This is a list of inventors and discoverers who are of Spanish origin or otherwise reside in continental Spain or one of the country's oversees territories.
A José de Acosta (1540–1600), one of the first naturalists and anthropologists of the Americas. Andrés Alcázar (1490-1585), neurosurgeon and anatomist, designed new tools for surgical treatments. José María Algué (1856–1930), meteorologist, inventor of the barocyclometer, the nephoscope, and the microseismograph.Walsh, James J. Science in the Philippines, New York.Warren, James Francis (2009). "Scientific Superman: Father José Algué, Jesuit Meteorology, and the Philippines under American Rule, 1897-1924." In Colonial Crucible: Empire in the Making of the Modern American State, Part VIII, University of Wisconsin Press. José Antonio de Artigas Sanz (1887–1977), created luminescence with noble gases. Jerónimo de Ayanz y Beaumont (1553–1613), registered a design for a steam-powered water pump for use in mines. José Luis Ayuso Fernández (1897-1992), inventor, engineer, mechanic, electrician and cinematographic projectionist. He was a pioneer in sound film industry, inventing one of the first systems to synchronize sound and video in films.
B Ignacio Barraquer (1884–1965), leading ophthalmologist, pioneer of cataract surgery. José Ignacio Barraquer (1916–1998), leading ophthalmologist, father of modern refractive surgery, he invented the microkeratome and the cryolathe, developed the surgical procedures of keratomileusis and keratophakia.PubMed Central Juan Pablo de Bonet (1573-1633), pioneer of education for the deaf, he published Reducción de las letras y arte para enseñar a hablar a los mudos ("Summary of the letters and the art of teaching speech to the mute") in 1620 in Madrid, the first modern treatise of sign language phonetics, setting out a method of oral education for deaf people and the first recognizable sign language alphabet., online (spanish) scan of book, held at University of Sevilla, Spain
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Ángel Cabrera (1879–1960), naturalist, investigated the South-American fauna.Biography Nicolás Cabrera (1913–1989), physicist, did important work on the theories of crystal growth and the oxidisation of metals.Remembering Cabrera Celedonio Calatayud (1880-1931) pioneered the use of radiology and electrology in Europe for both diagnostics and therapeutical purposes, introducing radiotherapy in Spain in 1906.Spanish National Library - La Esfera, December 28, 1918 Manuel Cardona Castro (1934-2014), physicist, researched superconductivity and the interaction of electromagnetic radiation with a semiconductor material. Julio Cervera Baviera (1854-1927), engineer, pioneer in the development of radio, educator, explorer, and military man. He established the second and third regular radiotelegraph service in the history of the world in 1901 and 1902 by maintaining regular transmissions between Tarifa and Ceuta for three consecutive months, and between Javea and Ibiza. Some consider him the actual inventor of the radio. Juan de la Cierva (1895–1936), aeronautical engineer, pioneer of rotary flight, inventor of the autogyro. Juan de la Cierva y Hoces (1929-2020) Inventor of the optical stabilizer and a founder of the company Dynalens. Juan Ignacio Cirac Sasturain (born 1965), one of the pioneers of the field of quantum computing and quantum information theory. Josep Comas i Solà (1868–1937), astronomer, discovered the periodic comet 32P/Comas Solá and 11 asteroids, and in 1907 observed limb darkening of Saturn's moon Titan (the first evidence that the body had an atmosphere).Baedeker's Barcelona Peter M. Nahm, Automobile Association (Great Britain) - 1992 "Josep Comas i Solà (1868–1937) Born in Barcelona, Josep Comas i Sola soon made his mark as an astronomer; he was only fifteen when he published an article in a French specialist magazine. " Avelino Corma Canós (born 1951), chemist, distinguished for his world-leading work on heterogeneous catalysis, developed catalysts that are being used commercially in several industrial processes.
D Francisco Díaz de Alcalá (1527-1590), urologist and doctor, wrote the first treatises on diseases of the bladder, kidneys, and urethra; he is generally regarded as the founder of modern urology.
E Fausto de Elhúyar (1755–1833), chemist, joint discoverer of tungsten with his brother Juan José de Elhúyar in 1783.
F Carlos Fernández Casado (1905–1988), civil engineer, designer and builder of bridges and viaducts. Javier Manterola Armisén (1988). <<Carlos Fernández Casado. Hombre y conocimiento>>. Revista de Obras Públicas nº 135, pp. 1013-1026. Jaime Ferrán (1852–1929), doctor and researcher, creator of several vaccines against diseases including cholera and tuberculosis.P. FAUS SEVILLA, El cólera de 1885 en Valencia y la vacunación Ferrán, en Medicina y Sociedad en la España del s. XIX, Madrid 1964, 285-486.
G Blasco de Garay, introduced the paddlewheel as a substitute for oars Manuel García (1805-1906) singer, music educator, and vocal pedagogue, inventor of the first laryngoscope. Antoni de Gimbernat, (1734–1816), surgeon and anatomist, described in detail the anatomy of the inguinal and femoral regions of the human body and laid the groundwork for modern techniques of inguinal hernia repair. The lacunar ligament is named after him.Arráez-Aybar, LA & Bueno-López, JL. (2013). Antonio Gimbernat y Arbós: An Anatomist-surgeon of the Enlightenment (In the 220th Anniversary of his A New Method of Operating the Crural Hernia). Clinical Anatomy 26:800–809Antonio de Gimbernat y Arbós (1734–1816). Sociedad Hispanoamericana de Hernia Alejandro Goicoechea Omar (1895-1984), engineer, worked for and co-founded Talgo company, where he developed the Talgo trains famous design. Fernando Gallego Herrera, (1901-1973), civil engineer and aviator, noted for improved bridge design, an improved method for undersea tunnel construction, plans for the use of compressed air for vertical take off of aircraft in the 1930s, and the modernization of the Panama Canal.
H Francisco Hernández (1514–1587), botanist, carried out important research about the Mexican flora. Juan de Herrera (1530-1597), architect, mathematician and geometer, designed the construction plans of El Escorial and the Cathedral of Valladolid among others and created a compass to measure length and width and a machine to cut iron. Bartolomé Hidalgo Agüero (1530-1597), doctor, developed, described and evaluated a revolutionary healing method for stab wounds Unknown Juan Huarte de San Juan (1529–1588), physician and psychologist, his Examen de ingenios para las ciencias was the first attempt to show the connexion between psychology and physiology. Hassan Raza, Computer Scientist.
H Carlos Jiménez Díaz (1898–1967), doctor and researcher, leading figure in pathology.Viviane Quirke, Judy Slinn, Perspectives on Twentieth-century Pharmaceuticals (2010), p. 94.
L Rodrigo López de Segura (1540-1580), humanist and chess player, wrote one of the first definitive books about modern chess in Europe: Libro de la invencion liberal y arte del juego del axedrez.Ruy López de Segura, Libro de la invención liberal y arte del juego del ajedrez..., Alcalá de Henares, Andrés de Angulo, 1561. Ficha en la Biblioteca Digital Hispánica de la BNE. Emilio Herrera Linares (1879-1967), military engineer and physicist, designed a pressurized space suit for stratospheric flights (escafandra estratonáutica), precedent of the modern space suits. José Luis López Gómez (1941-) is an engineer and inventor, with several patents relating to high speed trains.
M Gregorio Marañón (1887–1960), doctor and researcher, leading figure in endocrinology. Narcís Monturiol (1819–1885), physicist and inventor, pioneer of underwater navigation and the first successful machine powered submarine.Cargill Hall, R. (1986). History of rocketry and astronautics: proceedings of the third through the sixth History Symposia of the International Academy of Astronautics, Volumen 1. NASA conference publication. American Astronautical Society by Univelt, p. 85. A steam powered submarine: the Ictíneo Low-tech Magazine, 24 August 2008 José Celestino Bruno Mutis (1732–1808), botanist, doctor, philosopher and mathematician, carried out relevant research about the American flora, founded one of the first astronomic observatories in America (1762). Aureliano Maestre de San Juan (1828-1890), scientist, histologist, physician and anatomist credited as being one of the first scientists to recognize the disorder known as Kallmann syndrome.
O Severo Ochoa (1905–1993), doctor and biochemist, achieved the synthesis of ribonucleic acid (RNA), Nobel prize Laureate (1959). Federico Olóriz Aguilera, (1855-1912), doctor, created the primary fingerprint classification system used in Portugal and Spain prior to the use of computer filing systems. Mateu Orfila (1787–1853), doctor and chemist, father of modern toxicology, leading figure in forensic toxicology. Joan Oró (1923–2004), biochemist, carried out important research about the origin of life, he worked with NASA on the Viking missions.Michael Mark Woolfson, Time, Space, Stars & Man: The Story of the Big Bang. World Scientific; 2013. . p. 383.
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Julio Palacios Martínez (1891–1970), physicist and mathematician.Armando Duran « Julio Palacios- En el centenario del nacimiento del fisico espanol » El Pais, 14 abril 1991 Isaac Peral (1851–1895), engineer and sailor, designer of the first fully operative military submarine, with electric propulsion making full propulsion feasible. Juan Tomás Porcell (1528-1580), doctor and anatomist, carried decisive research on the Black Death and wrote influential treaties of epidemiology.
R Santiago Ramón y Cajal (1852–1934), father of Neuroscience, Nobel prize Laureate (1906). Julio Rey Pastor (1888–1962), mathematician, focusing on geometry. Wifredo Ricart (1897–1974), engineer, designer and executive manager in the automotive industry.Eric Dymock, "Postwar sports cars. The modern classics". Andrés Manuel del Río (1764–1849), geologist and chemist, discovered vanadium (as vanadinite) in 1801. Pío del Río Hortega (1882–1945), neuroscientist, discoverer of the microglia or Hortega cell. Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente (1928–1980), naturalist, leading figure in ornithology, ethology, ecology and science divulgation.El impresionante mundo de Félix Rodríguez de la Fuente 14 December 2008 20 minutos Ángela Ruiz Robles (1895-1975) teacher, writer and inventor, inventor of a mechanical precursor to the electronic book.Gaceta de la Actualidad Técnica. Year II, No. 14, September 1955
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Margarita Salas (1938-2019), biochemist and molecular geneticist, who discovered the order in which messenger RNA is read, as well S Φ29 phage DNA polymerase, of major use in DNA amplification. Mónico Sánchez Moreno (1880-1961), electrical engineer, inventor and industrialist; early developer of high frequency electrical conduction equipment, mobile telephony, radiology, electrotherapy and inventor of the first portable X-ray machine in 1909. Miguel Servet (1511–1553), known in English by his Latin name of Michael Servetus, scientist, surgeon and humanist; first European to describe pulmonary circulation.2011 "The love for truth. Life and work of Michael Servetus", (El amor a la verdad. Vida y obra de Miguel Servet.), printed by Navarro y Navarro, Zaragoza, collaboration with the Government of Navarra, Department of Institutional Relations and Education of the Government of Navarra, 607 pp, 64 of them illustrations, p 215-228 & 62nd illustration (XLVII) Luis Simarro Lacabra (1851–1921), psychiatrist; developed a silver bromide modification of Camillo Golgi's silver chromate technique.
T Esteban Terradas i Illa (1883–1950), mathematician, physicist and engineer.Esteban Terrades, A life given to science and technology