The 15 Smartest People in History

These are the most intelligent people in history according to their estimated IQ and abilities.

Who are considered the most intelligent people in the history of mankind? How is intellectual capacity or ability valued?

Libb Thims made a list in which he classified the forty most intelligent historical figures, taking into account their IQ score or an approximation of it and valuation of their works or successes.

However, the IQ value alone is not enough to classify an individual as gifted; other abilities must also be taken into consideration. Thus, it should be noted that the list was made by the author and despite trying to be as rigorous as possible, it is impossible to control the effect of subjectivity.

Below we will mention the methodology used by Libb Thims to make his classification, and we will review the most intelligent people included in the list.

Who are the most intelligent people in history?

To be able to carry out this classification, the North American engineer Libb Thims fixed as lower limit 200 points in the IQ, that is to say, he considered the score of 200 in IQ as minimum value to appear in his list.. We must bear in mind that from 130 IQ score is already considered well above average, corresponding to a "gifted" person. In order to complement this criterion, Thims also considered aptitudes, capacities and abilities in a specific area of knowledge or skill.

The problem with using IQ-based scoring, apart from the fact that it can be inaccurate in some instances, is that not all subjects who were applicants for the list had undergone this type of test to calculate it.. Thus, the author used the Cox methodology that predicts IQ according to how much each individual achieves every 10 years of his or her life. To supplement this methodology Thims reviewed the works of many of the applicants.

Thus, this list was formed by taking into account both the IQ score and the successes achieved by each individual. Despite Thims' intention to make the ranking as accurate as possible, it is still contentious and debatable.

1. Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832)

Johann Wolfgang von Goethe, considered the greatest German man of letters, was a playwright, novelist, poet and naturalist.. His novel Wilhelm Meister, which recounts the process of self-realization of the protagonist, was considered by Arthur Shopenhauer as one of the four best novels in history.

Libb Thims places it at the top of his list, and since there is no concrete score, made directly to the author, it is estimated, according to the methods mentioned above, that his IQ reached between 210 and 225 points.

2. Albert Einstein (1879-1955)

It is impossible to refer to the progress and evolution of science, specifically physics, without mentioning Albert Einstein. He is one of the most important and well-known physicists in the history of science..

Among many other contributions, he is credited with the world's best-known equation relating energy to mass: the energy of a body at rest is equal to the mass times the speed of light squared, and the Theory of Relativity, which states that the laws of physics are the same for all observers.

Second on Thims' list, his IQ is estimated to be between 205 and 225 points.He is estimated at 205 and 225 points, exceeding by 5 or 6 deviations the score required to be considered above average.

3. Leonardo da Vinci (1452-1519)

Leonardo da Vinci was a multifaceted artist known for his innumerable contributions to science, art and the humanities.. There are few areas where da Vinci did not explore. He had very innovative ideas for his time, and was also considered an engineer and inventor. In the art of painting he made many works, being the most recognized the Gioconda, the Last Supper or his famous drawing of the Vitruvian Man.

Taking into account and valuing different measures and contributions of his works, it is considered that da Vinci's IQ could range between 180 and 220. He is the third author in the list of Thims.

4. Isaac Newton (1642-1727)

Isaac Newton is world-renowned for his contributions to science and is considered by many to be the greatest scientist of all time. is considered by many to be the greatest scientist of all time.His work was revolutionary for his time. One of his best known and most important contributions to scientific development was the Law of Universal Gravitation.

As with the previous authors, it is estimated that Newton's IQ was between 190 and 200, placing him fourth on the list.

James Maxwell (1831-1879)

James Maxwell is known in the field of physics for formulating the classical theory of electromagnetic radiation, unifying for the first time electricity, magnetism, and the electromagnetic field.This theory unified electricity, magnetism and light for the first time, and is considered the second great unification of physics. Maxwell is considered the third best physicist only surpassed by Newton and Einstein.

He appears fifth in the list and his IQ is also very high, being estimated between 190 and 205 points.

6. Nicolaus Copernicus (1473-1543)

Nicolaus Copernicus is considered the founder of modern astronomy, as well as one of the most important authors of modern astronomy.astronomy, as well as one of the most important authors for the scientific revolution of the Renaissance. His most famous contribution, which changed humanity's view of the Solar System, was the heliocentric theory, which states that the planets, including the Earth, revolve around the Sun.

The seventh in the list, it is estimated that if he were tested to know his IQ, it would range between 160 and 200.

7. Carl Gauss (1777-1855)

Carl Gauss was a mathematician, astronomer and physicist, he is known for formulating the divergence theorem or Gauss' theorem.This theorem is considered one of the most important contributions to the field of electromagnetics; later, the aforementioned James Maxwell will use this theorem to constitute two of his four equations.

Taking into account different measurements, it is believed that his IQ could be as high as 250 or 300, thus exceeding 6 standard deviations. Thims ranks him eleventh.

8. Galileo Galilei (1564-1642)

Galileo Galilei is also linked to the scientific revolution and is considered the father of modern astronomy, modern physics and science.of modern physics and science. He developed the first law of motion and supported the heliocentric system proposed by Copernicus, already mentioned above. His contribution to the improvement of the telescope, which allowed him to make new astronomical observations, was also important.

He is the twelfth author according to Thims with an IQ estimated between 180 and 200.

9. Nikola Tesla (1856-1943)

Nikola Tesla was an inventor and engineer also known for his innumerable contributions to the field of electromagnetics.. His contributions served as the basis for modern systems for the use of alternating current electrical energy.

Ranked fourteenth on the list, it is believed that with the use of different measures, his IQ could range from 160 to 310.

10. William Shakespeare (1564-1616)

William Shakespeare was considered a playwright, poet and actor, being one of the most relevant writers of the one of the most important writers of world literature and the most important in the English language.. He is known worldwide for his play Romeo and Juliet.

Thims estimated his IQ to be close to a score of 210, thus appearing at number fifteen on the list.

11. Terence Tao (1975-)

Terence Tao is a mathematician, and at the age of 24 he became a professor at the University of California in Los Angeles. His high capacities were already visible at a very early age, and in the course of his career, he has been awarded several times, most notably the Fields Medal or International Medal for Outstanding Discoveries in Mathematics.. Likewise, in 2020 he was elected Australian of the Year.

His IQ score ranges between 211 and 233, placing him twenty-first in the ranking.

12. Hypatia (370-415)

Hypatia was a philosopher and teacher who excelled in the fields of mathematics and astronomy.. Considered one of the first women mathematicians, her teachings based on rationality created detractors, being finally accused and murdered by the Christians. Her works were lost along with the entire library of Alexandria.

Ranked twenty-second, she is estimated to have an IQ between 170 and 210.

13. Marie Curie (1867-1934)

Marie Curie is known worldwide for her research in the field of radioactivity.. Among other contributions, Marie Curie and her husband Pierre Curie, stated that if the human being was exposed to radium, the diseased cells that formed tumors were destroyed faster than healthy cells. She also stood out for being the first person to receive two Nobel Prizes in different fields, first in Physics and later in Chemistry.

His IQ was between 180 and 200, placing him in the twenty-fifth place in Thim's list.

14. Francis Galton (1822-1911)

Francis Galton has an extensive oeuvre of more than 340 articles and books.. He was interested in different fields of study where Anthropology, Geography and Psychology stand out. Cousin of the well-known scientist Charles Darwin, he focused mainly on the study of human beings, their intelligence and individual differences.

Applying different measures Thims believes that Galton had an IQ of 200, ranking him twenty-sixth.

15. Edith Stern (1952-)

Edith Stern is an inventor and mathematician, named master inventor by the International Business Machines Corporation (IBM).. She is also known because her father trained and educated her from a very young age to be the "perfect human being", a project they called the Edith Stern Project, since her father believed that being a genius was not a genetic question but depended on how the child was educated.

Stern is ranked twenty-eighth on the list with an IQ of 203.