- May 1 Anthony Johnson Showalter, American composer, born in Cherry Grove, Virginia (d. 1924)
- May 6 Georges Hüe, French composer, born in Versailles, France (d. 1948)
- May 8 John Meade Falkner, English novelist (Moonfleet), born in Manningford, England (d. 1932)
- May 10 Frederick Zech Jr, American composer and pianist, born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania (d. 1926)
- May 11 Carl Hauptmann, German writer, born in Obersalzbrunn (d. 1921)
- May 16 Frank Lynes, American composer, born in Cambridge, Massachusetts (d. 1913)
- May 16 Hanus Trnecek, Czech composer and conductor, born in PraguePrague, Kingdom of Bohemia (d. 1914)
- May 19 Roland Napoléon Bonaparte, French prince and president of the Société de Géographie, born in Paris, France (d. 1924)
- May 21 José Batlle y Ordóñez, President of Uruguay (1899, 1903-7, 1911-15), born in Montevideo, Urguay (d. 1929)
- May 24 Johan Braakensiek, Dutch illustrator (Van Allerlei Slag), political cartoonist (De Groene Amsterdammer), and painter, born in Amsterdam, Netherlands (d. 1940)
- May 28 Carl Richard Nyberg, Swedish inventor (blowtorch), born in Arboga, Sweden (d. 1939)
20-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
80-89
Over 90