- Jan 1 Barry Goldwater, American politician (Senator-R-Arizona, 1953-65, 69-87) and 1964 presidential candidate (R), born in Phoenix, Arizona (d. 1998)
- Jan 1 Dana Andrews, American actor (Battle of the Bulge, Laura), born in Covington County, Mississippi (d. 1992)
- Jan 1 Dattaram Hindlekar, Indian cricket wicketkeeper (4 Tests, 3 dismissals; Bombay), born in Bombay, India (d. 1949)
Stepan Bandera (1909-1959)
Jan 1 Ukrainian nationalist, leader of the terrorist Organization of Ukrainian Nationalists (OUN-B), anti-communist fighter who both courted and was persecuted by Nazi Germany, born in Staryi Uhryniv, Galicia, Austria-Hungary
- Jan 2 René Étiemble, French scholar, novelist and translator (work on Rimbaud), born in Mayenne, France (d. 2002)
Victor Borge (1909-2000)
Jan 3 Danish-American comedian and pianist, born in Copenhagen, Denmark
- Jan 4 Cilly Aussem, German tennis player (French C'ships, Wimbledon 1931), born in Cologne, Germany (d. 1963)
- Jan 5 Simon Harcourt Nowell-Smith, British bibliophile (d. 1996)
- Jan 5 Stephen Cole Kleene, American mathematician (Regular Expressions), born in Hartford, Connecticut (d. 1994)
- Jan 6 Joop Moesman, Dutch surrealist painter (Rumor), born in Utrecht, Netherlands (d. 1988)
- Jan 7 Thalassa Cruso, English-American gardening expert (The Mike Douglas Show; The Tonight Show), born in London (d. 1997)
- Jan 8 Bruce Mitchell, South African cricket opening batsman (42 Tests), born in Johannesburg, South Africa (d. 1995)
- Jan 8 Evelyn Wood, American educator (d. 1995)
- Jan 8 Willy Millowitsch, German actor (National Lampoon's European Vacation), born in Cologne, Germany (d. 1999)
- Jan 9 Herva Nelli, Italian-born American soprano, born in Florence, Italy (d. 1994)
- Jan 10 Rudolf Kubin, Czech cellist, born in Ostrava, Czech Republic (d. 1973)
- Jan 11 Gunnar Johnsen Berg, Swiss-Danish composer (Cosmogonie), born in Switzerland (d. 1989)
- Jan 11 Marguerite Kelsey, English model for artists (Haunting), born in London, England (d. 1995)
- Jan 12 Mauritz Hugo, Swedish actor (Atomic Blonde, Death Valley Gunfighter), born in Ostergotland, Sweden (d. 1974)
- Jan 13 Danny Barker, American jazz musician (wrote Bourbon Street Black), born in New Orleans, Louisiana (d. 1994)
Marinus van der Lubbe (1909-1934)
Jan 13 Dutch communist (executed by the Nazis after setting fire to the German Reichstag), born in Leiden, Netherlands
- Jan 14 Joseph Losey, American theatre and film director (The Damned: The Servant; Accident; The Go-Between), born in La Crosse, Wisconsin (d. 1984)
- Jan 15 Elie Siegmeister, American composer (The Plough and the Stars), born in Manhattan, New York (d. 1991)
- Jan 15 Gene Krupa, American jazz and big band drummer (Benny Goodman - "Sing, Sing, Sing"), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1973)
- Jan 15 Jean Bugatti, German-born automobile designer, born in Cologne, Germany (d. 1939)
- Jan 17 Karen Jønsson (née Pedersen), Danish jazz singer, pianist, songwriter, composer, and actress, born in Copenhagen, Denmark (d. 1942)
- Jan 19 Hans Hotter, German operatic bass-baritone, born in Offenbach, Germany (d. 2003)
- Jan 21 Todor Skalovski, Macedonian choral director and composer (Baltepe), born in Tetovo, Ottoman Empire (d. 2004)
- Jan 22 Ann Sothern [Harriette Arlene Lake], American actress (Lady in a Cage), born in Valley City, North Dakota (d. 2001)
- Jan 22 Irving "Mouse" Randolph, American swing jazz trumpeter (Cab Calloway Orchestra), born in St. Louis, Missouri (d. 1997)
- Jan 22 Porfirio Rubirosa, Dominican diplomat, race car driver, polo player, and international playboy, born in San Francisco de Macorís, Dominican Republic (d. 1965)
U Thant (1909-1974)
Jan 22 Burmese politician and 3rd Secretary-General of the United Nations (1961-72), born in Pantanaw, Burma, British India
- Jan 23 Tatiana Proskouriakoff, Russian-American Mayan archaeologist who helped decipher Maya hieroglyphs, born in Tomsk, Russia (d. 1985)
- Jan 24 Ann Todd, English stage and screen actress (The Seventh Veil; The Paradine Case; The Passionate Friends), born in Hartford, England (d. 1993)
- Jan 24 Jean R. Yawkey, American baseball executive (owner Boston Red Sox 1976-92), born in Brooklyn, New York (d. 1992)
- Jan 24 Tiny Winters [Frederick Gittens], English jazz bassist and singer, born in London, England (d. 1996)
- Jan 28 Lionel Crabb "Buster", British Royal Navy diver (WW II-George Medal), born in London, England (d. 1956)
- Jan 29 Alan Marshal, Australian actor (White Cliffs of Dover, Lydia), born in Sydney, New South Wales (d. 1961)
- Jan 29 George Thomas, 1st Viscount Tonypandy, British politician (Speaker of the House of Commons), born in Port Talbot, Wales (d. 1997)
- Jan 30 Saul David Alinsky, American radical writer (John L Lewis), born in Chicago, Illinois (d. 1972)
- Jan 31 Miron Grindea, Romanian-born literary editor (ADAM International Review), born in Târgu Ocna, Moldavia (d. 1995)
About January 1909
How Old? 115 years old
Generation: Greatest Generation
Leap Year: No
20-29
30-39
40-49
50-59
80-89
Over 90