We got reaction from the countries and regions in pale green

For our research, we addressed more or less 7000 schools. The first group of schools (about 4000) was addressed three times, the others once. Within the schools we wrote, if possible, to various teachers. This revealed mainly to be possible for schools in the United States. Indeed, the majority of the schools have on the website a list of email addresses of the teachers. Hence, a total of 18,000 emails have been sent for this research. The number of responses to our question is, compared to the number of emails sent, relatively low. In total we have received more or less 275 useful responses from 43 countries.

Very quickly it became clear that the reputation of famous Flemish people does not extend beyond the national borders. Only a couple of artists and scientists as Mercator, Vesalius, Pieter Breughel the Elder, Jan Van Eyck and Pieter Paul Rubens can count on interest in history classes world-wide. All others are merely known beyond our borders, even our neighbouring countries.

On basis of graphs, we give an overview of the reactions.

The Scientists

On a worldwide level, only Vesalius and Mercator enjoy a certain reputation. When we analyse this in function to the number of reactions, we can conclude to the following remarkable. Only in 18% of the European history books, one can find Mercator. For Vesalius this is only 11%. In comparison thereto, the results in North America are higher: 28% for Mercator and 20% for Vesalius. Also in Asia both humanists are doing better or as good as in Europe. The figures there are however based on a lower number of reactions.
The other scientists are in the rest of the world in fact unknown. On the total reactions, only three schools report that Baekeland appears in their history manual; for Ortelius and Quetelet this is only once. De Gerlache was nowhere part of the course material.

The Artists

A couple of plastic artists from the late-medieval ages, renaissance and baroque period are indeed world heritage. About 45% of the history teachers seem in its classes to have attention for Pieter Breughel the Elder, Pieter Paul Rubens and Jan Van Eyck. The results are in comparison to the number of responses, relatively high in the various continents. Only Memling scores lower with only 5%.

The artists from the later periods are much less present in the history manuals. Certainly in Europe and North America. In Asia, Benoit, Ensor (15%) and Horta can count on some reputation. Permeke is not known beyond our national borders. The architect Horta scores 10% in Asia, only 4% in Europe and 2% in North America.
Peter Benoit, Jam van Ruysbroek and Johannes Ockegem can count on more attention in Asia then the rest of the world where they are barely known. Their score is there around 10% of the number of schools that has responded.
Conscience is only mentioned twice in The Netherlands and is thus barely known beyond our borders.

Sundries

The three persons that are shown hereunder do not belong to a particular category.
Father Damiaan seems outside of Flanders only to be known in North America. About 9% of the history teachers from the schools that have responded find him back in their history books. From reactions from the United States it appears that father Damiaan is only known in Hawai. This is logic given his state of service there.

Jansenius enjoys a certain reputation in Asia where 13% of the schools that have responded find him back in their books.

Eddy Merckx seems only in Europe to have been mentioned to a couple of history books. Only 10% of the responding history teachers find a trace of him therein.

Politicians

Our selected politicians also barely get any attention.
Jean-Luc Dehaene appears in about 4% of the European history books and his party member Wilfried Martens a bit more then 5%. The reputation of Martens in Asia (13%) is remarkable. In 10% of the European history books Lamoraal van Egmont appears. He is especially known in Austria, Germany, the Slovak Republic and The Netherlands. He also enjoys a certain reputation in North America and Asia.