The
stereotype owes a great deal to
English folklore precedents, in the tales of
Robin Hood and of gallant
highwaymen. But outlawry was once a
term of art in the
law, and one of the harshest
judgments that could be pronounced on anyone's head.
American American Western The outlaw is familiar to contemporary readers as an archetype in
Western films, depicting the lawless
expansionism period of the United States in the late 19th century. The Western outlaw is typically a
criminal who operates from a base in the
wilderness, and opposes, attacks or disrupts the fragile institutions of new settlements. By the time of the Western frontier, many jurisdictions had abolished the process of outlawry, and the term was used in its more popular meaning. Some Old West outlaws, such as
Billy the Kid and
Jesse James, became legendary figures in Western lore both in their own lifetime and long after their deaths.
Argentinian •
Juan Bautista Bailoretto •
Juan Moreira •
Mate Cocido (Segundo David Peralta)
Brazilian Cangaceiros •
Lampião – Brazilian outlaw who led the
Cangaços, a band of feared marauders and outlaws who terrorized Northeastern Brazil during the 1920–1930's.
Canadian •
Simon Gunanoot •
Slumach •
Bill Miner •
Ken Leishman – In 1966 he managed to hijack $383,497 worth of gold from the Winnipeg International Airport, amounting to the largest gold heist in Canadian history.
Mexican •
Doroteo Arango Arámbula – Better known as
Pancho Villa, a general in the Mexican Revolution •
Heraclio Bernal, also known as the "Thunderbolt of Sinaloa" •
Los Plateados, a famous Mexican gang that was active in the state of
Morelos in the 19th century. •
Joaquín Murrieta, symbolized resistance against
Anglo-American economic and cultural domination in the 19th century.
Panamanian •
Derienni European British •
Robin Hood – Legendary medieval
English outlaw •
Hereward the Wake – Saxon outlaw during the Norman conquest of England •
John Nevison – 17th-century
highwayman •
William Plunkett – English highwayman •
Tom King – fictional English highwayman •
Edgar the Outlaw – English king •
Eustace Folville – English outlaw and soldier •
Adam the Leper – 14th-century English gang leader •
James Hind – 17th-century highwayman •
John Clavell – English highwayman, author, and lawyer •
Claude Duval –
French-born highwayman in England •
John Wilkes – 18th-century English politician •
Twm Siôn Cati – Welsh outlaw from Tregaron in Tudor times, ended up mayor of
Brecon •
William Wallace – Scottish outlaw •
James MacLaine – Scottish highwayman •
Sawney Beane – Scottish outlaw •
The Outlaw Murray – The Outlaw of
Ettrick Forest in the
Scottish Borders •
Rob Roy MacGregor – Scottish chieftain
Croatian Hajduci •
Mijat Tomić •
Andrijica Šimić Czech/Slovak •
Juraj Jánošík •
Rumcajs French •
Louis Dominique Bourguignon, also known as Cartouche
German •
Eppelein von Gailingen •
Frederick of Isenberg •
Hannikel •
Johannes Bückler, nicknamed
Schinderhannes •
Matthias Klostermayr, a.k.a.
Bavarian Hiasl, a.k.a.
Hiasl of Bavaria, a.k.a. der
Bayerische Hiasl, a.k.a. da
Boarische Hiasl •
Mathias Kneißl •
Hans Kohlhase Greek Klephtes •
Odysseas Androutsos •
Markos Botsaris •
Athanasios Diakos •
Geórgios Karaïskákis •
Theodoros Kolokotronis •
Nikitaras Hungarian •
Rózsa Sándor (the most famous
Hungarian highwayman)
Icelandic •
Gísli Súrsson •
Grettir Ásmundarson Irish •
Grace O'Malley •
Redmond O'Hanlon •
Neesy O'Haughan •
Tiger Roche •
Captain Gallagher •
Thomas Blood – outlaw and attempted thief of the Crown Jewels
Italian •
Carmine Crocco (1830–1905) –
Lucanian bandit and folk hero •
Salvatore Giuliano (1922–1950) – Sicilian bandit and separatist •
Giuseppe Musolino (1876–1956) – Calabrian outlaw and folk hero •
Ninco Nanco (1833–1864) – Lucanian bandit •
Nicola Napolitano (1838–1863) – Campanian bandit •
Gaspare Pisciotta (1924–1954) – Sicilian bandit and separatist •
Francesco Paolo Varsallona – Sicilian bandit leader
Norwegian •
Erik the Red Polish • Slovak bandit
Juraj Jánošík is known in Polish folklore as Janiczek or Janicek
Serbian •
Jovo Stanisavljevic Caruga, Serb
Spanish •
Diego Corrientes Mateos Andalusian (1757–1781) • El Guapo
Andalusian (born 1546) who is reputed to be the source for part one chapter 22 of Don Quixote by Cervantes. • Eleuterio Sánchez Rodríguez (born April 15, 1942), known as El Lute, was at one time listed as Spain's "Most Wanted" criminal and later became a published writer.
Others •
Tadas Blinda, in
Lithuania •
Juraj Jánošík, in
Slovakia •
Johann Georg Grasel, in
Moravia •
Andrij Savka, in
Lemko Region; defender of the
Lemkos against Polish and Hungarian nobility
Asians/Oceanian Australian In Australia two gangs of
bushrangers have been made outlaws – that is they were declared to have no legal rights and anybody was empowered to shoot them without the need for an arrest followed by a trial. •
Ben Hall – the New South Wales colonial government passed a law in 1865 which outlawed the gang (Hall,
John Gilbert and
John Dunn) and made it possible for anyone to shoot them. There was no need for the outlaws to be arrested and for there to be a trial — the law was essentially a
bill of attainder. •
Ned Kelly – The Victorian colonial government passed a law on October 30, 1878, to make the Kelly gang outlaws: they no longer had any legal rights and they could be shot by anyone. The law was modelled on the 1865 legislation passed against the gang of Ben Hall. As well as Ned Kelly, his brother
Dan Kelly was subject to the warrant as well as
Joe Byrne and
Steve Hart.
East Asian •
Song Jiang – Historical Chinese outlaw immortalised in the classic
Water Margin •
Zhang Xianzhong – nicknamed
Yellow Tiger, was a Chinese bandit and rebel leader who conquered
Sichuan Province in the middle of the 17th century. •
Zhang Haitian – known as
Lao Beifeng (Old North Wind), was a bandit chieftain in western
Liaoning. •
Wang Delin – bandit, soldier and leader of the
National Salvation Army resisting the Japanese
pacification of Manchukuo. •
Hong Gildong – Fictitious Korean outlaw •
Ishikawa Goemon – Legendary Japanese thief featured in kabuki plays •
Nezumi Kozō – Japanese thief •
Saigō Takamori – the last true
Samurai, he led the
Satsuma Rebellion •
Captain Harlock – protagonist of
Space Pirate Captain Harlock Indian •
Dulla Bhatti – was a
Punjabi who led a rebellion against the Mughal emperor
Akbar. His act of helping a poor peasant's daughter to get married led to a famous folk take which is still recited every year on the festival of
Lohri by Punjabis. •
Papadu – South Indian bandit. •
Veerappan,
South India's most famous bandit, Elephant poacher, sandalwood smuggler •
Phoolan Devi – one of
India's most famous
dacoits ("armed robber"). •
Saradiel – Known as the Robin Hood of
Sri Lanka for his exploits under British Colonial rule. •
Shiv Kumar Patel – led one of the few remaining bands of outlaws that have roamed central India for centuries. •
Thuggee –
Indian network of secret fraternities engaged in murdering and robbing travellers. °
Kayamkulam Kochunni a heroic outlaw from
Kayamkulam who lived during the late 19th century. He was active in the
Travancore area in the present-day Kerala, India. He is said to have stolen from the rich and given to the poor. Legends on his life are part of the folklore of
Keralam.
Middle East •
Hashshashin – militant
Ismaili Muslim sect, active from the 8th to the 14th centuries. •
Simko Shikak –
Kurdish bandit and rebel leader.
Russian •
Nightingale the Robber – myth •
Yermak Timofeyevich – 16th century
Cossack outlaw and explorer •
Stenka Razin – Cossack leader •
Yemelyan Pugachov – pretender to the Russian throne
Turkish •
İnce Memed, a fictional character in novels by
Yaşar Kemal •
Atçalı Kel Mehmet Efe, an outlaw who led a local revolt against
Ottoman Empire •
Çakırcalı Mehmet Efe, a powerful outlaw of late
Ottoman era
Ukrainian •
Oleksa Dovbush •
Ustym Karmaliuk ==In other media==