W. E. B. Du Bois

American sociologist and activist (1868–1963)
Person human Q158060
W. E. B. Du Bois
James E. Purdy / Adam Cuerden · Public Domain · Wikimedia
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Summary

W. E. B. Du Bois was born on February 23, 1868[1], in Great Barrington[2]. He died in Accra[3]. He worked as a historian[4], novelist[5], philosopher[6], writer[7], and sociologist[8]. He ranks in the top 0.44% of human entities by monthly Wikipedia readership (19,046 views/month, #4,380 of 1,000,298).[9]

Key Facts

  • Place of burial: Osu Castle[10], W.E.B. Dubois Memorial Centre for Pan African Culture[11]
  • Spouse: Nina Gomer Du Bois[12], Shirley Graham Du Bois[13]
  • Child: Nina Yolande Du Bois[14]
  • Country of citizenship: United States[15], Ghana[16]
  • Native language: English[17]
  • Ethnic group: African Americans[18]
  • Occupation: social worker[19], human rights defender[20], photographer[21], poet[22], autobiographer[23], opinion journalist[24], teacher[25], journalist[26], art historian[27], economist[28], civil rights advocate[29], pacifist[30], politician[31]
  • Field of work: civil and political rights[32]
  • Position held: civil rights advocate[33]
  • Employer: The New School[34], Wilberforce University[35], University of Georgia[36], University of Pennsylvania[37], Clark Atlanta University[38]
  • Educated at: Fisk University[39], Harvard University[40], Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin[41], Heidelberg University[42], Harvard College[43], Searles High School[44]
  • Doctoral advisor: Gustav von Schmoller[45], Albert Bushnell Hart[46]
  • Award received: Lenin Peace Prize[47], Spingarn Medal[48], National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame[49]
  • Member of: German Academy of Sciences at Berlin[50], Hungarian Academy of Sciences[51], Alpha Phi Alpha[52], NAACP[53], American Academy of Arts and Letters[54]
  • Sex or gender: male[55]
  • Member of political party: Socialist Party of America[56]
  • Commons category: W.E.B. Du Bois[57]
  • Archives at: Beinecke Rare Book & Manuscript Library[58], University of Massachusetts Amherst[59], Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture[60]
  • Residence: Atlanta[61], Ghana[62], Berlin[63], Accra[64]

Product Details

The following facts are restated verbatim from public-domain and CC0 open-data sources — every line is independently verifiable against the named source's catalog.

MusicBrainz — CC0 open music encyclopedia

  • Type: Person[65]

  • Country: US[66]

  • Began / founded: 1868-02-23[67]

  • Ended / dissolved: 1963-08-27[68]

  • MusicBrainz ID: cc92038b-0460-4de9-b7f8-da1bdd96375a[69]

Body

Works and Contributions

Things named for W. E. B. Du Bois include W.E.B. Du Bois Career of Distinguished Scholarship award[70], W. E. B. Du Bois Research Institute[71], Cox-Johnson-Frazier Award[72], and W. E. B. Du Bois Medal[73].

Why It Matters

W. E. B. Du Bois has Wikipedia articles in 25 language editions, a strong signal of global cultural recognition.[74] He is known by 75 alternative names across languages and contexts.[75]

He has been cited as an influence by critical race theory[76], a political movement[77]; Kwame Anthony Appiah[78], a philosopher[79], b. 1954[80], of United States[81], awarded the Anisfield-Wolf Book Awards[82]; John Langalibalele Dube[83], a poet[84], 1871–1946[85], of South Africa[86]; Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller[87], a sculptor[88], 1877–1968[89], of United States[90]; Maurice Berger[91], an art historian[92], 1956–2020[93], of United States[94], specialised in cultural history[95]; and Ellen Diggs[96], an anthropologist[97], 1906–1998[98], of United States[99].

Works attributed to him include The Souls of Black Folk[100], a written work[101] and Encyclopedia Africana[102], a reference work[103]. Entities named for him include W.E.B. Du Bois Career of Distinguished Scholarship award[70], W. E. B. Du Bois Research Institute[71], Cox-Johnson-Frazier Award[72], and W. E. B. Du Bois Medal[73].

FAQs

Where was W. E. B. Du Bois born?

W. E. B. Du Bois's place of birth was Great Barrington[2].

Where did W. E. B. Du Bois die?

W. E. B. Du Bois died in Accra[3].

Who was W. E. B. Du Bois married to?

W. E. B. Du Bois's spouses include Nina Gomer Du Bois[12] and Shirley Graham Du Bois[13].

What did W. E. B. Du Bois do for work?

W. E. B. Du Bois worked as a historian[4], novelist[5], philosopher[6], writer[7], and sociologist[8].

Where did W. E. B. Du Bois go to school?

W. E. B. Du Bois was educated at Fisk University[39], Harvard University[40], Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin[41], and Heidelberg University[42].

What awards did W. E. B. Du Bois receive?

Honors received include Lenin Peace Prize[47], Spingarn Medal[48], and National Association of Black Journalists Hall of Fame[49].

Who did W. E. B. Du Bois influence?

W. E. B. Du Bois has been cited as an influence by critical race theory[76], Kwame Anthony Appiah[78], John Langalibalele Dube[83], and Meta Vaux Warrick Fuller[87].

References

Programmatic citations — every numbered marker resolves to a verifiable graph row below.

Direct Wikidata claims

  1. [2] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  2. [3] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  3. [55] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  4. [12] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  5. [13] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  6. [15] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  7. [16] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  8. [33] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  9. [14] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  10. [39] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  11. [40] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  12. [41] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  13. [42] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  14. [43] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  15. [44] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  16. [32] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  17. [56] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  18. [17] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  19. [4] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  20. [5] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  21. [6] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  22. [7] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  23. [8] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  24. [19] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  25. [20] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  26. [21] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  27. [22] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  28. [23] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  29. [24] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  30. [25] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  31. [26] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  32. [27] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  33. [28] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  34. [29] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  35. [30] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  36. [31] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  37. [34] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  38. [35] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  39. [36] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  40. [37] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  41. [38] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  42. [10] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  43. [11] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  44. [47] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  45. [48] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  46. [49] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  47. [18] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  48. [45] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  49. [46] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  50. [57] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  51. [50] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  52. [51] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  53. [52] ↑ . wikidata.org.
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  55. [54] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  56. [58] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  57. [59] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  58. [60] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  59. [61] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  60. [62] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  61. [63] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  62. [64] ↑ . wikidata.org.
  63. [1] ↑ . wikidata.org.

Product details (FDA / USDA / NHTSA public-domain catalog data)

  1. [65] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  2. [66] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  3. [67] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  4. [68] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.
  5. [69] ↑ . MusicBrainz (MetaBrainz Foundation). musicbrainz.org.

Inverse relationships (entities pointing at this one)

  1. [76] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
  2. [78] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
  3. [83] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
  4. [87] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
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  6. [96] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
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  8. [102] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
  9. [70] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
  10. [71] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
  11. [72] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site
  12. [73] ↑ . wikidata.org. → on this site

Inline context (facts about related entities)

  1. [77] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  2. [79] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  3. [80] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  4. [81] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  5. [82] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  6. [84] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  7. [85] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  8. [86] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  9. [88] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  10. [89] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  11. [90] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  12. [92] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  13. [93] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  14. [94] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  15. [95] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  16. [97] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  17. [98] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  18. [99] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  19. [101] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site
  20. [103] ↑ . Wikidata. wikidata.org. → on this site

Aggregate / graph-position facts

  1. [9] ↑ . Wikimedia Foundation. dumps.wikimedia.org.
  2. [74] ↑ . Wikidata sitelinks. wikidata.org.
  3. [75] ↑ . Wikidata aliases. wikidata.org.

📑 Cite this page

Use these citations when quoting this entity in research, articles, AI prompts, or wherever provenance matters. We aggregate Wikidata + Wikipedia + authoritative open-data sources; the stitched, scored, cross-referenced view is what 4ort.xyz contributes.

APA 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph. (2026). W. E. B. Du Bois. Retrieved October 14, 2026, from https://4ort.xyz/entity/w-e-b-du-bois
MLA “W. E. B. Du Bois.” 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph, 4ort.xyz, 14 Oct. 2026, https://4ort.xyz/entity/w-e-b-du-bois.
BibTeX @misc{4ortxyz_w-e-b-du-bois_2026, author = {{4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph}}, title = {{W. E. B. Du Bois}}, year = {2026}, url = {https://4ort.xyz/entity/w-e-b-du-bois}, note = {Accessed: 2026-10-14}}
LLM prompt According to 4ort.xyz Knowledge Graph (aggregator of Wikidata, Wikipedia, and authoritative open-data sources): W. E. B. Du Bois — https://4ort.xyz/entity/w-e-b-du-bois (retrieved 2026-10-14)

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Edit History

Rolling log of changes to this entity's Wikidata record. Values shown reflect the current state of each edited property — follow the history link to see the precise diff for any edit.

  1. 6w ago · Bouzinac · 2026-08-30 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Participant in → First Pan-African Conference
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ Participant in: First Pan-African Conference, using [[User:Frettie/consistency check add.js]]"
  2. 8w ago · Mahirtwofivesix · 2026-08-19 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Arabic ontology lexical concept id → 151059481
    "/* wbeditentity-statements-multiple-properties-update:0||3 */ added/modified IDs mapped to WordNet 3.1"
  3. 8w ago · Jssfrk · 2026-08-16 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Runeberg author id → duboiweb
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:1||1 */ Runeberg author id: duboiweb, Matched to [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/entry/114924605|W.E.B. Du Bois (#114924605)]] in [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/catalog/837|Runeberg author]]"
  4. 9w ago · Yirba · 2026-08-08 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14750 → 484B-C72A-649E-5CF5-50EC
    "/* wbeditentity-update:0| */ QuickStatements 3.0 [[:toollabs:qs-dev/batch/46230|batch #46230]]: HAND ID (0)"
  5. 11w ago · Susmuffin · 2026-07-24 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Harper's tag → w-e-b-william-edward-burghardt-dubois, w-e-b-du-bois
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:1||1 */ Harper's tag: w-e-b-william-edward-burghardt-dubois, Matched to [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/entry/289967489|w e b william edward burghardt dubois (#289967489)]] in [["
  6. 14w ago · Nyuhn · 2026-07-10 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    P14541 → Fbwfn
    "/* wbeditentity-update:0| */ QuickStatements 3.0 [[:toollabs:qs-dev/batch/40849|batch #40849]]: ZGBK ID"
  7. 15w ago · Andre Engels · 2026-06-26 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Startrek.com database id → du-bois
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:1||1 */ Startrek.com database id: du-bois, Matched to [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/entry/82849159|Du Bois (#82849159)]] in [[:toollabs:mix-n-match/#/catalog/2946|startrek.com Databas"
  8. 17w ago · Bargioni · 2026-06-17 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Native language → English
    Writing language → English
    "/* wbeditentity-update:0| */ QuickStatements 3.0 [[:toollabs:qs-dev/batch/37018|batch #37018]]: add P1810 to P12458"
  9. 17w ago · Jindřich Rubeš · 2026-06-13 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Svkkl authority id → p0079158-Du-Bois-W-E-B-18681963
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ Svkkl authority id: p0079158-Du-Bois-W-E-B-18681963, [[:toollabs:quickstatements/#/batch/259654|batch #259654]]"
  10. 18w ago · MariuszRokin · 2026-06-07 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Plaque image → Berliner Gedenktafel Oranienstr 130 (Kreuz) William Edward B, W.E.B DuBois Historical Marker.png, W.E.B. DuBois Mary White Ovington.jpg
    Parsifal cluster id → 28940, 451655
    "/* wbcreateclaim-create:1| */ Parsifal cluster id: 451655, [[:toollabs:quickstatements/#/batch/259387|batch #259387]]"
  11. 21w ago · Epìdosis · 2026-05-19 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Plaque image → Berliner Gedenktafel Oranienstr 130 (Kreuz) William Edward B, W.E.B DuBois Historical Marker.png, W.E.B. DuBois Mary White Ovington.jpg
    Occupation → historian, novelist, philosopher +15
    "/* wbeditentity-update:0| */ QuickStatements 3.0 [[:toollabs:qs-dev/batch/31724|batch #31724]]: import P21 and P106 from GND (18)"
  12. 22w ago · Sj1mor · 2026-05-11 view diff on Wikidata ↗
    Local thumb → —
    Plaque image → Berliner Gedenktafel Oranienstr 130 (Kreuz) William Edward B, W.E.B DuBois Historical Marker.png, W.E.B. DuBois Mary White Ovington.jpg
    "/* wbsetclaim-create:2||1 */ Plaque image: Berliner Gedenktafel Oranienstr 130 (Kreuz) William Edward Burghardt Du Bois.jpg"
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