# Any Famous Athiests? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [May 25, 2009, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617 "2009-05-25T22:55:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 10:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/1 "2009-05-25T22:55:20Z")
Is there anyone who’s known for being an athiest? I am writing something and I’d like to get some ideas of people who would be known for being an athiest. I am not sure anyone really qualifies, but I thought I’d ask. Like “Gus Hall,” and “Angela Davis,” were pretty well known for being Communists. And if you think of the name Squeaky Fromme, you think of crazy lady. I guess what I’m looking for is a name of a person, when you think of him/her would be instantly associated with the term “athiest.” The way when you hear “Charles Darwin” you think “evolution.” Any suggestions would be appreciated Thanks ---
**Author:** ![Trepa\_Mayfield](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/edb3f5/32.png) [@Trepa\_Mayfield](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Trepa_Mayfield)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/2 "2009-05-25T23:02:03Z")
Richard Dawkins. ---
**Author:** ![MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/c0e974/32.png) [@MPB\_in\_Salt\_Lake](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MPB_in_Salt_Lake)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/3 "2009-05-25T23:03:41Z")
Madeline Murray O’Hare? ---
**Author:** ![Maastricht](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a88e57/32.png) [@Maastricht](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maastricht)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/4 "2009-05-25T23:04:53Z")
Bertrand Russell. Voltaire. PS: Angela Davis was a communist? I thought she was just a typically seventies leftie and a fashion-conscious black pride movement figurehead. ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/5 "2009-05-25T23:27:06Z")
According to [this site](http://www.wonderfulatheistsofcfl.org/Quotes.htm): Abraham Lincoln Albert Einstein Aldous Huxley Andrew Carnegie Ernest Hemingway Arthur C. Clarke Charles Darwin Ayn Rand Benjamin Franklin Carl Sagan Bertrand Russell Billy Joel Voltaire Clarence Darrow Frank Zappa Gene Roddenberry George Bernard Shaw Helen Keller Gloria Steinem James Madison John Adams John Stuart Mill Karl Marx Kurt Vonnegut Dr. James Watson Jawaharlal Nehru James Joyce H. L. Mencken John Lennon Frank Lloyd Wright Sir Alfred Hitchcock Robert Heinlein George Orwell Irving Berlin Samuel Langhorn Clemens Robert Frost Susan B. Anthony Vincent Van Gogh Thomas Edison Sigmund Freud Jonathon Swift Ambrose Bierce Oscar Wilde there’s lots more. [This site](http://www.celebatheists.com/?title=Main_Page) also has a long list, but it’s mostly American pop culture people. ETA: On re-reading after posting, I think **pedescribe** and **MPB in Salt Lake** have prolly given you two of the names most recognizable and directly linked to atheism in the US & UK today. ---
**Author:** ![Kyla](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/eada6e/32.png) [@Kyla](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kyla)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/6 "2009-05-25T23:31:34Z")
First of all, it’s “atheist”, not “athiest”. We aren’t the most athi, we are not theists. Second, Wikipedia has a list of [famous atheists, organized by profession](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_atheists). Third, Angela Davis was a communist, but she isn’t any more. Also, I just about walked right into her once. (She was a professor at my undergrad and was connected to the research group where I had work-study.) ---
**Author:** ![GorillaMan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/50afbb/32.png) [@GorillaMan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/GorillaMan)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:31pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/7 "2009-05-25T23:31:57Z")
> [@Snowboarder\_Bo](#): > > According to [this site](http://www.wonderfulatheistsofcfl.org/Quotes.htm): There’s some questionable assertions on that site, to say the least. Just this one is enough to suggest that it’s hardly a place to take for granted…_“From the age of forty he was, to use his own words, a complete dis-believer in Christianity. He professed himself an Agnostic”_… ---
**Author:** ![Snowboarder\_Bo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowboarder_bo/32/229_2.png) [@Snowboarder\_Bo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Snowboarder_Bo)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/8 "2009-05-25T23:36:25Z")
> [@GorillaMan](#): > > There’s some questionable assertions on that site, to say the least. Just this one is enough to suggest that it’s hardly a place to take for granted…_“From the age of forty he was, to use his own words, a complete dis-believer in Christianity. He professed himself an Agnostic”_… Dude, if you look at the top of the page on that site it says: > [@](#): > > Famous Atheists, Freethinkers, Diests and Agnostics If I inadvertently listed an agnostic or a deist, my apologies. ---
**Author:** ![Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/8edcca/32.png) [@Superfluous\_Parentheses](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Superfluous_Parentheses)\ **Post date:** [May 25, 2009, 11:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/9 "2009-05-25T23:46:29Z")
Aside from the immediate answer: Richard Dawkins, Please learn to spell **atheist**. It’s not that hard, especially if you’re interested in **deist** or **theist** philosophy. ---
**Author:** ![Wendell\_Wagner](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/8491ac/32.png) [@Wendell\_Wagner](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wendell_Wagner)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 12:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/10 "2009-05-26T00:11:22Z")
Snowboarder Bo, the problem is that most of the people mentioned on that website were not atheists. That’s merely a list of people who, while nearly all living in majority-Christian nations, didn’t consider themselves to be orthodox Christians. There is a wide variety of beliefs among the people in that list. This is why it’s not a good idea to just copy down lists from websites that are pushing a particular philosophical viewpoint. The people who create such websites are too eager to include as many people as possible in their lists. ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 12:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/11 "2009-05-26T00:21:05Z")
I second **Wendell’s** point. Never believe a list of famous _anythings_ compiled by a group that promotes that thing. The tendency is to pick one or two comments and incidents, misinterpret what was said or done, and then say proudly, “Gooble Gooble, we accept you. One of us. One of us.” ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 12:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/12 "2009-05-26T00:27:07Z")
It’s sort of a guessing game. Deists in the 18th Century were likely the atheists of today. Lots of agnostics could probably be said to be atheists but who are unwilling to hold a strong stance on the subject. Anyone previous to the 20th century is unlikely to have called themselves an atheist, probably even anywhere prior to the latter half of the 20th century even. ---
**Author:** ![Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/malleus_incus_stapes/32/3293_2.png) [@Malleus\_Incus\_Stapes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malleus_Incus_Stapes)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 12:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/13 "2009-05-26T00:48:02Z")
That guy who wrote “God Is Not Great”… er, I’m not good with names. Christopher Something, right? ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/14 "2009-05-26T00:53:50Z")
Here’s a fairly benevolent list: Douglas Adams Isaac Asimov Arthur C. Clarke Harlan Ellison William Golding Robert Graves Terry Pratchett Kurt Vonnegut Ron Reagan (son of Ronald) Richard Dawkins Richard Feynman Richard Leakey Richard Stallman Ivan Pavlov John Maynard Smith Carl Sagan Linus Torvalds Lance Armstrong Richards seem to have a proclivity. ---
**Author:** ![Rosie\_is\_Tired](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/a8b319/32.png) [@Rosie\_is\_Tired](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rosie_is_Tired)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 1:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/15 "2009-05-26T01:20:03Z")
[PZ Myers](http://scienceblogs.com/pharyngula/), [Hemant Mehta](http://friendlyatheist.com/), [Richard Dawkins](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Richard_Dawkins), [Sam Harris](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sam_Harris_(author)), [Christopher Hitchens](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christopher_Hitchens). ---
**Author:** ![lavenderviolet](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/cdc98d/32.png) [@lavenderviolet](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/lavenderviolet)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 2:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/16 "2009-05-26T02:18:48Z")
If you want the readers to get that the reason you mention the person is because of their atheism, I’d definitely go with Richard Dawkins. I think he is the only person who is really famous FOR being an atheist. (Madalyn Murray O’Hair would work too but I think most young people would not recognize the name). ---
**Author:** ![Markxxx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/5daacb/32.png) [@Markxxx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Markxxx)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 4:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/17 "2009-05-26T04:02:43Z")
> [@lavenderviolet](#): > > If you want the readers to get that the reason you mention the person is because of their atheism, I’d definitely go with Richard Dawkins. I think he is the only person who is really famous FOR being an atheist. > (Madalyn Murray O’Hair would work too but I think most young people would not recognize the name). I have to laugh 'cause I thought just the opposite. I recognzied Madalyn Murray O’Hair but not Richard Dawkins. Thanks for the answers so far. Angela Davis was a Communist but she quit them after the Soviet Coup, she’s now a member of some group that calls themselves socialists ---
**Author:** ![Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/e8c25b/32.png) [@Really\_Not\_All\_That\_Bright](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Really_Not_All_That_Bright)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/18 "2009-05-26T04:23:41Z")
V.S. Naipaul ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 4:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/19 "2009-05-26T04:30:05Z")
I’d say Dawkins, Hitchens, and O’Hair are the most famous for being atheists as opposed to being famous atheists. ---
**Author:** ![Sage\_Rat](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sage_rat/32/399_2.png) [@Sage\_Rat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sage_Rat)\ **Post date:** [May 26, 2009, 4:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617/20 "2009-05-26T04:57:14Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > I’d say Dawkins, Hitchens, and O’Hair are the most famous for being atheists as opposed to being famous atheists. Wasn’t Carl Sagan fairly famous for it as well? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/any-famous-athiests/497617.md?page=2)