Nobel Prize Award Ceremony Day

What Is the Nobel Prize Award Ceremony Day?

December 10 marks the day of the "Nobel Prize award ceremony." Every year on this date — the anniversary of Swedish chemist and industrialist Alfred Nobel's death (December 10, 1896) — award ceremonies are held in Stockholm, Sweden, and Oslo, Norway. The Prizes in Physics, Chemistry, Physiology or Medicine, Literature, and Economic Sciences are awarded in Stockholm, while the Nobel Peace Prize is awarded in Oslo.

How the Nobel Prize Works

• Prize money: Each prize comes with approximately 11 million Swedish kronor (about 150 million yen as of 2023)
• Announcement timing: Laureates for each prize are announced every October
• Eligibility: Living individuals (organizations are eligible only for the Peace Prize); posthumous awards are generally not given
• Selection: The Nobel Prizes in Physics, Chemistry, and Medicine are selected by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences and the Karolinska Institute

Japanese Nobel Laureates

As of the end of 2024, Japan has produced 29 Nobel laureates (counting those who held Japanese nationality at the time of the award), the most of any country in Asia.

• Physics: Hideki Yukawa, Sin-Itiro Tomonaga, Leo Esaki, Masatoshi Koshiba, Yoichiro Nambu, Takaaki Kajita, Syukuro Manabe, and others
• Chemistry: Kenichi Fukui, Hideki Shirakawa, Ryoji Noyori, Koichi Tanaka, Osamu Shimomura, Akira Suzuki, Ei-ichi Negishi, Akira Yoshino, and others
• Medicine: Susumu Tonegawa, Shinya Yamanaka, Satoshi Omura, Yoshinori Ohsumi, Tasuku Honjo, and others
• Literature: Yasunari Kawabata, Kenzaburo Oe
• Peace: Eisaku Sato, Nihon Hidankyo (2024)