Who do you think is the most famous person in human history?

[WhiteFramesandPlanes]

Who has the most famous face? Voice? Is the most recognisable? Whether you like the person or not...

Neil Armstrong?

Jesus

jesus
Mohammed
hitler
Stalin
madonna
michael Jackson
Queen Elizabeth

I have no idea what point you’re making.

Michael Jackson

Why are people saying Michael Jackson?
Is he really known thought Africa and Asia?

Pretty sure of it.

Are you really young?

I keep thinking about that question people ask celebs - who would you invite to a dinner party?
That would be one stressful meal. Difficult seating arrangements for sure.

Um… she isn’t.

People really think the most famous person who has ever lived is Michael Jackson?

Can't help feeling you'd need one more to make the numbers even (because clearly that's the issue 🤣).

You'd probably best off adhering to the don't discuss politics or religion rule of etiquette too 🤔.

It needs Marilyn Monroe in there as well 😀

I think Diana could be up there too 🤔

Definitely not Diana my teen was like who's she a few weeks ago.
Shes gone 30 years.

The Brazilian or the Portuguese footballer? Footballers are only famous for a few years and I don't think either of them will have more lasting fame than Pele.

That said, it could well be someone current because of the explosion in the world's population since the Industrial Revolution and the increase in worldwide communication.

The Beatles are the biggest selling popstars ever so are likely to have the most famous voices. The most famous image of a person will be either Christ on the cross or Buddha. Both have fame that transcends their religious homelands.

Jesus of Nazareth.
Henry VIII.
Diana, Princess of Wales.
Adolf Hitler, but probably could be described more as ‘infamous’.

I doubt Diana will be more famous than the Queen.
The younger generation won't have a clue who she is.

I think Adolph Hitler would probably take the prize, or at least be in the top 5. Possibly more so because of his distinctly odd aesthetic than the fact that he started a world war. His appearance would be instantly recognisable to almost anyone across the globe, except for fairly remote places.

I agree that a lot of younger people wouldn't know who she was. Especially outside the UK. I also think that few outside the UK would have an awareness of Henry VIII.

I reckon Hitler is probably recognised quite widely, but I wonder how much the history of Nazi Germany features in history education in non-Western countries. I suspect the picture is quite mixed.

@Newname26 "The younger generation won't have a clue who she is."

That's quite a stretch. She's known as the mother of Harry and William for a start! She's also been portrayed on the TV series "The Crown" and viral clips of interviews with her are regularly featured on Tik Tok and Instagram. Gen Z have also started to take an interest in her fashion choices.

The thing is, even the question of whether the whole world would perceive that Hitler had "started a world war" is somewhat subjective.

We quite naturally frame things from a European perspective but the war in Asia started well before Hitler invaded Poland in 1939.

Its only the other week I had to explain to my teen who she was, after the flurry of interest from her brothers book.

I really don't think she will be well known outside the UK. Most of us would struggle to recognise royalty from other countries much beyond the King of Spain.