Pakistan is the sixth most populous country around the world. We are going to know about the Top 20 most Famous Pakistani People of all time. The list of Top 20 Famous personalities of Pakistan sorted by the Historical Popularity Index (HPI) of Pantheon.
Famous Personalities of Pakistan 2023
These the top 20 most Famous Pakistani Personalities made contributions in Pakistan’s honor and are known around the world! This article contains all types of people from the Islamic Republic of Pakistan. The names of these people are ranked according to Pantheon’s ‘Historical Popularity Index’ (HPI) 2022.
The Father of Pakistan Muhammad Ali Jinnah is ranked second in this list! Can you guess Who is the Most Famous Pakistani of All Time ?
Top 20 Most Famous People In Pakistan
The following 20 individuals are the most famous Pakistani Personalities of all time, according to HPI of 2022. The highest HPI is 100, and we have listed people with HPI over 49.
Famous Personalities of Pakistan with Pictures
20. Tariq Ali (HPI : 49.51)
With an HPI of 49.51, Tariq Ali is ranked 20th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 33 different languages of Wikipedia.
Tariq Ali (born 21 October 1943) is a Pakistani-British political activist, writer, journalist, historian, filmmaker, and public intellectual.
He is a member of the editorial committee of the New Left Review and Sin Permiso, and contributes to The Guardian, CounterPunch, and the London Review of Books. He read Philosophy, Politics, and Economics at Exeter College, Oxford.
19. Muhammad Rafiq Tarar (HPI : 49.70)
With an HPI of 49.70, Muhammad Rafiq Tarar is ranked 19th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 41 different languages of Wikipedia.
Muhammad Rafiq Tarar (2 November 1929 – 7 March 2022) was a Pakistani politician and jurist who served as the ninth president of Pakistan from January 1998 until his resignation in June 2001, and prior to that as a senator from Punjab in 1997.
Before entering politics, Tarar served as senior justice of the Supreme Court of Pakistan from 1991 to 1994 and as the 28th Chief Justice of Lahore High Court from 1989 to 1991.
18. Malala Yousafzai (HPI : 49.71)
With an HPI of 49.71, Malala Yousafzai is ranked 18th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. Her biography has been translated into 118 different languages of Wikipedia. She is one of the most proudest Pakistani personalities.
Malala Yousafzai (born 12 July 1997) is a Pakistani female education activist and the 2014 Nobel Peace Prize laureate. Awarded when she was 17, she is the world’s youngest Nobel Prize laureate, and the second Pakistani and the first Pashtun to receive a Nobel Prize.
She is known for human rights advocacy, especially the education of women and children in her native homeland, Swat, where the Pakistani Taliban have at times banned girls from attending school.
Her advocacy has grown into an international movement, and according to former Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, she has become Pakistan’s “most prominent citizen.”
17. Faiz Ahmed Faiz (HPI : 50.12)
With an HPI of 50.12, Faiz Ahmad Faiz is ranked 17th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 29 different languages of Wikipedia.
Faiz Ahmad Faiz (13 February 1911 – 20 November 1984) was a Pakistani poet, and author of Urdu and Punjabi literature. Faiz was one of the most celebrated Pakistani Urdu writers of his time.
Outside literature, he has been described as “a man of wide experience” having been a teacher, an army officer, a journalist, a trade unionist and a broadcaster.
16. Ghulam Ishaq Khan (HPI : 50.77)
With an HPI of 50.77, Ghulam Ishaq Khan is ranked 16th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 41 different languages of Wikipedia.
Ghulam Ishaq Khan (20 January 1915 – 27 October 2006), was a Pakistani bureaucrat who served as the seventh president of Pakistan, elected in 1988 following Zia’s death until his resignation in 1993. He was the founder of his namesake Ghulam Ishaq Khan Institute.
15. Nawaz Sharif (HPI : 51.33)
With an HPI of 51.33, Nawaz Sharif is ranked 15th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 69 different languages of Wikipedia.
Nawaz Sharif (born 25 December 1949) is a Pakistani businessman and politician who has served as the Prime Minister of Pakistan for three non-consecutive terms.
He is the longest-serving prime minister of Pakistan, having served a total of more than 9 years across three tenures. Each term has ended in his ousting. He is one of the most famous pakistani leaders.
14. Yahya Khan (HPI : 53.39)
With an HPI of 53.39, Yahya Khan is ranked 14th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 51 different languages of Wikipedia.
General Agha Muhammad Yahya Khan (4 February 1917 – 10 August 1980); commonly known as Yahya Khan, was a Pakistani military general who served as the third President of Pakistan and Chief Martial Law Administrator following his predecessor Ayub Khan’s resignation from 25 March 1969 until his resignation on 20 December 1971.
During his dictatorship, he ordered Operation Searchlight in an effort to suppress Bengali nationalism which triggered the Bangladesh Liberation War.
He was central to the perpetration of the Bangladesh genocide, the genocide of the populace of modern-day Bangladesh which resulted in death of 300,000–3,000,000 Bengalis.
13. Liaquat Ali Khan (HPI : 54.27)
With an HPI of 54.27, Liaquat Ali Khan is ranked 13th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 57 different languages of Wikipedia.
Liaquat Ali Khan (1 October 1895 – 16 October 1951), also referred to in Pakistan as Quaid-e-Millat (‘Leader of the Nation’) or Shaheed-e-Millat (‘Martyr of the Nation’), was a Pakistani statesman, lawyer, political theorist, and one of the leading founding fathers of Pakistan.
On 15 August 1947, one day after independence, Khan became the first prime minister of Pakistan; he also held cabinet portfolio as the first foreign minister, defence minister, and frontier regions minister from 1947 until his assassination in 1951.
Prior to the part, Khan briefly tenured as the first Indian finance minister in the Interim Government that undertook independence of Pakistan and India, led by Louis Mountbatten, the then-Viceroy of India.
12. Yayub Khan (HPI : 54.69)
With an HPI of 54.69, Ayub Khan is ranked 12th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 60 different languages of Wikipedia.
Muhammad Ayub Khan (14 May 1907 – 19 April 1974), was the second President of Pakistan. He was an army general who seized the presidency from Iskander Mirza in a coup in 1958, the first successful coup d’état in the country’s history.
Popular demonstrations and labour strikes supported by the protests in East Pakistan ultimately led to his forced resignation in 1969.
During his presidency, differences between East and West Pakistan arose to an enormous degree, that ultimately led to the Independence of East Pakistan. He was one of the most famous pakistani leaders.
11. Abdul Ghaffar Khan (HPI : 57.32)
With an HPI of 57.32, Abdul Ghaffar Khan is ranked 11th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 40 different languages of Wikipedia.
Abdul Ghaffār Khān (6 February 1890 – 20 January 1988), also known as Bacha Khan (‘King of Chiefs’) or Badshah Khan and honourably addressed as Fakhr-e-Afghan (‘Pride of Afghans’), was a Pakistani Pashtun, independence activist, and founder of the Khudai Khidmatgar resistance movement against British colonial rule in India.
He was a political and spiritual leader known for his nonviolent opposition and lifelong pacifism; he was a devout Muslim and an advocate for Hindu–Muslim unity in the subcontinent.
Top 10 Famous Personalities of Pakistan
10. Imran Khan (HPI : 58.43)
With an HPI of 58.43, Imran Khan is ranked 10th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 80 different languages of Wikipedia. He is the Most Famous living Pakistani Leader.
Imran Khan (born 5 October 1952) is a Pakistani former cricketer and politician who served as the 22nd prime minister of Pakistan from August 2018 until April 2022.
He is the founder and chairman of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI). He is one of the most famous pakistani leaders.
9. Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (HPI : 59.50)
With an HPI of 59.50, Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq is ranked 9th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 61 different languages of Wikipedia.
Muhammad Zia-ul-Haq (12 August 1924 – 17 August 1988) was a Pakistani four-star general and politician who became the sixth President of Pakistan following a coup and declaration of martial law in 1977.
Zia served in office until his death in a plane crash in 1988. He remains the country’s longest-serving de facto head of state and Chief of Army Staff.
8. Mamnoon Hussain (HPI : 59.93)
With an HPI of 59.93, Mamnoon Hussain is ranked 8th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 61 different languages of Wikipedia.
Mamnoon Hussain (22 December 1941 – 14 July 2021) was a Pakistani politician and industrialist who served as the 12th president of Pakistan from 2013 to 2018.
He was first appointed Governor of Sindh in June 1999 by President Rafiq Tarar; but was removed from the post in October 1999 due to the 1999 military coup d’état. Hussain was then nominated for the presidency by the PMLN in July 2013 and was elected through an indirect presidential election.
Hussain took over the presidency after an oath administered by the Chief Justice of Pakistan on 9 September 2013. Hussain maintained a low-key profile as president and his role was rarely seen in the nation’s politics, although he was involved in a polio eradication program.
7. Abdul Qadeer Khan (HPI : 60.45)
With an HPI of 60.45, Abdul Qadeer Khan is ranked 7th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 38 different languages of Wikipedia..
Abdul Qadeer Khan (1 April 1936 – 10 October 2021) was a Pakistani nuclear physicist and metallurgical engineer. He was a key figure in Pakistan’s nuclear weapons program and is colloquially known as the “Father of Pakistan’s atomic weapons program”. He is a national hero in Pakistan.
6. Aga Khan III (HPI : 60.55)
With an HPI of 60.55, Aga Khan III is ranked 6th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 33 different languages of Wikipedia.
Sultan Muhammad Shah (2 November 1877 – 11 July 1957), commonly known by his religious title Aga Khan III, was the 48th Imam of the Nizariyya. He played an important role in British Indian politics.
He was educated at the Eton College and the University of Cambridge. He succeeded his father as the Imam in 1885 and worked to receive homage of his followers.
In 1906, Aga Khan III became a founding member of the All-India Muslim League in British India. In 1932, he was nominated by the League of Nations to represent India and subsequently served as the president of the League of Nations from 1937 to 1938.
5. Parvez Musharraf (HPI : 61.34)
With an HPI of 61.34, General Pervez Musharraf is ranked 5th among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 88 different languages of Wikipedia. He is the most Famous living personality of Pakistan.
General Pervez Musharraf (11 August 1943 – 5 February 2023) was a Pakistani politician and four-star general of the Pakistan Army who became the tenth president of Pakistan after the successful military takeover of the federal government in 1999.
He also served as the 10th Chairman Joint Chiefs of Staff Committee from 1998 to 2001 and the 7th Chief of Army Staff from 1998 to 2007. He was the most famous living Pakistani leader.
4. Abdus Salam (HPI : 61.65)
With an HPI of 61.65, Mohammad Abdus Salam is ranked 4th among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 78 different languages of Wikipedia. He is one of the most proudest Pakistani personalities.
Mohammad Abdus Salam (29 January 1926 – 21 November 1996) was a Punjabi Pakistani theoretical physicist and a Nobel Prize laureate.
He shared the 1979 Nobel Prize in Physics with Sheldon Glashow and Steven Weinberg for his contribution to the electroweak unification theory.
He was the first Pakistani and the first from an Islamic country to receive a Nobel Prize in science and the second from an Islamic country to receive any Nobel Prize, after Anwar Sadat of Egypt.
3. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto (HPI : 62.72)
With an HPI of 62.72, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto is ranked 3rd among the most Famous personalities of Pakistan of all time. His biography has been translated into 77 different languages of Wikipedia.
Zulfikar (or Zulfiqar) Ali Bhutto (5 January 1928 – 4 April 1979), also known as Quaid-e-Awam (“the People’s Leader”), was a Pakistani barrister and politician who served as the fourth President from 1971 to 1973, and later as the ninth Prime Minister of Pakistan from 1973 to 1977.
His government drafted the Constitution of Pakistan in 1973, which remains in effect. He was the founder of the Pakistan People’s Party (PPP) and served as its chairman until his execution.
His daughter, Benazir Bhutto later led the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) and was the 11th and 13th Prime Minister of Pakistan; his grandson, Bilawal Bhutto Zardari is the current chairman of the PPP, and is serving as the Foreign Minister of Pakistan.
- Top 20 Most viewed Personalities on Hindi Wikipedia in 2021 (in Hindi)
- Top 30 Most Famous Indian Personalities by number of Wikipedia articles (in Hindi)
2. Muhammad Ali Jinnah (HPI : 63.47)
With an HPI of 63.47, Muhammad Ali Jinnah is ranked 2nd among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. His biography has been translated into 97 different languages of Wikipedia.
Muhammad Ali Jinnah (25 December 1876 – 11 September 1948) was a barrister, politician, and the founder of Pakistan.
Jinnah served as the leader of the All-India Muslim League from 1913 until the inception of Pakistan on 14 August 1947, and then as the Dominion of Pakistan’s first governor-general until his death.
He is revered in Pakistan as the Baba-e-Qaum (“Father of the Nation”). He is one of the most famous pakistani leaders.
1. Benazir Bhutto (HPI : 65.78)
With an HPI of 65.78, Benazir Bhutto is ranked 1st among the most Famous Pakistani People of all time. Her biography has been translated into 115 different languages of Wikipedia.
Benazir Bhutto (21 June 1953 – 27 December 2007) was a Pakistani politician who served as the 11th and 13th prime minister of Pakistan from 1988 to 1990 and again from 1993 to 1996.
She was the first woman elected to head a democratic government in a Muslim-majority country. Ideologically a liberal and a secularist, she chaired or co-chaired the Pakistan Peoples Party (PPP) from the early 1980s until her assassination in 2007.
She is the most famous pakistani leader. Benazir Bhutto is the Most famous Pakistani person in the world.
Note : Pakistan Movement leader and famous Indian poet Mohammad Iqbal (1877 – 1938), who has a Historical Popularity Index of 65.93, is not included in these 20 most popular Pakistani personalities. Because he died before the creation of Pakistan. But had he been on the list, he would have been ranked ‘first‘ ahead of Benazir Bhutto and Mohammad Ali Jinnah.
See also
- Top 20 Most Famous American People
- Top 20 Most Famous British People
- Top 25 Most Famous Chinese People
- Top 20 Most Famous French People
- Top 20 Most Famous German People
- Top 30 Most Famous Indian People
- Top 20 Most Famous Pakistani People
- Top 20 Most Famous Russian People
About Historical Popularity Index
Pantheon aggregates information about individuals’ online popularity. HPI is currently made of five components: the “age” of a biography’s character (e.g. The Prophet Muhammad is more than 1,400 years old), number of Wikipedia language editions in which the biography has a presence (L), the concentration of the pageviews received by a biography across languages (L*), the stability of pageviews over time (CV), and the number of non-English pageviews received by that biography.
Summary
Tell us how you liked this article? Who else do you think should have been on this list?
If you have any suggestion or want to know Historical Popularity Index (HPI) of any other Pakistani person then you can ask us by email or in comment box.
If there are grammatical mistakes or other errors in this article, please let us know in the comment box or by email. Thank you.
FAQs
Que : Who is the most famous person in Pakistan ? / Most famous Pakistani person in the world ? / Most famous person in Pakistan 2022 ?
Ans : Benazir Bhutto is the most famous person in Pakistan.
Que : Who is the most famous living person in Pakistan ?
Ans : Imran Khan is the most famous living person in Pakistan.
Que : Who are the most famous living personalities of Pakistan? (Famous personalities of Pakistan alive)
Ans : Imran Khan, Nawaz Sharif, Malala Yousafzai, and Tariq Ali are the most famous living personalities of Pakistan.
Sources
(You can also follow us on Facebookto get all the updates on Dhamma Bharat.)