← Fame through time1800-1899
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 English books during the 19th century, whenever they lived.
- 1
Jesus94 - 2
Homer15 - 3
Cicero13 - 4
Augustus13 - 5
Plato10 - 6
Virgil9.6 - 7
Aristotle9.4 - 8
Socrates6.4 - 9
Herodotus6.2 - 10
Plutarch5.6 - 11
Ovid4.2 - 12
Strabo4.1 - 13
Charlemagne3.9 - 14
Demosthenes3.8 - 15
Lord Byron3.6 - 16
Livy3.4 - 17
Origen3.1 - 18
Cleopatra3.0 - 19
Xenophon3.0 - 20
Walter Scott3.0 - 21
Tertullian2.7 - 22
James II, Count of Urgell2.6 - 23
Robert Peel2.6 - 24
Henry VII, Holy Roman Emperor2.6 - 25
Pericles2.5
Lived then
The most notable people whose working lives fell in the 19th century, ranked where coverage and readership agree.
- 1
Otto von Bismarck16 decades - 2
Paul von Hindenburg10 decades - 3
Frederick III, German Emperornot measured- - 4
Klemens von Metternich0 decades - 5
Pyotr Stolypin6 decades - 6
Karl Kautsky13 decades - 7
August Bebel14 decades - 8
Erich von Falkenhayn6 decades - 9
Georgy Lvov2 decades - 10
Eduard Bernstein13 decades - 11
Maximilian II of Bavaria0 decades - 12
Bernhard von Bülow12 decades - 13
Caroline of Brunswick16 decades - 14
Princess Sophie of Bavarianot measured- - 15
Leo von Caprivi5 decades - 16
Wilhelm Marx10 decades - 17
Jenny von Westphalen9 decades - 18
Alfred von Tirpitz8 decades - 19
Otto of Bavarianot measured- - 20
Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg6 decades - 21
Chlodwig, 3rd Prince of Hohenlohe-Schillingsfürst10 decades - 22
Georg von Hertling11 decades - 23
Georg Michaelis11 decades - 24
Elisabeth Förster-Nietzsche12 decades - 25
Elisabeth Ludovika of Bavaria0 decades - 26
Prince George, Duke of Cambridge0 decades - 27
Gustav Ritter von Kahr5 decades - 28
Constantin Fehrenbach0 decades - 29
Prince Wilhelm Karl, Duke of Urachnot measured- - 30
Karl I of Württembergnot measured- - 31
Prince Leopold of Bavaria15 decades - 32
Princess Louise of Prussia18 decades - 33
Prince Henry of Prussianot measured- - 34
Lothar von Trotha2 decades - 35
Friedrich Naumann16 decades - 36
Princess Wilhelmine of Baden0 decades - 37
Arthur Zimmermann4 decades - 38
Hans Delbrück14 decades - 39
Hugo Haase11 decades - 40
Princess Adelgunde of Bavarianot measured- - 41
Friedrich Ferdinand, Duke of Schleswig-Holsteinnot measured- - 42
Prince Wilhelm, Prince of Hohenzollernnot measured- - 43
Hans Hartwig von Beseler0 decades - 44
Philip, Prince of Eulenburgnot measured- - 45
Duke Maximilian Emanuel in Bavarianot measured- - 46
Duke Ludwig Wilhelm in Bavarianot measured- - 47
Hugo Preuß12 decades - 48
Friedrich Theodor Vischer14 decades - 49
Ernst II, Prince of Hohenlohe-Langenburgnot measured- - 50
Princess Marie of Hesse and by Rhinenot measured- - 51
Adolf Bertramnot measured- - 52
Oskar von Millernot measured- - 53
Princess Marie of Schwarzburg-Rudolstadtnot measured- - 54
Helene Langenot measured- - 55
Max von Hausennot measured- - 56
Karl von Einemnot measured- - 57
Maximilian Maria, 7th Prince of Thurn and Taxisnot measured- - 58
Hermann von Steinnot measured- - 59
Henning von Holtzendorffnot measured- - 60
Eugen von Knillingnot measured- - 61
Josias von Heeringennot measured- - 62
Friedrich Julius Stahlnot measured- - 63
Karl Litzmannnot measured- - 64
Kuno von Westarpnot measured- - 65
Princess Pauline of Waldeck and Pyrmontnot measured- - 66
Remus von Woyrschnot measured- - 67
Fritz Bronsart von Schellendorfnot measured- - 68
Otto Theodor von Manteuffelnot measured- - 69
Georg Ludwig von Maurernot measured- - 70
Theodor Leutweinnot measured- - 71
Carl Legiennot measured- - 72
Antoni Wilhelm Radziwiłłnot measured- - 73
Theodor Fritschnot measured- - 74
Arthur von Posadowsky-Wehnernot measured- - 75
Eduard Davidnot measured- - 76
Emil Eichhornnot measured- - 77
Charles, 6th Prince of Löwenstein-Wertheim-Rosenbergnot measured- - 78
Eduard von Capellenot measured- - 79
Adolf Wild von Hohenbornnot measured- - 80
Karl Nobilingnot measured- - 81
Theodor Lewaldnot measured- - 82
Georg Ledebournot measured- - 83
Princess Caroline Amalie of Hesse-Homburgnot measured- - 84
Friedrich Rosennot measured- - 85
Simon Bambergernot measured- - 86
Felix von Hartmannnot measured- - 87
Friedrich von Payernot measured- - 88
Clemens von Delbrücknot measured- - 89
Victor II, Duke of Ratibornot measured- - 90
Moses Alexandernot measured- - 91
Wilhelm Blosnot measured- - 92
Hans Carl Adolph von Carlowitznot measured- - 93
Bruno, 3rd Prince of Ysenburg and Büdingennot measured- - 94
Karl vom Stein zum Altensteinnot measured- - 95
Georg von Vollmarnot measured- - 96
Heinrich Cunownot measured- - 97
Theodor Seitznot measured- - 98
Adolph Hoffmannnot measured- - 99
Leo Aronsnot measured- - 100
Christian Kraft, 5th Prince of Hohenlohe-Öhringen, 2nd Duke of Ujestnot measured-
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.