This is a list of essayists—people notable for their essay-writing.
Note: Birthplaces (as listed) do not always indicate nationality.
A
[edit]- Augurio Abeto (1900–1977, Philippines)
- André Aciman (born 1951, Egypt)
- Joseph Addison (1672–1719, England)
- Theodor W. Adorno (1903–1969, Germany)
- Sheetal Agashe (born 1977, India)
- José de Alencar (1829–1877, Brazil)
- Kingsley Amis (1922–1995, United Kingdom)
- Martin Amis (1949–2023, United Kingdom)
- Oswald de Andrade (1890–1954, Brazil)
- Jacob M. Appel (born 1973, United States)
- Helena Araújo Ortiz (1934–2015, Colombia)
- Matthew Arnold (1822–1888, United Kingdom)
- Anastasia Ashman (born 1964, United States)
- Margaret Atwood (born 1939, Canada)
- Isaac Asimov (1920–1992, Russia)
- W. H. Auden (1907–1973, United Kingdom)
- Joxe Azurmendi (1941–2025, Spain)
B
[edit]- Rebeca Baceiredo (born 1979, Spain)
- Rambriksh Benipuri (1902–1968, India)
- Francis Bacon (1561–1626, England)
- Walter Bagehot (1826–1877, England)
- James Baldwin (1924–1987, United States)
- Anna Laetitia Barbauld (1743–1825, England)
- John Perry Barlow (1947–2018, United States)
- Julian Barnes (born 1946, United Kingdom)
- Jacques Barzun (1907–2012, France)
- Enis Batur (born 1952, Turkey)
- Charles Baudelaire (1821–1867, France)
- Hilaire Belloc (1870–1953, United Kingdom)
- Walter Benjamin (1892–1940, Germany)
- Wendell Berry (born 1934, United States)
- Jens Bjørneboe (1920–1976, Norway)
- Jorge Luis Borges (1899–1986, Argentina)
- Alain de Botton (born 1969, Switzerland)
- Giannina Braschi (born 1953, Puerto Rico)
- William Brandon (1914–2002, United States)
- Alfred Brendel (1931–2025, Czech Republic)
- Christopher Buckley (born 1952, United States)
- Anthony Burgess (1917–1993, United Kingdom)
- Richard de Bury (1287–1345, England)
C-D
[edit]- Erskine Caldwell (1903–2007, United States)
- Italo Calvino (1923–1985, Italy)
- Albert Camus (1913–1960, Algeria)
- Rafael Cansinos Assens (1882–1964, Spain)
- Orson Scott Card (born 1951, United States)
- John Carey (born 1934, United Kingdom)
- Simon Carmiggelt (1913–1987, Netherlands)
- Otto Maria Carpeaux (1900–1978, Austria)
- Harriet Frances Carpenter (1868/75 – 1956, United States)
- Saveria Chemotti (born 1947, Italy)
- Kelly Cherry (1940–2022, United States)
- G. K. Chesterton (1874–1936, United Kingdom)
- Panashe Chigumadzi (DOB unknown, living, Zimbabwe)
- Noam Chomsky (born 1928, United States)
- Winston Churchill (1874–1965, Great Britain)
- Emil Cioran (1911–1995, Romania)
- J. M. Coetzee (born 1940, South Africa)
- William Cobbett (1763–1835, Great Britain)
- Anthony Collins (1676–1729, England)
- Charles Caleb Colton (1780–1832, Great Britain)
- Cyril Connolly (1903–1974, United Kingdom)
- Abraham Cowley (1618–1667, Great Britain)
- A. J. Cronin (1896–1981, Scotland)
- Samuel McChord Crothers (1857–1927, United States)
- Richard Dawkins (born 1941, United Kingdom)
- Mike Daisey (born 1976, United States)
- Theodore Dalrymple (born 1949, United Kingdom)
- Nik De Dominic (born 1981, United States)
- Joan Didion (1934–2021, United States)
- Annie Dillard (born 1945, United States)
- Babacar Sedikh Diouf (born 1928, Senegal)
- Alfred Döblin (1878–1957, Germany)
- John Dolan (1955–1981, United States)
- Joe Dolce (born 1947, Australia)
- Denis Donoghue (1928–2021, Ireland)
- John Dryden (1631–1700, England)
E-G
[edit]- Klaus Ebner (born 1964, Austria)
- Umberto Eco (1932–2016, Italy)
- T. S. Eliot (1888–1965, United States)
- Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882, United States)
- Joseph Epstein (born 1937, United States)
- Filip Erceg (born 1979, Croatia)
- Barbara Ehrenreich (1941–2022, United States)
- Jaime Eyzaguirre (1908–1968, Chile)
- Anne Fadiman (born 1953, United States)
- Femi Fani-Kayode (born 1960, Nigeria)
- Frantz Fanon (1925–1961, Martinique)
- Richard Farmer (1735–1797, England)
- Gérard Fauré (born 1946, Morocco)
- Benito Jerónimo Feijoo e Montenegro (1676–1764, Spain)
- Lawrence Ferlinghetti (1919–2021, United States)
- Predrag Finci (born 1946, Bosnia and Herzegovina)
- Élisabeth de Fontenay (born 1934, France)
- E. M. Forster (1879–1970, England)
- John Foster (1770–1843, United Kingdom)
- Ian Frazier (born 1951, United States)
- Robert Fulghum (born 1937, United States)
- Joan Fuster (1922–1992, Spain)
- Harry Gamboa, Jr. (born 1951, United States)
- William H. Gass (1924–2017, United States)
- Karl-Markus Gauß (born 1954, Austria)
- Malcolm Gladwell (born 1963, United Kingdom)
- Adam Gopnik (born 1956, United States)
- Stephen Jay Gould (1941–2002, United States)
- Mohammed Lotfy Gomaa (1886–1953, Egypt)
- Paul Graham (born 1964, England)
- Clement Greenberg (1909–1994, United States)
- A. C. Grayling (born 1949, United Kingdom)
- Gordon Grice (born 1965, United States)
- Stanka Gjurić (born 1966, Croatia)
H-J
[edit]- Carla Harryman (born 1952, United States)
- William Hazlitt (1778–1830, England)
- Peter Handke (born 1942 Griffen, Austria)
- Saeko Himuro (1957–2008, Japan)
- Fumi Hirano (born 1955, Japan)
- Christopher Hitchens (1949–2011, United Kingdom)
- Peter Hitchens (born 1951, United Kingdom)
- Hugh Hood (1928–2000, Canada)
- Langston Hughes (1902–1967, United States)
- David Hume (1711–1776, United Kingdom)
- Hamid Rashidi (1961–2020, Iran)
- Leigh Hunt (1784–1859, England)
- Aldous Leonard Huxley (1894–1963, England)
- Lucie Fulton Isaacs (1841–1916, United States)
- Shigesato Itoi (born 1948, Japan)
- Molly Ivins (1944–2007, United States)
- Jwalamukhi (1938–2008, India)
- Michael Johns (born 1964, United States)
- Diane Johnson (born 1934, United States)
- Electa Amanda Wright Johnson (1938–1929, United States)
- Samuel Johnson (1709–1784, England)
- June Jordan (1936–2002, United States)
- Rebecca Richardson Joslin (1846–1934, United States)
K-L
[edit]- Steven G. Kellman (born 1947, United States)
- Ted Kaczynski (1942–2023, United States)
- Shakuntala Karandikar (1931–2018, India)
- Frank Kermode (1919–2010, United Kingdom)
- Tracy Kidder (born 1945, United States)
- Chuck Klosterman (born 1972, United States)
- Rudy Kousbroek (1929–2010, Netherlands)
- Hans Krieger (1933–2023, Germany)
- Miroslav Krleža (1893–1981, Croatia)
- Tomislav Ladan (1932–2008, Serbia)
- Laila Lalami (born 1968, Morocco)
- Anne Richelieu Lamb (1807–1878, Scotland)
- Charles Lamb (1775–1834, England)
- Shankar Lamichhane (Nepal)
- Anne Lamott (born 1954, United States)
- Corinne Lee (United States)
- Gottfried Leibniz (1646–1716, Germany)
- Albert Leung (born 1961, Hong Kong)
- C. S. Lewis (1898–1963, Ireland)
- Li Ao (1935–2018, China, Taiwan)
- Liang Shiqiu (1903–1987, China, Taiwan)
- Lin Yutang (1895–1976, China, Taiwan, Hong Kong)
- Alan Lightman (born 1948, United States)
- Tim Lilburn (born 1950, Canada)
- Lin Wenyue (1933–2023, Taiwan)
- Joan Lindsay (1896–1984, Australia)
- María López Sández (born 1973, Spain)
- E. V. Lucas (1868–1938, England)[1]
- Lu Xun (1881–1936, China)
M-N
[edit]- Maurice Maeterlinck (1862–1949), Belgium)
- Norman Mailer (1923–2007, United States)
- Jorge Majfud (born 1969, Uruguay)
- Laura Mancinelli (1933–2016, Italy)
- Francis T. McAndrew (born 1953, Germany)
- Nathan McCall (born 1955, United States)
- Mary McCarthy (1912–1989, United States)
- Tim McKay (1947–2006, United States)
- John McPhee (born 1931, United States)
- Louis Menand (born 1952, United States)
- H. L. Mencken (1880–1956, United States)
- Arthur Miller (1915–2005, United States)
- Pankaj Mishra (born 1969, India)
- Donald Grant Mitchell (1822–1908, United States)
- Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592, France)
- Angela Morales (born 1966, United States)
- Michele Moramarco (born 1953, Italy)
- V. S. Naipaul (1932–2018, Trinidad and Tobago)
- Nakane Kōtei (1839–1913, Japan)
- Ukichiro Nakaya (1900–1962, Japan)
- Marie NDiaye (born 1967, France)
- John Neal (1793–1876, United States)
- Virgil Nemoianu (1940–2025, Romania)
- Natias Neutert (born 1947, Germany)
- Kathleen Norris (born 1947, United States)
O-R
[edit]- Joyce Carol Oates (born 1938, United States)
- George Orwell (1903–1950, United Kingdom)
- Borislav Pekić (1930–1992, Serbia)
- Noel Perrin (1927–2004, United States)
- Samuel F. Pickering Jr. (born 1941, United States)
- Stanley Plumly (1939–2019, United States)
- Mestrius Plutarch (46–127, Boeotia, Ancient Greece)
- Edgar Allan Poe (1809–1849, United States)
- Katherine Ann Porter (1890–1980, United States)
- Rebecca N. Porter (1883-1963, United States)
- Anna M. Longshore Potts (1829–1912, United States)
- J.B. Priestley (1894–1984, England)
- Kevin Prufer (born 1969, United States)
- Thomas de Quincey (1785–1859, England)
- Indra Bahadur Rai (1927–2018, India)
- Fanny Raoul (1771–1833, France)
- María del Carmen Reina Jiménez (born 1942, Spain)
- Emily Browne Powell (1847-1938, United States)
- Gabrielle Réval (1869–1938, France)
- Kenneth Rexroth (1905–1985, United States)
- Marilynne Robinson (born 1943, United States)
- Tjalie Robinson (1911–1974, Netherlands)
- Richard Rodriguez (born 1944, United States)
- Arundhati Roy (born 1961, India)
- Bertrand Russell (1872–1970, United Kingdom)
S
[edit]- Rahul Sankrityayan (1893–1963, India)
- Edward Said (1935–2003, Palestine)
- John Ralston Saul (born 1947, Canada)
- Dan Schneider (born 1965, United States)
- Robert Schumann (1810–1856, Germany)
- Roger Scruton (1944–2020, England)
- David Sedaris (born 1956, United States)
- John Robert Seeley (1834–1895, England)
- Rafael Calvo Serer (1916–1988, Spain)
- George Bernard Shaw (1856–1950, Ireland)
- Percy Bysshe Shelley (1792–1822, England)
- Fannie Isabelle Sherrick (fl. 1860–1880, United States)
- David Shields (born 1956, United States)
- Clay Shirky (born 1964, United States)
- Simeon Simev (born 1949, Republic of Macedonia)
- Ramdhari Singh 'Dinkar' (1908–1974, India)
- Matias Skard (1846–1927, Norway)
- Jean Edward Smith (1932–2019, United States)
- Zadie Smith (born 1975, England)
- Amelia Solar de Claro (1836–1915, Chile)
- Walid Soliman (born 1975, Tunisia)
- Rebecca Solnit (born 1961, United States)
- Susan Sontag (1933–2004, United States)
- Dejan Stojanović (born 1959, Serbia)
- Lytton Strachey (1880–1932, United Kingdom)
- Cheryl Strayed (born 1968, United States)
T-Z
[edit]- Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941, India)
- Nassim Nicholas Taleb (born 1960, Lebanon)
- Alain Tasso (born 1962, Lebanon)
- Vijay Tendulkar (1928–2008, India)
- Issa Laye Thiaw (1943–2017, Senegal)
- Colm Tóibín (born 1955, Ireland)
- Leo Tolstoy (1828–1910, Russia)
- Lionel Trilling (1905–1975, United States)
- George W. S. Trow (1943–2006, United States)
- Andrew Vachss (1942–2021, United States)
- Paul Valéry (1871–1945, France)
- Erico Verissimo (1905–1975, Brazil)
- Gore Vidal (1925–2012, United States)
- Voltaire (1694–1778, France)
- Kurt Vonnegut (1922–2007, United States)
- Richard Wagner (1813–1883, Germany)
- David Foster Wallace (1962–2008, United States)
- Rebecca West (1892–1983, United Kingdom)
- E. B. White (1899–1985, United States)
- Oscar Wilde (1852–1900, Ireland)
- Tom Wolfe (1931–2018, United States)
- Virginia Woolf (1882–1941, United Kingdom)
- Yang Jiang (1911–2016, China)
- Marguerite Yourcenar (1903–1987, France)
- Asunción de Zea-Bermúdez (1862–1936, Spain)
References
[edit]- ^ Knox, E V, revised by Katharine Chubbuck. "Lucas, Edward Verrall (1868–1938)", Oxford Dictionary of National Biography, Oxford University Press, 2004, accessed 13 March 2013 (subscription, Wikipedia Library access or UK public library membership required)