Famous People Born In San Salvador

Mauricio Funes is a Salvadoran politician who won the 2009 presidential election representing the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front political party. He served as the 44th president of El Salvador from 2009 to 2014. Before establishing himself as a politician, Mauricio Funes had a successful career in journalism, hosting local news programs and interviewing leftist rebel leaders.

Milena Mayorga is a Salvadoran political figure and former beauty pageant contestant and model. She represented El Salvador at the 1996 Miss Universe pageant where she entered the top ten. Milena Mayorga is currently serving as Salvadoran Ambassador to the United States of America.

Tatiana Huezo is a film director of Mexican and Salvadoran nationality. She gained international recognition for her first documentary film El lugar más pequeño, which is about the Salvadoran Civil War. In 2016, she received the Fénix Award for her documentary film Tempestad, which also won the prestigious Ariel Award for Best Director in 2017.

María Isabel Rodríguez is a physician, government official, and academic. In 1956, Rodríguez was among the first set of women to enter the Salvadoran Legislative Assembly. She then went on to serve as the Minister of Health and Social Welfare from 2009 to 2014. Rodríguez also served as the rector of the University of El Salvador from 1999 to 2007. 

Ana Vilma de Escobar is a Salvadoran politician who served as the Vice President of El Salvador from 2004 to 2009. An important member of the Nationalist Republican Alliance party, De Escobar is the first Salvadoran woman to serve as the country's vice president.

Alice Lardé de Venturino was a Salvadoran writer and poet. Best remembered for her lyric poems, Lardé has been recognized and honored by the government of Chile as well as El Salvador. Apart from writing poems, Alice Lardé de Venturino also published scientific works throughout her career.

Matilde Elena López was a Salvadoran poet, playwright, essayist, and literary critic. She also worked as a professor at the University of El Salvador. A revolutionary with leftist ideas, Matilde Elena López is credited with developing an extensive literary work favoring women's rights.

Carmen Elena Figueroa is a Salvadoran politician who was elected to the National Assembly in 2006. She is currently an important member of the Nationalist Republican Alliance. A former beauty pageant winner, Carmen Elena Figueroa represented her country at the 1975 Miss Universe Pageant.

Marianella García Villas was a Salvadoran attorney who gave up her political career to establish the country's first independent human rights commission. After the 1979 coup d'état, García started documenting human rights abuses in El Salvador. She achieved international recognition when she took her documentation to the UNCHR. In 1983, Marianella García Villas was killed by the Salvadoran Armed Forces.   

Karina Sosa is a Salvadoran politician and a member of the Legislative Assembly of El Salvador. During the 2019 presidential election, Sosa achieved popularity as the running mate of the Farabundo Martí National Liberation Front's presidential candidate, Hugo Martínez.

Claudia Hernández González is a Salvadoran writer who specializes in writing short stories. Many of her stories depict the effects of the Salvadoran Civil War. Widely regarded as one of the greatest living Salvadoran writers, Claudia Hernández González was honored with the prestigious Anna Seghers Prize in 2004.

Carmen María Gallardo Hernández is a Salvadorian diplomat who has served in important diplomatic posts abroad. She has also served in various representative roles in international organizations such as the United Nations. Carmen María Gallardo Hernández has also received many accolades over the course of her illustrious career.

Arturo Ambrogi was a Salvadoran journalist and writer. He is often counted among the pioneers of Salvadoran literature alongside Alberto Masferrer and Francisco Gavidia. Some of his best known works include Máscaras, Manchas y Sensaciones, Cuentos y Fantasías, and Sensaciones del Japón y de la China.

Marta Benavides is a Salvadoran theologian and feminist religious leader. A multi-talented personality, Benavides is also an ordained American Baptist minister, artist, educator, and permaculturist. She is credited with founding an organization called Siglo XXIII, which promotes cultural activities. Marta Benavides is the recipient of several prestigious awards including the Women's World Summit Foundation Prize.

Jacinta Escudos is a Salvadoran novelist, poet, and short story writer. Her extensive body of work also includes journalistic chronicles and creative nonfiction. She also works as a translator as she is fluent in English, Spanish, German, and French. Jacinta Escudos also contributes as a blogger and is well known for her official blog, Jacintario.

Lilian Serpas was a Salvadoran poet best remembered for her association with Che Guevara. Many believe that Serpas may have had a physical and intense relationship with Che Guevara. Lilian Serpas has also been featured on a postage stamp in El Salvador.

Nora Méndez is a Salvadoran poet best known for writing resistance poems in reaction to the political situation in her country. She has also written poems that discuss the status of women and domestic violence in El Salvador. A multi-talented personality, Nora Méndez also worked as a singer-songwriter during the 1980s and appeared alongside a band named Nuevamérica.