Claim profile
1400–1499

The 15th century

Whose working lives fell in the 15th 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 15th century, ranked where Wikipedia coverage and readership agree.

CountryAll🇫🇷 France🇩🇪 Germany🇮🇹 Italy🇹🇷 Turkey🇬🇧 United Kingdom🇪🇸 Spain🇯🇵 Japan🇸🇪 Sweden🇨🇭 Switzerland🇵🇹 Portugal
FieldAllHistorical FiguresPoliticiansWritersArtistsReligious FiguresAcademicsModelsMusiciansArchitectsScientists
  1. 1Prince Henry the NavigatorPrince Henry the Navigator1394–1460 · 🇵🇹 Portugal · Historical Figures15 decades
  2. 2Afonso de AlbuquerqueAfonso de Albuquerque1453–1515 · 🇵🇹 Portugal · Politicians4 decades
  3. 3John II of PortugalJohn II of Portugal1455–1495 · 🇵🇹 Portugal0 decades
  4. 4Afonso V of PortugalAfonso V of Portugal1432–1481 · 🇵🇹 Portugal0 decades
  5. 5Joan of PortugalJoan of Portugal1439–1475 · 🇵🇹 Portugal22 decades
  6. 6Eleanor of Portugal, Holy Roman EmpressEleanor of Portugal, Holy Roman Empress1434–1467 · 🇵🇹 Portugal · Historical Figuresnot measured—
  7. 7Edward, King of PortugalEdward, King of Portugal1391–1438 · 🇵🇹 Portugal · Writersnot measured—
  8. 8Tristão da CunhaTristão da Cunha1460–1540 · 🇵🇹 Portugal · Historical Figures1 decades
  9. 9DSDiogo Silvesdied 1500 · 🇵🇹 Portugalnot measured—
  10. 10AUAntoniotto Usodimare1416–1461 · 🇵🇹 Portugal · Historical Figures0 decades
  11. 11Infanta Beatrice of CoimbraInfanta Beatrice of Coimbra1435–1462 · 🇵🇹 Portugalnot measured—
  12. 12Diogo, Constable of PortugalDiogo, Constable of Portugal1425–1443 · 🇵🇹 Portugalnot measured—
  13. 13PDPêro Diasborn 1401 · 🇵🇹 Portugalnot measured—
  14. 14FCFernão Cabralborn 1427 · 🇵🇹 Portugal0 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.