Famous Cuban Women

A Spanish-Cuban actress, Ana de Armas worked in Spanish films and television shows before moving to Hollywood. Overcoming the obstacle of not knowing English, she established herself as a solid actress by working in films like Knives Out and Blade Runner 2049. She will play a Bond girl in No Time to Die movie and will portray Marilyn Monroe in the Netflix biopic Blonde.

Celia Cruz was a Cuban-American singer who achieved popularity in Cuba as a singer of guarachas during the 1950s. Widely regarded as one of the 20th century's most famous Latin artists, Cruz was nicknamed the Queen of Salsa. She is also revered for popularizing Latin music in the USA. Celia Cruz also won numerous awards, including two Grammy Awards. 

French-Cuban-American diarist, essayist, and novelist Anais Nin wrote several volumes of journals, erotica, novels, critical studies, essays, and short stories. Her journals and diaries are among her most studied works. She had a deep interest in psychoanalysis and studied it extensively with René Allendy and Otto Rank. Critics consider her one of the finest writers of female erotica.

Steven Bauer is a Cuban-American actor best known for playing Cuban drug lord, Manny Ribera, in the American crime drama film, Scarface, a film which gave him an opportunity to work with actors like Al Pacino. Bauer received a Golden Globe nomination for his performance in the film. He then went on to establish himself as a serious actor.

Anabelle Acosta is an American actress best known for her portrayal of Natalie Vasquez in the thriller drama TV series, Quantico. Born in Havana, Cuba, Acosta went on to establish herself as an actress in the American film and TV industry. She is also known for playing Annabella in the comedy-drama television series, Ballers.

Selenis Leyva is best known as Gloria Mendoza from the hit Netflix series Orange Is the New Black. The Cuban-born actor was raised in The Bronx and is thus considered a prominent Afro-Latina icon. She has also penned a book and is a vocal supporter of the LGBT community, too.

Vida Guerra is a Cuban-born American model. As a young woman, she entered several fashion shows and started bagging modeling assignments. She became internationally famous after appearing in a lingerie spread for FHM in December 2002 and has since worked with many international brands. She has also appeared in a few TV shows.

Assata Shakur is a former member of the revolutionary organization 'Black Liberation Army'. Sentenced to life for murder, Shakur escaped from the 'Edna Mahan Correctional Facility for Women' and was eventually granted political asylum in Cuba. She is the first woman to be added to FBI's Most Wanted Terrorists list. Her life inspired the documentary film Eyes of the Rainbow.

Lili Estefan is a model who achieved popularity in 1986 when she was chosen to appear as a model on the Spanish-language TV show, Sábado Gigante. She then went on to become a popular model, receiving the Lifetime Achievement Award at the Premios TVyNovelas in 2015. She is one of the judges on a reality show titled Mira Quien Baila.

Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is a Cuban-born American politician and lobbyist. She is best known for representing Florida's 27th congressional district at the U.S. House of Representatives from 29 August 1989 to 3 January 2019. The first female Republican to be elected from Florida, Ileana Ros-Lehtinen is also the first Cuban-American politician elected to Congress.

Niurka Marcos is a Cuban singer, actress, dancer, and vedette. She is best known for her portrayal of Karicia in a Mexican soap opera titled Salomé, which earned her a TVyNovelas Award in 2002. Niurka Marcos became a household name in Cuba and Mexico after appearing in the popular TV show Big Brother México in 2004.

La Lupe was a Cuban singer best remembered for her energetic and controversial live performances. She had a prolific and successful career throughout the 1960s and 1970s, during which she was one of the most acclaimed Latin singers in the United States. One of La Lupe's recordings was featured in the 1996 American comedy film The Birdcage.

Omara Portuondo is a Cuban dancer and singer best known as one of the founding members of a vocal group called Cuarteto d'Aida. Renowned for her versatality, Portuondo has experimented with various styles from boleros to jazz. In 2009, she received the prestigious Latin Grammy Award. In 2019, Omara Portuondo was honored with a Latin Grammy Lifetime Achievement Award.

Celia Sánchez was a Cuban revolutionary, researcher, politician, and archivist. A close colleague of Fidel Castro, Sánchez played an important role in the Cuban Revolution. She was one of the founders of a revolutionary organization called 26th of July Movement. She was also the first woman to become a part of the guerilla. Sánchez is considered a heroine in Cuba.

Vilma Espín Guillois was a Cuban revolutionary, chemical engineer, and feminist. She is best remembered as an adamant feminist who helped organize a vanguard revolutionary organization called 26th of July Movement, which later became a political party. Vilma Espín also helped establish the Federation of Cuban Women. She also advocated equal rights for women in all aspects of life.

Lisette Oropesa is an American operatic soprano who has a wide range of repertoire that includes works from Mozart, Puccini, Rossini, and Gluck. Oropesa has performed numerous roles in English, Spanish, French, German, and Italian. She is best known for her portrayal of Susanna from The Marriage of Figaro and Lucia from Lucia di Lammermoor.

Born to journalist parents, who were both part of the Cuban intellectual sphere, Carmen Herrera received elite art education in Paris. The political unrest in Cuba forced her to leave her architecture studies incomplete and move to the U.S. She later established herself as a master painter of abstract art.

Daughter of prominent Cuban politician Rafael José Díaz-Balart, Mirta Díaz-Balart had first met revolutionary Fidel Castro at the University of Havana. After a 7-year marriage, she divorced Fidel while he was in prison following an attempted attack on the Moncada Barracks to oust Fulgencio Batista. They had a son together.

Rocío Monasterio is a Spanish-Cuban businesswoman, architect, and right wing politician. Monasterio is currently leading the Madrid branch of a political party called Vox and is serving as a Member of the Assembly of Madrid. An architect by training, Rocío Monasterio designed the house where she is currently living with her family.

Cuban-born gymnast Annia Hatch initially represented Cuba, winning the first World Championship medal for her country. Following the refusal of the Cuban authorities to send her to the Atlanta Olympics, she married an American, emigrated to the US, and won 2 Olympic medals for the US, after a 5-year hiatus.

Raquel Olmedo is a Cuban-born Mexican actress who achieved popularity during the last few years of Mexican cinema's Golden Age. She is best known for her portrayal of Doña Ramona González in the telenovela Abismo de pasión, which earned her the TVyNovelas Award. In 1984, Olmedo was inducted into the Paseo de las Luminarias for her television work.
 

Yoani Sánchez is a Cuban blogger best known for her critical depiction of life in Cuba, which has earned her multiple international awards. Her blog Generación Y is available in 17 languages. In 2008, Yoani Sánchez was named in Time magazine's 100 most influential people list.

Haydée Santamaría was a Cuban politician and revolutionary who is considered a heroine in post-revolutionary Cuba. She was among a small group of people who took part in the attack on Moncada Barracks on July 26, 1953, in Santiago de Cuba. Haydée Santamaría was also one of the first women to become a part of the Communist Party of Cuba.

Olga Guillot was a Cuban singer best remembered as an exponent of bolero music. Nicknamed the queen of bolero, Guillot was honored with the Golden Palm Award in 1963 under the best bolero singer of Latin America category. The following year, Olga Guillot became the first Latin singer to perform in the famed Carnegie Hall.

Daína Chaviano is a Cuban-American writer best known for her fantasy and science fiction books. Along with Elia Barceló and Angélica Gorodischer, Chaviano is often counted among the three most prominent female science fiction and fantasy writers in the Spanish language. Over the course of her career, Daína Chaviano has won many prestigious awards including the International Dublin Literary Award.

Dulce María Loynaz was a Cuban poet best remembered as one of the leading figures of Cuban literature. Her contribution to Cuban literature earned her the prestigious National Prize for Literature in 1987. Dulce María Loynaz also received several other prestigious awards such as the Miguel de Cervantes Prize and National Culture Distinctive Award.
 

Lydia Cabrera was a Cuban independent ethnographer, writer, and literary activist. Cabrera published more than 100 books, including her most important work El Monte, the first major ethnographic study of herbalism, religion, and Afro-Cuban traditions. Lydia Cabrera’s research materials and papers were given to the Cuban Heritage Collection, which is part of the University of Miami's library.

Malu Trevejo is a Cuban-born American singer and social media star. She achieved international recognition as a TikTok star, which paved the way for a career in music. Her popularity increased after the release of her song Luna Llena, which has gathered more than 100 million views on YouTube. Malu Trevejo is currently signed to Atlantic Records.

Growing up in a notorious part of Cuba, Mirtha Jung was already a drug addict by the time she met George Jung of the infamous Medellin cartel, which smuggled drugs into the U.S. She participated in George’s dealings and was even jailed. The 2001 film Blow depicted her life story.