Salman of Saudi Arabia

About Salman of Saudi Arabia

Salman of Saudi Arabia, born in 1935, is a major 20th and 21st-century political figure whose influence secured him the #632 rank in MIT's Historical Popularity Index. As a key member of the House of Saud, his political career and role in shaping the modern Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, particularly concerning global oil policy and regional stability, account for his significant historical positioning.

Despite this established historical importance, the modern internet appears to be paying disproportionate attention to him, resulting in an "overattention" gap of +5x relative to his HPI rank. In 2025, Salman garnered approximately 1.7 million annualized Wikipedia views. This level of contemporary digital interest is notably higher than that received by figures of much greater historical weight, such as the composer George Frideric Handel (#156 importance) who accrued only 484K views, or the philosopher Horace (#442 importance) with just 267K views.

Interestingly, while his presence is high, recent trends suggest a slight cooling: his 2025 Wikipedia viewership showed a modest Year-over-Year Change of +9.9%, but momentum dipped by -8% between the first and third quarters, indicating a potential slight decrease in current digital engagement.