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
Robert Koch1843–1910 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Doctors14 decades - 2
Ignaz Semmelweis1818–1865 · Doctors6 decades - 3
L. L. Zamenhof1859–1917 · Doctorsnot measured— - 4
Paul Ehrlich1854–1915 · Doctors13 decades - 5
Rudolf Virchow1821–1902 · Doctors16 decades - 6
Cesare Lombroso1835–1909 · 🇮🇹 Italy · Doctors16 decades - 7
Jean-Martin Charcot1825–1893 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors4 decades - 8
Alois Alzheimer1864–1915 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Doctors3 decades - 9
Joseph Lister1827–1912 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors18 decades - 10
Elizabeth Blackwell1821–1910 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors17 decades - 11
H. H. Holmes1861–1896 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors2 decades - 12
John Snow1813–1858 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors21 decades - 13
Vladimir Bekhterev1857–1927 · Doctors5 decades - 14
Emil von Behring1854–1917 · Doctors11 decades - 15
William Osler1849–1919 · 🇨🇦 Canada · Doctors14 decades - 16
Doc Holliday1851–1887 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors8 decades - 17
Axel Munthe1857–1949 · 🇸🇪 Sweden · Doctors2 decades - 18
John Langdon Down1828–1896 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors0 decades - 19
Eugen Bleuler1857–1939 · 🇨🇭 Switzerland · Doctors10 decades - 20
Havelock Ellis1859–1939 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors14 decades - 21
John Harvey Kellogg1852–1943 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors5 decades - 22
René Laennec1781–1826 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors0 decades - 23
Camillo Golgi1843–1926 · 🇮🇹 Italy · Doctors15 decades - 24
Aletta Jacobs1854–1929 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Doctors0 decades - 25
William Walker1824–1860 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors20 decades - 26
Alexandre Yersin1863–1943 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors5 decades - 27
Ronald Ross1857–1932 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors13 decades - 28
James Barry1789–1865 · Doctors22 decades - 29
Theodor Schwann1810–1882 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Doctors16 decades - 30
Richard von Krafft-Ebing1840–1902 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Doctors4 decades - 31
Mary Edwards Walker1832–1919 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors0 decades - 32
Max Nordau1849–1923 · Doctors14 decades - 33
Elias Lönnrot1802–1884 · 🇸🇪 Sweden · Doctors0 decades - 34
Wong Fei-hung1847–1925 · 🇨🇳 China · Doctorsnot measured— - 35
Paul Broca1824–1880 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors15 decades - 36
Josef Breuer1842–1925 · Doctors12 decades - 37
Gerhard Armauer Hansen1841–1912 · 🇳🇴 Norway · Doctors0 decades - 38
Elizabeth Garrett Anderson1836–1917 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors7 decades - 39
James Curtis Hepburn1815–1911 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors0 decades - 40
Joseph Bell1837–1911 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors19 decades - 41
Leonard Wood1860–1927 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors13 decades - 42
William T. G. Morton1819–1868 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors2 decades - 43
Kadambini Ganguly1862–1923 · Doctors0 decades - 44
Kusumoto Ine1827–1903 · 🇯🇵 Japan · Doctorsnot measured— - 45
Charles Richet1850–1935 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors15 decades - 46
Aimé Bonpland1773–1858 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors13 decades - 47
Karl Theodor, Duke in Bavaria1839–1909 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Doctors3 decades - 48
Waldemar Haffkine1856–1930 · Doctors0 decades - 49
Theodor Billroth1829–1894 · Doctors17 decades - 50
Niels Ryberg Finsen1860–1904 · Doctors0 decades - 51
Xavier Bichat1771–1802 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors15 decades - 52
Joseph Babinski1857–1932 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors0 decades - 53
Georges Gilles de la Tourette1857–1904 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors0 decades - 54
Hudson Taylor1832–1905 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors14 decades - 55
Henry Gray1827–1861 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors19 decades - 56
Dominique Jean Larrey1766–1842 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors0 decades - 57
Paul Gachet1828–1909 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors5 decades - 58
Julius Wagner-Jauregg1857–1940 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Doctors2 decades - 59
Emil Theodor Kocher1841–1917 · 🇨🇭 Switzerland · Doctors12 decades - 60
Franz Oppenheimer1864–1943 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Doctors13 decades - 61
Robert Knox1791–1862 · Doctors22 decades - 62
William Stewart Halsted1852–1922 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctorsnot measured— - 63
Charles Bell1774–1842 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors22 decades - 64
José Gregorio Hernández1864–1919 · Doctorsnot measured— - 65
Anandi Gopal Joshi1865–1887 · Doctorsnot measured— - 66
Anna Kuliscioff1853–1925 · Doctors12 decades - 67
Albert Calmette1863–1933 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors11 decades - 68
Frederick Hopkins1861–1947 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors1 decades - 69
Carl Wernicke1848–1905 · Doctors3 decades
- 70
Charles Louis Alphonse Laveran1845–1922 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors4 decades - 71
Sergey Petrovich Botkin1832–1889 · Doctorsnot measured— - 72
Christiaan Eijkman1858–1930 · 🇳🇱 Netherlands · Doctors0 decades - 73
Carlos Juan Finlay1833–1915 · Doctors0 decades - 74
Thomas Hodgkin1798–1866 · Doctors18 decades - 75
Jean Marc Gaspard Itard1774–1838 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors7 decades - 76
Leon Pinsker1821–1891 · Doctors0 decades - 77
Eugène Dubois1858–1940 · Doctors10 decades - 78
Auguste Forel1848–1931 · 🇨🇭 Switzerland · Doctors11 decades - 79
Nikolay Sklifosovsky1836–1904 · Doctorsnot measured— - 80
Robert Liston1794–1847 · Doctorsnot measured— - 81
Rukhmabai1864–1955 · 🇮🇳 India · Doctors1 decades - 82
Paul Rée1849–1901 · Doctorsnot measured— - 83
James Young Simpson1811–1870 · Doctors2 decades - 84
J. Marion Sims1813–1883 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctorsnot measured— - 85
Ernst Heinrich Weber1795–1878 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Doctors15 decades - 86
Paul Langerhans1847–1888 · Doctors2 decades - 87
Thomas Addison1793–1860 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors12 decades - 88
Charles Eastman1858–1939 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctorsnot measured— - 89
Guillaume Dupuytren1777–1835 · 🇫🇷 France · Doctors1 decades - 90
Nikolay Gamaleya1859–1949 · Doctors2 decades - 91
Carl von Rokitansky1804–1878 · Doctors1 decades - 92
Emil du Bois-Reymond1818–1896 · Doctors16 decades - 93
Sir William Gull, 1st Baronet1816–1890 · Doctorsnot measured— - 94
Christian Bohr1855–1911 · Doctors0 decades - 95
Hawley Harvey Crippen1862–1910 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctorsnot measured— - 96
Prince Ludwig Ferdinand of Bavaria1859–1949 · 🇪🇸 Spain · Doctorsnot measured— - 97
Robert Darwin1766–1848 · Doctorsnot measured— - 98
James Braid1795–1860 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Doctors7 decades - 99
George Huntington1850–1916 · 🇺🇸 United States · Doctors9 decades - 100
Cecilia Grierson1859–1934 · 🇦🇷 Argentina · Doctorsnot 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.