Nobel Prize

The Nobel Prizes are a series of annual awards meant to recognize major achievements that benefit humanity. There are five official prizes, focusing on the fields of physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace, respectively. A similar prize in economics was also later established. The Nobel Prizes are widely considered among the most prestigious awards in the world.

The awards were created by Alfred Nobel, a Swedish industrialist who lived during the late 1800s. Nobel established the prizes in his will, and the Nobel Foundation was created a few years after his death to ensure that the awards would continue for years to come. The Nobel Prizes were first awarded in 1901, and over the years they have honored many accomplished scientists, inventors, writers, economists, peacekeepers, and others.

History of the Awards

The Nobel Awards were created by Alfred Nobel, who lived in Sweden in the late 1800s. Nobel was a prolific inventor who had received 355 patents throughout his life; his most famous was for dynamite. Although his invention could lead to destruction, Nobel hoped that the existence of such a powerful weapon would deter people from war.

In 1888, a mix-up by a French newspaper changed Alfred Nobel's life and, in part, led to the creation of the Nobel Prizes. That year, Alfred's brother died, but a French newspaper believed Alfred had passed away. The paper printed an obituary for Alfred Nobel that highlighted his invention of dynamite and its ability to destroy people. Nobel was concerned about his legacy, so he decided to create a series of awards in the hopes that he would be remembered for something positive.

Nobel died in December 1896. In his will, he expressed the wish that a large portion of his fortune be used to create a series of prizes. He wanted the money to be divided equally to fund five prizes in the disciplines of physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and peace. Nobel asked that various organizations in Sweden take charge of disseminating the awards. He also expressed a desire that the most deserving people in the world—no matter their country of origin—receive the awards.

Although Nobel's will made his wishes clear, his family was unhappy about his plan. Much fighting and many negotiations played out during the years after Nobel's death. In 1897, the Norwegian parliament approved Nobel's will and chose people to serve on the Norwegian Nobel Committee of Storing, which would award the prizes. The Nobel Foundation, an organization created to manage the awards, was created in 1900.

The first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901, and became an annual tradition. However, the committee has skipped giving out the awards in some years because it did not find a discovery or achievement worthy of honoring.

In 1967, the Swedish bank Sveriges Riksbank celebrated its three hundredth anniversary by making a large donation to the Nobel Foundation. With the help of that donation, the Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel was first awarded in 1969. The Nobel Foundation later decided that it would not create any other new Nobel Prizes.

In 2000, the Nobel Foundation celebrated its one hundredth anniversary. Throughout its existence, its goal has remained the same: to safeguard the financial bases of the Nobel Prizes and ensure that they will continue in the future.

Overview of the Awards

Every year, the Nobel Foundation considers nominations for the prizes in physics, chemistry, literature, medicine, peace, and economics. One to three people in each category receive a prize. Those who win a Nobel Prize are called Nobel laureates. (The word laureate is related to the word laurel; in ancient Greece, the winners of athletic and poetic competitions were given laurel wreaths to wear.) Winners are usually announced in October or November.

The Nobel Prizes are formally awarded at a ceremony in Stockholm, Sweden. People who win Nobel Prizes receive worldwide recognition for their work. The laureates also receive a Nobel diploma, a Nobel medal, and a document verifying an amount of prize money. The size of the monetary award has varied over the years, and by the 2020s surpassed US$1 million. The Nobel diplomas are unique pieces of art that are created by Norwegian and Swedish artists. The medals are made of eighteen-carat gold and plated in twenty-four-carat gold.

People or organizations who receive Nobel Prizes must be nominated by someone else. The Nobel Committees accept thousands of nominations every year and conduct exhaustive research to learn as much as possible about the nominees' achievements or discoveries. The actual winners are decided by a majority vote on the committees for the various awards. The criteria to win most of the awards have remained largely the same since the prizes were first awarded. Each recipient must have made an outstanding contribution to one of the categories. Also, the Nobel Prize winners must be living, as the awards cannot be given posthumously.

The Nobel Peace Prize is distinct among the awards, as it has been given for various types of work over time. Today, the Nobel Peace Prize is mostly awarded for work in arms control, peace negotiation, human rights, environmental protection, and other areas that help create a peaceful, more organized world.

Over the decades, Nobel Prizes have been awarded to a wide range of people and organizations. Some are world-famous and widely revered figures, such as Martin Luther King Jr., Albert Einstein, Nelson Mandela, and Marie Curie. Others may be less familiar to general audiences, but are nonetheless highly distinguished in their field. A few people have won two Nobel Prizes, including Curie and fellow scientists Linus Pauling, John Bardeen, Frederick Sanger, and Karl Barry Sharpless. Pakistani activist Malala Yousafzai set a record as the youngest-ever Nobel laureate when she won the Nobel Peace Prize in 2014 at age seventeen.

Some laureates have drawn significant controversy. For example, the 1973 Peace Prize was awarded to American diplomat Henry Kissinger (his Vietnamese counterpart, Lê Đức Thọ, declined a share of the prize) for negotiating a ceasefire in the Vietnam War, but critics noted that violence had continued in the conflict and many argued that Kissinger's policies had in fact escalated the war. Other instances of Peace Prizes awarded to political figures have also often sparked debate. The other Nobel Prizes have seen controversies as well, whether over the political views of laureates or the worthiness of their nomination. Some observers have also generally criticized the Nobel Foundation for Eurocentrism, sexism, or other bias in its selections.

Bibliography

"All Nobel Prizes." The Nobel Prize, www.nobelprize.org/prizes/lists/all-nobel-prizes/. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.

"Nobel Peace Prize." United Nations, www.un.org/en/about-us/nobel-peace-prize. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.

"Nobel Prize." Britannica, 11 Oct. 2024, www.britannica.com/topic/Nobel-Prize/The-prizes. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.

"Nobel Prize Facts." The Nobel Prize, www.nobelprize.org/prizes/facts/nobel-prize-facts/. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.

"The Swedish Nobel Prize." Sweden.se, Swedish Institute, sweden.se/work-business/study-research/the-swedish-nobel-prize. Accessed 11 Oct. 2024.