PHILOSOPHER

Mencius

372 BC - 289 BC

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Icon of person Mencius

Mencius (MEN-shee-əs; c. 371 – c. 289 BC) was a Chinese Confucian philosopher, often described as the Second Sage (亞聖) to reflect his traditional esteem relative to Confucius himself. He was part of Confucius's fourth generation of disciples, inheriting his ideology and developing it further. Living during the Warring States period, he is said to have spent much of his life travelling around the states offering counsel to different rulers. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Mencius has received more than 1,286,763 page views. His biography is available in 74 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 71 in 2019). Mencius is the 83rd most popular philosopher (up from 96th in 2019), the 29th most popular biography from China (up from 31st in 2019) and the 4th most popular Chinese Philosopher.

Mencius is most famous for his philosophy of human nature. He believed that humans are inherently good and that the mind is a blank slate.

Memorability Metrics

  • 1.3M

    Page Views (PV)

  • 78.68

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 74

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 9.51

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.37

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Among PHILOSOPHERS

Among philosophers, Mencius ranks 83 out of 1,267. Before him are Xenophanes, Nagarjuna, Carl von Clausewitz, Nicholas of Cusa, Gregory of Nazianzus, and Giovanni Pico della Mirandola. After him are Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab, John of Damascus, Athanasius of Alexandria, Peter Abelard, Theophrastus, and Johann Gottfried Herder.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 372 BC, Mencius ranks 1. After him is Alexis. Among people deceased in 289 BC, Mencius ranks 1. After him is Agathocles of Syracuse.

Others Born in 372 BC

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  • Photo of Mencius

    Mencius

    PHILOSOPHER

    372 BC - 289 BC

    HPI: 78.68

    Rank: 1

  • Photo of Alexis

    Alexis

    WRITER

    372 BC - 270 BC

    HPI: 53.87

    Rank: 2

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Others Deceased in 289 BC

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In China

Among people born in China, Mencius ranks 29 out of 1,610. Before him are Qianlong Emperor (1711), Guan Yu (162), Liu Bei (161), Ip Man (1893), Kangxi Emperor (1654), and Zhuge Liang (181). After him are Cai Lun (48), Lü Bu (161), Zhuang Zhou (-369), Jiang Zemin (1926), Puyi (1906), and Emperor Taizong of Tang (598).

Others born in China

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Among PHILOSOPHERS In China

Among philosophers born in China, Mencius ranks 4. Before him are Confucius (-551), Sun Tzu (-544), and Laozi (-604). After him are Zhuang Zhou (-369), Zhu Xi (1130), Mozi (-470), Han Fei (-280), Xun Kuang (-313), Milarepa (1052), Shen Kuo (1031), and Wang Yangming (1472).

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