Being libertarian is trendy right now, so much so that many actors, activists, politicians, media personalities, financial gurus, professors, scientists, and authors call themselves libertarians, even when they don’t really qualify philosophically and fundamentally.

To compile this list, our editors defined a libertarian as a consistent advocate of free-market capitalism, minimal government, and social tolerance (thus distinguishing libertarians from conservatives). Their motto might be “Keep government out of the boardroom and the bedroom.”

Our first effort to rank the 100 most influential libertarians came from a recent survey of libertarians carried out by FreedomFest, “the world’s largest gathering of free minds.” More than 10,000 people participated in the survey, identifying over 200 individuals whom they deemed most influential within the libertarian sphere. We also combed through many online sources and consulted with several well-connected and informed libertarians to compile this list.

Still, a list like this is subjective at best, and should be viewed as interesting and informative, rather than definitive. We very likely missed people who should have been on the list, and we welcome your input and correction for future editions. Moreover, while selecting only 100 is difficult, coming up with a ranking is even more subjective. We tried to rank the entrants in what we believe is a somewhat logical order of influence, but we certainly recognize that many readers (and perhaps even some people whose names are on the list!) may take exception to the ranking.

Finally, it is important to note that we chose to leave out a few individuals whose credentials as libertarians might be less convincing, such as Julian Assange, Edward Snowden, and Howard Stern. We may well change our minds on these omissions, but for now these individuals are left off the list.

We hope you enjoy the list and we welcome your corrections and suggestions for future lists (comments can be sent to bestlists@newsmax.com).