215,950 profiles ranked

← Fame through time1990-1999

The 1990s

Whose names filled the books of the 1990s - anyone at all, however long dead - counted as mentions per million words printed, so a period that simply published more does not inflate anyone.

Talked about then

Whose names appeared most in French books during the 1990s, whenever they lived.

  1. 1Voltaire1694-1778 · 18th century · France · Writers23
  2. 2Louis XIV of France1638-1715 · 17th century · France · Historical Figures12
  3. 3Stendhal1783-1842 · 19th century · France · Writers11
  4. 4Molière1622-1673 · 17th century · France · Writers9.9
  5. 5François Mitterrand1916-1996 · 20th century · France · Politicians9.2
  6. 6Montesquieu1689-1755 · 18th century · France · Academics8.1
  7. 7Jacques Chirac1932-2019 · 20th century · France · Politicians7.2
  8. 8Louis XVI of France1754-1793 · 18th century · France · Historical Figures5.7
  9. 9Victor Hugo1802-1885 · 19th century · France · Writers5.5
  10. 10Louis XV of France1710-1774 · 18th century · France · Historical Figures4.5
  11. 11Alain Juppéborn 1945 · 20th century · France · Politicians3.6
  12. 12François Fénelon1651-1715 · 17th century · France · Religious Figures3.6
  13. 13George Sand1804-1876 · 19th century · France · Writers3.5
  14. 14Georges Pompidou1911-1974 · 20th century · France · Politicians3.4
  15. 15Pierre de Marivaux1688-1763 · 18th century · France · Writers3.3
  16. 16Joan of Arc1412-1431 · 15th century · France3.2
  17. 17Napoleon III1808-1873 · 19th century · France · Politicians3.0
  18. 18Lionel Jospin1937-2026 · 20th century · France · Politicians2.7
  19. 19André Gide1869-1951 · 20th century · France · Writers2.6
  20. 20André Breton1896-1966 · 20th century · France · Writers2.6
  21. 21Marcel Proust1871-1922 · 20th century · France · Writers2.4
  22. 22Le Corbusier1887-1965 · 20th century · Switzerland · Architects2.4
  23. 23Paul Valéry1871-1945 · 20th century · France · Writers2.3
  24. 24Charles de Gaulle1890-1970 · 20th century · France · Politicians2.3
  25. 25Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor1500-1558 · 16th century · Historical Figures2.2
  26. 26Roland Barthes1915-1980 · 20th century · France · Academics2.2
  27. 27Benjamin Constant1767-1830 · 19th century · Switzerland · Politicians2.1
  28. 28Jules Verne1828-1905 · 19th century · France · Writers2.1
  29. 29Marguerite Yourcenar1903-1987 · 20th century · France · Writers2.1
  30. 30Léon Blum1872-1950 · 20th century · France · Politicians2.0
  31. 31Louis XVIII of France1755-1824 · 18th century · France · Politicians1.9
  32. 32André Malraux1901-1976 · 20th century · France · Writers1.9
  33. 33Michel Foucault1926-1984 · 20th century · France · Academics1.8
  34. 34Jean-Jacques Rousseau1712-1778 · 18th century · Switzerland · Academics1.8
  35. 35Valéry Giscard d'Estaing1926-2020 · 20th century · France · Politicians1.8
  36. 36Jean Monnet1888-1979 · 20th century · France · Academics1.7
  37. 37Paul Claudel1868-1955 · 20th century · France · Politicians1.7
  38. 38Théophile Gautier1811-1872 · 19th century · France · Writers1.6
  39. 39Jules Ferry1832-1893 · 19th century · France · Politicians1.6
  40. 40Romain Rolland1866-1944 · 20th century · France · Writers1.6
  41. 41Saint-John Perse1887-1975 · 20th century · France · Writers1.6
  42. 42Jacques Delors1925-2023 · 20th century · France · Academics1.6
  43. 43Marie Antoinette1755-1793 · 18th century · France · Historical Figures1.5
  44. 44Jean-Marie Le Pen1928-2025 · 20th century · France · Politicians1.5
  45. 45Marguerite Duras1914-1996 · 20th century · France · Writers1.5
  46. 46Chrétien de Troyes1135-1181 · 12th century · France · Writers1.5
  47. 47Francis de Sales1567-1622 · 17th century · France · Religious Figures1.4
  48. 48Jean Cocteau1889-1963 · 20th century · France · Writers1.4
  49. 49Simone de Beauvoir1908-1986 · 20th century · France · Academics1.4
  50. 50Charles X of France1757-1836 · 18th century · France · Politicians1.4
  51. 51Pierre Bourdieu1930-2002 · 20th century · France · Academics1.4
  52. 52Claude Simon1913-2005 · 20th century · France · Writers1.4
  53. 53François Mauriac1885-1970 · 20th century · France · Writers1.3
  54. 54Raymond Aron1905-1983 · 20th century · France · Academics1.3
  55. 55Anatole France1844-1924 · 19th century · France · Writers1.3
  56. 56Claude Bernard1813-1878 · 19th century · France · Politicians1.3
  57. 57Max Jacob1876-1944 · 20th century · France · Writers1.3
  58. 58Albert Camus1913-1960 · 20th century · France · Academics1.2
  59. 59Jean-Paul Sartre1905-1980 · 20th century · France · Academics1.2
  60. 60Louis XII of France1462-1515 · 15th century · France · Historical Figures1.2
  61. 61Laurent Fabiusborn 1946 · 20th century · France · Politicians1.2
  62. 62Marc Bloch1886-1944 · 20th century · France · Writers1.2
  63. 63Auguste Comte1798-1857 · 19th century · France · Academics1.2
  64. 64Simone Weil1909-1943 · 20th century · France · Academics1.1
  65. 65Vincent de Paul1581-1660 · 17th century · France · Religious Figures0.99
  66. 66Léon Bloy1846-1917 · 19th century · France · Writers0.99
  67. 67Aimé Césaire1913-2008 · 20th century · France · Writers0.98
  68. 68Antonin Artaud1896-1948 · 20th century · France · Writers0.92
  69. 69Georges Bataille1897-1962 · 20th century · France · Writers0.92
  70. 70Jacques Maritain1882-1973 · 20th century · France · Academics0.90
  71. 71Gérard de Nerval1808-1855 · 19th century · France · Writers0.89
  72. 72Marie de' Medici1575-1642 · 17th century · France · Politicians0.88
  73. 73Nostradamus1503-1566 · 16th century · France · Academics0.88
  74. 74Jacques Lacan1901-1981 · 20th century · France · Writers0.88
  75. 75Pierre Mauroy1928-2013 · 20th century · France · Politicians0.87
  76. 76Jacques Derrida1930-2004 · 20th century · France · Academics0.85
  77. 77Robert Schuman1886-1963 · 20th century · France · Politicians0.85
  78. 78Marcel Duchamp1887-1968 · 20th century · France · Artists0.83
  79. 79Jean Giraudoux1882-1944 · 20th century · France · Writers0.83
  80. 80Claude Lévi-Strauss1908-2009 · 20th century · France · Academics0.81
  81. 81Arthur Rimbaud1854-1891 · 19th century · France · Writers0.80
  82. 82Guillaume Apollinaire1880-1918 · 20th century · France · Writers0.80
  83. 83Jean Jaurès1859-1914 · 19th century · France · Politicians0.79
  84. 84Georges Perec1936-1982 · 20th century · France · Writers0.77
  85. 85Pierre de Bourdeille, seigneur de Brantôme1540-1614 · 16th century · France · Writers0.76
  86. 86Gustave Moreau1826-1898 · 19th century · France · Artists0.76
  87. 87Maine de Biran1766-1824 · 19th century · France · Politicians0.75
  88. 88Paul Ricœur1913-2005 · 20th century · France · Academics0.74
  89. 89Hergé1907-1983 · 20th century · Belgium · Writers0.72
  90. 90Fernand Braudel1902-1985 · 20th century · France · Writers0.71
  91. 91Pierre Loti1850-1923 · 19th century · France · Writers0.70
  92. 92Paul Biyaborn 1933 · 20th century · Cameroon · Politicians0.70
  93. 93Gustave Flaubert1821-1880 · 19th century · France · Writers0.69
  94. 94Raymond Queneau1903-1976 · 20th century · France · Writers0.69
  95. 95Jean Bodin1530-1596 · 16th century · France · Academics0.69
  96. 96Charles Marie René Leconte de Lisle1818-1894 · 19th century · France · Writers0.69
  97. 97Gilles Deleuze1925-1995 · 20th century · France · Academics0.68
  98. 98Francis II of France1544-1560 · 16th century · France · Politicians0.67
  99. 99Pierre Laval1883-1945 · 20th century · France · Politicians0.67
  100. 100Charles Baudelaire1821-1867 · 19th century · France · Writers0.67

Lived then

The most notable people whose working lives fell in the 1990s, ranked where coverage and readership agree.

  1. 1Michael Jackson1958-2009 · United States · Musicians5 decades
  2. 2Barack Obamaborn 1961 · United States · Politicians2 decades
  3. 3Steve Jobs1955-2011 · United States · Founders4 decades
  4. 4Pope Leo XIVborn 1955 · United States · Religious Figures0 decades
  5. 5Madonnaborn 1958 · United States · Musiciansnot measured-
  6. 6Osama bin Laden1957-2011 · Saudi Arabia · Historical Figures3 decades
  7. 7Diego Maradona1960-2020 · Argentina · Footballers4 decades
  8. 8Bill Gatesborn 1955 · United States · Founders4 decades
  9. 9Brad Pittborn 1963 · United States · Actors3 decades
  10. 10Nicolás Maduroborn 1962 · Venezuela · Politicians2 decades
  11. 11Michael Jordanborn 1963 · United States · Basketball Players4 decades
  12. 12Diana, Princess of Wales1961-1997 · United Kingdom · Historical Figures0 decades
  13. 13Kamala Harrisborn 1964 · United States · Politicians1 decades
  14. 14Johnny Deppborn 1963 · United States · Actors3 decades
  15. 15Tom Cruiseborn 1962 · United States · Actors4 decades
  16. 16Tom Hanksborn 1956 · United States · Actors4 decades
  17. 17Tupac Shakur1971-1996 · United States · Musicians3 decades
  18. 18Keanu Reevesborn 1964 · Canada · Actors3 decades
  19. 19Whitney Houston1963-2012 · United States · Musicians4 decades
  20. 20Keir Starmerborn 1962 · United Kingdom · Politicians0 decades
  21. 21Sandra Bullockborn 1964 · United States · Actors3 decades
  22. 22Jim Carreyborn 1962 · United States · Actors3 decades
  23. 23George Clooneyborn 1961 · United States · Actors3 decades
  24. 24Bruce Willisborn 1955 · United States · Actors4 decades
  25. 25Jeff Bezosborn 1964 · United States · Founders2 decades
Show 75 more

How to read these rankings

  • Attention, not reputation. A place on these lists reflects the attention a person still draws in the public record. 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.
  • Gaps are left as gaps. Where the record is too thin to be fair, we would rather show nothing than guess.