1800–1899
The 19th century
Whose names filled the books of the 19th century — 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 Russian books during the 19th century — whenever they lived.
In books written inEnglish18,114German3,599French3,347Italian1,787Spanish1,162Russian325Hebrew105Chinese9
#PersonIn print, 1800–2019Per million words
- 1
Patriarch Nikon of Moscow1605–1681 · 17th century · Religious Figures6.7 - 2
Macarius, Metropolitan of Moscow1482–1563 · 16th century · Writers3.1 - 3
Nikolai Rezanov1764–1807 · 18th century · Historical Figures1.3 - 4
Boris Godunov1552–1605 · 16th century · Politicians0.99 - 5
Grand Duke Nicholas Mikhailovich of Russia1859–1919 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.94 - 6
Patriarch Joachim1621–1690 · 17th century0.86 - 7
Vasili IV of Russia1552–1612 · 16th century · Historical Figures0.86 - 8
Nikolay Karamzin1766–1826 · 19th century · Writers0.85 - 9
Nicholas Alexandrovich, Tsesarevich of Russia1843–1865 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.83 - 10
Anna of Russia1693–1740 · 18th century · Politicians0.82 - 11
Nikolay Semyonov1896–1986 · 20th century · Scientists0.75 - 12
Ivan I of Tver1357–1425 · 14th century · Historical Figures0.66 - 13
Avraamy Palitsyn1550–1626 · 16th century · Writers0.64 - 14
Ivan I Aleksandrovich, Prince of Smolenskdied 1359 · 14th century0.62 - 15
Grand Duke Konstantin Pavlovich of Russia1779–1831 · 19th century · Politicians0.62 - 16
Elizabeth of Russia1709–1761 · 18th century · Historical Figures0.58 - 17
Alexandra Velyaminova1301–1364 · 14th century0.57 - 18
Peter the Great1672–1725 · 18th century · Politicians0.53 - 19
Maximus the Greek1475–1556 · 16th century · Writers0.53 - 20
Grand Duchess Alexandra Pavlovna of Russia1783–1801 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.43 - 21
Grand Duke Peter Nikolaevich of Russia1864–1931 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.42 - 22
Grand Duke Michael Nikolaevich of Russia1832–1909 · 19th century · Politicians0.42 - 23
Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia1895–1918 · 20th century · Historical Figures0.39 - 24
Grand Duke Konstantin Nikolayevich of Russia1827–1892 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.39 - 25
Grigory Orlov1734–1783 · 18th century · Historical Figures0.38 - 26
Alexander I of Russia1777–1825 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.36 - 27
Leo Tolstoy1828–1910 · 19th century · Writers0.35 - 28
Alexander Bestuzhev1797–1837 · 19th century · Writers0.34 - 29
Ivan the Terrible1530–1584 · 16th century · Politicians0.33 - 30
Pyotr Panin1721–1789 · 18th century0.33 - 31
Ippolit Bogdanovich1743–1803 · 18th century · Writers0.33 - 32
Peter III of Russia1728–1762 · 18th century · 🇩🇪 Germany · Historical Figures0.31
- 33
Stefan Yavorsky1658–1722 · 17th century · Academics0.30 - 34
Grigory Potemkin1739–1791 · 18th century · Politicians0.30 - 35
Boris of Tver1400–1461 · 15th century0.29 - 36
Ivan Mazepa1639–1709 · 17th century · Politicians0.29 - 37
Grand Duchess Maria Nikolaevna of Russia1899–1918 · 20th century · Historical Figures0.29 - 38
Grand Duke Alexei Alexandrovich of Russia1850–1908 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.29 - 39
Vasily Vasilyevich Golitsyn1643–1714 · 17th century · Politicians0.28 - 40
Paul I of Russia1754–1801 · 18th century · Historical Figures0.28 - 41
Grand Duke Paul Alexandrovich of Russia1860–1919 · 19th century · Politicians0.28 - 42
Ivan Ivanovich Shuvalov1727–1797 · 18th century · Writers0.28 - 43
Alexei Petrovich, Tsarevich of Russia1690–1718 · 18th century · Politicians0.27 - 44
Nicholas I of Russia1796–1855 · 19th century · Models0.26 - 45
Alexander Pushkin1799–1837 · 19th century · Writers0.26 - 46
Dimitry of Rostov1651–1709 · 17th century · Writers0.26 - 47
Alexander Griboyedov1795–1829 · 19th century · Politicians0.25 - 48
Alexander Herzen1812–1870 · 19th century · 🇨🇭 Switzerland · Writers0.24 - 49
Vissarion Belinsky1811–1848 · 19th century · Academics0.23 - 50
Konstantin Aksakov1817–1860 · 19th century · Writers0.23 - 51
Nikita Panin1718–1783 · 18th century · Politicians0.22
- 52
Symeon of Polotsk1629–1680 · 17th century · Writers0.21 - 53
Aleksei Musin-Pushkin1744–1817 · 18th century · Writers0.21 - 54
Alexis of Russia1629–1676 · 17th century · Historical Figures0.21 - 55
Xenia Shestova1560–1631 · 16th century0.20 - 56
Mikhail Lermontov1814–1841 · 19th century · Writers0.19 - 57
Olga Nikolaevna of Russia1822–1892 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.19 - 58
Pavel Fedotov1815–1852 · 19th century · Artists0.19 - 59
Grand Duke Konstantin Konstantinovich of Russia1858–1915 · 19th century · Writers0.19 - 60
Dmitry Shuisky1560–1612 · 16th century0.19 - 61
Nikolay Alexandrovich Lvov1753–1803 · 18th century · Academics0.18 - 62
Alexey Venetsianov1780–1847 · 19th century · Artists0.18 - 63
Catherine Pavlovna of Russia1788–1819 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.18 - 64
Fyodor Alekseyev1755–1824 · 18th century · Artists0.18 - 65
Grand Duchess Alexandra Nikolaevna of Russia1825–1844 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.17 - 66
Konstantin Batyushkov1787–1855 · 19th century · Writers0.15 - 67
Mykhailo Maksymovych1804–1873 · 19th century · Writers0.15 - 68
Nicholas Repnin1734–1801 · 18th century · Writers0.15 - 69
Kirill Razumovsky1728–1803 · 18th century · Politicians0.14 - 70
Natalya Alexeevna of Russia1673–1716 · 18th century · Writers0.14 - 71
Grand Duchess Natalya Alexeyevna of Russia1714–1728 · 18th century0.14 - 72
Nikolai Leskov1831–1895 · 19th century · Writers0.13 - 73
Aleksei Fedorovich Adashev1510–1561 · 16th century · Politicians0.13 - 74
Alexander Shishkov1754–1841 · 18th century · Writers0.13 - 75
Joseph Volotsky1440–1515 · 15th century · Writers0.12 - 76
Alexander Menshikov1673–1729 · 18th century · Politicians0.12 - 77
Nikolay Dobrolyubov1836–1861 · 19th century · Academics0.11 - 78
Ivan the Young1458–1490 · 15th century · Historical Figures0.11 - 79
Konstantin of Uglich1389–1434 · 15th century0.11 - 80
Dmitry Pozharsky1577–1642 · 17th century · Politicians0.11 - 81
Gleb Uspensky1843–1902 · 19th century · Writers0.10
- 82
Pyotr Andreyevich Tolstoy1645–1729 · 17th century · Writers0.10 - 83
Alexander Suvorov1730–1800 · 18th century0.10
- 84
Grand Duke George Alexandrovich of Russia1871–1899 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.10 - 85
Alexander Ivanov1806–1858 · 19th century · Artists0.10 - 86
Ivan Krylov1769–1844 · 19th century · Writers0.09 - 87
Ivan Dmitriev1760–1837 · 18th century · Writers0.09 - 88
Alexander Sergeyevich Menshikov1787–1869 · 19th century · Politicians0.09 - 89
Mikhail of Tver1271–1318 · 14th century · Politicians0.08 - 90
Peter Ivanovich Shuvalov1711–1762 · 18th century · Politicians0.08 - 91
Maxim Gorky1868–1936 · 20th century · Writers0.08 - 92
Vladimir Odoevsky1803–1869 · 19th century · Writers0.08 - 93
Oleg I of Chernigov1052–1115 · 11th century · Historical Figures0.08 - 94
Mikhail Vorontsov1782–1856 · 19th century · Politicians0.08 - 95
Faddey Bulgarin1789–1859 · 19th century · Writers0.08 - 96
Tikhon of Zadonsk1724–1783 · 18th century · Religious Figures0.08
- 97
Konstantin of Rostov1185–1218 · 13th century · Politicians0.08 - 98
Peter II of Russia1715–1730 · 18th century · Politicians0.08 - 99
Kirill II of Kyiv1250–1280 · 13th century0.08 - 100
Alexander II of Russia1818–1881 · 19th century · Historical Figures0.08
Lived then
The most notable people whose working lives fell in the 19th century, ranked where Wikipedia coverage and readership agree.
#PersonIn print, 1800–2019Echoed
- 1
Nellie Bly1864–1922 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists13 decades - 2
Ambrose Bierce1842–1914 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists13 decades - 3
Ida B. Wells1862–1931 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists6 decades - 4
Henry Adams1838–1918 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists19 decades - 5
William Lloyd Garrison1805–1879 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists19 decades - 6
Carrie Chapman Catt1859–1947 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists12 decades - 7
Frederick Law Olmsted1822–1903 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists16 decades - 8
Soh Jaipil1864–1951 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 9
Melvil Dewey1851–1931 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists15 decades - 10
Ida Tarbell1857–1944 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists12 decades - 11
Lucy Stone1818–1893 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists17 decades - 12
Charles Dow1851–1902 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists0 decades - 13
Lucy Parsons1851–1942 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists2 decades - 14
Benjamin Tucker1854–1939 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists3 decades - 15
Matilda Joslyn Gage1826–1898 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists5 decades - 16
Amelia Bloomer1818–1894 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists6 decades - 17
Joel Chandler Harris1848–1908 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists14 decades - 18
Simon Bolivar Buckner1823–1914 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists1 decades - 19
Daniel De Leon1852–1914 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists8 decades - 20
August Vincent Theodore Spies1855–1887 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 21
Rufus Wilmot Griswold1815–1857 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists0 decades - 22
Helen Churchill Candee1858–1949 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 23
Gideon Welles1802–1878 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 24
Albert Parsons1848–1887 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 25
Helen Hunt Jackson1830–1885 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists14 decades - 26
Henry Jarvis Raymond1820–1869 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 27
Adolph Ochs1858–1935 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 28
Bat Masterson1853–1921 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 29
Lysander Spooner1808–1887 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists2 decades - 30
James Gordon Bennett Jr.1841–1918 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 31
Frances Benjamin Johnston1864–1952 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 32
Nathaniel Parker Willis1806–1867 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 33
Mary Ann Shadd1823–1893 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 34
Charles Godfrey Leland1824–1903 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 35
Francis Preston Blair1791–1876 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 36
Richard Harding Davis1864–1916 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 37
Andrew Jackson Downing1815–1852 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 38
Elijah Parish Lovejoy1802–1837 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 39
James Gordon Bennett Sr.1795–1872 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 40
John L. O'Sullivan1813–1895 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 41
Alice Stone Blackwell1857–1950 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalists7 decades - 42
Joseph Weydemeyer1818–1866 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 43
Gustav Struve1805–1870 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 44
Mary Livermore1820–1905 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 45
Lorrin A. Thurston1858–1931 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 46
Charles Sealsfield1793–1864 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 47
Ellen Browning Scripps1836–1932 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 48
Mordecai Manuel Noah1785–1851 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 49
Josephine St. Pierre Ruffin1842–1924 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 50
Edward Bok1863–1930 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 51
Charles Warren Stoddard1843–1909 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 52
Rebecca Harding Davis1831–1910 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 53
Patrick Edward Connor1820–1891 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 54
Julian Hawthorne1846–1934 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 55
Elizabeth Bacon Custer1842–1933 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 56
Ainsworth Rand Spofford1825–1908 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 57
Fanny Fern1811–1872 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 58
Dorothy Dix1861–1951 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 59
James Gibbons Huneker1857–1921 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 60
Elliott Fitch Shepard1833–1893 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured—
- 61
Mathilde Franziska Anneke1817–1884 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 62
Arthur Brisbane1864–1936 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 63
Thurlow Weed1797–1882 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 64
Oscar Dunn1820–1871 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 65
Januarius MacGahan1844–1878 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 66
Oscar Neebe1850–1916 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 67
Francis Pharcellus Church1839–1906 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 68
Pauline Hopkins1859–1930 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 69
Robert Underwood Johnson1853–1937 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 70
George Henry Mackenzie1837–1891 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 71
James Thomas Fields1817–1881 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 72
Mary Louise Booth1831–1889 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 73
Ida Husted Harper1851–1931 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 74FAFrederick Aiken1832–1878 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured—
- 75
Edgar Wilson Nye1850–1896 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 76
Robert Sterling Yard1861–1945 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 77
George Lippard1822–1854 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 78
James Ryder Randall1839–1908 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 79
Charles Johnson Maynard1845–1929 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 80
John Russell Young1840–1899 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 81
Jane Cunningham Croly1829–1901 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured—
- 82
Mark Kellogg1831–1876 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 83
Richard Hildreth1807–1865 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 84
Kate Austin1864–1902 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 85
Helen Pitts Douglass1838–1903 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 86
George William Foote1850–1915 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 87
William S. Fulton1795–1844 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 88
Harold Frederic1856–1898 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 89
Clara Bewick Colby1846–1916 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 90
Ban Johnson1863–1931 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 91
Irving Bacheller1859–1950 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 92
Samuel Cornish1795–1858 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 93
Augustus Baldwin Longstreet1790–1870 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 94
Marian de Forest1864–1935 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 95
Frank Arthur Vanderlip1864–1937 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 96
George Pope Morris1802–1864 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 97
Franklin Benjamin Sanborn1831–1917 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 98
Stilson Hutchins1838–1912 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 99
Willard Richards1804–1854 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot measured— - 100
Poultney Bigelow1855–1954 · 🇺🇸 United States · Journalistsnot 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.