← Fame through time1838
1838
Whose working lives fell in 1838. 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 1838, ranked where coverage and readership agree.
- 1
Ralph Waldo Emerson19 decades - 2
Hector Berlioz19 decades - 3
Fyodor Tyutchev11 decades - 4
Prosper Mérimée19 decades - 5
Justus von Liebig17 decades - 6
Edward Bulwer-Lytton5 decades - 7
Christian Doppler8 decades - 8
Charles Lucien Bonaparte0 decades - 9
Adolphe Adam19 decades - 10
Robert Stephenson22 decades - 11
Flora Tristan13 decades - 12
James Brooke22 decades - 13
Sarah Childress Polk0 decades - 14
Albrecht von Roon13 decades - 15
Maria Anna of Savoy0 decades - 16
Gottfried Semper16 decades - 17
Osceola21 decades - 18
Albert Sidney Johnston16 decades - 19
Sarah Yorke Jackson0 decades - 20
Edgar Quinet19 decades - 21
John Sutter9 decades - 22
Friedrich Reinhold Kreutzwald0 decades - 23
Ferenc Deák0 decades - 24
John Ericsson19 decades - 25
Vladimir Odoevsky12 decades - 26
Peter Chanel8 decades - 27
Jean Ignace Isidore Gérard Grandville0 decades - 28
Princess Alexandrine of Prussia0 decades - 29
Ludwig Richter22 decades - 30
Luís Alves de Lima e Silva, Duke of Caxiasnot measured- - 31
George Borrow18 decades - 32
Maria Teresa of Savoy0 decades - 33
Muhammad IV of Morocconot measured- - 34
Juan Almontenot measured- - 35
Karl Gützlaff3 decades - 36
Henry Darcy0 decades - 37
Friedrich von Amerling2 decades - 38
Black Kettlenot measured- - 39
Duchess Marie Louise of Mecklenburg-Schwerinnot measured- - 40
William Smith O'Briennot measured- - 41
Charles Sturm0 decades - 42
José María Heredia y Heredianot measured- - 43
Bernardo Berronot measured- - 44
Sir James Outram, 1st Baronetnot measured- - 45
Eugène Isabeynot measured- - 46
Alexandre-Gabriel Decamps0 decades - 47
Franz Lachner18 decades - 48
John Gorrienot measured- - 49
Yevfimiy Vasilyevich Putyatinnot measured- - 50
Heinrich Daniel Ruhmkorff0 decades - 51
Paul Huetnot measured- - 52
Juan Bravo Murillonot measured- - 53
Prudence Crandallnot measured- - 54
Aleksander Wielopolskinot measured-
- 55
Susanna Moodienot measured- - 56
Hélène Jégadonot measured- - 57
Thomas Jefferson Rusknot measured- - 58
James Gamblenot measured- - 59
Johann Jakob Kaup0 decades - 60
Sarah Helen Whitmannot measured- - 61
Heinrich Wilhelm Dove1 decades - 62
Nikolay Yazykovnot measured- - 63
Alexander von Nordmannnot measured- - 64
Adèle Fouchernot measured- - 65
Jacob Abbottnot measured- - 66
Christopher Memmingernot measured- - 67
Alexander Bungenot measured- - 68
Léon Fauchernot measured-
- 69
William Thomsnot measured- - 70
Heinrich Ewaldnot measured- - 71
Caroline Ungernot measured- - 72
Ramón de Mesonero Romanosnot measured- - 73
Égide Charles Gustave Wappersnot measured- - 74
Nathan Cliffordnot measured- - 75
Carl Jacob Löwignot measured- - 76Ann Walkernot measured-
- 77
Wolfgang Franz von Kobellnot measured- - 78
Barend Cornelis Koekkoeknot measured- - 79
Paul Cullennot measured- - 80
Johann Carl Fuhlrottnot measured- - 81
Domingo Nietonot measured- - 82
Guglielmo Libri Carucci dalla Sommajanot measured- - 83
Leon Sapiehanot measured- - 84
Miles Joseph Berkeley0 decades - 85
Gottfried Ludolf Camphausennot measured- - 86
Martinus Rørbyenot measured- - 87
William Allennot measured- - 88
Manuel Felipe de Tovarnot measured- - 89
Thomas Lovell Beddoesnot measured- - 90
Anselm von Rothschildnot measured- - 91
Makhambet Otemisulynot measured- - 92
Julius Mosennot measured- - 93
Friedrich Ludwig Persiusnot measured- - 94
António Bernardo da Costa Cabral, 1st Marquis of Tomarnot measured- - 95
Giovanni Antonio Farinanot measured- - 96
Alexander Polezhayevnot measured-
- 97
Adin Ballounot measured- - 98
Itō Keisukenot measured- - 99
Douglas William Jerroldnot measured- - 100
Lucien Muratnot measured-
How to read these rankings
- People sit in their own time. Everyone is placed in the century their working life belongs to, and never in one that came after their death.
- Attention, not reputation. A place on these lists reflects the attention a person still draws in the public record, read across every language rather than one. It is not a judgement on the life.
- Fame in print. The curves show how often a name appeared in the books of each decade from 1800 to 2019, drawn from the Google Books Ngram corpus. Those decades are closed, so each curve is measured once and kept.
- Gaps are left as gaps. Where the record is too thin to be fair, or a name belongs to more than one notable person, we would rather show nothing than guess.