This is a list of folk heroes, a type of hero – real, fictional or mythological – with their name, personality and deeds embedded in the popular consciousness of a people, mentioned frequently in folk songs, folk tales and other folklore; and with modern trope status in literature, art and films.
Historically documented Antiquity (up to 450 AD) Scipio Africanus – Italy, Roman general and later consul who is often regarded as one of the greatest military commanders and strategists of all time. Ambiorix – Belgium, was, together with Cativolcus, prince of the Eburones, leader of a Belgic tribe of north-eastern Gaul (Gallia Belgica). Augustus – Italy, he was the founder of the Roman Empire. He reigned as the first Roman emperor from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. The reign of Augustus initiated an imperial cult, as well as an era of imperial peace (the or ) in which the Roman world was largely free of armed conflict. Attila – Central and Eastern Europe, leader of an empire consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths, Alans, Gepids, and others. Boudica – Great Britain, the warrior queen who led an uprising against the Roman Empire in Britain. Ducetius – Italy, he was a Hellenized leader of the Sicels and founder of a united Sicilian state and numerous cities.Livius. Ducetius of Sicily. Retrieved on 25 April 2006. Hermocrates – he was an ancient Syracusan general during the Athenians' Sicilian Expedition in the midst of the Peloponnesian War. Jugurtha – Algeria, the Numidian king that managed to defeat the Roman Empire. Julius Caesar – Italy, he was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, and subsequently became dictator from 49 BC until his assassination in 44 BC. He played a critical role in the events that led to the demise of the Roman Republic and the rise of the Roman Empire. King David – Kingdom of Judah, second Biblical king of Israel, founder of the Davidic dynasty. Decebalus – Romania, King of Dacia who managed to defend the kingdom against the Roman Empire.Lucian Boia Myth in Romanian Consciousness, Central European University Press, Budapest, 2001, p.89Lucian Boia Myth in Romanian Consciousness, Central European University Press, Budapest, 2001, p.209. Guan Yu (Yunchang) – China, military general during the late Eastern Han dynasty. One of East Asia's most popular paradigms of loyalty and righteousness. Hannibal – Tunisia, Spain and Lebanon, was a Carthaginian general and statesman who is considered one of the greatest military commanders in history. Bar Kokhba – Judea, leader of a failed rebellion against the Roman Empire. Judas Maccabaeus – Judea, leader of a successful rebellion against the Seleucid Empire. Vercingetorix – France, chief of the Arverni tribe, who united the Gauls in a revolt against the Roman forces of Julius Caesar. Viriathus – Portugal, the leader of the freedom fighters of the confederated Iberian tribes who resisted colonial Rome. Zhuge Liang – China, chancellor and regent of the state of Shu Han, is recognized as the most accomplished strategist of the Three Kingdoms period.
Middle Ages (450–1500) Ali ibn Abi Talib - Muhammad’s cousin and son-in-law, regarded as his legitimate successor by Shia Muslims, Fourth Caliph, who was able to destroy the fort of Khaybar by one hand. Anawrahta – founder of the Pagan Empire and considered the father of the Burmese nation. Antarah ibn Shaddad – Pre-Islamic Arabia, an Arab slave who became a knight, famous for his bravery, pride and poetry. Buluggin Ibn Ziri – Algeria, the first leader of the Zirid Dynasty and founder of the city of Algiers on the site of the ancient Roman Icosium in 960. Shin Arahan – Myanmar, credited with converting King Anawrahta to Theravada Buddhism and religious adviser to four Pagan kings. Jan Breydel – Belgium, butcher and resistance fighter during the Franco-Flemish War. Charlemagne – Europe, was king of the Franks from 768, king of the Lombards from 774, and emperor of the Romans from 800. During the Early Middle Ages, he united the majority of western and central Europe. Christopher Columbus – Italy, he was an explorer and navigator from the Republic of Genoa who completed four Spanish-based voyages across the Atlantic Ocean sponsored by the Catholic Monarchs, opening the way for the widespread European exploration and colonization of the Americas. His expeditions were the first known European contact with the Caribbean and Central and South America. Pieter de Coninck – Belgium, weaver and resistance fighter during the Franco-Flemish War. Lekë Dukagjini – Albania, was a medieval Albanian prince, leader of the Albanian resistance against the Ottoman Empire after Skanderbeg's death and the author of the well-known Kanun. Eleanor of Arborea – Italy, she was one of the most powerful and important, and one of the last, judges of the Judgedom of Arborea in Sardinia, and Sardinia's most famous heroine. Engelbrekt Engelbrektsson – Sweden, rebel and temporary regent in the 15th century. Frederick Barbarossa - Germany, Holy Roman Emperor who was a leader during the Third Crusade. Leif Erikson – Norse: Icelandic, Viking explorer who is thought to have been the first European to set foot on continental America. Fujiwara no Hidesato – Japanese aristocrat and samurai, famed for his legendary and military exploits. Eppelein von Gailingen – Germany, robber baron. Gajah Mada – Indonesia, unified the Southeast Asian archipelago of Nusantara in the 13th century for Majapahit. Genghis Khan – Mongolian ruler of the Steppe during the 13th century, founder of the Mongolian empire. Owain Glyndŵr – Wales, nobleman who led a rebellion against the Kingdom of England. Godfrey of Bouillon – France and Belgium, leader of the First Crusade, established the Kingdom of Jerusalem. One of the Nine Worthies. Guo Ziyi – China, Tang dynasty general who ended the An Lushan Rebellion, respected by the Uyghur chieftains and greatly weaken Tibetan Empire. Hildegard von Bingen – Germany, Saint Hildegard, Christian mystic, founder of scientific nature history. Joan of Arc – France, a peasant girl who led the French in the Hundred Years' War after she claimed saints told her it was God's will. Burned as a heretic she became a martyr, folk hero, and eventually a saint. She is now one of the patron saints of France. John the Blind – Count of Luxembourg and King of Bohemia, is considered a national hero in Luxembourg, partly because of his sacrifice at the Battle of Crécy in 1346. Khalid ibn al-Walid - A 7th-century Arab military commander. Lazar of Serbia – Serbia, medieval Serbian ruler, who fought and perished at the Battle of Kosovo (1389). Liu Bowen – China, key advisor to the Hongwu Emperor of Ming dynasty, also well known for his prophecies and has been described as the "Divine Chinese Nostradamus". Prince Marko – Serbia, better known as Kraljević Marko, a medieval prince active during the fall of the Serbian Empire and Ottoman invasion, a hero in Serbian epic poetry. Minamoto no Yorimitsu – Japanese samurai and legendary figure, famed for military exploits and monster slaying. Miloš Obilić – Serbia, a knight who killed Ottoman Sultan Murad I at the Battle of Kosovo (1389), regarded as a national hero. Constantine XI Palaiologos – Greece, the last emperor of the (Eastern) Roman Empire, who died leading his troops in the Fall of Constantinople. Marco Polo – Italy, he was a Venetian merchant,Stephen Feinstein; (2009) Marco Polo: Amazing Adventures in China (Great Explorers of the World) p. 23–24; Enslow Pub Inc, John H. Stubbs, Robert G. Thomson; Architectural Conservation in Asia: National Experiences and Practice p. 30; Routledge, explorer and writer who travelled through Asia along the Silk Road between 1271 and 1295. Mir Chakar Rind – Pakistan, a 15th-century Baloch chieftain and folklore hero found in the Hani and Sheh Mureed tale. Robert the Bruce – Scottish king who defeated the English invaders at the Battle of Bannockburn. Rodrigo Díaz de Vivar, el Cid – Castillian knight who battled in the times of Reconquista Roger I of Sicily – Italy, he was a Norman nobleman and founder of the County of Sicily. In the Sicilian folklore he is considered the liberator of the island. Sejong the Great – Korean king, personally responsible for creation of the Hangul alphabet and many scientific, humanitarian and literary advances. Sheikh Bedreddin – Ottoman Empire, theologian and revolutionary. Skanderbeg – Albanian national hero who led the resistance of Albanian people against the Ottoman Empire. Everard t'Serclaes – Belgium, recaptured Brussels from the Flemings during the War of the Brabantian Succession. Tanush Thopia – Albania, medieval Albanian prince from the noble Thopia family who defended the castle of Krujë during its third siege in 1466–1467. Wat Tyler – Leader of the Peasant's Revolt, or the Great Rising of 1381 against the imposition of a Poll Tax in England. Killed by agents of King Richard II during parley. Ulubatlı Hasan – Ottoman Empire, martyr of the Fall of Constantinople. Urška Dolinarka – Slovenia, a farmeress who lead people from Davča against the Ottoman Turks in 1478 and won. Jacob van Artevelde – Belgium, statesman and political leader during the Hundred Years' War. Vlad the Impaler – Romania, a Wallachian prince who defended his country from the Ottomans, with fictionalised identity as a vampire. Vytautas – Lithuania and Poland, led the Battle of Grunwald along with Władysław II Jagiełło against the Teutonic Order. William Wallace – Scotland, knight who led a rebellion against England in the early 14th century. Wen Tianxiang – Chinese Duke of Xinguo, refuse to yield to the Mongol invaders despite being captured and tortured, enable him to become a symbol of patriotism and righteousness. Lady Xian – China, warrior, politician, queen of the Hsien. Xuanzang – China, prominent Buddhist monk in early Tang dynasty who traveled to India in the seventh century. Yue Fei – China, famous Song dynasty general, best known for leading Southern Song forces against Jurchen-ruled Jin dynasty in the 12th century. Zhang Xun – China, general of Tang Dynasty who is best known for defending Yongqiu and Suiyang during the An Shi Rebellion. Jan Žižka – Czech knight, commander of Hussite armies in the 15th century.
Early modern period (1500–1800) Bayinnaung – Myanmar, king of the Toungoo Dynasty, assembled what was probably the largest empire in the history of Southeast Asia. Dulla Bhatti – A 16th century folk hero from Punjab, known for rebelling against the Mughal authorities due to their unfair taxation system. Daniel Boone – United States, an American pioneer in the late 18th and early 19th centuries. Yuan Chonghuan – China, Ming general best known for defending Liaoning from Jurchen invaders during the Later Jin invasion of the Ming and defeated Nurhaci. Stefan Czarniecki – Poland, nobleman, statesman, military commander; led Poland through the Russo-Polish war, Khmelnytsky uprising and the Deluge. Nils Dacke – Sweden, leader of a 16th-century peasant revolt. Ahmad Shah Durrani – Afghanistan, founder of the Afghan Durrani Empire. Guy Fawkes – England, Roman Catholic restorationist from England who planned the Gunpowder Plot. Wojciech Bartosz Głowacki – Poland, he became a Polish national hero during the battle of Racławice on 4 April 1794, when he captured a Russian cannon by putting out the fuse with his hat. Ishikawa Goemon – Japan, bandit hero famous for robbing the rich and giving to the poor, though some accounts suggest he may have kept much of his ill-gotten gains. Before being boiled in oil, he saved his infant son at the cost of his own life. Nathan Hale – United States, a captain in the Continental Army during the American Revolutionary War. Piet Hein – Netherlands, captured the Spanish treasure fleet.