Rank Name Influence

The central human figure of Islam, regarded by

Muslims as the messenger and last prophet of
1 Muhammad (570–632) God. Active as a social reformer, diplomat,
merchant, philosopher, orator, legislator, and
military leader.

English physicist, mathematician, astronomer,

natural philosopher, alchemist, and theologian.
Isaac Newton (1643–
2 His law of universal gravitation and three laws of
1727)
motion laid the groundwork for classical
mechanics.

The central figure of Christianity, revered by

Jesus Christ (7–2 BC – Christians as the Son of God and the incarnation
3
AD 26–36) of God. Also regarded as a major prophet in the
religion of Islam.

Gautama Buddha (563 Spiritual teacher and philosopher. Founder of

4
BC–483 BC) Buddhism.

Chinese thinker and social philosopher, whose

Confucius (551 BC– teachings and philosophy have deeply influenced
5
479 BC) Chinese, Korean, Japanese, and Vietnamese
thought and life.

One of the most notable of early Christian

6 St. Paul (5–67) missionaries, credited with spreading Christianity
outside of Israel .

Widely regarded as the inventor of paper and the

7 Cai Lun (50–121)
papermaking process.

8 Johannes Gutenberg German printer who invented the mechanical

 (1398–1468) printing press.

Italian navigator, colonizer and explorer whose

Christopher Columbus
9 voyages led to general European awareness of the
(1451–1506)
American continents.

German theoretical physicist, best known for his

Albert Einstein (1879–
10 theory of relativity and specifically mass–energy
1955)
equivalence, expressed by the equation E = mc2.