List of Pontic Greeks

Rulers

• Pythodorida of Pontus (30 BC or 29 BC – 38)
• Polemon I of Pontus (1st century BC, died 8 BC)
• Polemon II of Pontus (12 BC/11 BC–74)

Writers

• Strabo (63/64 BC–24 AD), a Greek historian, geographer and philosopher
• Hypsicrates (1st century), a Greek writer
• Memnon of Heraclea (1st century), a Greek historical writer
• Marcian of Heraclea, a Greek geographer from Heraclea of Pontus

Saints

• Saint Gregory of Neocaesarea, a Christian bishop of the 3rd century
• Saint Macrina the Elder, the mother of Saint Basil the Elder, and the grandmother of Basil the Great, Saint Gregory of Nyssa, Saint Peter of Sebaste, and Saint Macrina the Younger
• Saint Eugenios of Trebizond, martyred under Diocletian (284–305) and a cult devoted to him developed in Trebizond
• Athanasius the Athonite (c. 920 – c. 1003), was a Byzantine monk

Other

• Anicetus (1st century), pirate, leader of unsuccessful anti-Roman uprising in Pontus in 69

Rulers of the Trebizond Empire

• Alexios I Komnenos (1056–1118/1048), Byzantine emperor from 1081 to 1118, and the founder of the Komnenian dynasty.
• Andronikos I of Trebizond, Emperor of Trebizond from 1222–1235
• Ioannis I Megas Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond from 1235 to 1238.
• Manuel I Megas Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond from 1238 to 1263.
• Andronikos II Megas Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond from 1263 to 1266.
• Georgios Megas Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond from 1266 to 1280.
• Ioannis II Megas Komnenos, Emperor of Trebizond from 1280 to 1297.
• Theodora Megale Komnene, Empress of Trebizond from 1284 to 1285.
• Alexios II of Trebizond (1282 – 1330), Emperor of Trebizond from 1297 to 1330.
• David Megas Komnenos (c. 1408 – 1 November 1463) Last Emperor of Trebizond from 1459 to 1461

Clerics

• Ecumenical Patriarch John VIII, patriarch of Constantinople from 1064–1075. (also saint)

Scholars

• Gregory Choniades (died 1302), astronomer.
• Michael Panaretos (1320–c.1390), a historian, protosebastos and protonotarios in the service of Alexios III Megas Komnenos.
• George of Trebizond (1395–1472 or 1473), a philosopher and scholar, one of the pioneers of the Renaissance.
• George Amiroutzes (1400–1470), a Renaissance scholar and philosopher.
• Basilios Bessarion (1403–1472), a Catholic Cardinal Bishop and the titular Latin Patriarch of Constantinople, one of Greek scholars who contributed to the great revival of letters in the 15th century.

Actors

• Pamphylia Tanailidi (1891–1937)
• Periklis Hristoforidis (1907–1983)
• Panos Papadopulos (1920-2001)
• Stavros Xenidis (1924–2008)
• Nikos Xanthopoulos (b. 1934)
• Martha Karagianni (b. 1939)
• Vasilis N. Triantafillidis (b. 1940) (a.k.a. Harry Klyn)
• Nikos Sergianopoulos (1952–2008)
• Ieroklis Michailidis (b. 1960)
• Denis Podalydès (b. 1963)
• Victoria Haralabidou (b. 1971)
• Giorgos Kapoutzidis
• Fanis Mouratidis
• Alex Dimitriades (b. 1973)
• Mary Akrivopoulou (b. 1975)

Artists

• Joannis Avramidis (b. 1922), sculptor
• Chrysanthos Mentis Bostantzoglou (1918–1955), political cartoonist, playwright, lyricist and painter
• Nikos Engonopoulos (1907–1985), major representative of the surrealistic movement in Greece (mother)
• Arkhip Kuindzhi (1842–1910), Russian landscape painter.
• Sergey Merkurov (1881–1952), prominent Soviet sculptor-monumentalist of Greek-Armenian ancestry.
• Nonda (1922-2005), leading Greek artist of the School of Paris

Athletes

Business

• Konstantinos Theofylaktos, was a banker and mayor or Trabzon from 1916 until 1918.
• Filaret Galchev (b. 1963), Russian businessman, chairman of Eurocement group (real name Filaretos Kaltsidis)
• Mike Lazaridis (b. 1961), founder and co-CEO of Research In Motion (RIM), which created and manufactures the BlackBerry wireless handheld device
• Dimitris Melissanidis (b. 1946), founder of Aegean Marine Petroleum, president of AEK Athens F.C. from 1992–1995.
• Ivan Savvidi (b. 1959), Deputy to the State Duma of the Russian Federation, Chairman of FC SKA Rostov-on-Don, Businessman and president of the Federation of Greek Communities of Russia

Journalists

• Vicky Hadjivassiliou (mother)
• Nikos Kapetanidis was a Pontic Greek journalist and newspaper publisher.
• Mary Kostakidis (b. 1954), former weeknight SBS World News Australia presenter.
• Alexandra Pascalidou (b. 1970), journalist, television hostess and author.
• Pantelis Savvidis (b. 1954)
• Tatiana Stefanidou (b. 1970)
• Makis Triantafyllopoulos (grandmother)
• Popi Tsapanidou
• George Valavanis

Military

• James G. Stavridis, Retired United States Navy admiral & 12th Dean of the Fletcher School of Law and Diplomacy at Tufts University
• Vladimir Triandafillov (1894–1931), Soviet military commander and theoretician (real surname Triantafyllidis)

Models

• Olympia Hopsonidou Miss Star Hellas 2006

Music

• Aristotelis Koundouroff (1896–1969), composer of the Modern Era
• Iovan Tsaous (1893–1942), musician, and composer of rebetiko songs (real name Yiannis Eitziridis or Etseiridis)
• Odysseas Dimitriadis (1908–2005), classical music conductor.
• Stelios Kazantzidis (1931–2001), a prominent Greek singer. A leading singer of Greek popular music, or Laïkó, he collaborated with many of Greece's foremost composers (father)
• Chrysanthos (1934–2005), singer and songwriter (his surname is Theodoridis)
• Marinella (b. 1938) one of the most popular Greek singers whose career has spanned several decades (her surname is Papadopoulou)
• Pavlos Sidiropoulos (1948–1990), rock Singer, guitarist, songwriter and the "father" of the Greek Rock (father)
• Diamanda Galas (b. 1955), US avant-garde composer, vocalist, pianist, performance artist and painter (Pontian ancestry on her father's side)
• Lefteris Hapsiadis (b. 1953) lyricist, poet and writer of novels
• Vasilis Karras (b. 1953), is a Greek folk singer (real surname Kesoglidis)
• Kelly Kelekidou popular Greek singer.
• Lefteris Pantazis (b. 1955), is a Greek folk singer (real surname Pagozidis)
• Pantelis Pantelidis (1983-2016), Greek singer, youtuber, songwriter and lyricist. He died on February 18, 2016 in a car accident
• Lefteris Papadopoulos, lyricist, poet and journalist
• Antonis Remos (b. 1970), is a Greek laïko singer (real surname Paschalidis)
• Natassa Theodoridou (b. 1970), popular Greek singer
• Matthaios Tsahouridis (b. 1978), plays a range of stringed musical instruments one of them is pontic Kemenche. He have PhD in Musicology.
• Tania Tsanaklidou (b. 1952), famous artist, both singer and actress
• Despina Vandi (b. 1969), is one of the most famous and successful Greek singers.
• Birol Topaloğlu(b. 1965),Pontic songwriter and singer
• Beşköylü Adem Pontic songwriter and singer from Sürmene Trabzon
• Ali Bakanay songwriter and singer also from Sürmene Trabzon
• Erkan Ocaklı (1949–2008) Songwriter and singer from Maçka Trabzon
• Apolas Lermi (b. 1986) Songwriter and singer from Tonya Trabzon
• Hülya Polat (b. 1969) singer from Pazar Rize

Politics

• Adonis Georgiadis (b. 1972), Greek politician, historian, publisher, and author.
• Leonidas Iasonidis (1884–1959), political activist, Congressman of Greek parliament and Minister.
• Ioannis Passalidis (1886–1968), a prominent member of the Greek Left and founder of the United Democratic Left party.
• Dimitrios Partsalidis (1903/1905–1980), communist politician
• Nikos Papadopoulos (b. 1939) Greek-born Swedish Social Democrat politician
• Gavriil Kharitonovich Popov (b. 1936), former mayor of Moscow (real name Gavriil Papadopoulos)
• Savvas Tsitouridis (b. 1954), politician and member of the New Democracy and former Minister for Employment and Social Protection
• Markos Vafiadis (1906–1992), leading cadre of the Communist Party of Greece (KKE) during the Greek Civil War.
• Evangelos Venizelos (b. 1957), current Minister for National Defence of Greece since October 2009 (mother)

Science/academia

• George Gurdjieff (1866? – 1949), a mystic and spiritual teacher. (real name Georgios Georgiades)
• Viktor Sarianidi (b. 1929), well-known Soviet archaeologist.
• Fyodor Yurchikhin (b. 1959), cosmonaut and spacecraft's mechanical engineer (mother)

Writers

• Aris Alexandrou (1922–1978), a novelist, poet and translator (father)
• Christos Chomenidis (b. 1966)
• Sano Halo (b. 191__), survivor of the Greek Genocide and named Grandmother of the Pontic Greeks
• Thea Halo (b. 1941) (mother), author of "Not Even My Name", a memoir of her mother's experiences during the Greek Genocide
• Theodor Kallifatides (b. 1938) (father)
• Dimitris Psathas (1907–1979), journalist and satirical writer (mother)
• Nikolay Sherbina (b. 1821), Russian poet of 19th century (maternal grandparent)

Various

• A. I. Bezzerides (1908–2007), Greek-Armenian novelist and screenwriter, best known for writing Noir and Action motion pictures, especially several of Warners' "social conscience" films of the 1940s (father)
• Amalia Fleming (1909–1986), doctor, activist, politician and wife of the discoverer of penicillin, Sir Alexander Fleming.
• Yanis Kanidis (1930–2004), Greek-Russian physical education teacher & hero who died to save the lives of his students during the Beslan school hostage crisis
• Filon Ktenidis (1889–1963), playwright, accountant, journalist, doctor and the founder of Panagia Soumela in Kastania,Vermiou in Greece.
• Elias Kazanjoglou a.k.a. Elia Kazan (IPA: [eˈlia kaˈzan]; September 7, 1909 - September 28, 2003) American director, producer, writer and actor. (film and stage)^[1]