UN SPEECHES
← Back to Research
The 2010s

Legacy & Icons

A decade defined by retrospection and tributes. The passing of giants like Kofi Annan and Nelson Mandela turned their words into guiding principles for the assembly.

Most Cited Figures (2010-2019)

The 2010s were dominated by references to Kofi Annan, especially following his passing in 2018.Nelson Mandela and Pope Francis (following his 2015 address) were also top citations.

RankPersonMentionsCategory
#1Ban Ki-moon669UN Leader
#2António Guterres378UN Leader
#3Gamal Abdel Nasser182World Leader
#4Simon Bolivar126Historical Figure
#5Kofi Annan121UN Leader
#6Nelson Mandela118Civil Rights Leader
#7Pope Francis87Religious Figure
#8Dag Hammarskjöld44UN Leader
#9Fidel Castro40World Leader
#10John F. Kennedy30World Leader
#11Prophet Muhammad26Religious Figure
#12Aung San Suu Kyi26Civil Rights Leader
#13Oscar Arias25World Leader
#14Franklin D. Roosevelt25World Leader
#15Martin Luther King Jr.17Civil Rights Leader
#16Winston Churchill16World Leader
#17Benazir Bhutto15World Leader
#18Albert Einstein15Scientist
#19Saddam Hussein13World Leader
#20Jimmy Carter13World Leader

Notable Quotations

"We cannot solve our problems with the same level of thinking that created them"
Albert Einstein•Cited by Afghanistan (2018)
View Speech →
"A fundamental concern for others in our individual and community lives would go a long way in making the world the better place we so passionately dreamt of."
Nelson Mandela•Cited by Portugal (2018)
View Speech →
"More than ever before in human history, we share a common destiny. We can master it only if we face it together. And that, my friends, is why we have the United Nations"
Kofi Annan•Cited by Slovakia (2018)
View Speech →
"[T]ruth is so precious she should always be attended by a bodyguard of lies."
Winston Churchill•Cited by Micronesia, Federated States of (2018)
View Speech →
"We are born to live together"
Seneca•Cited by Russia (2017)
View Speech →