2001 BC and earlier

The 3rd millennium BC and earlier

Whose working lives fell in the 3rd millennium BC and earlier. Books are measured from 1800 and readers from 2015, so for this period we can say who lived then, not who was talked about then.

Lived then

The most notable people whose working lives fell in the 3rd millennium BC and earlier, ranked where Wikipedia coverage and readership agree.

CountryAll 🇪🇬 Egypt 🇨🇳 China 🇮🇹 Italy 🇸🇪 Sweden

FieldAll Politicians Historical Figures Religious Figures Architects Writers Doctors Models Academics

#PersonIn print, 1800–2019Echoed

1Prince Rahotep2600 BC–2600 BC · Religious Figures0 decades
2Ka'aper2600 BC–2560 BC · Religious Figures0 decades
3Seneb2600 BC–2528 BC · Religious Figuresnot measured—
4Kanefer3000 BC–3000 BC · Religious Figures0 decades
5PPerneb2800 BC–2800 BC · Religious Figures1 decades
6EEnmenana2300 BC–2200 BC · Religious Figuresnot measured—
7SKSabou Kemdied 2300 BC · Religious Figuresnot measured—
8EEnnirgalannadied 2100 BC · Religious Figuresnot measured—
9EEnitum2300 BC–2300 BC · Religious Figuresnot 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.