Nobel Prize Facts

585 Nobel Prizes!

Between 1901 and 2017, the Nobel Prizes and the Prize in Economic Sciences were awarded 585 times.

In the statutes of the Nobel Foundation it says: "A prize amount may be equally divided between two works, each of which is considered to merit a prize. If a work that is being rewarded has been produced by two or three persons, the prize shall be awarded to them jointly. In no case may a prize amount be divided between more than three persons."

923 Nobel Laureates!

896 Laureates* and 27 organizations have been awarded the Nobel Prize between 1901 and 2017. Of them, 79 are Laureates in Economic Sciences. A small number of individuals and organizations have been honoured more than once, which means that 892 individuals and 24 unique organizations have received the Nobel Prize in total. See Multiple Nobel Laureates.

Lists of all Nobel Laureates in
| Physics | Chemistry | Physiology or Medicine | Literature | Peace | Economic Sciences |

Years without Nobel Prizes

Since the start, in 1901, there are some years when the Nobel Prizes have not been awarded. The total number of times are 49. Most of them during World War I (1914-1918) and II (1939-1945). In the statutes of the Nobel Foundation it says: "If none of the works under consideration is found to be of the importance indicated in the first paragraph, the prize money shall be reserved until the following year. If, even then, the prize cannot be awarded, the amount shall be added to the Foundation's restricted funds.".

Nobel Laureates and Fields

The most common fields for Physics Laureates is particle physics, for Chemistry Laureates it is biochemistry, for Medicine Laureates it is genetics and for Laureates in Economic Sciences it is macroeconomics. Most of the Literature Laureates write prose.

All Laureates sorted by field and genre for literature:
| Physics | Chemistry | Physiology or Medicine | Literature | Peace | Economic Sciences |

Nobel Laureates and Affiliation

Here you can find out which universities, research institutions or companies Nobel Laureates were affiliated with at the time of the Nobel Prize announcement.

Only Nobel Laureates in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, and Laureates in Economic Sciences are shown in the list.

Nobel Laureates listed by affiliation

Nobel Laureates and Country of Birth

List of all Nobel Laureates sorted by country of birth

Nobel Laureates and Age

The average age of all Nobel Laureates in all prize categories between 1901 and 2017 is 60 years.

More information about Nobel Laureates and average age
All Nobel Laureates listed by age

June is the month when most Nobel Laureates celebrate a birthday.

List of Nobel Laureate birthdays

The Youngest Nobel Laureates

The Oldest Nobel Laureates

49 Nobel Prizes to Women

Between 1901 and 2017 the Nobel Prize and Prize in Economic Sciences have been awarded 49 times to women.

List of all female Nobel Laureates

Two Nobel Laureates Declined the Prize

Jean-Paul Sartre, awarded the 1964 Nobel Prize in Literature, declined the prize because he had consistently declined all official honours.

Le Duc Tho, awarded the 1973 Nobel Peace Prize jointly with US Secretary of State Henry Kissinger. They were awarded the Prize for negotiating the Vietnam peace accord. Le Doc Tho said that he was not in a position to accept the Nobel Peace Prize, citing the situation in Vietnam as his reason.

Forced to Decline the Nobel Prize!

Four Nobel Laureates have been forced by authorities to decline the Nobel Prize. Adolf Hitler forbade three German Nobel Laureates, Richard Kuhn, Adolf Butenandt and Gerhard Domagk, from accepting the Nobel Prize. All of them could later receive the Nobel Prize Diploma and Medal, but not the prize amount.

Boris Pasternak, the 1958 Nobel Laureate in Literature, initially accepted the Nobel Prize but was later coerced by the authorities of the Soviet Union, his native country, to decline the Nobel Prize.

Nobel Laureates under Arrest at the Time of the Award

Three Nobel Laureates were under arrest at the time of the award of the Nobel Prize, all of them Nobel Peace Prize Laureates:

German pacifist and journalist Carl von Ossietzky
Burmese politician Aung San Suu Kyi
Chinese human rights activist Liu Xiaobo

Multiple Nobel Laureates

The work of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) has been honoured by a Nobel Peace Prize three times. Besides, the founder of the ICRC, Henry Dunant, was awarded the first Nobel Peace Prize in 1901.

Linus Pauling is the only person to have been awarded two unshared Nobel Prizes - the 1954 Nobel Prize in Chemistry and the 1962 Nobel Peace Prize.

J. Bardeen	M. Curie	L. Pauling
Physics 1956 Physics 1972	Physics 1903 Chemistry 1911	Chemistry 1954 Peace 1962
F. Sanger	ICRC	UNHCR
Chemistry 1958 Chemistry 1980	Peace 1917 Peace 1944 Peace 1963	Peace 1954 Peace 1981

Posthumous Nobel Prizes

From 1974, the Statutes of the Nobel Foundation stipulate that a Prize cannot be awarded posthumously, unless death has occurred after the announcement of the Nobel Prize. Before 1974, the Nobel Prize has only been awarded posthumously twice: to Dag Hammarskjöld (Nobel Peace Prize 1961) and Erik Axel Karlfeldt (Nobel Prize in Literature 1931).

Following the 2011 announcement of the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine, it was discovered that one of the Medicine Laureates, Ralph Steinman, had passed away three days earlier. The Board of the Nobel Foundation examined the statutes, and an interpretation of the purpose of the rule above led to the conclusion that Ralph Steinman should continue to remain a Nobel Laureate, as the Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet had announced the 2011 Nobel Laureates in Physiology or Medicine without knowing of his death.

"Family Nobel Laureates"

As you may notice, the Curies were a very successful 'Nobel Prize family'. Marie Curie herself was awarded two Nobel Prizes.

Read more about Marie and Pierre Curie and the Discovery of Polonium and Radium

More about Nobel Prize Awarded Couples

The Nobel Prize Insignias

At the Nobel Prize Award Ceremonies on 10 December the Nobel Laureates receive three things: a Nobel Diploma, a Nobel Medal and a document confirming the Nobel Prize amount. Each Nobel Diploma is a unique work of art, created by foremost Swedish and Norwegian artists and calligraphers. The Nobel Medals are handmade with careful precision and in 18 carat recycled gold.

The Nobel Medals in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine and Literature are identical on the face: it shows the image of Alfred Nobel and the years of his birth and death (1833-1896). Nobel's portrait also appears on the Nobel Peace Prize Medal and the Medal for the Prize in Economic Sciences, but with a slightly different design. The image on the reverse varies according to the institution awarding the prize.

More about the Nobel Medals

The Nobel Diplomas

Each Nobel Diploma is a unique work of art, created by foremost Swedish and Norwegian artists and calligraphers.

More about the Nobel Diplomas

The Nobel Prize Amount

Alfred Nobel left most of his estate, more than SEK 31 million (today approximately SEK 1,702 million) to be converted into a fund and invested in "safe securities." The income from the investments was to be "distributed annually in the form of prizes to those who during the preceding year have conferred the greatest benefit to mankind."

The Nobel Prize amount for 2017 is set at Swedish kronor (SEK) 9.0 million per full Nobel Prize.

More about the Nobel Prize Amount

* Why are the individuals and organisations awarded a Nobel Prize called Nobel Laureates?

The word "Laureate" refers to being signified by the laurel wreath. In Greek mythology, the god Apollo is represented wearing a laurel wreath on his head. A laurel wreath is a circular crown made of branches and leaves of the bay laurel (in Latin: Laurus nobilis). In Ancient Greece, laurel wreaths were awarded to victors as a sign of honour - both in athletic competitions and in poetic meets.

Links to more facts on the Nobel Prizes:
Facts on the Nobel Prize in Physics
Facts on the Nobel Prize in Chemistry
Facts on the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine
Facts on the Nobel Prize in Literature
Facts on the Nobel Peace Prize
Facts on the Prize in Economic Sciences
Facts on all Nobel Prizes