Claim profile
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
  1. 1Zhu XiZhu Xi1130–1200 · 12th century · 🇨🇳 China · Writers870
  2. 2Li HongzhangLi Hongzhang1823–1901 · 19th century · 🇨🇳 China · Politicians149
  3. 3Zhang ZhidongZhang Zhidong1837–1909 · 19th century · Politicians86
  4. 4Zuo ZongtangZuo Zongtang1812–1885 · 19th century · 🇨🇳 China · Politicians43
  5. 5Ban GuBan Gu32–92 · 1st century · Writers40
  6. 6Ge HongGe Hong284–364 · 4th century · Academics40
  7. 7CSChen Shou233–297 · 3rd century · Writers14
  8. 8Mao ZedongMao Zedong1893–1976 · 20th century · 🇨🇳 China · Politicians12
  9. 9Lu XunLu 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.

CountryAll🇺🇸 United States🇫🇷 France🇩🇪 Germany🇬🇧 United Kingdom🇮🇹 Italy🇪🇸 Spain🇯🇵 Japan🇦🇹 Austria🇹🇷 Turkey🇸🇪 Sweden
FieldAllPoliticiansWritersHistorical FiguresScientistsAcademicsArtistsMusiciansDoctorsFoundersJournalists
  1. 1Karl MarxKarl Marx1818–1883 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics17 decades
  2. 2Friedrich NietzscheFriedrich Nietzsche1844–1900 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics15 decades
  3. 3Arthur SchopenhauerArthur Schopenhauer1788–1860 · Academics20 decades
  4. 4Georg Wilhelm Friedrich HegelGeorg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel1770–1831 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics21 decades
  5. 5Carl Friedrich GaussCarl Friedrich Gauss1777–1855 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics11 decades
  6. 6Ada LovelaceAda Lovelace1815–1852 · Academics3 decades
  7. 7Max WeberMax Weber1864–1920 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics15 decades
  8. 8Friedrich EngelsFriedrich Engels1820–1895 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics17 decades
  9. 9Søren KierkegaardSøren Kierkegaard1813–1855 · Academics3 decades
  10. 10Henri BergsonHenri Bergson1859–1941 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics12 decades
  11. 11Émile DurkheimÉmile Durkheim1858–1917 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics11 decades
  12. 12Thérèse of LisieuxThérèse of Lisieux1873–1897 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics10 decades
  13. 13David HilbertDavid Hilbert1862–1943 · Academics14 decades
  14. 14John Stuart MillJohn Stuart Mill1806–1873 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics18 decades
  15. 15Henri PoincaréHenri Poincaré1854–1912 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics13 decades
  16. 16Ralph Waldo EmersonRalph Waldo Emerson1803–1882 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics19 decades
  17. 17Andrew CarnegieAndrew Carnegie1835–1919 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics14 decades
  18. 18Sofia KovalevskayaSofia Kovalevskaya1850–1891 · 🇸🇪 Sweden · Academics14 decades
  19. 19Auguste ComteAuguste Comte1798–1857 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics22 decades
  20. 20Jean-François ChampollionJean-François Champollion1790–1832 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics6 decades
  21. 21Nikolai LobachevskyNikolai Lobachevsky1792–1856 · Academics9 decades
  22. 22Ludwig FeuerbachLudwig Feuerbach1804–1872 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics19 decades
  23. 23Évariste GaloisÉvariste Galois1811–1832 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics6 decades
  24. 24John DeweyJohn Dewey1859–1952 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics14 decades
  25. 25Theodor MommsenTheodor Mommsen1817–1903 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics18 decades
  26. 26Edmund HusserlEdmund Husserl1859–1938 · Academics12 decades
  27. 27Charles BabbageCharles Babbage1791–1871 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics20 decades
  28. 28Wilhelm von HumboldtWilhelm von Humboldt1767–1835 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics22 decades
  29. 29Vladimir VernadskyVladimir Vernadsky1863–1945 · Academics8 decades
  30. 30William JamesWilliam James1842–1910 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics18 decades
  31. 31Joseph FourierJoseph Fourier1768–1830 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics11 decades
  32. 32Ferdinand de SaussureFerdinand de Saussure1857–1913 · 🇨🇭 Switzerland · Academics12 decades
  33. 33Thomas Robert MalthusThomas Robert Malthus1766–1834 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics8 decades
  34. 34Georg CantorGeorg Cantor1845–1918 · Academics14 decades
  35. 35Bernhard RiemannBernhard Riemann1826–1866 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics12 decades
  36. 36Vissarion BelinskyVissarion Belinsky1811–1848 · Academics15 decades
  37. 37Ernest RenanErnest Renan1823–1892 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics17 decades
  38. 38Swami VivekanandaSwami Vivekananda1863–1902 · 🇮🇳 India · Academics13 decades
  39. 39Georgi PlekhanovGeorgi Plekhanov1856–1918 · Academics11 decades
  40. 40Max StirnerMax Stirner1806–1856 · Academics18 decades
  41. 41Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph SchellingFriedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling1775–1854 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics9 decades
  42. 42Herbert SpencerHerbert Spencer1820–1903 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics17 decades
  43. 43Jacob GrimmJacob Grimm1785–1863 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics21 decades
  44. 44David RicardoDavid Ricardo1772–1823 · Academics21 decades
  45. 45Heinrich SchliemannHeinrich Schliemann1822–1890 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics15 decades
  46. 46Vladimir DalVladimir Dal1801–1872 · Academics10 decades
  47. 47Gustave Le BonGustave Le Bon1841–1931 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics15 decades
  48. 48Gottlob FregeGottlob Frege1848–1925 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics9 decades
  49. 49Sophie GermainSophie Germain1776–1831 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics18 decades
  50. 50Vladimir SolovyovVladimir Solovyov1853–1900 · Academics14 decades
  51. 51Vilfredo ParetoVilfredo Pareto1848–1923 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics13 decades
  52. 52Charles FourierCharles Fourier1772–1837 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics19 decades
  53. 53Alfred North WhiteheadAlfred North Whitehead1861–1947 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics10 decades
  54. 54RamakrishnaRamakrishna1836–1886 · 🇮🇳 India · Academics14 decades
  55. 55George BooleGeorge Boole1855–1864 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics9 decades
  56. 56Brigham YoungBrigham Young1801–1877 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics19 decades
  57. 57Wilhelm WundtWilhelm Wundt1832–1920 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics15 decades
  58. 58Georg SimmelGeorg Simmel1858–1918 · Academics13 decades
  59. 59George SantayanaGeorge Santayana1863–1952 · 🇪🇸 Spain · Academics9 decades
  60. 60Charles Sanders PeirceCharles Sanders Peirce1839–1914 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics9 decades
  61. 61François AragoFrançois Arago1786–1853 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics18 decades
  62. 62Augustin-Louis CauchyAugustin-Louis Cauchy1789–1857 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics0 decades
  63. 63John HerschelJohn Herschel1792–1871 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics0 decades
  64. 64Niels Henrik AbelNiels Henrik Abel1802–1829 · 🇳🇴 Norway · Academics1 decades
  65. 65Francis GaltonFrancis Galton1822–1911 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics17 decades
  66. 66Jane AddamsJane Addams1860–1935 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics14 decades
  67. 67Friedrich SchleiermacherFriedrich Schleiermacher1768–1834 · Academics21 decades
  68. 68Karl WeierstrassKarl Weierstrass1815–1897 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics8 decades
  69. 69Frédéric BastiatFrédéric Bastiat1801–1850 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics18 decades
  70. 70Hermann MinkowskiHermann Minkowski1864–1909 · Academics9 decades
  71. 71Allan KardecAllan Kardec1804–1869 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics16 decades
  72. 72Peter Gustav Lejeune DirichletPeter Gustav Lejeune Dirichlet1805–1859 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics0 decades
  73. 73Louis Auguste BlanquiLouis Auguste Blanqui1805–1881 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics19 decades
  74. 74William Rowan HamiltonWilliam Rowan Hamilton1805–1865 · Academics16 decades
  75. 75Franz BoasFranz Boas1858–1942 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics14 decades
  76. 76Carl Gustav Jacob JacobiCarl Gustav Jacob Jacobi1804–1851 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics1 decades
  77. 77Felix KleinFelix Klein1849–1925 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics15 decades
  78. 78Max MüllerMax Müller1823–1900 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics5 decades
  79. 79Andrey MarkovAndrey Markov1856–1922 · Academics6 decades
  80. 80Georges SorelGeorges Sorel1847–1922 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics12 decades
  81. 81Thorstein VeblenThorstein Veblen1857–1929 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics11 decades
  82. 82Pafnuty ChebyshevPafnuty Chebyshev1821–1894 · Academics4 decades
  83. 83Eliezer Ben-YehudaEliezer Ben-Yehuda1858–1922 · Academicsnot measured—
  84. 84Mirza Ghulam AhmadMirza Ghulam Ahmad1835–1908 · 🇮🇳 India · Academics4 decades
  85. 85Houston Stewart ChamberlainHouston Stewart Chamberlain1855–1927 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics13 decades
  86. 86Alfred MarshallAlfred Marshall1842–1924 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics16 decades
  87. 87Jamāl al-Dīn al-AfghānīJamāl al-Dīn al-Afghānī1838–1897 · Academicsnot measured—
  88. 88Henri FayolHenri Fayol1841–1925 · 🇫🇷 France · Academics11 decades
  89. 89James George FrazerJames George Frazer1854–1941 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics8 decades
  90. 90Muhammad AbduhMuhammad Abduh1849–1905 · 🇹🇷 Turkey · Academics5 decades
  91. 91Henry GeorgeHenry George1839–1897 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics19 decades
  92. 92August Heinrich Hoffmann von FallerslebenAugust Heinrich Hoffmann von Fallersleben1798–1874 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics6 decades
  93. 93Oliver Wendell HolmesOliver Wendell Holmes1841–1935 · 🇺🇸 United States · Academics18 decades
  94. 94Karl PearsonKarl Pearson1857–1936 · 🇬🇧 United Kingdom · Academics14 decades
  95. 95`Abdu'l-Bahá`Abdu'l-Bahá1844–1921 · Academics0 decades
  96. 96Kitasato ShibasaburōKitasato Shibasaburō1853–1931 · 🇯🇵 Japan · Academics0 decades
  97. 97Carl MengerCarl Menger1840–1921 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Academics14 decades
  98. 98Christian DopplerChristian Doppler1803–1853 · 🇦🇹 Austria · Academics8 decades
  99. 99Emil KraepelinEmil Kraepelin1856–1926 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics14 decades
  100. 100Bruno BauerBruno Bauer1809–1882 · 🇩🇪 Germany · Academics19 decades

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.