INVENTOR
Thomas Edison
1847 - 1931
Thomas Edison
Thomas Alva Edison (February 11, 1847 – October 18, 1931) was an American inventor and businessman. He developed many devices in fields such as electric power generation, mass communication, sound recording, and motion pictures. These inventions, which include the phonograph, the motion picture camera, and early versions of the electric light bulb, have had a widespread impact on the modern industrialized world. Read more on Wikipedia
Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Thomas Edison has received more than 26,362,375 page views. His biography is available in 181 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 176 in 2019). Thomas Edison is the 3rd most popular inventor (down from 2nd in 2019), the 3rd most popular biography from United States (down from 1st in 2019) and the most popular American Inventor.
Thomas Edison is most famous for inventing the electric light bulb.
Memorability Metrics
26M
Page Views (PV)
91.15
Historical Popularity Index (HPI)
181
Languages Editions (L)
17.18
Effective Languages (L*)
5.00
Coefficient of Variation (CV)
Among INVENTORS
Among inventors, Thomas Edison ranks 3 out of 426. Before him are Leonardo da Vinci, and Nikola Tesla. After him are Johannes Gutenberg, James Watt, Elon Musk, Alexander Graham Bell, Karl Benz, Henry Ford, Guglielmo Marconi, Charles Babbage, and Louis Braille.
Most Popular Inventors in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsLeonardo da Vinci
1452 - 1519
HPI: 96.43
Rank: 1
Nikola Tesla
1856 - 1943
HPI: 92.05
Rank: 2
Thomas Edison
1847 - 1931
HPI: 91.15
Rank: 3
Johannes Gutenberg
1394 - 1468
HPI: 89.93
Rank: 4
James Watt
1736 - 1819
HPI: 87.45
Rank: 5
Elon Musk
1971 - Present
HPI: 84.81
Rank: 6
Alexander Graham Bell
1847 - 1922
HPI: 83.60
Rank: 7
Karl Benz
1844 - 1929
HPI: 82.69
Rank: 8
Henry Ford
1863 - 1947
HPI: 82.10
Rank: 9
Guglielmo Marconi
1874 - 1937
HPI: 82.07
Rank: 10
Charles Babbage
1791 - 1871
HPI: 81.43
Rank: 11
Louis Braille
1809 - 1852
HPI: 81.33
Rank: 12
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1847, Thomas Edison ranks 1. After him are Alexander Graham Bell, Paul von Hindenburg, Bram Stoker, Otto Wallach, Maria Feodorovna, Jesse James, Auguste Escoffier, Joseph Pulitzer, Duchess Sophie Charlotte in Bavaria, Georges Sorel, and Ferdinand Walsin Esterhazy. Among people deceased in 1931, Thomas Edison ranks 1. After him are Gustave Le Bon, Khalil Gibran, Anna Pavlova, Otto Wallach, Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca, Omar Mukhtar, Albert A. Michelson, Arthur Schnitzler, Geli Raubal, Lili Elbe, and Joseph Joffre.
Others Born in 1847
Go to all RankingsThomas Edison
INVENTOR
1847 - 1931
HPI: 91.15
Rank: 1
Alexander Graham Bell
INVENTOR
1847 - 1922
HPI: 83.60
Rank: 2
Paul von Hindenburg
POLITICIAN
1847 - 1934
HPI: 81.71
Rank: 3
Bram Stoker
WRITER
1847 - 1912
HPI: 76.13
Rank: 4
Otto Wallach
CHEMIST
1847 - 1931
HPI: 75.52
Rank: 5
Maria Feodorovna
COMPANION
1847 - 1928
HPI: 73.99
Rank: 6
Jesse James
MAFIOSO
1847 - 1882
HPI: 72.44
Rank: 7
Auguste Escoffier
WRITER
1847 - 1935
HPI: 72.41
Rank: 8
Joseph Pulitzer
JOURNALIST
1847 - 1911
HPI: 71.89
Rank: 9
Duchess Sophie Charlotte in Bavaria
POLITICIAN
1847 - 1897
HPI: 71.13
Rank: 10
Georges Sorel
PHILOSOPHER
1847 - 1922
HPI: 70.77
Rank: 11
Ferdinand Walsin Esterhazy
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1847 - 1923
HPI: 68.99
Rank: 12
Others Deceased in 1931
Go to all RankingsThomas Edison
INVENTOR
1847 - 1931
HPI: 91.15
Rank: 1
Gustave Le Bon
PSYCHOLOGIST
1841 - 1931
HPI: 77.08
Rank: 2
Khalil Gibran
WRITER
1883 - 1931
HPI: 76.61
Rank: 3
Anna Pavlova
DANCER
1881 - 1931
HPI: 75.94
Rank: 4
Otto Wallach
CHEMIST
1847 - 1931
HPI: 75.52
Rank: 5
Hussein bin Ali, Sharif of Mecca
POLITICIAN
1853 - 1931
HPI: 75.33
Rank: 6
Omar Mukhtar
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1858 - 1931
HPI: 74.99
Rank: 7
Albert A. Michelson
PHYSICIST
1852 - 1931
HPI: 74.06
Rank: 8
Arthur Schnitzler
WRITER
1862 - 1931
HPI: 73.80
Rank: 9
Geli Raubal
CELEBRITY
1908 - 1931
HPI: 73.61
Rank: 10
Lili Elbe
PAINTER
1882 - 1931
HPI: 72.80
Rank: 11
Joseph Joffre
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1852 - 1931
HPI: 72.34
Rank: 12
In United States
Among people born in United States, Thomas Edison ranks 3 out of 20,380. Before him are Donald Trump (1946), and Thomas Jefferson (1743). After him are Muhammad Ali (1942), Jimmy Carter (1924), Michael Jackson (1958), Richard Nixon (1913), Edgar Allan Poe (1809), Sylvester Stallone (1946), Steve Jobs (1955), Andrew Jackson (1767), and Marilyn Monroe (1926).
Others born in United States
Go to all RankingsDonald Trump
POLITICIAN
1946 - Present
HPI: 94.16
Rank: 1
Thomas Jefferson
POLITICIAN
1743 - 1826
HPI: 91.57
Rank: 2
Thomas Edison
INVENTOR
1847 - 1931
HPI: 91.15
Rank: 3
Muhammad Ali
BOXER
1942 - 2016
HPI: 91.08
Rank: 4
Jimmy Carter
POLITICIAN
1924 - 2024
HPI: 90.99
Rank: 5
Michael Jackson
MUSICIAN
1958 - 2009
HPI: 90.81
Rank: 6
Richard Nixon
POLITICIAN
1913 - 1994
HPI: 90.77
Rank: 7
Edgar Allan Poe
WRITER
1809 - 1849
HPI: 90.21
Rank: 8
Sylvester Stallone
ACTOR
1946 - Present
HPI: 89.24
Rank: 9
Steve Jobs
DESIGNER
1955 - 2011
HPI: 88.49
Rank: 10
Andrew Jackson
POLITICIAN
1767 - 1845
HPI: 88.42
Rank: 11
Marilyn Monroe
ACTOR
1926 - 1962
HPI: 88.12
Rank: 12
Among INVENTORS In United States
Among inventors born in United States, Thomas Edison ranks 1. After him are Henry Ford (1863), Samuel Morse (1791), Samuel Colt (1814), Steve Wozniak (1950), Eli Whitney (1765), George Westinghouse (1846), Robert Fulton (1765), Ruth Handler (1916), Jimmy Wales (1966), Willis Carrier (1876), and Herman Hollerith (1860).
Thomas Edison
1847 - 1931
HPI: 91.15
Rank: 1
Henry Ford
1863 - 1947
HPI: 82.10
Rank: 2
Samuel Morse
1791 - 1872
HPI: 79.87
Rank: 3
Samuel Colt
1814 - 1862
HPI: 74.94
Rank: 4
Steve Wozniak
1950 - Present
HPI: 74.37
Rank: 5
Eli Whitney
1765 - 1825
HPI: 73.88
Rank: 6
George Westinghouse
1846 - 1914
HPI: 73.81
Rank: 7
Robert Fulton
1765 - 1815
HPI: 73.65
Rank: 8
Ruth Handler
1916 - 2002
HPI: 72.88
Rank: 9
Jimmy Wales
1966 - Present
HPI: 72.80
Rank: 10
Willis Carrier
1876 - 1950
HPI: 72.50
Rank: 11
Herman Hollerith
1860 - 1929
HPI: 72.46
Rank: 12