Rothbard
Mises
Jefferson
Spooner
Locke
*honorable mentions: Friedman, Ron Paul, and Ayn Rand (Atlas Shrugged was the first book i ever fully read. The book help me, at the time, feel like there has to be true individualist other than myself.)
Mill? He was a statist if there ever was one.
Oh c’mon, in the classical tradition, there aren’t any better than Mill. He’s no Spooner, haha, but I don’t mean to be in tier of “anarchist” as opposed to ‘libertarian’ or ‘classical liberal.’
I would say that Rothbard’s contributions and impact are both high, but he did not originate the theories. He systamized Mises/Nock/Spooner/Locke et al.
I feel if you’re going to make a list like this it should be varied, and putting down the originators is something that needs to be taken into consideration. As far as putting Rand…like 2 years ago I would have agreed, but besides her fiction I don’t see much to offer once you get in depth with her. I could completely disregard Objectivism and be fine with it, and I don’t really see what Objectivism has to offer to the Austro-libertarian or anarcho-capitalist framework when you can find actual theorists who make good contributions. (Well, she can be on the list, but not top 5.)
There is a big difference between ranking Libertarians and ranking Economists. I feel some of you are attempting to do both.
Here’s my list of Libertarians, which are more of a activist nature, and more influential, than the academic/philosopher type.
Rothbard
Paul, history will prove it…
Jefferson
Mises
Rand
If we are speaking Libertarian Economists/Philosphers:
Bohm-Bawerk
Mises
Rothbard
Bastiat