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Famous Majorcans include writer and philosopher Ramon Llull and Junípero Serra, the Franciscan friar who founded the mission chain in Alta California. From the 19th century, the military commander Joaquín Jovellar y Soler and two-time Spanish Prime Minister Antonio Maura. Sportsmen from the island include basketball player Rudy Fernández, as well as world no. 1 tennis players Rafael Nadal and Carlos Moyá. Rafael Nadal's uncle is the former Spanish international footballer, Miguel Ángel Nadal. In 2006, Majorca's Jorge Lorenzo won the world 250cc motor cycling title and 2010 MotoGP World Champion . Former Everton footballer, Duncan Ferguson now resides in Majorca. Cynthia Lennon, former wife of John Lennon of the Beatles also lives in Majorca.

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The island is home to dance artist / producer DJ Sammy and contemporary painters such as Miquel Barceló, José María Sicilia, and Astrid Colomar. Maria del Mar Bonet and her brother Joan Ramon Bonet, both members of the group of Catalan language singers known as Els Setze Jutges in the 1960s, are from Majorca, as is the contemporary pop group Antònia Font.

The members of the Spanish Royal Family spend their summer holidays in Majorca where the Marivent Palace is located. The Marivent Palace is the Royal Family's summer residence. While most royal residences are administered by Patrimonio Nacional, the Marivent Palace, in Palma de Mallorca, one of many Spanish royal sites, is under the care of Government of the Balearic Islands. As a private residence it is rarely used for official business. Typically, the whole family meets there and the Fortuna yacht, where they take part in sailing competitions. However, unofficial business does occur at the Marivent Palace such as when Hugo Chávez, President of Venezuela, visited King Juan Carlos at the Marivent Palace in 2008 to mend their relationship and normalize diplomatic relations after the King told him, "Why don't you shut up?" during the Ibero-American Summit in November 2007.

 

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