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 Chinese books during the 19th century — whenever they lived.
In books written inEnglish18,114German3,599French3,347Italian1,787Spanish1,162Russian325Hebrew105Chinese9
#PersonIn print, 1800–2019Per million words
- 1
Zhu Xi1130–1200 · 12th century · 🇨🇳 China · Writers870 - 2
Li Hongzhang1823–1901 · 19th century · 🇨🇳 China · Politicians149 - 3
Zhang Zhidong1837–1909 · 19th century · Politicians86 - 4
Zuo Zongtang1812–1885 · 19th century · 🇨🇳 China · Politicians43 - 5
Ban Gu32–92 · 1st century · Writers40 - 6
Ge Hong284–364 · 4th century · Academics40 - 7CSChen Shou233–297 · 3rd century · Writers14
- 8
Mao Zedong1893–1976 · 20th century · 🇨🇳 China · Politicians12 - 9
Lu Xun1881–1936 · 20th century · 🇨🇳 China · Writers11
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
Mary Cassatt1844–1926 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists12 decades - 2
John Singer Sargent1856–1925 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists11 decades - 3
James Abbott McNeill Whistler1834–1903 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists12 decades - 4
John James Audubon1785–1851 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists19 decades - 5
Alfred Stieglitz1864–1946 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists13 decades - 6
Thomas Cole1801–1848 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists22 decades - 7
Winslow Homer1836–1910 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists15 decades - 8
Frederic Edwin Church1826–1900 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists3 decades - 9
Albert Bierstadt1830–1902 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists6 decades - 10
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Grandma Moses1860–1961 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists8 decades - 11
Thomas Eakins1844–1916 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists12 decades - 12
Thomas Nast1840–1902 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists16 decades - 13
Mathew Benjamin Brady1822–1896 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 14
Jacob Riis1849–1914 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists13 decades - 15
George Catlin1796–1872 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists18 decades - 16
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Edmonia Lewis1844–1907 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists1 decades - 17
Frederic Remington1861–1909 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists13 decades - 18
Howard Pyle1853–1911 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists14 decades - 19
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Robert Cornelius1809–1893 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists2 decades - 20
Childe Hassam1859–1935 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists13 decades - 21
Daniel Chester French1850–1931 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists12 decades - 22
Emanuel Leutze1816–1868 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists0 decades - 23
Charles Marion Russell1864–1926 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 24
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Edwin Austin Abbey1852–1911 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists2 decades - 25
Sarah Goodridge1788–1853 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists0 decades - 26
Henry Ossawa Tanner1859–1937 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 27
Augustus Saint-Gaudens1848–1907 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 28
George Inness1825–1894 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists14 decades - 29
William Merritt Chase1849–1916 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists6 decades - 30
Cassius Marcellus Coolidge1844–1934 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 31
Albert Pinkham Ryder1847–1917 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 32
Asher Brown Durand1796–1886 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists0 decades - 33
Francis Davis Millet1848–1912 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 34
Cecilia Beaux1855–1942 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists5 decades - 35
Gertrude Käsebier1852–1934 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists0 decades - 36
Rembrandt Peale1778–1860 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 37
George Caleb Bingham1811–1879 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists7 decades - 38
John La Farge1835–1910 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists15 decades - 39
Edward Hicks1780–1849 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 40
Richard F. Outcault1863–1928 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists0 decades - 41
Martin Johnson Heade1819–1904 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 42
John Frederick Kensett1816–1872 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists0 decades - 43
Elizabeth Jane Gardner1837–1922 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 44
Rain-in-the-Face1835–1905 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 45
Jessie Willcox Smith1863–1935 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 46
Anna Elizabeth Klumpke1856–1942 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 47
Alexander Gardner1821–1882 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 48
Lilla Cabot Perry1848–1933 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists0 decades - 49
Frank Weston Benson1862–1951 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 50
Washington Allston1779–1843 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists20 decades - 51
Thomas Sully1783–1872 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 52
Carl Akeley1864–1926 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 53
Harriet Hosmer1830–1908 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 54
Abbott Handerson Thayer1849–1921 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 55
Jean Leon Gerome Ferris1863–1930 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 56
Eastman Johnson1824–1906 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 57
Arthur Wesley Dow1857–1922 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 58
Jasper Francis Cropsey1823–1900 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 59
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Robert Seldon Duncanson1821–1872 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 60
Frederick Arthur Bridgman1847–1928 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 61
Sanford Robinson Gifford1823–1880 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 62
George Peter Alexander Healy1813–1894 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 63
Maurice Prendergast1858–1924 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 64
John Henry Twachtman1853–1902 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 65
Edwin Lord Weeks1849–1903 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 66
Theodore Robinson1852–1896 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 67
Willard Metcalf1858–1925 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 68
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Edward Mitchell Bannister1828–1901 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 69
Edward Henry Potthast1857–1927 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 70
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Abigail May Alcott Nieriker1840–1879 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 71
William Morris Hunt1824–1879 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 72
Ralph Albert Blakelock1847–1919 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 73
Elihu Vedder1836–1923 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 74
Colin Campbell Cooper1856–1937 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 75
Harriet Powers1837–1910 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 76
William Henry Jackson1843–1942 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 77
Frank M. Chapman1864–1945 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artists9 decades - 78
Elisabet Ney1833–1907 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 79
Samuel Colman1832–1920 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 80
Samuel Wendell Williston1851–1918 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 81
Kenyon Cox1856–1919 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 82
Albert Henry Munsell1858–1918 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 83
Thomas Dewing1851–1938 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 84
Hiram Powers1805–1873 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 85
J. Alden Weir1852–1919 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 86
Cyrus Edwin Dallin1861–1944 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 87
Edmund Charles Tarbell1862–1938 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 88
William Wetmore Story1819–1895 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 89
John Vanderlyn1775–1852 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 90
F. Holland Day1864–1933 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 91
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Lorado Taft1860–1936 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 92
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Emma Stebbins1815–1882 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 93
John White Alexander1856–1915 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 94
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Thomas Crawford1814–1857 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 95
Eliza Ruhamah Scidmore1856–1928 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 96
Charles Robert Leslie1794–1859 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 97
Thomas Pollock Anshutz1851–1912 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 98
George Brant Bridgman1864–1943 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 99
Charles Bird King1785–1862 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot measured— - 100
James B. Longacre1794–1869 · 🇺🇸 United States · Artistsnot 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.