Ritter (surname)

Ritter is a surname of German origin, and may refer to:

A

 * Alexander Ritter (1833–1896), German composer, violinist, and conductor
 * Alison Ritter, Australian drug policy academic
 * August Ritter (civil engineer) (1826–1908), German civil engineer
 * August Gottfried Ritter (1811–1885), German romantic composer and organist

B

 * Bill Ritter (born 1956), American politician and former Governor of Colorado
 * Bill Ritter (journalist) (born 1950), American news anchor in New York City
 * Bruce Ritter (1927–1999), American Roman Catholic priest, founder of Covenant House
 * Burwell C. Ritter (1810–1880), American politician, Congressman from Kentucky 1865–1867

C

 * Carl Ritter (1779–1859), German geographer
 * Christian Ritter (1645–50 – after 1725), German composer and organist
 * Christian Ritter (footballer) (born 1984), German football player

D

 * Dominik Ritter (born 1989), Swiss football player
 * Donald L. Ritter (born 1940), American politician, Congressman from Pennsylvania 1980–1993

E

 * Erika Ritter (born 1948), Canadian playwright and humorist

F

 * Floyd Ritter (1870–1943), Major League Baseball catcher 1890
 * Frédéric Louis Ritter (1834–1891), German-American composer and author
 * Friedrich Ritter (1898–1989), German botanist, expert on cacti

G

 * Gerhard Ritter (1888–1967), German conservative historian
 * Gerhard A. Ritter (1929–2015), German historian
 * Gretchen Ritter, American academic administrator

H

 * Halsted L. Ritter (1868–1951), American jurist impeached and removed from office in 1936
 * Heinrich Ritter (1791–1869), German philosopher
 * Henry Ritter (1816–1853), Canadian genre painter

J

 * J. Alfred Ritter (died 1892), American politician from Maryland
 * Jason Ritter (born 1980), American actor, son of John Ritter
 * Jeannie Ritter (born 1958), former First Lady of Colorado, US; wife of former Governor Bill Ritter
 * Johann Christian Ritter (1755–1810), first printer in South Africa
 * Johann Wilhelm Ritter (1776–1810), German chemist and physicist
 * Johannes Ritter (born 1995), Danish footballer
 * John Ritter (congressman) (1779–1851), American politician, Congressman from Pennsylvania 1843–1847
 * John Ritter (1948–2003), American actor, son of Tex Ritter, father of Jason Ritter
 * John H. Ritter (born 1951), American young-adult baseball novelist
 * John Steele Ritter, American pianist, long-term collaborator of French flautist Jean-Pierre Rampal
 * Joseph Ritter (1892–1967), American Cardinal, Archbishop of Saint Louis 1946–1967
 * Josh Ritter (born 1976), American singer-songwriter

K

 * Krysten Ritter (born 1981), American actress

L

 * Lawrence Ritter (1922–2004), American baseball writer
 * Lorenz Ritter (1832–1921), German painter
 * Lou Ritter (1925–2010), American politician, mayor of Jacksonville, Florida 1965–1967
 * Louise Ritter (born 1958), American track and field athlete, Olympic gold medalist

M

 * Matthew Ritter, American politician
 * Maya Ritter (born 1993), Canadian actress

N

 * Nikolaus Ritter (1899–1974), German Intelligence Officer

O

 * Ole Ritter (born 1941), Danish professional cyclist

P

 * Paul Ritter (1966–2021), British stage and screen actor
 * Paul Ritter (architect) (1925–2010), Australian architect, artist and author
 * Paul Ritter (painter) (1829–1907), German architectural painter and etcher
 * Paul Ritter (diplomat) (1865–1921), Swiss ambassador to the United States
 * Preston Ritter (1949–2015), American rock drummer

R

 * Rex Ritter, lead guitarist for the American band Jessamine 1994–1998
 * Robert Ritter (1901 – c. 1951), German psychologist whose work led to the genocide of the Roma people in Nazi Germany

S

 * Scott Ritter (born 1961), chief United Nations weapons inspector in Iraq 1991–1998
 * Sylvester Ritter (1952–1998), ring name Junkyard Dog, American professional wrestler

T

 * Tex Ritter (1905–1974), American singer and actor, father of John Ritter
 * Thelma Ritter (1902–1969), American actress
 * Tyson Ritter (born 1984), American musician, lead singer and bassist for The All-American Rejects

W

 * William Ritter (1867–1955), Swiss writer
 * William Emerson Ritter (1856–1944), American biologist
 * William M. Ritter (1864–1952), American businessman

Others

 * Mary Ritter Beard (1876–1958), American historian and campaigner for woman's suffrage
 * F. Ritter Shumway (1906–1992), major figure in American figure skating
 * Albert Ritter Conti v. Cedassamare (1887–1967), Italian-American character actor
 * Pavao Ritter Vitezović (1652–1713), Croatian writer, historian, linguist, and publisher
 * Stephen Geoffreys (born 1964), American actor who used the screen name Sam Ritter in pornographic films

Fictional characters

 * Donald & Deborah Ritter, characters from Marvel Comics
 * Philip Ritter, a doctor played by Paul Henreid in the 1952 film Stolen Face
 * Rein Weiss Ritter, a robot in the Super Robot Wars series
 * Rhonda Ritter, a character in the 1982 film Grease 2
 * Robert (Bob) Ritter, fictional CIA Deputy Director of Operations in the Tom Clancy novel Clear and Present Danger (1989)
 * The same character, played by Henry Czerny, in the 1994 film adaptation of the novel
 * Weiss Ritter, a robot in the Super Robot Wars series
 * Alwin Ritter, a fictional character in the anime Gundam SEED DESTINY
 * Thomas, Jacob, and Lily Ritter, characters from the 2013 video game State of Decay