1100–1199
The 12th century
Whose working lives fell in the 12th century. Books are measured from 1800 and readers from 2015, so for this period we can say who lived then, not who was talked about then.
Lived then
The most notable people whose working lives fell in the 12th century, ranked where Wikipedia coverage and readership agree.
#PersonIn print, 1800–2019Echoed
- 1
Richard I of England1157–1199 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figures0 decades - 2
Empress Matilda1102–1167 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figures14 decades - 3
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David I of Scotland1084–1153 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figures0 decades - 4
Matilda of Scotland1080–1118 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figures2 decades - 5
Geoffrey II1158–1186 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figures0 decades - 6SOSybilla of Normandy1092–1122 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figuresnot measured—
- 7GFGwenllian ferch Gruffydd1097–1136 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figuresnot measured—
- 8
Margaret of Huntingdon, Duchess of Brittany1145–1201 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figuresnot measured— - 9
Nest ferch Rhys1085–1136 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figuresnot measured— - 10GAGruffydd ap Rhys1090–1137 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figures0 decades
- 11
Rhys Gryg1160–1234 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Historical Figures0 decades
How this is measured
- Placing people in time. Each person belongs to the century in which they were most active — around age 35, and never after their death.
- Who ranks highest. Within a century, people are ranked where two independent signals agree: how many of the world’s Wikipedia language editions cover them, and how many people actually read about them. Article counts alone can be lifted by a person’s own circle; readers cannot.
- Fame in print. The curves count how often a name appears in Google Books from 1800 to 2019, as a share of all the words printed each year, in the person’s own language wherever that corpus exists. Those decades are over, so each measurement is made once and kept.
- What is left out. A lifetime is measured only from 1820, when there is enough print to judge; the five years after a death are skipped as obituaries; and a name shared with someone equally notable is credited to neither.