Birnbaum (German: "pear tree") is a German-language family name common among Ashkenazi Jews. Notable people with the surname include:

• Adam Birnbaum (born 1979), American jazz pianist, composer, and arranger
• Alfred Birnbaum (born 1955), American translator
• Allan Birnbaum (1923–1976), American statistician
• Amy Birnbaum (born 1975), American voice actress
• Arved Birnbaum (1962–2021), German actor and director
• Brigitte Birnbaum (1938–2024), German author
• Clemens Birnbaum  [ de ] (born 1963), German musicologist and cultural manager
• Daniel Birnbaum (born 1963), curator
• Dara Birnbaum (1946–2025), American feminist video artist
• David Birnbaum (born 1956), Canadian politician
• Dieter Birnbaum  [ de ] (born 1931), German biologist
• Dietrich Birnbaum  [ de ] (1942–2017), German cardiac surgeon
• Eduard Birnbaum (1855–1920), German musicologist
• Effi Birnbaum (born 1954), Israeli professional basketball coach
• Ferdinand Birnbaum  [ de ] (1892–1947), Austrian pedagogue and psychologist
• Frank Birnbaum (1922–2005), cantor
• Fritz Birnbaum (1912 – 2006) Highly decorated German Panzer Officer WWII
• Georg Birnbaum  [ de ] (1890–1948), German dermatologist and university professor
• George E. Birnbaum (born 1970), American international political consultant, one of "Arthur's Kid"
• Hans Birnbaum  [ de ] (1912–1980), German lawyer, Ministerialbeamter and manager
• Heinrich Birnbaum (1403–1473), monk
• Henrik Birnbaum (1925–2002), American linguist and Slavist
• Heinz Birnbaum  [ de ] (1920–1943), German worker and resistance fighter against Nazism
• Immanuel Birnbaum  [ de ] (1894–1982), German journalist and publicist
• Jacob Birnbaum (1926–2014), human rights activist
• Jeffrey Birnbaum (born 1955), American columnist
• Jeremiah Birnbaum (born 1978), American singer/songwriter
• Johann Michael Franz Birnbaum  [ de ] (1792–1877), German legal scholar and playwright
• Johanna Birnbaum  [ de ] (1904–1978), German non-fiction - writer and novelist
• Johann Birnbaum (1763–1832), German jurist
• Karl Birnbaum (1878–1950), German neurologist
• Karl Birnbaum (agronomist)  [ de ] (1829–1907), German agronomist
• Karl Birnbaum (chemist)  [ de ] (1839–1887), German chemist
• Lillian Birnbaum  [ de ] (born 1955), Austrian - American film director and producer and photographer
• Linda Birnbaum (born 1946), toxicologist and director of the National Institute for Environmental Health Sciences
• Lucas Birnbaum  [ de ] (born 1997), Austrian ice hockey player
• Maria Birnbaum (politician)  [ de ] (1872–1959), German National Liberal politician ( DVP )
• Martin Birnbaum (actor)  [ de ] (born 1970), German actor and musical actor
• Menachem Birnbaum (1893–1944), book illustrator and portrait painter
• Menucha Birnbaum  [ he ] (born 1948), Israeli educator
• Morton Birnbaum (1926–2005), American physician
• Nathan Birnbaum (1864–1937), Jewish philosopher
• George Burns (born Nathan Birnbaum, 1896–1996), American singer and actor
• Nico Birnbaum  [ de ] (born 1977), German actor
• Norman Birnbaum (1926–2019), American sociologist
• Paula Birnbaum  [ de ] (born 1986), German actress and entrepreneur
• Philip Birnbaum (1904–1988), American translator of Jewish prayer book
• Roger Birnbaum (born 1950), American film producer
• Solomon Birnbaum, Yiddish linguist and son of Nathan Birnbaum
• Stephen Birnbaum (1937–1991), American travel writer and editor
• Steve Birnbaum (born 1991), American Major League Soccer player
• Uriel Birnbaum (1894–1956), painter, caricaturist, writer and poet
• Uta Birnbaum  [ de ] (1933–2022), German theater and film director
• Walter Birnbaum (theologian)  [ de ] (1893–1987), German theologian and university professor
• Walter Birnbaum (physicist)  [ de ] (1897–1925), German physicist
• Wilhelm Birnbaum  [ de ] (1895–1980), German politician of the SPD
• Yaakov (Jacob) Birnbaum (1926–2014), human rights activist
• Zdzisław Birnbaum (1878–1921), Polish violinist and conductor
• Zygmunt Wilhelm Birnbaum (1903–2000), Polish-American mathematician and statistician

See also

• Barenboim, Yiddish form
• Bernbaum
• Berenbaum
• Birnbaumins

Surname list

This page lists people with the surname Birnbaum.
If an internal link intending to refer to a specific person led you to this page, you may wish to change that link by adding the person's given name(s) to the link.