Mata Hari

About Mata Hari

Mata Hari, born Margaretha Zelle in 1876, was a Dutch exotic dancer and courtesan who achieved notoriety in France before World War I. Her historical importance, reflected in her #777 global rank by the Pantheon project, primarily stems from her execution by firing squad in 1917 on charges of espionage for Germany during the war. While her artistic career was notable for its sensationalism, her lasting historical footprint is intrinsically linked to her controversial role as a suspected spy on the Western Front.

Despite this significant historical association with a global conflict, Mata Hari’s modern internet attention appears disproportionately high. She garnered 1.2 million Wikipedia views in 2025, resulting in an Attention Gap calculation of +4x, meaning she receives four times the online attention relative to her historical importance rank. To illustrate this disparity, she significantly outpaces figures like Hammurabi (#270 importance), who received only 332K views, suggesting a contemporary fascination that dwarfs the search traffic given to a foundational legal figure.

This intense modern interest is also indicated by her burgeoning online engagement; her 2025 Wikipedia views showed a substantial year-over-year increase of +48.2%, further supported by a sharp +64% momentum shift between Q1 and Q3 of that year, suggesting a sustained or growing cultural relevance in the digital age.