THE 30 MOST IMPORTANT AND FAMOUS PHILOSOPHERS OF THE MIDDLE AGES - PHILOSOPHY - 2025

The philosophers of the Middle Ages were prominent men who thought about the world, society, the divine, or the cosmos, and of whom many of their teachings and reflections are still valid or served as precedents for many ethical and moral doctrines.

The world was changing and medieval philosophers accompanied, anticipated and generated those changes. The analysis of the deep problems of society always had a preponderant place in science, which makes Philosophy one of the oldest disciplines on record.

From the 5th to the 15th century, between the fall of the Roman Empire in 476 and the discovery of America in 1492, the world lived in the Middle Ages, as that period of Western civilization is called.

This period also has a philosophical correlate: medieval philosophy, which focused its analyzes on feudal economy, theocracies (Christian and Islamic), medieval estates, the freedom of man and the limits of reason.

But these specific issues were not what differentiated it from what happened in other stages, but it was the compatibility between faith and reason that defined it. "I believe to understand," read the fashionable philosophical slogan.

Maybe you might also be interested in «101 Phrases of Philosophers about Life«.

Top 30 main philosophers of the Middle Ages

1- Thomas Aquinas (1225 - 1274, Italy)

Theologian, metaphysician and the main representative of scholastic education, he was the one who recovered the Aristotelian writings and the first to see the Greek philosopher's comments compatible with the Catholic faith.

Prolific and influential, Thomas Aquinas had a mystical experience a year before his death that ended his career as a public figure. Some divine revelations that upset him, according to the record of his most intimate confidants, prevented him from continuing to write.

“Faith is a divine grace that God gives to the men he chooses and reason also originates from God; all men are right, but not all have faith, "he said putting an end to the idea of ​​double reason.

2- Saint Augustine (354 - 430, Roman Empire)

Born under the name of Augustine of Hippo, this philosopher had a life linked to the Catholic faith. He was a saint, father, and doctor of the Church, and one of the leading thinkers of Christianity in the first millennium.

He was known as the "Doctor of Grace" and is considered one of the most influential philosophers of the Middle Ages, not because he lived and analyzed their societies (his death was prior to the fall of the Roman Empire) but because he was a source of Inspiration for a whole generation after.

"God does not send impossible things, but by sending what he commands, he invites you to do what you can, ask for what you cannot and he helps you so that you can," was one of his most remembered phrases.

3- Anicio Manlio Torcuato Severino Boecio (480 - 524, Rome)

Roman philosopher, belonging to a family of great importance, which gave three Popes to the Catholic Church, Boethius covered a wide range of subjects such as destiny, justice and faith, but also music, arithmetic, geometry, astronomy and theology.

In his most famous work, The Consolation of Philosophy, which he wrote in prison, he maintains a fluid dialogue with philosophy, to whom he attributes a female role.

In it he departe on the nature of human happiness, the problems of evil and good, providence and freedom of man, fate and chance.

His thoughts rivaled those of St. Augustine and Aristotle, and he was of central importance in Christian theology. “If there is a God, where do evils come from? And if it doesn't exist, where do the goods originate from? ”Was one of his most memorable phrases.

4- Saint Anselm of Canterbury (1033 - 1109, Italy)

Considered the father of scholasticism, a disciple of Lanfranco, he based his teaching on meditation, which according to him justified the existence of God.

His main point of discussion was the relationship between faith and reason, which led to many of his questions going unanswered. He thought that not putting faith first was presumption; however, failing to appeal the reason below was negligence.

“In effect, I do not seek to understand in order to believe, but I believe to understand. Well, I believe this, because if I didn't believe, I wouldn't understand ”, was one of his most remembered phrases.

5- William of Ockham (1280-1349, England)

He dedicated his life and work to extreme poverty, and was accused of heresy for studying the relationship between the papacy and the doctrine of poverty, which earned him numerous enemies.

He accused John Paul XXII of a heretic, was one of the most important metaphysicians of his time, and stood out for his methodological theory in which he stated: “An explanation should always be chosen in terms of the fewest possible causes, factors or variables. ”.

He promoted a series of ideas that motivated Western constitutions and liberal democracies with his formulations on the limited responsibility of power.

His passage to posterity has him as the protagonist of the detective Guillermo de Ockham in The Name of the Rose (1980) by Umberto Eco and in the Spanish video game La abadía.

“Man and woman were born to love each other; but not to live together. Someone has pointed out that famous lovers in history have always lived apart ”was one of his most controversial phrases.

6- San Isidoro de Sevilla (560 - 636, Spain)

He stood out as a writer, being one of the most prolific authors of his generation, with works ranging from literary treatises, fictions, biographies, and philosophical questions.

His most recognized work was Etymologies, an encyclopedia in which he traces the evolution of knowledge from pagan antiquity to Christianity today.

Isidore had a great influence during the Middle Ages and the Renaissance, especially for his views on history and philosophy. An orphan since he was a child, he understood that the conscience and the will of man can overcome the harsh difficulties of life.

"Philosophy is the knowledge of human and divine things together with the desire for an honest life", was one of his many famous phrases.

7- Pedro Lombardo (1100-1160, Italy)

The Book of Sentences, by Lobardo, is considered the most important literary work of Christianity after the Bible.

The author compiled in this four-volume book, biblical fragments, mixed with legends of figures of the Church and medieval thinkers, without leaving out any of the celebrities of the Middle Ages.

8- Averroes (1126 - 1198, Spain)

Mainly Averroes was a student of Islamic laws, in addition to commenting on the work of Aristotle and developing some concepts about medicine.

He focused his philosophical study mainly on determining how the human being thinks, more specifically on establishing how the formulation of universal truths is arrived at, following the concepts of Aristotle.

Known as "The Commentator", for breaking down all the phrases of the Greek genius, his distinction between human and divine knowledge was his great contribution.

Averroes appears as the protagonist of the story The Search for Averroes in El Aleph, by Jorge Luis Borges, and is one of the characters in the novel Two years, eight months and twenty-eight nights by Salman Rushdie.

9- Saint Bonaventure of Fidanza (1221 - 1274, Italy)

Born under the name of John, he became known as the "Seraphic Doctor" for his texts on faith and love for Jesus, in which he maintained a fiery discursive tone.

A scholar and owner of outstanding intelligence, he was criticized for his excessive judgment, which prevented him from being more in-depth in his analysis. With an ontological and mystical vision, he followed the works of San Tomé and Lombardo.

10- Juan Escoto Erígena (810 - 877, Ireland)

This philosopher stood out for his explanation of reality through a rational methodology that contradicted religious dualism based on the fact that God and the world are different issues

Furthermore, Erigena rejects the Christian belief that the universe was created out of nothing and established God as the highest point in all evolution.

11- Ramon Llull (1235-1315, Spain)

He is one of the main secular thinkers of the Middle Ages and it was he who began to use the Catalan language in writing. Furthermore, Llull is credited with being a visionary of theories about gravity and memory.

But without a doubt it was an apparition of Jesus that guided his work. He left his family and made a pilgrimage to a mountain, where he secluded himself in the study. "Love is born from memory, lives from intelligence and dies from oblivion", was one of his most famous phrases.

His name is used in schools, educational and governmental institutions, and even a meteorite was named in his honor.

12- Avicenna (980 - 1037, Persia)

Author of 300 books, he is considered one of the most important doctors in history and is the inventor of the tracheostomy.

He wrote The Healing, described as the largest work (in size and importance) produced by a single man, and is the most studied and analyzed Islamic philosopher.

“Wine is the friend of the wise and the enemy of the drunkard. It is bitter and useful as the advice of the philosopher, it is allowed to people and forbidden to idiots. Drive the stupid into darkness and guide the wise to God, ”he wrote.

Avicenna is also considered one of the most famous alchemists in history.

13- Maimonides (1135 - 1204, Spain)

He faked his conversion to Islam but always professed Judaism. He sheltered his teacher Averroes until he finally emigrated to Egypt, where he achieved recognition.

His main work, Mishneh Torah, earned him the nickname Second Moses, for his contribution to the evolution of Judaism. Which also cost him numerous criticisms, he was even labeled a heretic by some traditional fans.

It is considered that his main philosophical contribution was to try to establish Judaic theology on the principles of Aristotelian reason. "It is better and more satisfying to free a thousand guilty than to sentence one innocent to death," he wrote.

14- Jean Buridan (1300 - 1358, France)

He is famous for being the one who developed the paradox:

1. God exists
2. Neither the previous proposition nor this one are true.

The final conclusion is that, necessarily, God exists but…

He is famous for his contributions to the syllogism, natural determination and money, and is the author of the theory of "Buridan's ass" (a name he never used), which details the death of an animal between two piles of food before the lack of rationality.

15- Pedro Abelardo (1079 - 1142, France)

He dedicated his life to music, poetry, teaching and debate, and is considered one of the geniuses of logic, following the precepts of Boecio, Porfirio and Aristotle.

His theoretical mission was to reconcile realism and nominalism. In addition, he exposed a controversial idea in which he claimed that faith was limited by rational principles. His critical philosophy was considered advanced in the Middle Ages.

16- John Duns Scoto (1266 - 1308, Scotland)

He based his work on trying to prove the existence of God and on building a solid and coherent philosophical system. He is the most recognized author of the Scotist philosophy and the greatest rationalist of the Middle Ages.

He used a skillful and complex method of analysis, to defend the doctrine of the Immaculate Conception and to find rigorous proofs of the existence of God, which earned him the nickname "Subtle Doctor." His life came to the cinema with the film La vida de Duns Scoto by Fernando Muraca.

17- Saint Albert the Great (1206 - 1280, Germany)

San Alberto Magno is the patron of the students of Natural Sciences and is one of the initiators of the scholastic system. It was an encounter with the Virgin Mary when he was trying to escape from the school where he was studying, which made him one of the most important theorists of his time.

Noted for his great memory, in that mystical turn he heard that he would lose all his wisdom before dying. A failure in his memory in one of his classes gave him indications that the end was near, so he withdrew, had his tombstone built and shortly after he died.

18- Roger Bacon (1220 - 1292, England)

The "Admirable Doctor" is considered the father of empiricism, a philosophical theory focused on experience, sensory perception and knowledge.

He began as a diffuser of the work of Aristotle but later he was one of his greatest critics, he developed theories in different fields and sowed the Middle Ages with new knowledge about the world.

The lunar crater Bacchus bears that name in his honor. Additionally, Bacon appears in Eco's novel The Name of the Rose.

19- Roberto de Grosseteste (1175 - 1253, United Kingdom)

One of the forerunners of modern philosophy, he was a scholar and managed to get to university thanks to the help of his friends as he came from a very poor family.

Prolific and owner of a capacity for analysis that surprised his peers, he stood out for his contributions on natural history, heat, movement, sound, colors, light, atmospheric pressure, the rainbow, the astrolabe, comets, necromancy, witchcraft and agriculture

He was one of the first to expose a theory about the multi-universe and the Big Bang (not in the current expression), which remains valid until today.

20- Saint Bernard of Clairvaux (1091 - 1153, France)

Its importance both for the Catholic Church and for architecture was remarkable. Within religion he was one of the great diffusers of its dogmas, while in architecture he is known for being the promoter of the Gothic style.

Furthermore, he was one of the first philosophers to give an account of the basic principles of mysticism, which he considered as the “spiritual body of the Catholic Church”.

21- Thierry de Chartres (without details of his birth - 1155, France)

A follower of Plato and Aristotle, he relied on his thoughts to defend the existence of God. He was noted for his writings on the beginning of the world and the four elements (air, water, fire and earth).

22- John of Salisbury (1120 - 1180, England)

One of the most influential personalities of the twelfth century and one of the main representatives of medieval humanism, he stood out for his organicist vision of society.

He compared social functions with those of the human body, in which the feet were the workers, the army was embodied in the hands, the belly was the administration, the heart was related to the congress and the head was the prince.

23- Hugo de San Victor (1096-1141, Germany)

"I embraced science and philosophy as the way to get closer to God," he said. Owner of a vast legacy of writings, his works on knowledge stand out.

For him there were different types of knowledge: theoretical (such as theology, mathematics, physics or music), practical (ethics), mechanical and discursive (rhetoric and dialectic).

24- Al-Ghazali (1058 - 1111, Persia)

The history of this philosopher is as particular as his work. He left everything after a crisis of faith, left home to meditate and live as a beggar, and returned with The Revival of Religious Sciences, considered the most important work in Islamic spirituality and the most widely read after the Qur'an.

“He is not wise who, acquiring his knowledge of a certain book, becomes ignorant when forgetting the text that he learned one day. The true sage is one who, by his own will and without study or teaching, receives his knowledge from God ”, is one of his most famous phrases.

25- Chang Tsai (1020 - 1077, China)

He is the only Chinese philosopher on this list, but his importance was central in the Middle Ages and influenced many later thinkers as one of the founders of Neo-Confucianism.

“Everything that exists in the universe is made up of first matter, tsi, which has the property of motion and rest. Nature is the root and gives rise to reason ”, said Tsai.

26- Shánkara (788 - 820, India)

He was the main promoter of the Advaita doctrine, a non-dualistic branch of Hinduism. This philosopher, very influential in Eastern thought, believed in the unity of souls and divinity.

27- Walafrido Strabo (808 - 849, Germany)

He is credited with being the author of La Glossa ordinaria, which was published anonymously but was one of the central books in all monastic and episcopal schools.

There, Strabo collected the medieval allegorical explanations that were given to the texts of the Bible. His real name was Walahfrid von der Reichenau, but he was nicknamed Strabo because of his squint.

28- Marsilio de Padua (1275 - 1342, Italy)

Its philosophical importance is central for its role in the fight between the Pope and the Emperor, but also for its political ideas.

Convinced that the state order should ensure peace and tranquility for citizens, it was his concepts about the legislative power (which for him belonged to the people) that stood out.

29- Joaquin de Fiore (1135 - 1202, Italy)

The initiator of the heterodox movement, which proposed a reinterpretation of history and the Gospel, it was his interpretation of the Church as a progressive process of perfection that made him stand out in his time.

30- Nicolás Oresme (1323-1382, France)

Considered a genius of the fourteenth century, he is also one of the main promoters of medieval renewal, with advanced, modern and extensive thinking. "The true may sometimes not be credible," he said.