Term for 'People of the era' needed.

[JacekN]

Hello, I'm doing some text work on various eras in history. I have an idea how I will divide content but I'm having a hard time coming out with proper section titles.

One of the sections will be for people that should be mentioned for a given period. These people are effectively 'game-changers'. I'm currently using the term 'Celebrities' but I'd like to find a better one. 'Celebrities' to me brings a positive emotion. We may sometimes consider such people shallow but they're still far from villains. It doesn't seem proper to list Adolf or Josef under a header like 'Celebrities'.

Is there a good term to use for 'People of the era' or 'Game-changers'. I thought of the word 'Figure' but 'Major Figures' does not immediately point to persons.

 

[Tarheel]

Try influential figures.

(Even if I had been on a first-name basis with Adolph Hitler ....)

 

[JacekN]

I didn't want to use these monsters' last names because search engines would incorrectly index this page.

 

[Tarheel]

Like them or not, Hitler and Stalin were two of the most influential figures of the twentieth century. (Karl Marx was probably number one.)

 

[probus]

I strongly agree that the writings of Karl Marx had an enormous influence on the history of the twentieth century. I'd quibble, however, that Marx himself was a purely 19th century man. He died in 1883.

 

[Tarheel]

@probus If the requirement is that you have to be alive to get the credit (or blame) for something then Marx was not one of the most influential figures of the twentieth century. However, it's not like a Nobel Prize, which is not awarded posthumously. A person's influence can be felt long after his death. Indeed, it might be greater after death.

 

[Skrej]

Is there a good term to use for 'People of the era' or 'Game-changers'. I thought of the word 'Figure' but 'Major Figures' does not immediately point to persons.

I disagree. What else could 'major figure' refer to in this context, other than a person? We often refer to '(major/minor/significant/central) figures in history'

I think calling someone for example "a major figure of the 19th century' is a completely natural way of expressing the concept.