Costa Rica is a melting pot of cultures and ethnicities with outstanding individuals who made a difference with their remarkable achievements. The following people made their mark on both the local and international scenes. They are just some of many famous Costa Ricans who have lifted Costa Rica’s name worldwide and made a difference in our world. Their purpose and stories inspired awe if not greatness.

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:: List of Famous People from Costa Rica ::

Click here for a list of famous Costa Rican footballers/soccer players.

Francisco Amighetti

Francisco Amighetti was a prominent Costa Rican painter influenced by Mexican, US and European art as well as Japanese prints. In addition to his paintings, Amighetti also produced wood engravings, poetry and works of art criticism. He based his artwork on basic lifestyle in Costa Rica.

Juan Santamaría

Juan Santamaría is officially recognized as the national hero of the Republic of Costa Rica. A national holiday in Costa Rica, Juan Santamaría Day, is held every April 11 to commemorate his death. When U.S. filibuster William Walker overthrew the government of Nicaragua and attempted to conquer the other nations in Central America, including Costa Rica, in order to form a private slave-holding empire, Costa Rican president Juan Rafael Mora Porras called upon the general population to take up arms and march north to Nicaragua to fight against the foreign invader. Santamaría, a poor laborer and the illegitimate son of a single mother joined the army as a drummer boy. The troops nicknamed him “el erizo” (“the Porcupine”) on account of his bald head. After routing a small contingent of Walker’s soldiers at Santa Rosa, Guanacaste, the Costa Rican troops continued marching north and reached the city of Rivas, Nicaragua, on April 8, 1856. The battle that ensued is known as the Second Battle of Rivas. Combat was fierce and the Costa Ricans were not able to drive Walker’s men out of a hostel near the town center from which they commanded an advantageous firing position. According to the traditional account, on April 11, General José María Cañas (Salvadoran) suggested that one of the soldiers advance towards the hostel with a torch and set it on fire. Some soldiers tried and failed, but finally Santamaría volunteered on the condition that, in the event of his death, someone would look after his mother. He then advanced and was mortally wounded by enemy fire. Before expiring he succeeded, however, in setting fire to the hostel, thus contributing decisively to the Costa Rican victory at Rivas.

José María Castro Madriz

José María Castro Madriz was a Costa Rican lawyer, academic, diplomat, and politician. He served twice as President of Costa Rica, from 1847 to 1849, and from 1866 to 1868. On both occasions he was prevented from completing his term of office by military coups. During his first administration, on 31 August 1848, he formally declared Costa Rica an independent republic, definitively severing Costa Rica’s ties to the moribund Federal Republic of Central America. He also established the actual Costa Rican flag.

Franklin Chang Díaz

Franklin Ramón Chang Díaz is a Costa Rican-American engineer, physicist and former NASA astronaut. He is currently President and CEO of Ad Astra Rocket Company. He is a veteran of seven Space Shuttle missions, making him the record holder as of 2008 for the most spaceflights (a record he shares with Jerry L. Ross). He was one of the first Hispanic or Latino Americans to go into space, and is the first naturalized US citizen to become an astronaut.

Claudia Poll

Claudia María Poll Ahrens is an Costa Rican Olympic gold-medalist and National Record holding swimming from Costa Rica. To date, she is Costa Rica’s only gold-medalist, having won the country first gold (and second) Olympic medal at the 1996 Olympics in the 200 free. Her sister, Silvia, won Costa Rica’s first Olympic medal at the 1988 Games. Also as of 2009, Claudia and Silvia are the only Costa Ricans to have won a medal at an Olympics. Claudia also competed at the 2000 Olympics, where she won 2 bronze medals. Moreover, she was the first to win a gold medal in the whole Central America, an event which later occurred again in the 2008 Olympic Games when Panama won a gold medal.

Óscar Arias

Óscar Rafael de Jesús Arias Sánchez is a Costa Rican politician who was President of Costa Rica from 2006 to 2010. He previously served as President from 1986 to 1990 and received the Nobel Peace Prize in 1987 for his efforts to end civil wars then raging in several other Central American countries. He is also a recipient of the Albert Schweitzer Prize for Humanitarianism and a trustee of Economists for Peace and Security. In 2003, he was elected to the Board of Directors of the International Criminal Court’s Trust Fund for Victims. He is a member of Collegium International, an organization of leaders with political, scientific, and ethical expertise whose goal is to provide new approaches in overcoming the obstacles in the way of a peaceful, socially just and economically sustainable world.