Portrait of Henri Bergson

Birthday profile

Henri Bergson

Henri Bergson, French philosopher and theologian, Nobel Prize laureate (died 1941)

Born
October 18, 1859
Died
January 4, 1941
Zodiac sign
Libra
Birth year
1859

About Henri Bergson

Henri-Louis Bergson (; French: [bɛʁksɔn]; 18 October 1859 – 4 January 1941) was a French philosopher who was influential in the traditions of analytic philosophy and continental philosophy, especially during the first half of the 20th century until the Second World War, but also after 1966 when Gilles Deleuze published Le Bergsonisme. Bergson is known for his arguments that processes of immediate experience and intuition are more significant than abstract rationalism and science for understanding reality. Bergson was awarded the 1927 Nobel Prize in Literature "in recognition of his rich and vitalizing ideas and the brilliant skill with which they have been presented". In 1930, France awarded him its highest honour, the Grand-Croix de la Legion d'honneur. Bergson's great popularity created a controversy in France, where his views were seen as opposing the "secular and scientific" attitude adopted by the Republic's officials.

Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.

Henri Bergson timeline

  1. Bergson was awarded the 1927 Nobel Prize in Literature "in recognition of his rich and vitalizing ideas and the brilliant skill with which they have been presented".
  2. In 1930, France awarded him its highest honour, the Grand-Croix de la Legion d'honneur.

The world when Henri Bergson was born

Henri Bergson was born in 1859. The year snapshot below places that birthday in its cultural and historical setting: the music and films people were following, the headlines shaping public life, and the everyday prices families encountered.

Culture in 1859

  • Best-selling bookOn the Origin of Species by Charles Darwin

Headlines and milestones

  • Top headlineJohn Brown's raid on Harpers Ferry
  • Technology milestoneEdwin Drake drills first successful oil well (Pennsylvania)
  • World population~1.39B

United States snapshot

  • U.S. leaderJames Buchanan
  • U.S. population29.2M

1859 versus 2026

These figures put everyday life in Henri Bergson's birth year beside the site's latest United States snapshot.

Measure18592026
Population29.2M341 million

Sources and editorial standards

This profile combines a biographical source with structured birthday and historical context. Sources recorded for this profile: Wikipedia, Encyclopaedia Britannica, Library of Congress, Wikidata. See our editorial policy for sourcing, corrections, and review standards.

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