- May 1 [Robert] Lawson Tait, Scottish-born pioneering surgeon performed first salpingectomy for ectopic pregnancy, born in Edinburgh, Scotland (d. 1899)
- May 12 Gabriel Fauré, French organist, composer (Requiem; Ballade), and educator (Paris Conservatoire, 1905-20), born in Pamiers, France (d. 1924)
- May 15 Ilya Mechnikov, Russian zoologist and bacteriologist known as the "father of natural immunity" (Nobel 1908), born in Ivanovka, Kharkov Governorate, Russian Empire (d. 1916)
20-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
80-89
Over 90