- Abraham Lempel and Jacob Ziv – LZW compression; IEEE Richard W. Hamming Medal
- Joram Lindenstrauss – mathematician Johnson–Lindenstrauss lemma
- Elon Lindenstrauss – mathematician
- Michel Loève – probabilist
- Joel Moses – MIT provost and writer of Macsyma
- Yoram Moses – computer scientist, winner of the Gödel Prize
- Judea Pearl – artificial intelligence, philosophy of action; Turing Award
- Ilya Piatetski-Shapiro – representation theory; Wolf Prize in Mathematics
- Amir Pnueli – temporal logic; Turing Award
- Michael O. Rabin – nondeterminism, primality testing; Turing Award
- Shmuel Safra – computer scientist, winner of the Gödel Prize
- Nir Shavit – computer scientist, winner of the Gödel Prize
- Adi Shamir – RSA encryption, differential cryptanalysis; Turing Award
- Saharon Shelah – logic; Wolf Prize in Mathematics
- Ehud Shapiro – Concurrent Prolog, DNA computing pioneer
- Moshe Y. Vardi – computer scientist, winner of the Gödel Prize
- Avi Wigderson – randomized algorithms; Nevanlinna Prize
- Doron Zeilberger – combinatorics
Journalists
- Suleiman Maswadeh
- Ilana Dayan
- Ehud Yaari
- Dan Margalit
- Ze'ev Schiff
- Ayala Hasson
- Amit Segal
- Yonit Levi
- Yaakov Bardugo
Engineering
- Yaakov Bar-Shalom – electrical engineer
- David Faiman – solar engineer and director of the National Solar Energy Center
- Yoram Koren – mechanical engineer
- Liviu Librescu – Professor of Engineering Science and Mechanics at Virginia Tech, killed in the Virginia Tech massacre
- Hagit Messer Yaron – electrical engineer
- Moshe Zakai – electrical engineer
- Jacob Ziv – electrical engineer
Humanities
- Aharon Dolgopolsky – linguist: Nostratic
- Moshe Goshen-Gottstein – Biblical scholar
- Elias Khoury – law
- Hans Jakob Polotsky – linguist
- Chaim Rabin – Biblical scholar
- Alice Shalvi – English literature, educator
- Gershon Shaked – Hebrew literature
- Shemaryahu Talmon – Biblical scholar
- Emanuel Tov – Biblical scholar
- Ghil'ad Zuckermann – linguist, revivalist
Philosophy
Physics and chemistry
- Yakir Aharonov – Aharonov–Bohm effect; Wolf Prize in Physics
- Uri Banin – chemist
- Amiram Barkai – biochemist
- Jacob Bekenstein – black hole thermodynamics; Wolf Prize in Physics
- David Deutsch – quantum computing pioneer; Paul Dirac Prize
- Joshua Jortner and Rafi Levine – molecular energy; Wolf Prize in Chemistry
- Josef Imry – physicist
- Aaron Katzir – physical chemistry
- Ephraim Katzir – immobilized enzymes; Japan Prize ; fourth president of Israel List of presidents of Israel
- Michael Levitt – Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Zvi Lipkin – physicist
- Dan T. Major – professor of chemistry
- Boris Mavashev – seismologist
- Mordehai Milgrom – Modified Newtonian Dynamics
- Yuval Ne'eman – the "Eightfold way"
- Israel Pelah – nuclear physics
- Asher Peres – quantum theory
- Giulio Racah – spectroscopy
- Nathan Rosen – EPR paradox
- Nathan Seiberg – string theory
- Dan Shechtman – quasicrystals; Wolf Prize in Physics, Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Igal Talmi – nuclear physics
- Tsippy Tamiri – chemistry
- Reshef Tenne – discovered inorganic fullerenes and non-carbon nanotubes
- Arieh Warshel – Nobel Prize in Chemistry
- Chaim Weizmann – acetone production
Social sciences
- Yehuda Bauer – Holocaust historian
- Dany Bahar (economist) – economist
- Daniel Elazar – political scientist
- Esther Farbstein – historian
- Ayelet Frish – strategic consultant
- Haim Ginott – psychologist: child psychology
- Eliyahu Goldratt – business consultant: Theory of Constraints
- Louis Guttman – sociologist
- Yuval Noah Harari – historian and author who wrote best selling book Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind
- Michael Harris – public policy scholar and university administrator
- Elhanan Helpman – economist: international trade
- Daniel Kahneman – behavioural scientist: prospect theory; Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
- Smadar Lavie – anthropologist
- Benny Morris – historian
- Erich Neumann – analytical psychologist: development, consciousness
- Nurit Peled-Elhanan – educator
- Renee Rabinowitz – psychologist and lawyer
- Sheizaf Rafaeli – management, information, communication
- Anat Rafaeli – organisational behaviour
- Ariel Rubinstein – economist
- Moshe Sharon – historian
- Avi Shlaim – historian
- Abraham Solomonick – semiotician, linguist
- Amos Tversky – behavioral scientist: prospect theory with Daniel Kahneman
- Hanan Yoran – historian
Activists
- Uri Avnery – peace activist, Gush Shalom
- Yael Dayan – writer, politician, activist
- Esther Eillam – feminist activist
- Uzi Even – gay rights activist
- Yehuda Glick – activist for Jewish rights at the Temple Mount
- Shula Keshet – Mizrahi feminist, activist and artist
- Hagar Rublev – peace activist
- Uri Savir – peace negotiator, Peres Center for Peace
- Israel Shahak – political activist
- Natan Sharansky – Soviet-era human rights activist
- Ronny Edry and Michal Tamir – originators of the Israel-Loves-Iran peace movement and its offshoots
Architects
Athletes
Association football (soccer)
- Avram Grant – Israeli head coach and manager
- Eyal Ben Ami – midfielder various clubs, national team
- Yaniv Ben-Nissan – midfielder
- Dudu Aouate – goalkeeper
- Jonathan Assous – defensive midfielder, of French origin
- Gai Assulin – winger/attacking midfielder
- Ronen Badash – midfielder
- Pini Balili – striker
- Nir Bitton – midfielder, Hapoel Be'er Sheva, Maccabi Haifa, Racing Santander, West Ham United, Liverpool, Chelsea
- Gil Cain – defender, Hapoel Azor
- David "Dedi" Ben Dayan – left defender
- Tal Ben Haim – center back/right back, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Bolton Wanderers, Chelsea, West Ham United
- Daniel Brailovski – midfielder
- Roberto Colautti – Argentine born-striker
- Tomer Chencinski – goaltender
- Avi Cohen – defender, Liverpool and national team
- Tamir Cohen – midfielder
- Rami Gershon – centre back / left back
- Tvrtko Kale – Croatia/Israel, goalkeeper
- Oscar Gloukh - Attacking Midfielder / Winger for Ajax
- Yaniv Katan – forward/winger
- Eli Ohana – won UEFA Cup Winners' Cup and Bravo Award ; national team; manager
- Haim Revivo – attacking/side midfielder, Maccabi Haifa, Celta de Vigo, Fenerbahçe, Galatasaray
- Ronnie Rosenthal – left winger/striker, Maccabi Haifa, Liverpool, Tottenham, Watford
- Ben Sahar – striker/winger
- Mordechai Spiegler – striker, manager
- Idan Tal – midfielder
- Salim Tuama – soccer player playing for Hapoel Tel Aviv who has in the past played for Standard Liège, Maccabi Petah Tikva, Kayserispor, AEL and the youth club Gadna Tel Aviv Yehuda.
- Rifaat Turk – Team Israel Olympic midfielder
- Yochanan Vollach – defender ; current president of Maccabi Haifa
- Pini Zahavi – UK-based super-agent
- Itzik Zohar – attacking midfielder, Maccabi Jaffa, Maccabi Tel Aviv, Royal Antwerp, Beitar Jerusalem, Crystal Palace, Maccabi Haifa, Maccabi Herzliya, Maccabi Netanya, F.C. Ashdod, Hapoel Nazareth Illit
- Eyal Berkovic – attacking midfielder
- Eran Zahavi – forward
- Manor Solomon – winger/attacking midfielder
Basketball
- Miki Berkovich – Maccabi Tel Aviv
- David Blu –, EuroLeague 6' 7" forward
- Tal Brody – Euroleague 6' 2" shooting guard, Maccabi Tel Aviv
- Tal Burstein – Maccabi Tel Aviv
- Omri Casspi – 6' 9" small forward, drafted in 1st round of 2009 NBA draft
- Tanhum Cohen-Mintz – 6' 8" center; 2× Euroleague All-Star
- Shay Doron – WNBA 5' 9" guard, University of Maryland
- Lior Eliyahu – 6' 9" power forward, NBA draft 2006, but completed mandatory service in the Israel Defense Forces and played in the Euroleague
- Tamir Goodman – US and Israel, 6' 3" shooting guard
- Yotam Halperin – 6' 5" guard, drafted in 2006 NBA draft by Seattle SuperSonics
- T. J. Leaf – NBA basketball player
- Barry Leibowitz – American-Israeli basketball player in the American Basketball Association and the Israeli Basketball Premier League
- Gal Mekel – NBA basketball player
- Yehoshua Rozin – basketball coach
- Ben Saraf, basketball player
- Derrick Sharp – American-Israeli basketball player
- Amit Tamir – 6' 10" center/forward, University of California, PAOK Thessaloniki
Bodybuilding
- Alana Shipp – American/Israeli IFBB professional bodybuilder
- Eli Hanania – American/Israeli bodybuilder and model
Boxing
- Salamo Arouch – middleweight champion of Greece, lightweight, welterweight, middleweight. He survived the Holocaust by boxing for the entertainment of Nazi officers in Auschwitz Concentration Camp. His story was portrayed in the 1989 film "Triumph of the Spirit"
- Sarah Avraham – kickboxer, 2014 Women's World Thai-Boxing Champion in 57–63 kilos
- Hagar Finer – WIBF bantamweight champion
- Yuri Foreman – US middleweight and World Boxing Association super welterweight champion
- Roman Greenberg –, International Boxing Organization's Intercontinental heavyweight champion
- Pavlo Ishchenko – two-time European Amateur Boxing Championships medalist, and European Games medalist
- Yulia Sachkov – world champion kickboxer
Cycling
- Mikhail Iakovlev – Olympic cyclist
Fencing
- Boaz Ellis – foil, 5-time Israeli champion
- Yuval Freilich – épée, 2019 European Épée Champion
- Lydia Hatoel-Zuckerman – foil, 6-time Israeli champion
- Delila Hatuel – Olympic foil fencer
- Noam Mills – épée, junior female world champion, four-time Israeli champion
- Ayelet Ohayon – foil, European champion
- Tomer Or – foil, junior world champion
- Andre Spitzer – one of 11 athletes and coaches taken hostage and subsequently killed by terrorists in the Munich massacre
Figure skating
- Alexei Beletski – ice dancer, Olympian
- Oleksii Bychenko – figure skater, Olympian, European silver medallist 2016
- Galit Chait – ice dancer, World Championship bronze 2002
- Natalia Gudina – figure skater, Olympian
- Tamar Katz – figure skater
- Lionel Rumi – ice dancer
- Sergei Sakhnovsky – ice dancer, World Championship Bronze medal 2002
- Daniel Samohin – figure skater, Olympian, 2016 World Junior Champion
- Michael Shmerkin – figure skater
- Alexandra Zaretski – ice dancer, Olympian
- Roman Zaretski – ice dancer, Olympian
Golf
- Laetitia Beck – golfer
Gymnastics
- Alexander Shatilov – World bronze
- Artem Dolgopyat – artistic gymnast
- Linoy Ashram – rhythmic gymnast
- Neta Rivkin – rhythmic gymnast
- Nicol Zelikman – rhythmic gymnast
Judo
- Yael Arad – judoka. first Israeli Olympic medalist; light-middleweight
- Yarden Gerbi – judoka
- Andrian Kordon – European Championship bronze; heavyweight
- Daniela Krukower – Israeli/Argentine judoka, World Champion
- Timna Nelson-Levy – judoka, European champion
- Yoel Razvozov – two-time European Championship silver; lightweight
- Or Sasson – judoka
- Oren Smadja – judoka
- Ehud Vaks – judoka
- Gal Yekutiel – European championship bronze
- Ariel Ze'evi – judoka
Motor racing
- Alon Day – former NASCAR Euro Series racing driver
- Chanoch Nissany – former racing driver and Formula One test driver
- Roy Nissany – FIA Formula 2 racing driver
- Ido Cohen – FIA Formula 3 racing driver
- Ariel Elkin – Italian Formula 4 racing driver
- Alon Gabbay – Porsche Carrera Cup Germany racing driver
- Ariel Levi – Porsche Carrera Cup GT3 racing driver
- Adar Melamed – CrossKart EU driver
- Niv Amar - NASA Porsche Spec 944 racing driver
Sailing
- Zefania Carmel – yachtsman, world champion
- Gal Fridman – windsurfer, bronze: 1996
- Shai Kakon – Olympic sailor
- Sharon Kantor – world champion windsurfer
- Lee Korzits – windsurfer.
- Lydia Lazarov – yachting world champion
- Nimrod Mashiah – windsurfer; World Championship silver, ranked # 1 in world
- Tom Reuveny – Olympic champion windsurfing sailor
- Katy Spychakov – windsurfer; World Championship silver
- Shahar Tzuberi – windsurfer, Olympic bronze ; 2009 and 2010 European Windsurf champion
Surfing
- Anat Lelior – female surfer who competed for Israel at the 2020 Olympic Games
Swimming
- Vadim Alexeev – swimmer, breaststroke
- Adi Bichman – 400-m and 800-m freestyle, 400-m medley
- Yoav Bruck – 50-m freestyle and 100-m freestyle
- Anastasia Gorbenko – backstroke, breaststroke, and freestyle
- Eran Groumi – 100 and 200 m backstroke, 100-m butterfly
- Michael "Miki" Halika – 200-m butterfly, 200- and 400-m individual medley
- Judith Haspel –, of Austrian origin, held every Austrian women's middle and long-distance freestyle record in 1935; refused to represent Austria in 1936 Summer Olympics along with Ruth Langer and Lucie Goldner, protesting Hitler, stating, "We do not boycott Olympia, but Berlin".
- Marc Hinawi – record holder in the European Games
- Amit Ivry – Maccabiah and Israeli records in Women's 100 m butterfly, Israeli record in Women's 200 m Individual Medley, bronze medal in 100 m butterfly at the European Swimming Championships.
- Dan Kutler – of US origin; 100-m butterfly, 4×100-m medley relay
- Keren Leibovitch – Paralympic swimmer, 4× gold medal winner, 100m backstroke, 50m and 100m freestyle, 200m individual medley
- Tal Stricker – 100- and 200-m breaststroke, 4×100-m medley relay
- Eithan Urbach – backstroke swimmer, European championship silver and bronze; 100-m backstroke
Table tennis
- Marina Kravchenko – table tennis player, Soviet and Israel national teams
- Angelica Rozeanu –, of Romanian origin, 17-time world table tennis champion, ITTFHoF
Taekwondo
- Avishag Semberg – taekwondo female athlete
Tennis
- Noam Behr
- Ilana Berger
- Gilad Bloom
- Jonathan Erlich – 6 doubles titles, 6 doubles finals; won 2008 Australian Open Men's Doubles, highest world doubles ranking #
5 - Shlomo Glickstein – highest world singles ranking #
22 , highest world doubles ranking #28 - Julia Glushko
- Amir Hadad
- Harel Levy – highest world singles ranking #
30 - Evgenia Linetskaya
- Amos Mansdorf – highest world singles ranking #
18 - Tzipora Obziler
- Noam Okun
- Yshai Oliel
- Shahar Pe'er –, highest world singles ranking #
11 , highest world doubles ranking #14 - Keren Shlomo –
- Shahar Perkiss
- Andy Ram – 6 doubles titles, 6 doubles finals, 1 mixed double title, 2007 French Open Mixed Doubles, 2008 Australian Open Men's Doubles, highest world doubles ranking #
5 - Eyal Ran
- Dudi Sela – highest world singles ranking #
29 - Anna Smashnova –, highest world singles ranking #
15
Track and field
- Alex Averbukh – pole vaulter
- Ayele Seteng – long-distance runner, was the oldest track and field athlete competing at the 2004 Olympics and 2008 Olympics.
- Danielle Frenkel – high jump champion
- Hanna Knyazyeva-Minenko – triple jumper and long jumper; participated in 2012 Summer Olympics
- Shaul Ladany – world-record-holding racewalker, Bergen-Belsen survivor, Munich Massacre survivor, professor of industrial engineering
- Lonah Chemtai Salpeter – Kenyan-Israeli Olympic marathon runner
- Esther Roth-Shachamarov – track and field, hurdler and sprinter
Other
- 1972 Olympic team – see Munich Massacre
- David Mark Berger – weightlifter originally from US, Maccabiah champion ; killed in the Munich Massacre
- Max Birbraer – ice hockey player drafted by NHL team
- Nili Block – world champion kickboxer and Muay Thai fighter
- Noam Dar – Israeli-born Scottish wrestler
- Oren Eizenman – ice hockey player, Israel national team; Connecticut Whale)
- Eli Elezra – professional poker player
- Boris Gelfand, Emil Sutovsky, Ilya Smirin – chess Grandmasters
- Bar Greenzaid – indoor skydiving athlete, singer and model
- Baruch Hagai – wheelchair athlete
- Michael Kolganov – sprint canoer/kayak paddler, world champion, Olympic bronze 2000
- Dean Kremer – Israeli-American Major League Baseball pitcher
- Imi Lichtenfeld – Hungarian-born Israeli martial artist, developer of Krav Maga
- Ido Pariente – mixed martial artist
- Eliezer Sherbatov – Israeli-Canadian ice hockey player
- Shachar Sagiv – Olympic triathlete
- Chagai Zamir – four-time Paralympic Games champion
- Misha Zilberman – Olympic badminton player
Chefs
- Yisrael Aharoni – chef and restaurateur and reality television judge
- Michal Ansky – female chef and reality television judge
- Jamie Geller – American born-Israeli chef
- Erez Komarovsky – first artisanal bread baker in Israel and reality television judge
- Yotam Ottolenghi – Israeli-British chef
- Moshik Roth – chef with two Michelin stars and reality television judge
- Assaf Granit – chef with one Michelin star and reality television judge
Entertainment
Artists
- Yaacov Agam – kinetic artist
- Ron Arad – designer
- Mordecai Ardon – painter
- David Ascalon – sculptor and synagogue designer
- Maurice Ascalon – sculptor and industrial designer
- Isidor Ascheim – painter and printmaker
- Mordechai Avniel – painter and sculptor
- Yigal Azrouel – fashion designer
- Ralph Bakshi – animation
- Eyal ben-Moshe (Eyal B) – animator and director
- Tuvia Beeri – printmaker
- Alexander Bogen – painter
- Rhea Carmi – painter
- Yitzhak Danziger – sculptor
- Alber Elbaz – fashion designer
- Ohad Elimelech – artist, director, editor, photographer, animator, lecturer and graphic designer
- Osnat Elkabir – dancer, artist and theatre direction
- Sharon Eyal – dancer, choreographer
- Gadi Fraiman – sculptor
- Yitzhak Frenkel Frenel – École de Paris painter and sculptor
- Gideon Gechtman – sculptor
- Moshe Gershuni – painter
- Dudu Geva – artist and comic-strip illustrator
- Pinhas Golan – sculptor
- Nachum Gutman – painter
- Israel Hershberg – realist painter
- Shimshon Holzman – painter
- Leo Kahn – painter
- Shmuel Katz – illustrator
- Uri Katzenstein – visual artist
- Dani Karavan – sculptor
- Joseph Kossonogi – painter
- Elyasaf Kowner – video artist
- Sigalit Landau – video, installation, sculpture
- Alex Levac – photographer
- Batia Lishansky – sculptor
- Ranan Lurie – political cartoonist
- Lea Nikel – painter
- Zvi Malnovitzer – painter
- Elyada Merioz – painter and art dealer
- Tamara Musakhanova – sculptor and ceramist
- Mushail Mushailov – painter
- Ilana Raviv – painter
- Leo Roth – painter
- Reuven Rubin – painter
- Hagit Shahal – painter
- David Tartakover – graphic designer
- Anna Ticho – painter
- Igael Tumarkin – sculptor
- Yemima Ergas Vroman – painter, sculptor, installation artist
- Sergey Zagraevsky – painter
- Moshe Ziffer – sculptor
Film, TV, radio, and stage
- Avital Abergel – film and TV actress
- Gila Almagor – actress
- Aviv Alush – actor
- Lior Ashkenazi – actor
- Yossi Atia – film director
- Yvan Attal – actor and director
- Mili Avital – actress
- Aki Avni – actor
- Orna Banai – actress
- Theodore Bikel – actor
- Eddie Carmel, born Oded Ha-Carmeili – actor, singer, and circus sideshow act
- Jason Danino-Holt – television presenter
- Ronit Elkabetz – actress
- David Faitelson – Mexican television sports commentator, born in Israel
- Oded Fehr – actor
- Eytan Fox – director
- Tal Friedman – actor and comedian
- Gal Gadot – actress and mode, Miss Israel 2004
- Uri Geller – TV personality, self-proclaimed psychic
- Amos Gitai – director
- Yasmeen Godder – choreographer and dancer
- Arnon Goldfinger – director
- Yael Grobglas – actress
- Shira Haas – actress
- Dana Ivgy – actress
- Michael Karpin – broadcast journalist and author
- Daphna Kastner – actress; married to actor Harvey Keitel
- Nisan Katz – producer and director
- Juliano Mer-Khamis – actor
- Hila Klein – YouTuber of h3h3productions
- Amos Kollek – director and writer
- Dover Kosashvili – director
- Hanna Laslo – actress
- Daliah Lavi – actress
- Inbar Lavi – actress
- Bar Paly – actress and model
- Jonah Lotan – actor
- Rod Lurie – director and film critic
- Arnon Milchan – producer
- Avi Arad – producer and founder of Marvel Studios
- Samuel Maoz – director
- Ohad Naharin – choreographer
- Eyal Podell – actor
- Orna Porat – actress
- Natalie Portman – actress
- Lior Raz – actor and screenwriter
- Ze'ev Revach – actor and comedian
- Agam Rudberg – actress and model
- Avner Strauss – musician
- Haim Saban – TV producer and co-founder of Saban Entertainment
- Elia Suleiman – director
- Alona Tal – actress
- Noa Tishby – actress and producer
- Chaim Topol – actor
- Raviv Ullman – actor
- Yaron London – journalist and television host
- Keren Yedaya – director
- Becky Griffin – television host and model
- Rotem Sela – television host, actress and model
- Ayelet Zurer – actress
- Odeya Rush – actress and model
- Tomer Capone – actor
- Nuseir Yassin – YouTube vlogger, founder of Nas Daily
Musicians
Classical composers
- Rami Bar-Niv
- Ofer Ben-Amots
- Paul Ben-Haim
- Avner Dorman
- Dror Elimelech
- Andre Hajdu
- Gilad Hochman
- Mark Kopytman
- Matti Kovler
- Betty Olivero
- Shulamit Ran
- Leon Schidlowsky
- Noam Sheriff
- Gil Shohat
- Josef Tal
- Yitzhak Yedid
Classical musicians
- Moshe Atzmon – conductor
- Daniel Barenboim – conductor and pianist
- Rami Bar-Niv – pianist and composer
- Bart Berman – pianist
- Gary Bertini – conductor
- Natan Brand – pianist
- Yefim Bronfman – pianist
- Giora Feidman – clarinetist
- Ivry Gitlis – violinist
- Matt Haimovitz – cellist
- Alice Herz-Sommer – pianist
- Ofra Harnoy – cellist
- Eliahu Inbal – conductor
- Sharon Kam – clarinetist
- Amir Katz – pianist
- Evgeny Kissin – pianist
- Yoel Levi – conductor
- Mischa Maisky – cellist
- Shlomo Mintz – violinist
- Itzhak Perlman – violinist
- Inbal Segev – cellist
- Gil Shaham – violinist
- Hagai Shaham – violinist
- Michael Shani – conductor
- Edna Stern – pianist
- Yoav Talmi – conductor
- Arie Vardi – pianist
- Maxim Vengerov – violinist, violist and conductor
- Ilana Vered – pianist
- Pinchas Zukerman – violinist
Popular musicians
- Chava Alberstein – singer-songwriter
- Etti Ankri – singer-songwriter
- Yardena Arazi – singer and TV host
- Shlomo Artzi – singer-songwriter
- Ehud Banai – singer-songwriter
- Abatte Barihun – jazz saxophonist and composer
- Eef Barzelay – founder of Clem Snide
- Netta Barzilai – singer
- Miri Ben-Ari – jazz and hip hop violinist
- Mosh Ben-Ari – singer-songwriter
- Borgore – electronic dance music producer and DJ
- Mike Brant – French-language singer
- David Broza – singer-songwriter
- Matti Caspi – singer, multi-instrumentalist and composer
- Avishai Cohen – jazz bassist
- David D'Or – singer-songwriter
- Arkadi Duchin – singer-songwriter, musical producer
- Arik Einstein – singer, actor, writer
- Gad Elbaz – singer
- Ethnix – pop-rock band
- Rita Yahan-Farouz – singer, actress
- Uri Frost – rock guitarist, producer and director
- Aviv Geffen – singer-songwriter
- Eyal Golan – singer
- Gidi Gov – singer
- Dedi Graucher – Orthodox Jewish singer
- Shlomo Gronich – singer and composer
- Nadav Guedj – singer
- Sarit Hadad – Mizrahi singer
- Victoria Hanna – singer-songwriter
- Ofra Haza – singer
- Dana International – pop singer
- Ishtar – vocalist for Alabina
- Rami Kleinstein – singer-songwriter, composer
- Ehud Manor – songwriter and translator
- Amal Murkus – singer
- Infected Mushroom – musical duo
- Yael Naïm – solo singer/musician
- Ahinoam Nini – singer
- Esther Ofarim – singer
- Yehuda Poliker – singer
- Ester Rada – singer
- Idan Raichel – Ethiopian and Israeli music
- Yoni Rechter – composer and arranger
- Ishai Ribo – singer-songwriter
- Berry Sakharof – singer
- Naomi Shemer – songwriter
- Gene Simmons – lead member of Kiss
- Hillel Slovak – original guitarist for Red Hot Chili Peppers
- Pe'er Tasi – singer-songwriter
- Ninet Tayeb – pop rock singer and actress
- Hagit Yaso – singer
- Rika Zaraï – singer
- Nir Zidkyahu – drummer, briefly in Genesis
- Zino and Tommy – popular duo, songs in US films
- Eden Ben Zaken – singer
- Noa Kirel – singer and actress
- Omer Netzer – country music artist
- Rucka Rucka Ali – rapper, YouTuber, parodist
News anchors
Poets
- Nathan Alterman
- Yehuda Amichai
- Sivan Beskin
- Erez Biton
- Leah Goldberg
- Uri Zvi Greenberg
- Vaan Nguyen
- Dahlia Ravikovich
- Naomi Shemer – songwriter and lyricist
- Avraham Shlonsky
- Avraham Stern
- Abraham Sutzkever
- Yona Wallach
- Nathan Zach
- Zelda
Writers
- Shmuel Yosef Agnon – author, Nobel Prize in Literature
- Aharon Appelfeld – Prix Médicis étranger
- Yoni Ben-Menachem – journalist
- Ron Ben-Yishai – journalist
- Nahum Benari – author and playwright
- Max Brod – author, composer and friend of Kafka
- Orly Castel-Bloom – author
- Yehonatan Geffen – author, poet and lyricist
- David Grossman – author
- Batya Gur – author
- Emile Habibi – author
- Amira Hass – journalist and author
- Shmuel Katz – author and journalist
- Etgar Keret – author
- Adi Keissar – poet
- Ephraim Kishon – satirist
- Hanoch Levin – playwright
- Julius Margolin – writer
- Aharon Megged – author
- Sami Michael – author
- Samir Naqqash – author
- Uri Orlev – author, Hans Christian Andersen Award
- Amos Oz – author and journalist, Goethe Prize
- Ruchoma Shain – author
- Meir Shalev – author and journalist
- Zeruya Shalev – author
- Moshe Shamir – author, poet
- Mati Shemoelof – poet, editor and journalist
- Lilac Sigan – writer, journalist, and public speaker
- Mordechai Tsanin – journalist, writer
- Chaim Walder – Haredi children's writer
- A.B. Yehoshua – author
- Benny Ziffer – author, journalist and translator
Entrepreneurs
Tech
- Beny Alagem – founder of Packard Bell
- Moshe Bar – founder of XenSource, Qumranet
- Safra Catz – president of Oracle
- Yossi Gross – recipient of almost 600 patents, founder of 27 medical technology companies in Israel and the Chief Technology Office officer of Rainbow Medical.
- Itzik Kotler – founder and CTO of SafeBreach, Information Security Specialist
- Daniel M. Lewin – founder of Akamai Technologies
- Shai Reshef – educational entrepreneur, founder and president of University of the People
- Bob Rosenschein – founder of GuruNet, Answers.com
- Gil Schwed – founder of Check Point
- Zeev Suraski and Andi Gutmans – founders of Zend Technologies
- Arik and Yossi Vardi, Yair Goldfinger, Sefi Vigiser and Amnon Amir – founders of Mirabilis
- Zohar Zisapel – co-founder of the RAD Group
- Iftach Ian Amit – co-founder of BeeFence, prominent Hacker and Information Security Practitioner
Other
- Isaac Perlmutter – chairman and former CEO of Marvel Entertainment
- Ted, Micky and Shari Arison – founder/owners of Carnival Corporation
- Yossi Dina – pawnbroker
- Dan Gertler – diamond tycoon
- Alec Gores – Israeli-American businessman and investor.
- Eli Hurvitz – head of Teva Pharmaceuticals
- Lev Leviev – diamond tycoon
- Mordecai Meirowitz – inventor of the Mastermind board game
- Aviad Meitar
- Dorrit Moussaieff – Israeli-British businesswoman, entrepreneur, philanthropist and the First Lady of Iceland
- Sammy Ofer – shipping magnate
- Guy Oseary – head of Maverick Records, manager of Madonna
- Itschak Shrem – investor
- Guy Spier – author and investor
- Beny Steinmetz – diamond tycoon
- Stef Wertheimer – industrialist
Fashion models
- Neta Alchimister
- Moran Atias
- Sendi Bar
- Nina Brosh
- Chava Mond
- Pnina Rosenblum – Knesset parliament member for Likud
- Orly Levy-Abekasis – Knesset parliament member for Likud and minister
- Noa Tishby
- Tami Ben-Ami
- Sharon Ganish
- Maayan Keret
- Michaela Bercu
- Esti Ginzburg
- Yael Shelbia
- Shlomit Malka
- Tahounia Rubel
- Yityish Titi Aynaw – Miss Israel 2013
- Shani Hazan – Miss Israel 2012 at both Miss World 2012 and Miss International 2014
- Raz Meirman
- Michael Lewis
- Agam Rudberg
- Bar Refaeli
- Yael Goldman
- Odeya Rush
- Gal Gadot – Miss Israel 2004
- Avigail Alfatov – Na'art Israel at Miss Universe 2015
- Miri Bohadana – Na'art Israel at Miss World 1995
- Anat Zamir – Na'art Israel at Miss World 1980
- Adi Himelbloy
- Linor Abargil – Miss Israel and Miss World 1998
- Rina Mor – Miss Israel and Miss Universe 1976
- Eli Hanania
Military
- Ron Arad – MIA navigator
- Gabi Ashkenazi – Chief of the IDF General Staff
- Yohai Ben-Nun – sixth commander of the Israeli Navy
- Elihu Ben-Onn – Brigadier General, spokesman of the Israel Police
- Eli Cohen – spy
- Moshe Dayan – military leader
- Rafael Eitan – Chief of the IDF General Staff
- Gadi Eizenkot – Chief of the IDF General Staff
- David Elazar – Chief of the IDF General Staff
- Giora Epstein – combat pilot, modern-day "ace of aces"
- Hoshea Friedman – brigadier general in the IDF
- Uziel Gal – designer of the Uzi submachine gun
- Benny Gantz – Chief of the IDF General Staff
- Dan Halutz – Chief of the IDF General Staff
- Wolfgang Lotz – spy
- Tzvi Malkhin – Mossad agent, captured Adolf Eichmann
- Eli Marom – former commander of the Israeli Navy
- Yonatan Netanyahu – Sayeret Matkal commando, leader of Operation Entebbe
- Ilan Ramon – astronaut on Columbia flight STS-107
- Gilad Shalit – kidnapped soldier held in Gaza, released in 2011
- Avraham Stern – underground military leader
- Yoel Strick – general
- Israel Tal – general, father of Merkava tank
- Moshe Ya'alon – Chief of the IDF General Staff
- Yigael Yadin – Chief of the IDF General Staff
Politicians
- Golda Meir – female prime minister of Israel
- Benjamin Netanyahu – prime minister of Israel, ; right-wing Likud party chairman
- Naftali Bennett – prime minister of Israel, leader of The Jewish Home party, minister of economy and minister of religious services
- Ehud Barak – prime minister of Israel
- Menachem Begin – prime minister of Israel ; Nobel Peace Prize
- David Ben-Gurion – first Prime Minister of Israel
- Yitzhak Ben-Zvi – first elected/second president President of Israel
- Ehud Olmert – prime minister ; former mayor of Jerusalem
- Yossi Beilin – leader of the Meretz-Yachad party and peace negotiator
- Geula Cohen – politician, activist and "Israel Prize" recipient
- Abba Eban – diplomat and Foreign Affairs Minister of Israel
- Yuli-Yoel Edelstein – speaker of the Knesset
- Uzi Eilam – ex-director of Israel's Atomic Energy Commission
- Effie Eitam – former leader of the National Religious Party, now head of the Renewed Religious National Zionist party
- Levi Eshkol – prime minister of Israel
- Chaim Herzog – former president of Israel, first and only Irish-born Israeli President
- Moshe Katsav – president, and convicted rapist
- Teddy Kollek – former mayor of Jerusalem
- Pnina Tamano-Shata – Current Member of Knesset for National Unity (Israel)
- Yair Lapid – leader of the Yesh Atid party, minister of finance and minister of foreign affairs
- Yosef Lapid – former leader of the Shinui party
- Amir Ohana – first openly gay right-wing member of the Knesset and former minister of justice
- Shimon Peres – President of Israel ; prime minister of Israel ; Nobel Peace Prize
- Yitzhak Rabin – prime minister of Israel ; Nobel Peace Prize
- Reuven Rivlin – President of Israel
- Ayelet Shaked – Knesset parliament right-wing member and minister
- Yitzhak Shamir – prime minister of Israel
- Yisrael Yeshayahu Sharabi – former speaker of the Knesset
- Moshe Sharett – prime minister of Israel
- Ariel Sharon – prime minister of Israel
- Chaim Weizmann – first President of Israel
- Ovadia Yosef – spiritual leader of the Shas party
- Rehavam Zeevi – founder of the Moledet party, Knesset parliament member and minister
- Meirav Cohen – minister for social equality and Knesset parliament member
Religious figures
Haredi Rabbis
- Yaakov Aryeh Alter Gerrer – Rebbe
- Shlomo Zalman Auerbach
- Yaakov Blau
- Yisroel Moshe Dushinsky – Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem
- Yosef Tzvi Dushinsky – Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem
- Yosef Sholom Eliashiv
- Mordechai Eliyahu – Sephardi Chief Rabbi of Israel 1983–93,
- Chaim Kanievsky
- Avraham Yeshayeh Karelitz, Chazon Ish –
- Nissim Karelitz – Head Justice of Rabbinical Court of Bnei Brak
- Meir Kessler – Chief Rabbi of Modi'in Illit
- Zundel Kroizer – author of Ohr Hachamah
- Dov Landau – rosh yeshiva of Slabodka yeshiva of Bnei Brak
- Yissachar Dov Rokeach – the fifth Belzer rebbe
- Yitzchok Scheiner – rosh yeshiva of Kamenitz yeshiva of Jerusalem
- Elazar Menachem Shach, Rav Shach –
- Moshe Shmuel Shapira – rosh yeshiva of Be'er Ya'akov
- Dovid Shmidel – Chairman of Asra Kadisha
- Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld – Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem
- Yitzchok Tuvia Weiss – Chief Rabbi of Jerusalem
- Amram Zaks – rosh yeshiva of the Slabodka yeshiva of Bnei Brak
- Ovadia Yosef
Reform Rabbis
Religious-Zionist Rabbis
- Shlomo Amar – Sephardic Chief Rabbi of Israel
- David Hartman
- Avraham Yitzchak Kook – pre-state Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi of the Land of Israel,
- Israel Meir Lau – Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi of Israel, Chief Rabbi of Netanya,
- Aharon Lichtenstein
- Yona Metzger – Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi of Israel
- Shlomo Riskin – Ashkenazic Chief Rabbi of Efrat
Other
- Yigal Amir – assassin of left-wing prime minister Yitzhak Rabin
- Baruch Goldstein – murderer
- Ami Popper – murderer
- Eden-Nathan Zada – murderer