What tense to use for a dead person's permanent contributions?


Which one is correct:



  1. Edison was the inventor of the light bulb.

  2. Edison is the inventor of the light bulb.


When writing or speaking about Edison, it's correct to state that "he was an inventor", but what is correct when referring to the fact that he (still) is considered the inventor of something?


Option 1 (was) wins the Google contest by 19100 to 6, which probably answers my question. However, as a non-native English speaker, this isn't totally clear to me. As a matter of fact, I'm not certain what tense I would use in my native language (Swedish) for this construct!



Answer



You can use either. The present you would use is called Historical Present. It's used both in fiction and in history books, depending on your choice. These are both acceptable:




  1. Edison was the inventor of the light bulb.

  2. Edison is the inventor of the light bulb.



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