Most Famous Canadian Writers

50 Canadian Writers in view out of 303

Writing 303
Canada 3,744
MA
Margaret Atwood Canadian Writer Born 1939
#880
Alice Munro
Alice Munro Canadian Writer Born 1931
#1,777
Lucy Maud Montgomery
Lucy Maud Montgomery Canadian Writer 1874 – 1942
#2,342
Michael Ondaatje
Michael Ondaatje Canadian Poet Born 1943
#7,575
A. E. van Vogt
A. E. van Vogt Canadian Writer 1912 – 2000
#9,386
Douglas Coupland
Douglas Coupland Canadian Writer Born 1961
#10,756
NF
Northrop Frye Canadian Writer 1912 – 1991
#13,187
Robertson Davies
Robertson Davies Canadian Writer 1913 – 1995
#17,800
Guy Gavriel Kay
Guy Gavriel Kay Canadian Writer Born 1954
#20,974
Jean Vanier
Jean Vanier Canadian Philosopher 1928 – 2019
#23,548
Robin Sharma
Robin Sharma Canadian Writer Born 1965
#25,688
Patricia Churchland
Patricia Churchland Canadian Philosopher Born 1943
#28,804
Chrystia Freeland
Chrystia Freeland Canadian Journalist Born 1968
#30,703
Bruce LaBruce
Bruce LaBruce Canadian Writer Born 1964
#31,461
R. Scott Bakker
R. Scott Bakker Canadian Writer Born 1967
#33,547
Félix Leclerc
Félix Leclerc Canadian Poet 1914 – 1988
#33,779
Anne Hébert
Anne Hébert Canadian Poet 1916 – 2000
#34,116
Nelly Arcan
Nelly Arcan Canadian Writer 1973 – 2009
#34,411
Gilles Vigneault
Gilles Vigneault Canadian Poet Born 1928
#34,822
Luc Plamondon
Luc Plamondon Canadian Writer Born 1942
#35,370
RD
Réjean Ducharme Canadian Playwright 1941 – 2017
#35,567
Phan Thi Kim Phuc
Phan Thi Kim Phuc Canadian Writer Born 1963
#36,035
William P. Young
William P. Young Canadian Writer Born 1955
#40,188
ML
Margaret Laurence Canadian Novelist 1926 – 1987
#46,964
Alistair MacLeod
Alistair MacLeod Canadian Writer 1936 – 2014
#49,866
Jeff Lemire
Jeff Lemire Canadian Writer Born 1976
#50,914
Salarrué
Salarrué Canadian Author 1889 – 1975
#51,132
Antonine Maillet
Antonine Maillet Canadian Novelist Born 1929
#54,257
GM
Gaston Miron Canadian Poet 1928 – 1996
#59,304
IL
Irving Layton Canadian Poet 1912 – 2006
#59,673
Hugh MacLennan
Hugh MacLennan Canadian Author 1907 – 1990
#60,228
Patrick deWitt
Patrick deWitt Canadian Novelist Born 1975
#71,194
Linwood Barclay
Linwood Barclay Canadian Author Born 1955
#75,692
MM
Michel Marc Bouchard Canadian Playwright Born 1958
#82,750
JO
Janette Oke Canadian Writer Born 1935
#83,781
IP
Isabel Paterson Canadian Novelist 1886 – 1961
#97,011
DD
Dave Duncan (writer) Canadian Writer 1933 – 2018
#98,386
Stephen Vizinczey
Stephen Vizinczey Canadian Writer Born 1933
#100,089
LS
Lynsay Sands Canadian Writer
#101,450
MP
Martin Popoff Canadian Journalist Born 1963
#103,336
EJ
E. J. Pratt Canadian Poet 1882 – 1964
#113,913
Charles G. D. Roberts
Charles G. D. Roberts Canadian Novelist 1860 – 1943
#120,314
Adolphe-Basile Routhier
Adolphe-Basile Routhier Canadian Writer 1839 – 1920
#123,346
JP
Jacques Poulin Canadian Writer Born 1937
#126,072
SY
Scott Young (writer) Canadian Biographer 1918 – 2005
#137,459
Ralph Connor
Ralph Connor Canadian Writer 1860 – 1937
#137,944
JF
Jacques Ferron Canadian Playwright 1921 – 1985
#138,009
Ted Honderich
Ted Honderich Canadian Philosopher Born 1933
#139,860
LB
Luc Brisson Canadian Philosopher Born 1946
#140,109
Jean Grondin
Jean Grondin Canadian Philosopher Born 1955
#141,136

By the numbers

Inside Canada Writers

303 notable people in this slice of the dataset.

Through the Decades

One face per decade — the most globally famous canada writers born in each.

Notable Births by Decade

Notable births among Canada Writers peaked in the 1940s with 47 people.

What Canada Writers Are Known For

Click any row to drill into that filter.

Writer are Canada Writers's biggest group — 36% of all notables (110).

Canada Writers over-index on editor — 32.3× the global rate.

  1. Writer110
  2. Poet37
  3. Journalist33
  4. Novelist30
  5. Historian27
  6. Author16
  7. Playwright13
  8. Philosopher11
  1. Editor832.3×
  2. Novelist3026.9×
  3. Playwright1322.9×
  4. Journalist3311.4×
  5. Writer1108.8×
  6. Historian277.5×
  7. Poet376.3×
  8. Philosopher116.0×

City Hot Spots

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