20 Most famous Lithuanian People

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20 Most famous Lithuanian People

*Originally Published by  Charity N in October 2022 and Updated by Diana  K in May 2024

Lithuania is celebrated for its scenes, flatlands, copious timberlands, lakes, and walks. In expansion, the ocean side with its sandy shorelines where golden may be found and the Curonian Spit with its noteworthy pictures and rises pull in sightseers as well.

Lithuania is considered a high-income nation by the World Bank. Its GNI per capita, which add up to wage claimed by inhabitants partitioned by the populace, is around $15,000 per year.

Lithuanians are for the most part respected as inviting and hard-working individuals, but moreover untrustworthy, particularly in Scandinavia, and are related to the Holocaust in Israel and the US. Most individuals in Poland know about Lithuania and the country’s picture is very positive there.

This list looks at the most talented, celebrated individuals that have accomplished so much in their respective skills.

1. Rūta Meilutytė – Swimmer

Photo by Maksym Tymchyk 🇺🇦 on Unsplash

She is a Lithuanian swimmer who has won an Olympic gold medal and set a world record. She currently holds world records in the 50- and 100-meter breaststroke.

She had already broken eleven Lithuanian women’s swimming records by the age of 15 making her the youngest Lithuanian athlete to win an Olympic gold medal at that age.

She won gold in the 100m breaststroke, silver in the 50m freestyle, and bronze in the 100m freestyle at the 2011 European Youth Summer Olympic Festival. She also won gold in the women’s 100-meter breaststroke with a time of 1:05.47 at the 2012 Summer Olympics in London.

She broke the European record in the 100 m breaststroke in the semi-finals with a time of 1:05:21. She broke her European record by 0.01 second in 2013.

2. Arvydas Sabonis – Basketball Player

Image by Keith Johnston from Pixabay

He is a Lithuanian businessman and retired professional basketball player. He was recognized as one of the best European players of his generation, winning the Eurostar Award six times and Mr. Europa twice.

He played in several leagues, including the National Basketball Association in the United States, where he spent seven seasons.  He played center and won a gold medal for the Soviet Union at the 1988 Summer Olympics in South Korea, as well as bronze medals for Lithuania at the 1992 and 1996 games.

In 2005, he announced his retirement from professional basketball and is regarded as one of the best big man passers in NBA history, as well as one of the best overall centers.

3. Ričardas Berankis -Tennis Player

Photo by Guilherme Maggieri on Unsplash

He is a professional Lithuanian tennis player and a member of the Lithuania Davis Cup team. He began playing tennis when he was two years old when his six-year-old sister Lina took him to her tennis practice.

He is the first and only Lithuanian tennis player to enter the ATP top 100, making him the highest-ranked Lithuanian tennis player of all time. Berankis made one ATP World Tour final, at the Los Angeles Open in 2012.

4. Aksana – Model

Image by Fernando Flores from Pixabay

Živilė Raudonien is a professional wrestler, fitness model, and bodybuilder from Lithuania. She is currently signed to WWE and goes by the ring name Aksana. She began her bodybuilding career/ training at the age of 16.

She was the youngest competitor in the 1999 IFBB Arnold Classic Contest at the age of 17. During her time as a bodybuilder, she won three medals in Bodybuilding Amateur World Championships.

She signed a developmental contract with World Wrestling Entertainment in October 2009 and was assigned to Florida Championship Wrestling, WWE’s developmental territory, where she became the Queen of FCW and won the FCW Divas Championship, becoming the first Diva in history to hold both titles at the same time.

5. Dalia Grybauskaitė – Politician

President of Lithuania Dalia Grybauskaitė. Image by Cropped by M.K-Wikimedia

She is a Lithuanian politician who served as the country’s eighth President from 2009 to 2019. She is the first woman to hold the position, and in 2014, she became Lithuania’s first President to be re-elected for a second consecutive term.

She was Finance Minister and European Commissioner for Financial Programming and the Budget from 2004 to 2009. She is also known as the “Iron Lady” or the “Steel Magnolia.”

6. Valdas Adamkus – Politician

He is a Lithuanian-American politician, diplomat, and civil engineer. He was Lithuania’s 5th and 7th President, from 1998 to 2003, and again from 2004 to 2009.

His first term as president lasted five years. On 6 April 2004, he was impeached and removed from office by a parliamentary vote. When a new election was announced soon after, he ran for president again and was re-elected.

During this time, his approval ratings rose, becoming a highly regarded moral authority in the state. On July 12, 2009, he was succeeded as President. Some consider him to be one of the best Lithuanian leaders in modern history.

7. Donald Kagan – Historian

Image by US government-Wikimedia

He is a Yale University historian who specializes in ancient Greece. He is best known for his four-volume history of the Peloponnesian War. He previously taught in Cornell University’s Department of History.

The temptation to acclaim Kagan’s four volumes as the foremost work of history produced in North America in this century is vivid, according to critic George Steiner in a review in The New Yorker.

He is now regarded as one of the most eminent Greek historians.

8. Jonas Vaitkus – Film Director

Photo by Alexandre Pellaes on Unsplash

He is a well-known lecturer, theater director, and film director in Lithuania and throughout Europe. 

He attended the State Theatre, Music, and Cinematography Institute in Leningrad from 1969 to 1974. He was the artistic director of the Kaunas State Drama Theater from 1977 to 1988, and the Lithuanian National Drama Theatre from 1989 to 1995.

He has directed over 60 plays and received numerous awards throughout his career. He has also mentored several actors and directors, including internationally renowned director Oskaras Korunovas and actress Ingeborga Dapknait.

9. Žydrūnas Savickas – Strongman

Žydrūnas Savickas. Image by Artur Andrzej –Wikimedia

He is a professional powerlifter and strongman. He is widely regarded as one of the best strongman competitors of all time. He is the only modern strongman competitor to have won every major strongman competition.

He stands 1.91 meters tall and weighs 185 kilograms. He is frequently referred to as “Big Z.”

10. Jonas Valančiūnas – Basketball Player

Photo by Markus Spiske on Unsplash

He is a Lithuanian professional basketball player for the New Orleans Pelicans of the NBA (NBA). In the 2011 NBA draft, he was chosen fifth overall by the Toronto Raptors.

He was traded to the Memphis Grizzlies at the 2019 trade deadline. He was later traded to the New Orleans Pelicans during the 2021 offseason.

He has been a member of Lithuania’s men’s national basketball team since he was 19 years old. He won two EuroBasket silver medals, in 2013 and 2015, and was named All-Tournament in the latter.

He was also in the documentary The Other Dream Team.

11. Marija Peckauskaite – Writer

Adomas Kliučinskis, uploaded by Rimantas Lazdynas, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Marija Peckauskaite is one of Lithuania’s most renowned writers who went by the pen name Satrijos Ragana. Born in 1877 to a noble family, she grew up surrounded by Polish culture which undoubtedly shaped her worldview.

Despite frail health, Marija was an exceptionally bright student, completing her schooling privately. Her passionate teacher Visinskis inspired her Lithuanian patriotism and literary talents. Her seminal 1922 tale In an Old Manor captures the romantic yet fading world of the Lithuanian nobility.

12. Eimuntas Nekrošius – Theater Director

Augustas Didžgalvis, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

An absolute legend of Lithuanian theater world. Eimuntas Nekrosius was seriously gifted and had such a unique artistic vision. After studying in Moscow, he came back to Lithuania and completely revolutionised the stage with his productions. His plays were captivating sensory experiences.

They incorporated hypnotic music, dance and movement and even used elemental representation like water, fire and stone on stage. He would take these dense, complex literary works and make them come alive through multiple layers of meaning and symbolism. Nekrosius didn’t just put on a show – he created an all-encompassing phenomenon that lingered with you long after you left the theater.

13. Rolandas Paksas – Politician

He served as President from 2003 to 2004 before being impeached over allegations of corruption and ties to Russian mafia groups. Paksas came from humble beginnings as a stunt pilot in the Soviet military before making his way into politics after Lithuania regained independence. His short presidency championed for Lithuania’s entry into NATO and the European Union. 

We can’t deny his patriotism and desire to integrate Lithuania with the West, even if his methods were questionable at times. Love him or hate him, Paksas is a figure few Lithuanians can ignore when discussing their country’s modern political history.

14. Marijonas Mikutavičius – Singer and Songwriter

globalite, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

If you are in Lithuania you have probably heard Marijonas Mikutavicius’ massive hit Trys Milijonai blasting from cars. This multi-talented star is way more than just a singer. Mikutavicius grew up in Vilnius after moving there at age 9. He studied journalism in college while also rocking out in the band Bovy.

These days, he wears different hats – musician, TV host, comedian, and writer. In 2006, he even represented Lithuania at the Eurovision Song Contest as part of the group LT United. His album Pasveikinkit vieni kitus went platinum thanks to bangers like Trys Milijonai. 

15. Osvaldas Balakauskas – Composer

After studying in Kiev back in the Soviet days, he went on to become a huge figure in Lithuania’s classical music scene. His symphonies and concertos are highly acclaimed – especially Sonata of the Mountains. But get this – Balakauskas wasn’t just a brilliant composer, he was also a diplomat, serving as Lithuania’s ambassador to France, Spain and Portugal in the 1990s. Intriguing though, is his philosophical stance in favour of upholding musical tradition. As he puts it, modernism may aim to deny tradition, but Balakauskas sees greater value in evolving artistically from that foundation.

16. Jascha Heifetz – Violinist

Rijksmuseum, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Jascha Heifetz was one of the greatest violinists of all time – the guy was an absolute virtuoso! He was born in Lithuania in 1901 and displayed a unique talent for the violin from a young age. By the time he was just 9 years old, he was already performing violin concertos in grand concert halls across Russia. What always struck people about Heifetz was his focus and emotional expressiveness when playing. 

He would get so absorbed in the music, with his eyes closed and brow furrowed in concentration. Yet at the same time, his playing could convey such tenderness and delicacy of feeling. To see and hear a violin master of that caliber in their prime must have been an overwhelming experience.

17. Arvydas Macijauskas

Standing 6’4″, this shooting guard could flat-out score. I’m talking a smooth stroke from downtown and the ability to slash to the rim. Arvydas played for top European clubs like Tau Ceramica and Olympiacos, even spending a season with the New Orleans Hornets in the NBA.

But his biggest accomplishments came representing Lithuania – he was the leading scorer when they won the 2003 EuroBasket gold medal. At the 2004 Olympics, he scored 32 points on China. Despite some injury issues later in his career, he is one player from his era who will be remembered.

18. Martynas Levickis – Accordionist

SeriousThinker, CC BY-SA 4.0, via Wikimedia Commons

A world-famous Lithuanian accordion player. He grew up in the city of Siauliai and went to an arts school there as a kid. He furthered his studies at the Royal Academy of Music in London. In 2010, Martynas won Lithuania Got Talent. He then became an overnight celebrity back home.

His debut album with Decca Classics shot straight to number one on the British classical charts.  These days, Martynas is one of the most in-demand accordion soloists around. He’s won over 30 international awards and even got named “Instrumentalist of the Year” in 2023 for his solo album Autograph. 

19. Vydunas – Writer

Rights: Maironio lietuvių literatūros muziejus / Maironis Lithuanian Literature Museum, CC0, via Wikimedia Commons

Vydunas was a true Renaissance man – a teacher, poet, philosopher, and leader of the Lithuanian national movement in East Prussia.  Vydunas embraced both his Lithuanian heritage and western philosophies like theosophy.

He had an open-minded, universalist outlook that went beyond adhering to any one strict religion or ideology. His writing, music, and activism celebrated Lithuanian folk traditions and rural culture. He resisted Nazi attempts to silence him.  Vydunas exemplifies that perfect balance of patriotism and humanism.

20. Virgilijus Noreika – Opera Singer

Let me tell you about the legendary Lithuanian tenor, Virgilijus Noreika. This guy was a true master of the opera stage. Born in Siauliai in 1935, he graduated top of his class from the Lithuanian State Conservatory. But he was already wowing audiences at the National Opera even before getting his degree.

Noreika’s voice was simply spellbinding. He sang over 40 major operatic roles to perfection – everything from Puccini’s Cavaradossi to Verdi’s Otello. Can you imagine performing those enormously demanding parts night after night? Yet he did it with seeming ease on the most prestigious stages like La Scala and the Bolshoi.