ENGINEER
Mikhail Kalashnikov
1919 - 2013
Mikhail Kalashnikov
Mikhail Timofeyevich Kalashnikov (UK: kə-LASH-nik-off, US: -LAHSH-; Russian: Михаил Тимофеевич Калашников, IPA: [mʲɪxɐˈil tʲɪmɐˈfʲejɪvʲɪtɕ kɐˈlaʂnʲɪkəf]; 10 November 1919 – 23 December 2013) was a Soviet and Russian lieutenant general, inventor, military engineer, writer, and small arms designer. He is most famous for developing the AK-47 assault rifle and its improvements, the AKM and AK-74, as well as the RPK light machine gun and PK machine gun. Kalashnikov was, according to himself, a self-taught tinkerer who combined innate mechanical skills with the study of weaponry to design arms that achieved battlefield ubiquity. Read more on Wikipedia
Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Mikhail Kalashnikov has received more than 4,145,414 page views. His biography is available in 86 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 83 in 2019). Mikhail Kalashnikov is the 3rd most popular engineer (down from 2nd in 2019), the 50th most popular biography from Russia (down from 37th in 2019) and the most popular Russian Engineer.
Mikhail Kalashnikov is most famous for inventing the AK-47, which is a rifle that can be used by both military and civilians.
Memorability Metrics
4.1M
Page Views (PV)
75.07
Historical Popularity Index (HPI)
86
Languages Editions (L)
8.05
Effective Languages (L*)
4.44
Coefficient of Variation (CV)
Among ENGINEERS
Among engineers, Mikhail Kalashnikov ranks 3 out of 389. Before him are Gustave Eiffel, and Gottlieb Daimler. After him are Zhuge Liang, Wernher von Braun, Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot, Frederick Winslow Taylor, Konstantin Tsiolkovsky, Sergei Korolev, Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, Umberto Nobile, and André Citroën.
Most Popular Engineers in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsGustave Eiffel
1832 - 1923
HPI: 78.87
Rank: 1
Gottlieb Daimler
1834 - 1900
HPI: 75.67
Rank: 2
Mikhail Kalashnikov
1919 - 2013
HPI: 75.07
Rank: 3
Zhuge Liang
181 - 234
HPI: 74.99
Rank: 4
Wernher von Braun
1912 - 1977
HPI: 73.69
Rank: 5
Nicolas Léonard Sadi Carnot
1796 - 1832
HPI: 72.64
Rank: 6
Frederick Winslow Taylor
1856 - 1915
HPI: 70.78
Rank: 7
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
1857 - 1935
HPI: 70.36
Rank: 8
Sergei Korolev
1906 - 1966
HPI: 70.27
Rank: 9
Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban
1633 - 1707
HPI: 70.07
Rank: 10
Umberto Nobile
1885 - 1978
HPI: 69.56
Rank: 11
André Citroën
1878 - 1935
HPI: 68.04
Rank: 12
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1919, Mikhail Kalashnikov ranks 3. Before him are Mohammad Reza Pahlavi, and Eva Perón. After him are Edmund Hillary, J. D. Salinger, Primo Levi, Doris Lessing, Giulio Andreotti, Zhao Ziyang, Kim Jong-suk, Georgios Papadopoulos, and Fausto Coppi. Among people deceased in 2013, Mikhail Kalashnikov ranks 3. Before him are Nelson Mandela, and Margaret Thatcher. After him are Hugo Chávez, Peter O'Toole, Fawzia Fuad of Egypt, Võ Nguyên Giáp, Jorge Rafael Videla, Doris Lessing, Heinrich Rohrer, Djalma Santos, and Giulio Andreotti.
Others Born in 1919
Go to all RankingsMohammad Reza Pahlavi
POLITICIAN
1919 - 1980
HPI: 78.58
Rank: 1
Eva Perón
POLITICIAN
1919 - 1952
HPI: 76.92
Rank: 2
Mikhail Kalashnikov
ENGINEER
1919 - 2013
HPI: 75.07
Rank: 3
Edmund Hillary
MOUNTAINEER
1919 - 2008
HPI: 73.44
Rank: 4
J. D. Salinger
WRITER
1919 - 2010
HPI: 73.17
Rank: 5
Primo Levi
WRITER
1919 - 1987
HPI: 70.88
Rank: 6
Doris Lessing
WRITER
1919 - 2013
HPI: 69.39
Rank: 7
Giulio Andreotti
POLITICIAN
1919 - 2013
HPI: 68.16
Rank: 8
Zhao Ziyang
POLITICIAN
1919 - 2005
HPI: 66.79
Rank: 9
Kim Jong-suk
POLITICIAN
1919 - 1949
HPI: 66.15
Rank: 10
Georgios Papadopoulos
POLITICIAN
1919 - 1999
HPI: 65.99
Rank: 11
Fausto Coppi
CYCLIST
1919 - 1960
HPI: 65.68
Rank: 12
Others Deceased in 2013
Go to all RankingsNelson Mandela
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1918 - 2013
HPI: 88.21
Rank: 1
Margaret Thatcher
POLITICIAN
1925 - 2013
HPI: 81.05
Rank: 2
Mikhail Kalashnikov
ENGINEER
1919 - 2013
HPI: 75.07
Rank: 3
Hugo Chávez
POLITICIAN
1954 - 2013
HPI: 72.47
Rank: 4
Peter O'Toole
ACTOR
1932 - 2013
HPI: 71.06
Rank: 5
Fawzia Fuad of Egypt
COMPANION
1921 - 2013
HPI: 70.90
Rank: 6
Võ Nguyên Giáp
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1911 - 2013
HPI: 70.88
Rank: 7
Jorge Rafael Videla
POLITICIAN
1925 - 2013
HPI: 70.10
Rank: 8
Doris Lessing
WRITER
1919 - 2013
HPI: 69.39
Rank: 9
Heinrich Rohrer
PHYSICIST
1933 - 2013
HPI: 68.24
Rank: 10
Djalma Santos
SOCCER PLAYER
1929 - 2013
HPI: 68.22
Rank: 11
Giulio Andreotti
POLITICIAN
1919 - 2013
HPI: 68.16
Rank: 12
In Russia
Among people born in Russia, Mikhail Kalashnikov ranks 50 out of 3,761. Before him are Vyacheslav Molotov (1890), Elizabeth of Russia (1709), Paul I of Russia (1754), Gustav Kirchhoff (1824), Modest Mussorgsky (1839), and Boris Pasternak (1890). After him are Andrei Sakharov (1921), Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov (1844), Georgy Malenkov (1902), Andrei Tarkovsky (1932), Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia (1895), and Vladimir the Great (958).
Others born in Russia
Go to all RankingsVyacheslav Molotov
POLITICIAN
1890 - 1986
HPI: 75.71
Rank: 44
Elizabeth of Russia
POLITICIAN
1709 - 1762
HPI: 75.66
Rank: 45
Paul I of Russia
POLITICIAN
1754 - 1801
HPI: 75.62
Rank: 46
Gustav Kirchhoff
PHYSICIST
1824 - 1887
HPI: 75.18
Rank: 47
Modest Mussorgsky
COMPOSER
1839 - 1881
HPI: 75.17
Rank: 48
Boris Pasternak
WRITER
1890 - 1960
HPI: 75.07
Rank: 49
Mikhail Kalashnikov
ENGINEER
1919 - 2013
HPI: 75.07
Rank: 50
Andrei Sakharov
PHYSICIST
1921 - 1989
HPI: 74.80
Rank: 51
Nikolai Rimsky-Korsakov
COMPOSER
1844 - 1908
HPI: 74.75
Rank: 52
Georgy Malenkov
POLITICIAN
1902 - 1988
HPI: 74.73
Rank: 53
Andrei Tarkovsky
FILM DIRECTOR
1932 - 1986
HPI: 74.60
Rank: 54
Grand Duchess Olga Nikolaevna of Russia
NOBLEMAN
1895 - 1918
HPI: 74.57
Rank: 55
Vladimir the Great
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
958 - 1015
HPI: 74.54
Rank: 56
Among ENGINEERS In Russia
Among engineers born in Russia, Mikhail Kalashnikov ranks 1. After him are Konstantin Tsiolkovsky (1857), Alexei Kosygin (1904), Anatoly Dyatlov (1931), Andrei Tupolev (1888), Sergey Ilyushin (1894), Viktor Belenko (1947), Nikolay Zhukovsky (1847), Mikhail Gurevich (1892), Mikhail Mil (1909), Alexander Sergeyevich Yakovlev (1906), and Fedor Tokarev (1871).
Mikhail Kalashnikov
1919 - 2013
HPI: 75.07
Rank: 1
Konstantin Tsiolkovsky
1857 - 1935
HPI: 70.36
Rank: 2
Alexei Kosygin
1904 - 1980
HPI: 67.81
Rank: 3
Anatoly Dyatlov
1931 - 1995
HPI: 67.42
Rank: 4
Andrei Tupolev
1888 - 1972
HPI: 65.49
Rank: 5
Sergey Ilyushin
1894 - 1977
HPI: 62.27
Rank: 6
Viktor Belenko
1947 - 2023
HPI: 60.64
Rank: 7
Nikolay Zhukovsky
1847 - 1921
HPI: 60.16
Rank: 8
Mikhail Gurevich
1892 - 1976
HPI: 59.25
Rank: 9
Mikhail Mil
1909 - 1970
HPI: 58.47
Rank: 10
Alexander Sergeyevich Yakovlev
1906 - 1989
HPI: 58.42
Rank: 11
Fedor Tokarev
1871 - 1968
HPI: 57.85
Rank: 12