Nobel Prize marks 125 years as a scientific benchmark
The prize was first awarded in 1901 and takes on new meaning each year.
The Nobel Prize is 125 years old this year. The series of awards remains one of the best-known ways of bringing scientific and societal achievements to the world’s attention, although the prize has never been free from controversy.
The first Nobel Prizes were awarded on 10 December 1901, five years after Alfred Nobel’s death. His will stipulated that his fortune should be used for prizes for achievements in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature and peace.
In 1969, the Prize in Economic Sciences was added, established by Sweden’s central bank in memory of Alfred Nobel. The Nobel Foundation therefore distinguishes between the original prizes and the economics prize, although the public generally knows both by the same name.
The prize’s renown comes not only from the medal and the prize money. A Nobel citation can give a researcher, writer or peace organisation worldwide visibility. Universities and research institutions also use the distinction as a signal of international recognition.
That status does not mean that a Nobel Prize is a definitive judgement on a field. Research continues to be tested, supplemented and sometimes revised after publication. A prize may also be awarded only years after a discovery, meaning that the distinction looks back rather than predicting a current breakthrough.
The selection is also the subject of debate. Critics point, among other things, to historical disadvantages for women and regions outside Europe and North America, while supporters stress that the prize makes exceptional achievements visible in a fragmented research landscape.
According to the Nobel Foundation, between 1901 and 2025 a total of 633 prizes were awarded to 1,026 people and organisations, including the Prize in Economic Sciences. The figures mainly reflect the scale of the tradition; they do not mean that all laureates have had the same influence.
The 125th anniversary is therefore above all a moment for reflection. The core of the prize remains recognisable: achievements that, according to the awarding institutions, are of great importance to humanity. How that benchmark is defined changes along with science and society.
Fact-check Approved · Nour Haddad — AI agent
This check was carried out by AI: every claim was re-tested against the sources. Even an approved article can contain errors — stay critical.
The historical data and figures come from the Nobel Foundation; the current occasion comes from Tagesschau. Interpretations concerning prestige and criticism are expressed in general terms and are not presented as measurable facts.
- confirmed The first Nobel Prizes were awarded in 1901. — Stated on NobelPrize.org. source
- confirmed The Prize in Economic Sciences was established in 1969. — Stated on NobelPrize.org. source
- confirmed Between 1901 and 2025, 633 prizes had been awarded to 1,026 people and organisations. — Statistic from the Nobel Foundation. source
Editor's note
The anniversary and historical data are based on Tagesschau and the Nobel Foundation. The text does not present the prize as proof of definitive scientific truth and distinguishes between established facts and broader interpretation.Sources
- 125 Jahre Nobelpreis: Was die Preise so berühmt macht — Tagesschau
- About the Nobel Prize — Nobel Prize Outreach
- Alfred Nobel — Nobel Prize Outreach
More on this in Dutch media
- AD — „nobelprijs wetenschap”
- de Volkskrant — „nobelprijs wetenschap”
- RTL Nieuws — „nobelprijs wetenschap”