Most Famous People from China

China has produced 1,678 notable individuals throughout history, with politicians and athletes being the most represented categories. The highest-ranked is Mao Zedong. Rankings are based on a cross-verified academic dataset of 152,953 people.

Category All
Citizenship All
MZ
Mao Zedong Chinese Politician 1893 – 1976
# 70
1D
14th Dalai Lama Chinese Bhikkhu Born 1935
# 252
C
Confucius Chinese Philosopher -551 – -479
# 383
CK
Chiang Kai-shek Chinese Politician 1887 – 1975
# 474
SY
Sun Yat-sen Chinese Politician 1866 – 1925
# 639
XJ
Xi Jinping Chinese Politician Born 1953
# 691
DX
Deng Xiaoping Chinese Politician 1904 – 1997
# 774
P
Puyi Chinese Emperor 1906 – 1967
# 1,126
ZE
Zhou Enlai Chinese Politician 1898 – 1976
# 1,456
LX
Liu Xiaobo Chinese Poet 1955 – 2017
# 1,635
LB
Li Bai Chinese Poet 701 – 762
# 1,813
LX
Lu Xun Chinese Essayist 1881 – 1936
# 1,936
ST
Sun Tzu Chinese Militar -543 – -495
# 1,994
HJ
Hu Jintao Chinese Politician Born 1942
# 2,710
X
Xuanzang Chinese Monk 602 – 664
# 2,851
GL
Gong Li Chinese Actor Born 1965
# 3,061
CC
Cao Cao Chinese Poet 155 – 220
# 3,069
ZZ
Zhuang Zhou Chinese Philosopher -369 – -286
# 3,095
MY
Mo Yan Chinese Writer Born 1955
# 3,124
ZY
Zhang Yimou Chinese Film Born 1951
# 3,130