Claim profile
1600–1699

The 17th century

Whose working lives fell in the 17th 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 17th century, ranked where Wikipedia coverage and readership agree.

CountryAll🇫🇷 France🇩🇪 Germany🇬🇧 United Kingdom🇯🇵 Japan🇹🇷 Turkey🇳🇱 Netherlands🇪🇸 Spain🇮🇹 Italy🇸🇪 Sweden🇨🇳 China
FieldAllWritersPoliticiansHistorical FiguresArtistsAcademicsScientistsMusiciansReligious FiguresActorsModels
  1. 1Michiel de RuyterMichiel de Ruyter1607–1676 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  2. 2Constantijn HuygensConstantijn Huygens1596–1687 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers18 decades
  3. 3Cornelis de BruijnCornelis de Bruijn1652–1727 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  4. 4Joannes de LaetJoannes de Laet1581–1649 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  5. 5Joseph de la VegaJoseph de la Vega1650–1692 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  6. 6Gysbert JapiksGysbert Japiks1603–1666 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  7. 7Laurens ReaelLaurens Reael1583–1637 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  8. 8Govert BidlooGovert Bidloo1649–1713 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  9. 9Titia BrongersmaTitia Brongersma1650–1700 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  10. 10Jakob GronoviusJakob Gronovius1645–1716 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  11. 11Philippus BaldaeusPhilippus Baldaeus1632–1672 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  12. 12Gerard BrandtGerard Brandt1626–1685 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  13. 13Gérard Thibault d'AnversGérard Thibault d'Anvers1574–1629 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  14. 14Samuel AmpzingSamuel Ampzing1590–1632 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writers0 decades
  15. 15Cornelius HagaCornelius Haga1578–1654 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  16. 16NHNicolaas Heinsius the Younger1656–1718 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  17. 17Katharyne LescailjeKatharyne Lescailje1649–1711 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  18. 18Heiman DullaartHeiman Dullaart1636–1684 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  19. 19Johannes SmetiusJohannes Smetius1590–1651 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  20. 20Maurits HuygensMaurits Huygens1595–1642 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  21. 21Reyer AnsloReyer Anslo1626–1669 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  22. 22Dirk GraswinckelDirk Graswinckel1600–1666 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  23. 23JTJacobus Tollius1633–1696 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—
  24. 24CPCornelia Pluvier1634–1711 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Writersnot measured—

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.