Philosophy · Literature · Science · 1820–1903
Born: 27 April 1820 · Died: 8 December 1903 · Age at death: 83
Herbert Spencer died aged 83. He was born on 27 April 1820 and died on 8 December 1903.
English philosopher who applied evolution to society and coined the phrase survival of the fittest
Did you know?He was a self-taught polymath who never earned a university degree or held a formal academic post.
Herbert Spencer was one of the most famous thinkers of the Victorian age. Self-taught and never at university, he worked as a railway engineer and a journalist. He applied the idea of evolution to almost everything, from biology to society and ethics. He coined the phrase "survival of the fittest" after reading Darwin. His huge Synthetic Philosophy took decades to complete. He opposed most government intervention. His ideas were later used to justify harsh social policies, and his fame faded after his death.
Herbert Spencer (27 April 1820 – 8 December 1903) was an English polymath active as a philosopher, psychologist, biologist, sociologist, and anthropologist.
Text from Wikipedia, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0
“This survival of the fittest, which I have here sought to express in mechanical terms, is that which Mr. Darwin has called 'natural selection'.”
Profile
English philosopher, 1820–1903
Herbert Spencer was born in Derby on 27 April 1820.
He worked as a railway engineer.
He coined survival of the fittest in 1864.
He wrote the Synthetic Philosophy.
Career highlights
Did you know?He worked as sub-editor at The Economist.
Questions people ask
1822–1885
1759–1797
b. 1967
1737–1794
1791–1872
1941–2024Missing someone? Suggest them
1889–1945
1564–1616
1818–1883
1926–2022A newspaper from their birth date
The front page from the day they were born, a classic keepsake.
Shop on AmazonTaurus zodiac gifts
Jewellery, prints and candles for the Taurus in your life.
Shop on EtsyStar map of April 27
A custom print of the night sky on their birthday.
Shop on EtsyMilestone birthday gifts
Ideas for 18th, 30th, 40th, 50th and beyond.
Shop on AmazonWe may earn a small commission from purchases, at no extra cost to you.
Reviewed by the Who Shares My Birthday editorial team.
Last reviewed: October 2026