Claim profile
1700–1799

The 18th century

Whose working lives fell in the 18th 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 18th century, ranked where Wikipedia coverage and readership agree.

CountryAll🇫🇷 France🇩🇪 Germany🇺🇸 United States🇬🇧 United Kingdom🇮🇹 Italy🇪🇸 Spain🇸🇪 Sweden🇯🇵 Japan🇹🇷 Turkey🇦🇹 Austria
FieldAllPoliticiansHistorical FiguresWritersScientistsMusiciansArtistsAcademicsArchitectsDoctorsReligious Figures
  1. 1Maria TheresaMaria Theresa1717–1780 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures22 decades
  2. 2Joseph II, Holy Roman EmperorJoseph II, Holy Roman Emperor1741–1790 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures22 decades
  3. 3Charles VI, Holy Roman EmperorCharles VI, Holy Roman Emperor1685–1740 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures22 decades
  4. 4Joseph I, Holy Roman EmperorJoseph I, Holy Roman Emperor1678–1711 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures22 decades
  5. 5Maria Carolina of AustriaMaria Carolina of Austria1752–1814 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures0 decades
  6. 6Maria Josepha of AustriaMaria Josepha of Austria1699–1757 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures0 decades
  7. 7Maria Christina, Duchess of TeschenMaria Christina, Duchess of Teschen1742–1798 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures22 decades
  8. 8Archduchess Maria Anna of AustriaArchduchess Maria Anna of Austria1738–1789 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures0 decades
  9. 9Archduchess Maria Amalia of AustriaArchduchess Maria Amalia of Austria1746–1804 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures0 decades
  10. 10Archduchess Maria Josepha of AustriaArchduchess Maria Josepha of Austria1751–1767 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures0 decades
  11. 11Ferdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-EsteFerdinand Karl, Archduke of Austria-Este1754–1806 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figures0 decades
  12. 12Archduchess Maria Johanna Gabriela of AustriaArchduchess Maria Johanna Gabriela of Austria1750–1762 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figuresnot measured—
  13. 13Archduke Charles Joseph of AustriaArchduke Charles Joseph of Austria1745–1761 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Historical Figuresnot 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.