PHILOSOPHER
Laozi
604 BC - 600 BC
Laozi
Laozi (), also romanized as Lao Tzu among other ways, is a semi-legendary Chinese philosopher and author of the Tao Te Ching (Laozi), one of the foundational texts of Taoism alongside the Zhuangzi. The name, literally meaning 'Old Master', was likely intended to portray an archaic anonymity that could converse with Confucianism. Modern scholarship generally regards his biographical details as later inventions, and his opus a collaboration. Read more on Wikipedia
Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Laozi has received more than 12,664,141 page views. His biography is available in 147 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 141 in 2019). Laozi is the 43rd most popular philosopher (down from 36th in 2019), the 7th most popular biography from China (down from 5th in 2019) and the 3rd most popular Chinese Philosopher.
Laozi is most famous for being the founder of Daoism.
Memorability Metrics
13M
Page Views (PV)
83.17
Historical Popularity Index (HPI)
147
Languages Editions (L)
7.46
Effective Languages (L*)
6.79
Coefficient of Variation (CV)
Among PHILOSOPHERS
Among philosophers, Laozi ranks 43 out of 1,267. Before him are Maria Montessori, Plutarch, Søren Kierkegaard, David Hume, Sun Tzu, and Rajneesh. After him are Empedocles, Origen, Protagoras, Ludwig Wittgenstein, John Amos Comenius, and Lucretius.
Most Popular Philosophers in Wikipedia
Go to all Rankings
Maria Montessori
1870 - 1952
HPI: 84.02
Rank: 37
Plutarch
46 - 127
HPI: 83.65
Rank: 38
Søren Kierkegaard
1813 - 1855
HPI: 83.42
Rank: 39
David Hume
1711 - 1776
HPI: 83.40
Rank: 40
Sun Tzu
544 BC - 496 BC
HPI: 83.39
Rank: 41
Rajneesh
1931 - 1990
HPI: 83.27
Rank: 42
Laozi
604 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 83.17
Rank: 43
Empedocles
490 BC - 430 BC
HPI: 83.01
Rank: 44
Origen
185 - 254
HPI: 82.98
Rank: 45
Protagoras
486 BC - 420 BC
HPI: 82.83
Rank: 46
Ludwig Wittgenstein
1889 - 1951
HPI: 82.77
Rank: 47
John Amos Comenius
1592 - 1670
HPI: 82.73
Rank: 48
Lucretius
94 BC - 55 BC
HPI: 82.52
Rank: 49
Contemporaries
Among people born in 604 BC, Laozi ranks 1. Among people deceased in 600 BC, Laozi ranks 1. After him are Tomyris, Draco, Habakkuk, Belshazzar, Astyages, Maya, Theano, Anacharsis, Epimenides, Phalaris, and Ibycus.
Others Born in 604 BC
Go to all RankingsOthers Deceased in 600 BC
Go to all RankingsLaozi
PHILOSOPHER
604 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 83.17
Rank: 1
Tomyris
POLITICIAN
600 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 81.14
Rank: 2
Draco
PUBLIC WORKER
650 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 78.69
Rank: 3
Habakkuk
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
626 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 75.47
Rank: 4
Belshazzar
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
600 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 74.48
Rank: 5
Astyages
POLITICIAN
700 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 73.39
Rank: 6
Maya
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
600 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 72.71
Rank: 7
Theano
PHILOSOPHER
600 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 71.24
Rank: 8
Anacharsis
PHILOSOPHER
700 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 70.71
Rank: 9
Epimenides
PHILOSOPHER
690 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 70.44
Rank: 10
Phalaris
POLITICIAN
700 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 69.69
Rank: 11
Ibycus
WRITER
600 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 68.60
Rank: 12
In China
Among people born in China, Laozi ranks 7 out of 1,610. Before him are Confucius (-551), Mao Zedong (1893), Huang Xianfan (1899), Qin Shi Huang (-258), Karma (null), and Sun Tzu (-544). After him are Zheng He (1387), Sun Yat-sen (1866), Deng Xiaoping (1904), Li Bai (701), Sima Qian (-145), and 14th Dalai Lama (1935).
Others born in China
Go to all Rankings
Confucius
PHILOSOPHER
551 BC - 479 BC
HPI: 92.61
Rank: 1
Mao Zedong
POLITICIAN
1893 - 1976
HPI: 87.95
Rank: 2
Huang Xianfan
POLITICIAN
1899 - 1982
HPI: 87.92
Rank: 3
Qin Shi Huang
POLITICIAN
258 BC - 210 BC
HPI: 87.21
Rank: 4
Karma
ATHLETE
HPI: 85.66
Rank: 5
Sun Tzu
PHILOSOPHER
544 BC - 496 BC
HPI: 83.39
Rank: 6
Laozi
PHILOSOPHER
604 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 83.17
Rank: 7
Zheng He
EXPLORER
1387 - 1433
HPI: 82.94
Rank: 8
Sun Yat-sen
POLITICIAN
1866 - 1925
HPI: 82.68
Rank: 9
Deng Xiaoping
POLITICIAN
1904 - 1997
HPI: 82.31
Rank: 10
Li Bai
WRITER
701 - 762
HPI: 82.18
Rank: 11
Sima Qian
HISTORIAN
145 BC - 86 BC
HPI: 81.89
Rank: 12
14th Dalai Lama
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
1935 - Present
HPI: 81.54
Rank: 13
Among PHILOSOPHERS In China
Among philosophers born in China, Laozi ranks 3. Before him are Confucius (-551), and Sun Tzu (-544). After him are Mencius (-372), Zhuang Zhou (-369), Zhu Xi (1130), Mozi (-470), Han Fei (-280), Xun Kuang (-313), Milarepa (1052), Shen Kuo (1031), and Wang Yangming (1472).
Confucius
551 BC - 479 BC
HPI: 92.61
Rank: 1
Sun Tzu
544 BC - 496 BC
HPI: 83.39
Rank: 2
Laozi
604 BC - 600 BC
HPI: 83.17
Rank: 3
Mencius
372 BC - 289 BC
HPI: 78.68
Rank: 4
Zhuang Zhou
369 BC - 286 BC
HPI: 78.24
Rank: 5
Zhu Xi
1130 - 1200
HPI: 77.31
Rank: 6
Mozi
470 BC - 391 BC
HPI: 76.43
Rank: 7
Han Fei
280 BC - 232 BC
HPI: 74.33
Rank: 8
Xun Kuang
313 BC - 238 BC
HPI: 73.97
Rank: 9
Milarepa
1052 - 1135
HPI: 71.39
Rank: 10
Shen Kuo
1031 - 1095
HPI: 70.65
Rank: 11
Wang Yangming
1472 - 1529
HPI: 68.87
Rank: 12
