WRITER
Henry David Thoreau
1817 - 1862

Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau (born David Henry Thoreau; July 12, 1817 – May 6, 1862) was an American naturalist, essayist, poet, and philosopher. A leading transcendentalist, he is best known for his book Walden, a reflection upon simple living in natural surroundings, and his essay "Civil Disobedience" (originally published as "Resistance to Civil Government"), an argument in favor of citizen disobedience against an unjust state. Thoreau's books, articles, essays, journals, and poetry amount to more than 20 volumes. Among his lasting contributions are his writings on natural history and philosophy, in which he anticipated the methods and findings of ecology and environmental history, two sources of modern-day environmentalism. Read more on Wikipedia
His biography is available in different languages on Wikipedia. Henry David Thoreau is the 149th most popular writer (down from 91st in 2019), the 131st most popular biography from United States (down from 70th in 2019) and the 17th most popular American Writer.
Henry David Thoreau is most famous for his book Walden, in which he describes the two years he spent living in a cabin near Walden Pond.
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Among WRITERS
Among writers, Henry David Thoreau ranks 149 out of 7,302. Before him are Yukio Mishima, Karl Adolph Gjellerup, E. T. A. Hoffmann, Cato the Elder, Cyrano de Bergerac, and Vladimir Nabokov. After him are Diogenes Laërtius, Emily Brontë, Carlo Collodi, Plautus, Yasunari Kawabata, and H. P. Lovecraft.
Most Popular Writers in Wikipedia
Go to all RankingsYukio Mishima
1925 - 1970
HPI: 79.92
Rank: 143
Karl Adolph Gjellerup
1857 - 1919
HPI: 79.92
Rank: 144
E. T. A. Hoffmann
1776 - 1822
HPI: 79.88
Rank: 145
Cato the Elder
243 BC - 149 BC
HPI: 79.82
Rank: 146
Cyrano de Bergerac
1619 - 1655
HPI: 79.80
Rank: 147
Vladimir Nabokov
1899 - 1977
HPI: 79.76
Rank: 148
Henry David Thoreau
1817 - 1862
HPI: 79.75
Rank: 149
Diogenes Laërtius
180 - 240
HPI: 79.75
Rank: 150
Emily Brontë
1818 - 1848
HPI: 79.72
Rank: 151
Carlo Collodi
1826 - 1890
HPI: 79.68
Rank: 152
Plautus
254 BC - 184 BC
HPI: 79.62
Rank: 153
Yasunari Kawabata
1899 - 1972
HPI: 79.61
Rank: 154
H. P. Lovecraft
1890 - 1937
HPI: 79.50
Rank: 155
Contemporaries
Among people born in 1817, Henry David Thoreau ranks 3. Before him are Bahá'u'lláh, and Theodor Mommsen. After him are Ivan Aivazovsky, William III of the Netherlands, Syed Ahmad Khan, Louise of Hesse-Kassel, Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg, Charles-François Daubigny, Charles Adolphe Wurtz, Carl Nägeli, and Archduke Albrecht, Duke of Teschen. Among people deceased in 1862, Henry David Thoreau ranks 3. Before him are Martin Van Buren, and Bahadur Shah Zafar. After him are Samuel Colt, John Tyler, Jean-Baptiste Biot, Mikhail Ostrogradsky, Fromental Halévy, Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz, Božena Němcová, James Clark Ross, and Princess Maria Antonia Koháry.
Others Born in 1817
Go to all RankingsBahá'u'lláh
RELIGIOUS FIGURE
1817 - 1892
HPI: 81.34
Rank: 1
Theodor Mommsen
ARCHAEOLOGIST
1817 - 1903
HPI: 80.87
Rank: 2
Henry David Thoreau
WRITER
1817 - 1862
HPI: 79.75
Rank: 3
Ivan Aivazovsky
PAINTER
1817 - 1900
HPI: 75.82
Rank: 4
William III of the Netherlands
POLITICIAN
1817 - 1890
HPI: 75.63
Rank: 5
Syed Ahmad Khan
SOCIAL ACTIVIST
1817 - 1898
HPI: 73.23
Rank: 6
Louise of Hesse-Kassel
COMPANION
1817 - 1898
HPI: 72.25
Rank: 7
Adolphe, Grand Duke of Luxembourg
POLITICIAN
1817 - 1905
HPI: 71.96
Rank: 8
Charles-François Daubigny
PAINTER
1817 - 1878
HPI: 71.74
Rank: 9
Charles Adolphe Wurtz
CHEMIST
1817 - 1884
HPI: 70.58
Rank: 10
Carl Nägeli
BIOLOGIST
1817 - 1891
HPI: 69.73
Rank: 11
Archduke Albrecht, Duke of Teschen
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1817 - 1895
HPI: 68.83
Rank: 12
Others Deceased in 1862
Go to all RankingsMartin Van Buren
POLITICIAN
1782 - 1862
HPI: 88.89
Rank: 1
Bahadur Shah Zafar
POLITICIAN
1775 - 1862
HPI: 80.20
Rank: 2
Henry David Thoreau
WRITER
1817 - 1862
HPI: 79.75
Rank: 3
Samuel Colt
INVENTOR
1814 - 1862
HPI: 74.94
Rank: 4
John Tyler
POLITICIAN
1790 - 1862
HPI: 73.84
Rank: 5
Jean-Baptiste Biot
PHYSICIST
1774 - 1862
HPI: 73.58
Rank: 6
Mikhail Ostrogradsky
MATHEMATICIAN
1801 - 1862
HPI: 69.33
Rank: 7
Fromental Halévy
COMPOSER
1799 - 1862
HPI: 69.15
Rank: 8
Alfred I, Prince of Windisch-Grätz
MILITARY PERSONNEL
1787 - 1862
HPI: 68.09
Rank: 9
Božena Němcová
WRITER
1820 - 1862
HPI: 67.91
Rank: 10
James Clark Ross
EXPLORER
1800 - 1862
HPI: 67.68
Rank: 11
Princess Maria Antonia Koháry
COMPOSER
1797 - 1862
HPI: 67.58
Rank: 12
In United States
Among people born in United States, Henry David Thoreau ranks 131 out of 20,380. Before him are Woodrow Wilson (1856), Gerald Ford (1913), Charles Bronson (1921), D. W. Griffith (1875), Isadora Duncan (1877), and Lyndon B. Johnson (1908). After him are Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis (1929), Michael Douglas (1944), Noam Chomsky (1928), H. P. Lovecraft (1890), Liliʻuokalani (1838), and Philip Warren Anderson (1923).
Others born in United States
Go to all RankingsWoodrow Wilson
POLITICIAN
1856 - 1924
HPI: 79.93
Rank: 125
Gerald Ford
POLITICIAN
1913 - 2006
HPI: 79.91
Rank: 126
Charles Bronson
ACTOR
1921 - 2003
HPI: 79.90
Rank: 127
D. W. Griffith
FILM DIRECTOR
1875 - 1948
HPI: 79.78
Rank: 128
Isadora Duncan
DANCER
1877 - 1927
HPI: 79.77
Rank: 129
Lyndon B. Johnson
POLITICIAN
1908 - 1973
HPI: 79.76
Rank: 130
Henry David Thoreau
WRITER
1817 - 1862
HPI: 79.75
Rank: 131
Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis
COMPANION
1929 - 1994
HPI: 79.53
Rank: 132
Michael Douglas
ACTOR
1944 - Present
HPI: 79.51
Rank: 133
Noam Chomsky
LINGUIST
1928 - Present
HPI: 79.50
Rank: 134
H. P. Lovecraft
WRITER
1890 - 1937
HPI: 79.50
Rank: 135
Liliʻuokalani
NOBLEMAN
1838 - 1917
HPI: 79.39
Rank: 136
Philip Warren Anderson
PHYSICIST
1923 - 2020
HPI: 79.35
Rank: 137
Among WRITERS In United States
Among writers born in United States, Henry David Thoreau ranks 17. Before him are Louisa May Alcott (1832), Ursula K. Le Guin (1929), Jack London (1876), Stephen King (1947), Ezra Pound (1885), and Dr. Seuss (1904). After him are H. P. Lovecraft (1890), William Faulkner (1897), John Steinbeck (1902), David Woodard (1964), Pearl S. Buck (1892), and Ray Bradbury (1920).
Louisa May Alcott
1832 - 1888
HPI: 81.95
Rank: 11
Ursula K. Le Guin
1929 - 2018
HPI: 81.89
Rank: 12
Jack London
1876 - 1916
HPI: 81.73
Rank: 13
Stephen King
1947 - Present
HPI: 81.49
Rank: 14
Ezra Pound
1885 - 1972
HPI: 80.47
Rank: 15
Dr. Seuss
1904 - 1991
HPI: 79.94
Rank: 16
Henry David Thoreau
1817 - 1862
HPI: 79.75
Rank: 17
H. P. Lovecraft
1890 - 1937
HPI: 79.50
Rank: 18
William Faulkner
1897 - 1962
HPI: 78.87
Rank: 19
John Steinbeck
1902 - 1968
HPI: 78.61
Rank: 20
David Woodard
1964 - Present
HPI: 78.20
Rank: 21
Pearl S. Buck
1892 - 1973
HPI: 77.88
Rank: 22
Ray Bradbury
1920 - 2012
HPI: 77.38
Rank: 23