Global Leaderboard 100 in view

Most Famous Writers in the World

Writing 18,127
All 152,953
08 WS William Shakespeare William Shakespeare British Playwright 1564–1616
22 ML Martin Luther Martin Luther Holy Roman Linguist 1483–1546
36 P Plato Plato Greek Philosopher -427–-347
37 FN Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Nietzsche German Philosopher 1844–1900
47 VH Victor Hugo Victor Hugo French Poet 1802–1885
48 EA Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe American Poet 1809–1849
51 V Voltaire Voltaire French Writer 1694–1778
53 FK Franz Kafka Franz Kafka Austrian Novelist 1883–1924
54 CD Charles Dickens Charles Dickens British Writer 1812–1870
55 JR Jean-Jacques Rousseau Jean-Jacques Rousseau French Writer 1712–1778
60 IK Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant German Philosopher 1724–1804
64 JW Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe German Poet 1749–1832
67 RD René Descartes René Descartes French Philosopher 1596–1650
74 JR J. R. R. Tolkien J. R. R. Tolkien British Writer 1892–1973
81 AC Agatha Christie Agatha Christie British Playwright 1890–1976
84 AO Augustine of Hippo Augustine of Hippo Roman Philosopher 354–430
85 FD Fyodor Dostoevsky Fyodor Dostoevsky Russian Novelist 1821–1881
89 OW Oscar Wilde Oscar Wilde British Poet 1854–1900
90 SK Stephen King Stephen King American Writer b. 1947
92 LT Leo Tolstoy Leo Tolstoy Russian Writer 1828–1910
96 DA Dante Alighieri Dante Alighieri Italian Poet 1265–1321
104 GG Gabriel García Márquez Gabriel García Márquez Colombian Novelist 1927–2014
105 NC Noam Chomsky Noam Chomsky American Philosopher b. 1928
110 MT Mark Twain Mark Twain American Writer 1835–1910
120 JV Jules Verne Jules Verne French Novelist 1828–1905
121 JA Jane Austen Jane Austen British Writer 1775–1817
125 VW Virginia Woolf Virginia Woolf British Novelist 1882–1941
129 AC Albert Camus Albert Camus French Writer 1913–1960
130 AC Anton Chekhov Anton Chekhov Russian Playwright 1860–1904
132 HC Hans Christian Andersen Hans Christian Andersen Danish Writer 1805–1875
134 SL Stan Lee American Comic 1922–2018
141 TA Thomas Aquinas Thomas Aquinas Italian Philosopher 1225–1274
142 GO George Orwell George Orwell British Novelist 1903–1950
145 JL John Locke John Locke British Philosopher 1632–1704
151 MD Miguel de Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Spanish Novelist 1547–1616
175 GW Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel German Philosopher 1770–1831
205 JL Jorge Luis Borges Jorge Luis Borges Argentine Writer 1899–1986
206 IA Isaac Asimov Isaac Asimov American Writer 1920–1992
209 H Homer Homer Greek Poet
233 MF Michel Foucault Michel Foucault French Philosopher 1926–1984
234 HD Honoré de Balzac Honoré de Balzac French Novelist 1799–1850
240 S Socrates Socrates Greek Philosopher -470–-399
246 JJ James Joyce James Joyce Irish Poet 1882–1941
251 PN Pablo Neruda Pablo Neruda Chilean Poet 1904–1973
253 MS Mary Shelley Mary Shelley British Writer 1797–1851
254 ÉZ Émile Zola Émile Zola French Novelist 1840–1902
263 BS Baruch Spinoza Dutch Philosopher 1632–1677
266 HP H. P. Lovecraft H. P. Lovecraft American Novelist 1890–1937
275 AP Alexander Pushkin Alexander Pushkin Russian Poet 1799–1837
290 BB Bertolt Brecht Bertolt Brecht German Playwright 1898–1956
298 JA Julian Assange Julian Assange Australian Journalist b. 1971
301 SK Søren Kierkegaard Søren Kierkegaard Danish Philosopher 1813–1855
315 BD Bette Davis Bette Davis American Biographer 1908–1989
318 HG H. G. Wells H. G. Wells British Writer 1866–1946
318 MH Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger German Philosopher 1889–1976
320 A Avicenna Avicenna Iranian Philosopher 980–1037
328 IB Ingrid Bergman Ingrid Bergman Swedish Biographer 1915–1982
332 LC Lewis Carroll Lewis Carroll British Writer 1833–1898
340 AR Arthur Rimbaud Arthur Rimbaud French Poet 1854–1891
344 MV Mario Vargas Llosa Mario Vargas Llosa Spanish Novelist b. 1936
351 HA Hannah Arendt Hannah Arendt German Philosopher 1906–1975
362 FB Francis Bacon Francis Bacon British Philosopher 1561–1626
363 AD Alexandre Dumas Alexandre Dumas French Novelist 1802–1870
370 TH Thomas Hobbes Thomas Hobbes British Philosopher 1588–1679
376 AD Antoine de Saint-Exupéry Antoine de Saint-Exupéry French Writer 1900–1944
378 HH Hermann Hesse Hermann Hesse German Novelist 1877–1962
382 SD Simone de Beauvoir Simone de Beauvoir French Writer 1908–1986
383 C Confucius Confucius Chinese Philosopher -551–-479
389 TM Thomas Mann Thomas Mann German Novelist 1875–1955
409 FG Federico García Lorca Federico García Lorca Spanish Playwright 1898–1936
411 M Montesquieu Montesquieu French Philosopher 1689–1755
413 UE Umberto Eco Umberto Eco Italian Novelist 1932–2016
423 R Rumi Rumi Iranian Poet 1207–1273
438 JS John Steinbeck John Steinbeck American Writer 1902–1968
440 P Petrarch Petrarch Italian Poet 1304–1374
452 CS C. S. Lewis C. S. Lewis British Writer 1898–1963
456 DD Denis Diderot Denis Diderot French Novelist 1713–1784
465 FS F. Scott Fitzgerald F. Scott Fitzgerald American Writer 1896–1940
475 HD Henry David Thoreau Henry David Thoreau American Poet 1817–1862
479 RL Rosa Luxemburg Rosa Luxemburg Russian Philosopher 1871–1919
483 FS Friedrich Schiller Friedrich Schiller German Poet 1759–1805
500 ST Seneca the Younger Seneca the Younger Roman Playwright -4–65
509 RD Roald Dahl Roald Dahl British Novelist 1916–1990
517 AS Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn Russian Writer 1918–2008
522 JS John Stuart Mill John Stuart Mill British Philosopher 1806–1873
531 AE Amelia Earhart Amelia Earhart American Author 1897–1937
552 RH Robert Hooke Robert Hooke British Philosopher 1635–1703
557 PC Paulo Coelho Brazilian Writer b. 1947
567 V Virgil Virgil Roman Poet -70–-19
569 HM Haruki Murakami Haruki Murakami Japanese Writer b. 1949
597 AH Aldous Huxley Aldous Huxley British Poet 1894–1963
603 SR Salman Rushdie British Writer b. 1947
605 JK John Keats John Keats British Poet 1795–1821
621 AC Auguste Comte Auguste Comte French Philosopher 1798–1857
625 AG Antonio Gramsci Antonio Gramsci Italian Philosopher 1891–1937
627 GD Guy de Maupassant Guy de Maupassant French Writer 1850–1893
628 E Epicurus Greek Philosopher -341–-269
637 ED Emily Dickinson Emily Dickinson American Writer 1830–1886
643 HI Henrik Ibsen Henrik Ibsen Norwegian Playwright 1828–1906
672 TE T. E. Lawrence T. E. Lawrence British Biographer 1888–1935
See all 152,953 rankings →

Ranked by cross-verified academic notability — how it works

By the numbers

Inside Writers

18,127 notable people in this slice of the dataset.

Through the Centuries

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

Notable Births by Decade

Notable births among Writers peaked in the 1940s with 1,555 people.

What Writers Are Known For

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

Writer is the largest group within Writers — 6,323 people, 35% of the family.

Writers over-index on greece — 1.7× the global rate.

Writers under-produce us — only 0.6× the global rate.

  1. Writer6,323
  2. Poet2,989
  3. Historian1,818
  4. Journalist1,463
  5. Author1,440
  6. Philosopher931
  7. Linguist571
  8. Novelist563
  1. Greece1881.7×
  2. India7181.6×
  3. Romania2451.6×
  1. US1,5750.6×
  2. Brazil2290.7×
  3. Canada3030.7×

City Hot Spots

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