Cultural Production in
Present Day
China
China
China ranks #14 by number of biographies on Pantheon, behind Canada, Sweden, and Netherlands. The most famous people from China are Confucius, Laozi, and Kublai Khan. The most famous people who died in China are Genghis Khan, Confucius, and Laozi. China has been the birthplace of many politicians, and athletes and the death place of many politicians, and writers. The top cities in China by number of people born are Beijing, Shanghai, Guangzhou, Tianjin, and Chang'an.
People
Between 2900 BC and 2007, present-day China was the birthplace of 2,134 globally memorable people, including Confucius, Laozi, and Kublai Khan. Additionally, 644 globally memorable people died in present-day China, including Genghis Khan, Confucius, and Laozi.
People Born in Present-Day China
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Confucius
Philosopher
551 BC - 479 BC
HPI: 93.57
Rank: 1
Laozi
Philosopher
604 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 91.85
Rank: 2
Kublai Khan
Politician
1215 - 1294
HPI: 91.15
Rank: 3
Qin Shi Huang
Politician
258 BC - 210 BC
HPI: 90.99
Rank: 4
Huang Xianfan
Politician
1899 - 1982
HPI: 89.40
Rank: 5
Mao Zedong
Politician
1893 - 1976
HPI: 88.70
Rank: 6
Chiang Kai-shek
Military Personnel
1887 - 1975
HPI: 86.25
Rank: 7
Zheng He
Explorer
1387 - 1433
HPI: 84.21
Rank: 8
Li Bai
Writer
701 - 762
HPI: 84.11
Rank: 9
Sun Tzu
Philosopher
544 BC - 496 BC
HPI: 83.60
Rank: 10
Sima Qian
Historian
145 BC - 86 BC
HPI: 83.52
Rank: 11
Puyi
Politician
1906 - 1967
HPI: 83.41
Rank: 12
Newly Added People Born in Present-Day China
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Xi Shi
Companion
506 BC - 500 BC
HPI: 72.17
Rank: 117
Zhang Youxia
Military Personnel
1950 - Present
HPI: 65.59
Rank: 385
Empress Zhangsun
Writer
601 - 636
HPI: 64.97
Rank: 420
Chai Rong
Nobleman
921 - 959
HPI: 63.43
Rank: 524
Qian Liu
Nobleman
852 - 932
HPI: 61.31
Rank: 670
Zhang Han
Military Personnel
HPI: 61.14
Rank: 677
Sun Fo
Politician
1891 - 1973
HPI: 61.01
Rank: 684
Robert Skidelsky
Historian
1939 - 2026
HPI: 60.29
Rank: 718
Guo Wei
Politician
904 - 954
HPI: 59.92
Rank: 740
Peter H. Raven
Biologist
1936 - 2026
HPI: 59.87
Rank: 742
Liu Ziye
Politician
449 - 466
HPI: 59.72
Rank: 747
Sun Li-jen
Military Personnel
1900 - 1990
HPI: 58.80
Rank: 795
People Deceased in Present-Day China
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Genghis Khan
Military Personnel
1162 - 1227
HPI: 98.43
Rank: 1
Confucius
Philosopher
551 BC - 479 BC
HPI: 93.57
Rank: 2
Laozi
Philosopher
604 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 91.85
Rank: 3
Kublai Khan
Politician
1215 - 1294
HPI: 91.15
Rank: 4
Qin Shi Huang
Politician
258 BC - 210 BC
HPI: 90.99
Rank: 5
Huang Xianfan
Politician
1899 - 1982
HPI: 89.40
Rank: 6
Mao Zedong
Politician
1893 - 1976
HPI: 88.70
Rank: 7
Zheng He
Explorer
1387 - 1433
HPI: 84.21
Rank: 8
Li Bai
Writer
701 - 762
HPI: 84.11
Rank: 9
Sun Tzu
Philosopher
544 BC - 496 BC
HPI: 83.60
Rank: 10
Puyi
Politician
1906 - 1967
HPI: 83.41
Rank: 11
Sun Yat-sen
Politician
1866 - 1925
HPI: 82.77
Rank: 12
Newly Added People Deceased in Present-Day China
Go to all RankingsEmpress Zhangsun
Writer
601 - 636
HPI: 64.97
Rank: 327
Chai Rong
Nobleman
921 - 959
HPI: 63.43
Rank: 394
Qian Liu
Nobleman
852 - 932
HPI: 61.31
Rank: 491
Zhang Han
Military Personnel
HPI: 61.14
Rank: 494
Guo Wei
Politician
904 - 954
HPI: 59.92
Rank: 523
Liu Ziye
Politician
449 - 466
HPI: 59.72
Rank: 528
Kim Okkyun
Politician
1851 - 1894
HPI: 58.93
Rank: 553
Shi Chonggui
Politician
914 - 974
HPI: 58.42
Rank: 565
Patrick Tse
Actor
1936 - 2026
HPI: 58.30
Rank: 568
Gao Gang
Politician
1905 - 1954
HPI: 57.32
Rank: 585
Jin Shengtan
Writer
1610 - 1661
HPI: 56.67
Rank: 592
Kim Chwajin
Military Personnel
1889 - 1930
HPI: 55.09
Rank: 617
Occupations
Most people born in present-day China were politicians (495), athletes (410), actors (146), writers (141), and soccer players (78), while most who died were politicians (361), writers (66), military personnels (51), philosophers (32), and painters (22).
Places
Overlapping Lives
Below is a visualization of the lifespans of the top 25 globally memorable people born in present-day China since 1700.
