This is a list of well-known Canadians.

Architects

• Douglas Cardinal
• Ernest Cormier, architect and engineer
• Arthur Erickson
• Frank Gehry
• John Ostell
• Francis Rattenbury
• Moshe Safdie

Artists

• The Group of Seven - painters
• The Beaver Hall Group - painters
• Robert Bateman (1930-), painter
• Paul-Émile Borduas, abstract painter
• Emily Carr (1871-1945), painter
• Raffi Cavoukian - children's entertainer
• Jack Chambers
• Susan M. Cohen Watercolour artist, Thornhill, Ontario
• Greg Curnoe (1936-1992)
• Charles Daudelin (1920-2001), sculptor
• Marcelle Ferron (1924-2001), glazier
• J.W.L. Forster 1850-1938, portraitist
• Pierre Granche (1948-1997), sculptor
• Jack Harman, (1927-2001), sculptor
• Lawren Harris - group of seven, early Canadian abstraction
• Prudence Heward (1896-1947), painter
• A.Y. Jackson - last member of Group of Seven (artists)
• Karen Kain - ballerina
• Yousuf Karsh (1908-2002), photographer
• Cornelius Krieghoff (1815-1872), painter
• Laura Muntz Lyall (1860-1930), Impressionist painter
• Robert Markle (1936-1990, painter
• Guido Molinari (1933-2004)
• Jean-Paul Mousseau, (1927-1991), muralist
• Miyuki Tanobe (1937-), painter
• Norval Morrisseau (1931-), founded 'Woodland' school of art
• Toni Onley (-2004), painter
• Bill Reid (1920-1998), sculptor
• Jack Reid
• Jean-Paul Riopelle, (1923-2002), painter
• Anne Savage (1896-1971), painter
• Tom Thomson - ill fated wilderness painter
• Jeff Wall - photographer

See also List of Canadian painters

Astronauts

• Roberta Bondar - first Canadian woman in space
• Marc Garneau, (born 1949), first Canadian in space
• Chris Hadfield, (born 1959), first Canadian to walk in space
• Steven MacLean, astronaut
• Julie Payette, (born 1963), astronaut
• Robert Thirsk, astronaut
• Bjarni Tryggvason, astronaut

Authors

• Milton Acorn, (1923-1986), poet, has published 18 volumes of poetry
• Gilles Archambault - novelist, essayist, critic
• Margaret Atwood, (born 1939), poet, novelist, essayist
• Margaret Avison, (born 1918), poet, has published 8 volumes of poetry
• Pierre Berton, (1920-2004), popularizer of Canadian history, TV personality, columnist
• Earle Birney, (1904-1995), anti-conventional poet, also wrote novels, short stories, drama
• Bill Bissett, (born 1939), poet, famous for incorporating sound and the visual into poetry
• Di Brandt, (born 1952), Manitoba poet and literary critic
• Morley Callaghan, (1903-1990), novelist, short story writer
• Barry Callaghan, (born 1937), author/poet
• Bliss Carman, (1861-1929), poet, wrote Low Tide on Grand Pre
• Roch Carrier, (born 1937), author
• Anne Carson, (born 1950), writer
• Wayson Choy, (born 1939), writer, novelist
• Leonard Cohen, (born 1934), poet/singer
• Douglas Coupland, (born 1961), author
• Robertson Davies, (1913-1995), author
• Timothy Findley, (1930-2002), author
• Diane Francis, (born 1946), author, journalist
• Louis Fréchette, (1839-1908), poet, essayist, journalist, dramatist
• Mavis Gallant, (born 1922), author
• William Gibson, (born 1948), author, Neuromancer
• Barbara Gowdy, The Romantic; The White Bone and short stories
• Gwethalyn Graham, (1913-1965), wrote first Canadian novel to top the United States bestseller list
• Arthur Hailey, (born 1920), author of 4 New York Times #1 bestsellers
• G.R. Hambley, (born 1958), poet renowned for "The Passing"
• Louis Hémon, (1880-1913), novelist and journalist, Maria Chapdelaine
• Jack Hodgins, writer, novelist
• Nancy Huston, (born 1953), author
• Donald Jack, novelist, playwright
• J. Robert Janes, (born 1932), writer
• Guy Gavriel Kay, fantasy genre fiction
• Naomi Klein, anti-globalization activist
• Gordon Korman, children's author
• Margaret Laurence, (1926-1987), author
• Stephen Leacock, (1869-1944), author/humorist
• Dennis Lee, writer of children's poetry
• A. J. Levin, writer
• Hugh MacLennan, (1907-1990), novelist and essayist, wrote Two Solitudes and Barometer Rising
• Alistair MacLeod, (born 1936), writer, novelist
• Yann Martel, (born 1963), 2002 Booker Prize Winner
• John Metcalf, writer
• Rohinton Mistry, (born 1952), author
• W.O. Mitchell, author, Who has Seen the Wind
• Lucy Maude Montgomery, (1874-1942), Anne of Green Gables
• Susanna Moodie, (1803-1885), Roughing it in the Bush
• Farley Mowat, (born 1921), Never Cry Wolf, My Discovery of America
• Alice Munro, (born 1931), short story writer
• Robert Munsch - American-born writer of children's books
• Michael Ondaatje, (born 1943), author
• Jean Baptiste Proulx, (1846-1904), dramatist and essayist
• Nino Ricci, (born 1959), novelist; winner of the 1990 Governor General's Award for Fiction
• David Adams Richards, (born 1950), writer, novelist
• Mordecai Richler, (1931-2001), author
• Sinclair Ross, author, As for Me and My House
• Gabrielle Roy, (1909-1983), author
• Robert W. Service, Author, "The Shooting of Dan McGrew", "The Cremation of Sam McGee","Songs of a Sourdough"
• Carol Shields, (1935-2003), author
• Elizabeth Smart, Author, "By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept"
• Samuel Strickland, (1804-1867), Twenty-seven Years in Canada West
• Catharine Parr Traill, (1802-1899), Life in the Backwoods of Canada
• Michel Tremblay, (born 1942), author, playwright, poet
• Jane Urquhart, (born 1949), novelist
• George Woodcock, (1912-1995), poet, critic and anarchist author of Anarchism

See also List of Canadian writers for a much more extensive list

Business personalities

• Max Aitken, (1879-1964), "Lord Beaverbrook" - publishing baron, entrepreneur
• Izzy Asper, (1932-2003)
• Conrad Black, (born 1944), "Lord Black of Crossharbour", entrepreneur, publisher (born Canadian but gave up his citizenship)
• Roy Thomson, (1894-1976), "Lord Thomson of Fleet", entrepreneur, publisher
• Samuel Bronfman - founded the distillery empire that later took the name of Seagram
• Robert Campeau - bankrupted Bloomingdale's Department Store, NYC
• Jack Kent Cooke - owner of the Washington Redskins
• Samuel Cunard, (1787-1865), Cunard Steamship Lines
• Paul Desmarais - Chairman: Power Corporation of Canada
• Sir James Dunn, financier, steel magnate
• Timothy Eaton, (1834-1907), founder of Eaton's (T. Eaton Company of Canada) department stores
• Bernie Ebbers - CEO (former) of WorldCom - largest bankruptcy in world history
• Alfred Fuller, (1885-1973), Fuller Brush Company
• Milton and Nelson Good - first Canadian Automobile
• K.C. Irving - Industrialist
• Ron Joyce, original partner with Horton in Tim Hortons, and primary builder of the chain
• Izaak Walton Killam, (1885-1955)
• Victor Li, Deputy chairman of Cheung Kong (Holdings) Limited, son of Li Ka Shing
• Pete Luckett - owner of Pete's Frootique and host of The Food Hunter
• Louis B. Mayer, (1885-1957), co-founder: Metro-Goldwyn-Mayer (MGM) Studios
• Harrison McCain - New Brunswick potato magnate
• Sam McLaughlin - Buick Automobile Manufacturer
• Simon McTavish , fur trader
• John Molson, (1763-1836), founder of Molson Breweries
• Peter Munk, (1927-), founder of Barrick Gold
• Jimmy Pattison -West Coast billionaire
• John Redpath, canal builder, sugar refinery founder
• Paul Reichmann - sunk by Canary Wharf
• John Roth - CEO (former) Nortel Networks - "the most successful businessman in modern Canadian history"....Time Europe 12/25/00
• John F. Stairs, (1848-1904), entrepreneur, statesman
• Belinda Stronach - entrepreneur, politician
• E. P. Taylor - entrepreneur, thoroughbred horse breeder
• Nat Taylor - movie theatre mogul, originator of the multi auditorium movie theatre or cineplex
• Greg & Mac Voisin, founders and co-owners of M&M Meat Shops Ltd.
• Sir William Cornelius Van Horne - Railway executive who directly oversaw construction of the Canadian Pacific Railway
• Jack Warner, (1892-1978), founder of Warner Bros. Studios
• Greg & Mac Voisin, founders and co-owners of M&M Meat Shops

Cartoonists

• Aislin, cartoonist with the Montreal Gazette newspaper
• Chester Brown - comic book creator, Yummy Fur, Underwater and Louis Riel
• John Byrne - cartoonist/writer best known for his work on superhero characters like The Fantastic Four and Superman.
• Jennifer Cuthbert - The Adventures of Lollipop
• Lynn Johnston - writer/cartoonist, For Better or For Worse
• Joe Matt - comic book creator, Peep Show
• Todd McFarlane, (born 1961), cartoonist/writer, Spawn, Spider-Man
• Seth - comic book creator, Palookaville
• Dave Sim - comic book creator, Cerebus the Aardvark
• Joe Shuster, (1914-1992), creator of Superman
• Ben Wicks, illustrator and comic strip cartoonist, as well as humanitarian

Criminals

• Paul Bernardo (born 1964), murderer
• Edwin Alonzo Boyd, bank robber
• Marc Carbonneau, terrorist
• Jacques Cossette-Trudel, terrorist
• Louise Cossette-Trudel, terrorist
• Larry Fisher, murderer
• Karla Homolka, murderer (Mrs. Paul Bernardo)
• Jacques Lanctôt, FLQ Terrorist
• Yves Langlois, FLQ Terrorist
• Robert Latimer, murdered his 12-year-old disabled daughter
• Marc Lépine, killed 14 women at Montreal's Ecole Polytechnique in 1989
• Bernard Lortie, FLQ Terrorist
• Denis Lortie, killed three people at the Quebec National Assembly in 1984
• Clifford Olson, serial child killer
• Paul Rose, terrorist
• Jacques Rose, terrorist
• Francis Simard, terrorist
• Colin Thatcher, murderer
• Inderjit Singh Reyat -- the alleged bomb-maker of the device that blew up Air India Flight 182, pleaded guilty to the murder of the 329 passengers in 2003

Alleged criminals

• Grace Marks -- convicted of murder in 1843, her role in the murder has never been clear, became the subject of Margaret Atwood's 1996 novel Alias Grace.
• Robert Pickton -- charged with largest number of serial killings in Canadian history, and still counting
• Nicholas Ribic -- charged with having taken UN hostages during the war in the Balkans
• Steven Truscott -- convicted of murder in 1959; as of 2004, his case is pending its third appeal on grounds of wrongful conviction
• Ripudaman Singh Malik and Ajaib Singh Bagri -- charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of 329 passengers and crew on Air India Flight 182 and attempted murder of passengers and crew of Air India Flight 301 and the murders of two baggage handlers at the airport in Narita, Japan.

Wrongfully convicted

• David Milgaard - served 23 years for a murder he did not commit
• Donald Marshall Jr. - wrongfully convicted of murder; subject of a Supreme Court of Canada case regarding First Nations rights to natural resources
• Guy Paul Morin - was not only tried twice for the same crime but spent 10 years in prison for a murder he did not commit.

Educators

• Sue Johanson, sex educator

Explorers

• George Mercer Dawson, (1849-1901), explored and surveyed Canadian Rockies, Canada/US boundary
• Simon Fraser, (1776-1862), established first trading posts west of the Rockies; explored the Fraser River.
• Louis Joliet, (1645-1700), explorer
• Alexander Mackenzie, first to reach the Pacific north of Mexico via an overland route
• John Rae, (1813-1893), travelled widely through the Canadian Arctic
• Charles de Salaberry, (1778-1829), soldier
• William Grant Stairs, (1863-1892), Victorian era explorer, discovered one source of the Nile River, first non-African to ever climb Mt.Ruwenzori
• David Thompson, (1770-1857), mapped the Columbia River from source to mouth.
• Pierre Gaultier de Varennes et de la Vérendrye, (1685-1749), explored Lake Superior and Lake Winnipeg

Humanitarians

• Grey Owl (Archibald Belaney) - Fur Trapper and Conservationist who posed as a Native American
• Norman Bethune, (1890-1939), surgeon,inventor, socialist, battlefield doctor in Spain and China
• Richard Bucke, 1837-1902, progressive psychiatrist, theorist, philosopher, early author on human development and human potentials
• Steve Fonyo, Retraced and completed Terry Fox's cross country cancer research fundraising marathon.
• Terry Fox, (1958-1981), attempted one-legged cross country run for cancer research, Canadian Hero
• Rick Hansen, Parapelegic athlete who completed an around the world marathon for spinal cord injury research.
• Jean Vanier Founder of L'arche.

Inventors

• Alexander Graham Bell, (1847-1922), Invented the telephone in Canada, developed it in US. (Canadian/American/Scot)
• Joseph-Armand Bombardier - invented the snowmobile
• J. Brown - invented the washing machine
• Thomas Carroll - first self-propelled combine harvester
• Mathew Evans - co-inventor of the first electric light bulb
• Charles Fenerty - pulp to paper process
• Reginald Fessenden, (1866-1932), inventor the Radiotelephone and sonar - produced 1st radio broadcast
• Sir Sandford Fleming, (1827-1915), inventor of the system of standard time zones in use today
• Wilbur R. Franks - invented the "anti-black-out-suit" (the G-suit)
• James Gosling, (born 1956), invented Java computer language
• Larry Hanson - co-inventor of green plastic garbage bag
• Sam Jacks - inventor of ringette
• Rasmus Lerdorf - invented PHP computer language used on Internet
• Elijah McCoy, (born 1844), Black inventor, automatic machinery lubricator, lawn sprinkler, the "real McCoy"
• Samuel McKeen - invented the Odometer
• P.L. Robertson invented the Robertson screw
• Gideon Sundback - invented the zipper
• Lewis Urry - invented the long-lasting alkaline battery
• Harry Wasyluk - co-inventor of green plastic garbage bag
• Henry Woodward - co-inventor of the first electric light bulb

Military figures

• Gustave Biéler (1904-1944), SOE agent, executed by the Nazis
• Billy Bishop WW1 and WW2 Flying Ace
• Sir Isaac Brock, (1769-1812) War of 1812 general who successfully defended Canada in the early phase of the war
• Roy Brown, (1893-1944) - WWI fighter pilot officially credited with shooting down the Red Baron
• Arthur Currie The nation's greatest general responsible for the WW1 victory at Vimy Ridge
• Roméo Dallaire - UN peacekeeping General who attempted to interfere with the Rwandan Genocide, with little support from his superiors.
• Peter Dmytruk (1920-1943), WW II Flight Sergeant and member of the French Resistance
• John Kenneth Macalister (1914-1944), SOE agent, executed by the Nazis
• John McCrae (1872-1918), soldier, poet, author of In Flanders' Fields
• Andrew McNaughton, Minister of Defense during World War II
• Henry Norwest (1884-1918), one of the most famous snipers of World War I
• Francis Pegahmagabow (1891-1952), the most highly decorated aboriginal Canadian soldier of World War I
• Frank Pickersgill (1915-1944), SOE agent, executed by the Nazis
• George Lawrence Price (1898-1918), last soldier killed in World War I.
• Tommy Prince (1915-1977), one of Canada's most decorated soldiers, a member of the joint US/Canada special commando unit known as the Devil's Brigade
• James Ralston, Minister of Defense during World War II
• Roméo Sabourin (1923-1944), SOE agent, executed by the Nazis
• Sam Steele (1851-1919), A member of the North West Mounted Police most famous for his command of a detachment in the Yukon during the Klondike Gold Rush
• William Stephenson (codename: Intrepid) (1896-1989), soldier, airman, spymaster, and the senior representative of British intelligence for the western hemisphere in World War II.

Stage, Motion pictures, radio and television

• See also: List of Canadian entertainers, Canadian pioneers in early Hollywood
• Pamela Anderson (born 1967), model, actress
• Dan Aykroyd (born 1952), actor/comedian
• Robert Beatty (1909 - 1992), actor
• Geneviève Bujold (born 1942), actress
• James Cameron (born 1954), director
• Neve Campbell (born 1973), actress (Scream series, Party of Five)
• John Candy (1950-1994), actor/comedian
• Jim Carrey (born 1962), actor/comedian
• Leslie Cheung (1956-2003), Hong Kong-based actor/singer
• Sidney M. Cohen (born 1947), TV Director and program creator
• David Cronenberg (born 1943), director
• Elisha Cuthbert (born 1982), actress (Popular Mechanics for Kids, Old School)
• Richard Day, art director, winner of seven Academy Awards
• Nicole DeBoer (born 1970), actress (Cube)
• Yvonne De Carlo, (born 1922), actress
• James Doohan (born 1920), actor ("Scotty" on Star Trek)
• Marie Dressler, actress, Academy Award winner
• Douglass Dumbrille (1889-1974), prominent character actor
• Deanna Durbin (born 1921), singer and actress
• Atom Egoyan - director (The Sweet Hereafter)
• Joe Flaherty (born 1941), actor/comedian
• Michael J. Fox (born 1961), actor/comedian (Back to the Future trilogy, Spin City, Family Ties, Stuart Little (voice))
• Barbara Frum - radio and television journalist
• Tom Green (born 1971), actor/comedian
• Lorne Greene (1915-1987), actor ('Pa Cartwright on Bonanza), TV news anchor
• Peter Gzowski (1934-2002), radio personality
• Monty Hall (born 1921), host of Let's Make a Deal
• Tricia Helfer (born 1974), actress, model
• Natasha Henstridge (born 1974), actress, model
• Foster Hewitt (1902-1985), broadcaster
• May Irwin (1862-1938), vaudeville singer, actress
• Peter Jennings (born 1938), News anchor
• Norman Jewison (born 1926), director, received The Irving G. Thalberg Memorial Award
• Margot Kidder, Lois Lane in Superman
• Eugene Levy, actor/comedian
• Beatrice Lillie (1894-1989), comedic actress
• Evangeline Lilly (born 1979), actress (Lost)
• Norm MacDonald - actor/comedian
• Peter Mansbridge (born 1948), News anchor
• Louis B. Mayer, co-founder MGM
• Eric McCormack - actor Will & Grace
• Rick Mercer - actor/comedian, This Hour Has 22 Minutes
• Wendy Mesley, television journalist
• Lorne Michaels (born 1944), originator of Saturday Night Live
• Rick Moranis, actor (Honey, I Shrunk the Kids)
• Colin Mochrie (born 1957), comedian
• Mike Myers (born 1963), actor (Austin Powers series, Saturday Night Live)
• Leslie Nielsen (born 1926), actor
• Anna Paquin (born 1982), actress (raised in New Zealand)
• Mary Pickford (1892-1979), actress and producer, cofounder of United Artists
• Christopher Plummer (born 1927), actor
• Keanu Reeves (born 1964), actor
• Caroline Rhea (born 1964)]], actress, talk show host
• Lloyd Robertson (born 1934), News anchor
• Kelly Rowan (born 1967), actress
• Mack Sennett (1880-1960) film producer
• William Shatner (born 1931), actor (Captain Kirk on Star Trek)
• Norma Shearer actress, Academy Award winner
• Martin Short - actor/comedian, Saturday Night Live
• Dorothy Stratten (1960-1980), actress, Playboy model
• Donald Sutherland (born 1934), actor
• Kiefer Sutherland (born 1966), actor (24), son of Donald, grandson of Tommy Douglas
• Meg Tilly (born 1960), actress, sister of Jennifer Tilly
• Cali Timmins (born 1963), actress (Maggie Shelby on Ryan's Hope)
• Alex Trebek (born 1940), game show host (Jeopardy!)
• Nia Vardalos (born 1962), actress, producer, screenwriter (My Big Fat Greek Wedding)
• Pamela Wallin, television journalist
• Jack Warner, cofounder of Warner Brothers
• Estella Warren, supermodel, actress
• Austin Willis, (1914-2004), actor
• Moses Znaimer (born 1942), television mogul Citytv, Bravo, MuchMusic