Global Leaderboard 50 in view

Most Famous German Writers

Writing 2,814
Germany 19,303
37 FN Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Nietzsche German Philosopher 1844–1900
60 IK Immanuel Kant Immanuel Kant German Philosopher 1724–1804
64 JW Johann Wolfgang von Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe German Poet 1749–1832
175 GW Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel Georg Wilhelm Friedrich Hegel German Philosopher 1770–1831
290 BB Bertolt Brecht Bertolt Brecht German Playwright 1898–1956
318 MH Martin Heidegger Martin Heidegger German Philosopher 1889–1976
351 HA Hannah Arendt Hannah Arendt German Philosopher 1906–1975
378 HH Hermann Hesse Hermann Hesse German Novelist 1877–1962
389 TM Thomas Mann Thomas Mann German Novelist 1875–1955
483 FS Friedrich Schiller Friedrich Schiller German Poet 1759–1805
701 HH Heinrich Heine Heinrich Heine German Poet 1797–1856
1,346 WW Wilhelm Wundt Wilhelm Wundt German Philosopher 1832–1920
1,435 EM Erich Maria Remarque Erich Maria Remarque German Writer 1898–1970
1,856 EK Erich Kästner Erich Kästner German Writer 1899–1974
1,963 JG Johann Gottlieb Fichte Johann Gottlieb Fichte German Philosopher 1762–1814
2,152 KJ Karl Jaspers Karl Jaspers German Philosopher 1883–1969
2,276 ME Meister Eckhart Meister Eckhart German Philosopher 1260–1328
2,306 N Novalis Novalis German Poet 1772–1801
2,321 KM Karl May Karl May German Novelist 1842–1912
2,418 JG Johann Gottfried Herder Johann Gottfried Herder German Philosopher 1744–1803
2,458 FW Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling Friedrich Wilhelm Joseph Schelling German Philosopher 1775–1854
2,461 WV Wilhelm von Humboldt Wilhelm von Humboldt German Linguist 1767–1835
2,493 HV Heinrich von Kleist Heinrich von Kleist German Playwright 1777–1811
2,497 FH Friedrich Hölderlin Friedrich Hölderlin German Poet 1770–1843
2,538 MS Max Stirner Max Stirner German Philosopher 1806–1856
2,596 GH Gerhart Hauptmann Gerhart Hauptmann German Playwright 1862–1946
2,770 OS Oswald Spengler Oswald Spengler German Historian 1880–1936
2,837 CS Carl Schmitt Carl Schmitt German Philosopher 1888–1985
3,172 ME Michael Ende German Writer 1929–1995
3,217 HM Herta Müller Herta Müller German Writer b. 1953
3,472 NS Nelly Sachs German Poet 1891–1970
3,536 TF Theodor Fontane Theodor Fontane German Novelist 1819–1898
3,547 HG Hans-Georg Gadamer Hans-Georg Gadamer German Philosopher 1900–2002
3,659 JG Jacob Grimm Jacob Grimm German Philologist 1785–1863
3,982 TM Theodor Mommsen Theodor Mommsen German Historian 1817–1903
4,145 WB Wilhelm Busch Wilhelm Busch German Poet 1832–1908
4,331 NL Niklas Luhmann Niklas Luhmann German Philosopher 1927–1998
4,386 JJ Johann Joachim Winckelmann Johann Joachim Winckelmann German Art Historian 1717–1768
4,565 AK Athanasius Kircher Athanasius Kircher German Linguist 1602–1680
4,838 JF Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff Joseph Freiherr von Eichendorff German Writer 1788–1857
5,153 ET Eckhart Tolle Eckhart Tolle German Writer b. 1948
5,191 WD Wilhelm Dilthey Wilhelm Dilthey German Philosopher 1833–1911
5,481 LV Leopold von Ranke Leopold von Ranke German Historian 1795–1886
5,663 RC Rudolf Carnap Rudolf Carnap German Philosopher 1891–1970
5,781 CF Cornelia Funke Cornelia Funke German Writer b. 1958
5,843 JP Jean Paul Jean Paul German Writer 1763–1825
6,321 EB Ernst Bloch German Philosopher 1885–1977
6,463 JB Jakob Böhme Jakob Böhme German Philosopher 1575–1624
6,758 TS Theodor Storm Theodor Storm German Poet 1817–1888
6,771 MW Martin Walser Martin Walser German Writer b. 1927
See all 152,953 rankings →

Ranked by cross-verified academic notability — how it works

By the numbers

Inside Germany Writers

2,814 notable people in this slice of the dataset.

Through the Centuries

One face per century — the most globally famous germany writers born in each.

Notable Births by Decade

Notable births among Germany Writers peaked in the 1940s with 233 people.

What Germany Writers Are Known For

Click any row to drill into that filter.

Writer are Germany Writers's biggest group — 27% of all notables (763).

Germany Writers over-index on archivist — 26.4× the global rate.

  1. Writer763
  2. Author556
  3. Historian484
  4. Philosopher164
  5. Journalist150
  6. Poet146
  7. Philologist114
  8. Linguist90
  1. Archivist3526.4×
  2. Philologist11422.4×
  3. Author55621.0×
  4. Art Historian7220.5×
  5. Publisher4717.6×
  6. Historian48414.5×
  7. Philosopher1649.6×
  8. Linguist908.6×

City Hot Spots

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