Most Famous Religious Figures in the World

100 Religious Figures in view out of 8,135

Religion 8,135
All 152,953
Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II Polish Priest 1920 – 2005
#91
Mother Teresa
Mother Teresa Serbian Nun 1910 – 1997
#175
Pope Benedict XVI
Pope Benedict XVI German Priest Born 1927
#191
Jesus
Jesus Palestinian Preacher -4 – 30
#205
Francis of Assisi
Francis of Assisi Italian Religious 1182 – 1226
#211
John Calvin
John Calvin French Theologian 1509 – 1564
#342
Pope Paul VI
Pope Paul VI Italian Priest 1897 – 1978
#611
Swami Vivekananda
Swami Vivekananda Indian Monk 1863 – 1902
#638
Pope John XXIII
Pope John XXIII Italian Priest 1881 – 1963
#714
Albert Schweitzer
Albert Schweitzer German Theologian 1875 – 1965
#717
Pope Alexander VI
Pope Alexander VI Spanish Priest 1431 – 1503
#738
Pope John Paul I
Pope John Paul I Italian Priest 1912 – 1978
#819
Thérèse of Lisieux
Thérèse of Lisieux French Nun 1873 – 1897
#937
Desmond Tutu
Desmond Tutu South African Priest Born 1931
#968
Ignatius of Loyola
Ignatius of Loyola Spanish Priest 1491 – 1556
#973
Rajneesh
Rajneesh Indian Religious 1931 – 1990
#1,011
Pope Pius IX
Pope Pius IX Holy Roman Priest 1792 – 1878
#1,130
Jerome
Jerome Roman Priest 345 – 420
#1,210
Francis Xavier
Francis Xavier Spanish Missionary 1506 – 1552
#1,236
Jan Hus
Jan Hus Holy Roman Theologian 1369 – 1415
#1,361
Pope Pius XI
Pope Pius XI Italian Priest 1857 – 1939
#1,368
Pope Leo XIII
Pope Leo XIII Italian Priest 1810 – 1903
#1,464
Benedict of Nursia
Benedict of Nursia Italian Monk 480 – 547
#1,510
Catherine of Siena
Catherine of Siena Italian Religious 1347 – 1380
#1,523
Girolamo Savonarola
Girolamo Savonarola Italian Friar 1452 – 1498
#1,527
Pope Pius X
Pope Pius X Italian Priest 1835 – 1914
#1,558
Pope Julius II
Pope Julius II French Priest 1443 – 1513
#1,637
John Bosco
John Bosco Italian Priest 1815 – 1888
#1,677
Peter Abelard
Peter Abelard French Theologian 1079 – 1142
#1,679
Pope Innocent III
Pope Innocent III Italian Priest 1160 – 1216
#1,840
Saint Nicholas
Saint Nicholas Roman Priest 270 – 343
#1,884
Cardinal Mazarin
Cardinal Mazarin French Cleric 1602 – 1661
#1,999
Bede
Bede British Monk 672 – 735
#2,054
Pope Benedict XV
Pope Benedict XV Italian Priest 1854 – 1922
#2,061
Saint Peter
Saint Peter Syrian Priest Died 67
#2,070
Pope Paul III
Pope Paul III French Priest 1468 – 1549
#2,266
John Wesley
John Wesley British Theologian 1703 – 1791
#2,334
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin
Pierre Teilhard de Chardin French Theologian 1881 – 1955
#2,376
Bernadette Soubirous
Bernadette Soubirous French Nun 1844 – 1879
#2,534
Pope Boniface VIII
Pope Boniface VIII Italian Cleric 1235 – 1303
#2,557
Padre Pio
Padre Pio Italian Presbyter 1887 – 1968
#2,590
John Wycliffe
John Wycliffe British Theologian 1330 – 1384
#2,657
BO
Basil of Caesarea Turkish Bishop 329 – 379
#2,664
Anthony the Great
Anthony the Great Egyptian Monk 251 – 357
#2,708
Saint Patrick
Saint Patrick Irish Cleric 385 – 461
#2,747
Xuanzang
Xuanzang Chinese Monk 602 – 664
#2,851
Pope Gregory VII
Pope Gregory VII Italian Pope 1020 – 1085
#2,873
Thomas Cranmer
Thomas Cranmer British Archbishop 1489 – 1556
#2,885
Pope Pius VII
Pope Pius VII Italian Cleric 1742 – 1823
#2,919
Pope Sixtus IV
Pope Sixtus IV Italian Cleric 1414 – 1484
#2,968
Martin of Tours
Martin of Tours Hungarian Cleric 316 – 397
#3,025
Saint Dominic
Saint Dominic Spanish Priest 1170 – 1221
#3,059
Francis de Sales
Francis de Sales French Bishop 1567 – 1622
#3,159
Vincent de Paul
Vincent de Paul French Priest 1581 – 1660
#3,186
Ibn Taymiyyah
Ibn Taymiyyah Syrian Theologian 1263 – 1328
#3,341
Ignatius of Antioch
Ignatius of Antioch Roman Priest 35 – 107
#3,413
Eusebius
Eusebius Turkish Priest 265 – 339
#3,452
Pope Leo I
Pope Leo I Roman Pope 390 – 461
#3,488
Maximilian Kolbe
Maximilian Kolbe Polish Cleric 1894 – 1941
#3,498
Sathya Sai Baba
Sathya Sai Baba Indian Religious 1926 – 2011
#3,586
Pope Pius II
Pope Pius II Italian Priest 1405 – 1464
#3,624
Pope Pius V
Pope Pius V Italian Cleric 1504 – 1572
#3,685
Josemaría Escrivá
Josemaría Escrivá Spanish Priest 1902 – 1975
#3,704
Brigham Young
Brigham Young American Religious 1801 – 1877
#3,769
Charles Borromeo
Charles Borromeo Italian Archbishop 1538 – 1584
#3,839
Pope Gregory XVI
Pope Gregory XVI Italian Priest 1765 – 1846
#3,881
Cyril of Alexandria
Cyril of Alexandria Egyptian Priest 376 – 444
#4,011
Óscar Romero
Óscar Romero Salvadoran Priest 1917 – 1980
#4,080
Pope Sixtus V
Pope Sixtus V Italian Cleric 1520 – 1590
#4,124
Faustina Kowalska
Faustina Kowalska Polish Nun 1905 – 1938
#4,267
Pope Celestine V
Pope Celestine V Italian Cleric 1215 – 1296
#4,323
Pope Sylvester II
Pope Sylvester II French Pope 938 – 1003
#4,411
MN
Martin Niemöller German Theologian 1892 – 1984
#4,452
Matteo Ricci
Matteo Ricci Italian Jesuit 1552 – 1610
#4,453
Jonathan Edwards (theologian)
Jonathan Edwards (theologian) American Theologian 1703 – 1758
#4,504
Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab
Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab Saudi Arabian Imam 1703 – 1792
#4,542
William Tyndale
William Tyndale British Theologian 1494 – 1536
#4,564
Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla
Miguel Hidalgo y Costilla Spanish Priest 1753 – 1811
#4,584
Pope Urban II
Pope Urban II French Pope 1042 – 1099
#4,589
John Vianney
John Vianney French Priest 1786 – 1859
#4,651
John Napier
John Napier British Theologian 1550 – 1617
#4,711
Paul Tillich
Paul Tillich German Theologian 1886 – 1965
#4,856
Abbé Pierre
Abbé Pierre French Priest 1912 – 2007
#4,975
Gregory of Nazianzus
Gregory of Nazianzus Turkish Priest 329 – 389
#4,982
Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII Italian Pope 1536 – 1605
#5,061
Pope Pius III
Pope Pius III Italian Cleric 1439 – 1503
#5,106
Saint Lucy
Saint Lucy Italian Saint 283 – 304
#5,199
Pope John XXII
Pope John XXII French Cleric 1244 – 1334
#5,209
Pope Clement V
Pope Clement V French Cleric 1264 – 1314
#5,219
Charles Spurgeon
Charles Spurgeon British Preacher 1834 – 1892
#5,279
Saint Boniface
Saint Boniface British Priest 680 – 754
#5,390
Pope Paul IV
Pope Paul IV Italian Priest 1476 – 1559
#5,407
Alexander Nevsky
Alexander Nevsky Russian Saint 1220 – 1263
#5,497
Pope Clement XIV
Pope Clement XIV Italian Cleric 1705 – 1774
#5,500
Aloysius Gonzaga
Aloysius Gonzaga Italian Priest 1568 – 1591
#5,506
Pope Callixtus III
Pope Callixtus III Spanish Priest 1379 – 1458
#5,667
Father Damien
Father Damien Belgian Missionary 1840 – 1889
#5,801
Mark the Evangelist
Mark the Evangelist Libyan Priest Died 68
#5,804
Pope Leo XII
Pope Leo XII Italian Priest 1760 – 1829
#5,822
Pope Clement XI
Pope Clement XI Italian Cleric 1649 – 1721
#5,827

By the numbers

Inside Religious Figures

8,135 notable people in this slice of the dataset.

Through the Centuries

One face per century — the leading figure from Religious Figures born in each.

Notable Births by Decade

Notable births among Religious Figures peaked in the 1930s with 588 people.

What Religious Figures Are Known For

Disciplines inside this family, plus countries that over- and under-produce them.

Priest is the largest group within Religious Figures — 4,305 people, 53% of the family.

Religious Figures over-index on italy — 2.7× the global rate.

Religious Figures under-produce us — only 0.3× the global rate.

  1. Priest4,305
  2. Theologian1,018
  3. Missionary291
  4. Religious265
  5. Bishop240
  6. Prelate211
  7. Presbyter195
  8. Monk173
  1. Italy9682.7×
  2. Poland3672.6×
  3. Philippines812.2×
  4. Spain5512.0×
  5. Portugal961.6×
  1. US3690.3×
  2. Canada1060.5×
  3. Sweden1450.6×
  4. India1190.6×

City Hot Spots

Cities that over-produce Religious Figures compared to the world average — multiplier shows how much more.