George W Bush Jr is the world's fourth most evil person, beating Stalin and Mao, while Albert Einstein is the number one hero, pipping Martin Luther King, Mother Theresa and even Jesus Christ to the post.
This is according to 7,000 students from around the world who took part in research to determine the significance of historical figures.
Although Stalin and Genghis were "responsible for innumerably more deaths", George Bush is a far more recent figure, authors of the study, conducted at University of the Basque Country in Spain, said.
The students were asked to give their opinions on 40 figures and significant events throughout world history, and rank on a scale from one to seven how positive or negative the figures and events were.
"There is greater disparity of opinion about the villains,' said Darío Páez, a lecturer at the university. "The same figure may be very negatively rated in one country, or not very negatively or even very positively in another part of the world.
"That would be the case of Osama bin Laden, for example."
The top five most popular figures were Einstein, Mother Theresa, Gandhi and Martin Luther King. Jesus came in at 7th place, followed by Nelson Mandela, Thomas Edison and Abraham Lincoln. Buddha took 10th place with Princess Diana coming in at 11th. Margaret Thatcher was the 25th most popular.
Mao, Lenin and Genghis Khan all came in the top 10 list of villians.
Top five world villians
Germany Himmler Letters(01 of05)
Open Image ModalFILE - The May 18, 1944 file photo shows then German Chancellor Adolf Hitler, left, shaking hands with German Interior Minister and head of the SS, Heinrich Himmler, somewhere in Germany. From left to right; Hitler, Minister Field Marshal Wilhelm Keitel, Admiral Karl Doenitz, Himmler and Field Marshal General Erhard Milch. German newspaper Welt am Sonntag has published a trove of letters believed to be written by Himmler. On seven full pages the paper on Sunday Jan. 26,2014 showed pictures of Himmler and his family smiling into the camera during a fishing trip, the top Nazi taking a bath in a lake or feeding a little fawn. The newspaper, which says the material is contained in an eight-part series it plans to publish, also quotes excerpts from Himmler's love letters addressing his wife as "my sweet, beloved little woman." Welt said it worked together with Israeli film director Vanessa Lapa, whose family had the documents in its possession. (AP Photo/str,File) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
Osama Bin Laden(02 of05)
Open Image ModalExiled Saudi dissident Osama bin Laden is seen in this April 1998 picture in Afghanistan. The United States admitted it has difficulties tracking down Bin Laden but are confident they will get him in the end. (AP Photo) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
MIDEAST ISRAEL PALESTINIANS SADDAM REACTION(03 of05)
Open Image ModalA picture of former Iraqi President Saddam Hussein sits on a chair as Palestinians pay respects at a memorial in the West Bank city of Hebron, Sunday Dec. 31, 2006. Hundreds of Palestinians flocked to the streets of the West Bank on Sunday to mourn the death of Saddam Hussein, setting up condolence tents and bemoaning the fate of their steadfast ally. (AP Photo/Nasser Shiyoukhi) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)
BUSH(04 of05)
Open Image ModalPresident Bush gestures during a speech at the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Charter School for Science and Technology on Wednesday, August 29, 2007, in New Orleans. (AP Photo/Evan Vucci) (credit:EVAN VUCCI/AP)
China Model Village(05 of05)
Open Image ModalIn this image taken Wednesday, Aug. 26, 2009, a large picture of late Russian leader Joseph Stalin adorns the central square in the model village of Nan Jie Cun, China. Nan Jie Cun in central China's Henan province promotes itself as a model commune run on the socialist policies associated with Mao Zedong, who founded the People's Republic 60 years ago. The village's industries are collectively owned, and workers receive free housing and healthcare. But the village's businesses operate on a strictly capitalist basis, competing in China's ruthlessly competitive market. Migrant laborers, who are a mainstay of the local labor force, receive fewer benefits than the village resident owners. For many, Nan Jie Cun has become a different type of model, a mixture of the free market and government control that has made China a new world power. (AP Photo/Elizabeth Dalziel) (credit:ASSOCIATED PRESS)