As of 2023[update], the Nobel Prize has been awarded to 975 people and 27 organizations since it was founded in 1901.[1] As of October 2024[update], two Koreans have become a Nobel laureate: South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and writer Han Kang.
Kim was awarded the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to push for national reconciliation between the divided Koreas during a summit meeting in Pyongyang.[2][3] One American who was born in South Korea to non-Korean parents, Charles J. Pedersen, won the 1987 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.[4][5]
Despite only having two Nobel laureates, numerous North and South Korean individuals (both citizens within the country and living in diasporic communities) and organizations have been nominated for the prize in any category.[6][7]
It was speculated that poor basic science education in school and universities was behind this, and steps were proposed to improve.[8][9] In 2022, President Yoon Suk-yeol voiced optimism over the future of the field of science in Korea, saying "Korea will have Nobel laureates soon."[10] For comparison, Japan had 25 Nobel laureates in science as of 2024[update].
Laureates
edit| Year | Image | Laureate | Born | Died | Field | Citation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Citizens | |||||||
| 2000 | .jpg)
|
Kim Dae-jung [김대중] |
6 January 1924 Hauido, South Jeolla, South Korea |
18 August 2009 Seoul, South Korea |
Peace | "for his work for democracy and human rights in South Korea and in East Asia in general, and for peace and reconciliation with North Korea in particular."[11] | |
| 2024 | .png)
|
Han Kang [한강] |
27 November 1970 Gwangju, South Korea |
— | Literature | "her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life."[12] | |
| Diaspora[a] | |||||||
| 1987 | Charles J. Pedersen[b] | 3 October 1904 Busan, South Korea |
26 October 1989 Salem, New Jersey, United States |
Chemistry | "for their development and use of molecules with structure-specific interactions of high selectivity."[13] (jointly with American chemist Donald J. Cram and French chemist Jean-Marie Lehn) | ||
Nominations
editThe first Korean to earn a nomination for the Nobel Prize was the poet Yi Gwangsu.[14] Unfortunately he died in 1950, therefore his nomination was done posthumously and, according to the Nobel statutes, posthumous nominations are automatically disqualified during the committee's deliberations.[15] Only living individuals and existing organizations are permitted to be nominated.[15][16] Since then, other Koreans began getting nominated for the prestigious Swedish prize in different categories. The following list are the nominees with verified nominations from the Nobel Committee and recognized international organizations. There are also other purported nominees whose nominations are yet to be verified since the archives are revealed 50 years after,[15] among them:
- For Physics: Benjamin W. Lee (1935–1977), Moo-Young Han (1934–2016), Ihm Jisoon[17] (born 1954), Noh Tae-won (born 1957) and Philip Kim[18] (born 1967).
- For Chemistry: Yoon Nung-min (1927–2009), Kim Kimoon (born 1954), Ryoo Ryong[c] (born 1955), Nam-Gyu Park[d] (born 1960), Hyeon Taeghwan[e] (born 1964) and YoungSoo Kim (born 1978).
- For Physiology or Medicine: Ho Wang Lee[f] (1928–2022), Yu Myeong-Hee (born 1954), V. Narry Kim (born 1969) and Charles Lee[g] (born 1969).
- For Literature: Kim Dongni (1913–1995), Hwang Sun-won[24] (1915–2000), Seo Jeong-ju[25] (1915–2000), Ku Sang (1919–2004), Pak Kyongni (1926–2008), Park Wan-suh[26] (1931–2011), Choe Inhun[27] (1936–2018), Ko Un[28] (born 1933), Claudia Lee Hae-in[29] (born 1933), Hwang Sok-yong[29] (born 1943), Yi Munyeol[26] (born 1948), Kim Hyesoon (born 1955), Yi Seungu (born 1959), Shin Kyung-sook (born 1963) and Kim Young-ha[26] (born 1968).
- For Peace: Chang Chun-ha (1918–1975), Kim Yong-ki (1908–1988), Chang Kee-ryo (1911–1995), Lee Tai-young (1914–1998), Lee Jong-wook (1945–2006), Archbp. Stephen Kim Sou-hwan (1922–2009), Park Won-soon (1955–2020), Han Seung-soo (born 1936), Ban Ki-moon[30] (born 1944), John Woong-Jin Oh (born 1944), Kim Jong-ki (born 1947), Moon Jae-in[31] (born 1953), Pomnyun Sunim (born 1953), Kitack Lim (born 1956), and Kim Jung-un[31] (born 1984).
- For Economics: Hyun-Song Shin (born 1959) and Ha-Joon Chang (born 1963).
Nominees
edit| Image | Nominee | Born | Died | Years Nominated | Citation | Nominator(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physiology or Medicine | ||||||
.png){kind=spacer}
|
Bun-ichi Hasama [挾間 文一][h] |
— | — | 1938 | "for his work on changes in the electropotential of active endocrine glands."[32] | Albrecht Bethe (1872–1954)  Germany
|
| Literature | ||||||
.jpg)
|
Yi Gwangsu [이광수] (posthumously nominated) |
1 February 1892 in Chongju, North Pyongan, North Korea | 25 October 1950 in Manpo, Chagang, North Korea | 1970 | It Is Love (1909) Heartless (1917) Danjong Aesa (1929) Soil (1932)[14] |
Baek Cheol (1908–1985)  South Korea
|
.jpg)
|
Younghill Kang [강용흘] |
5 June 1898 in Hongwon, South Hamgyong, North Korea | 2 December 1972 in Satellite Beach, Florida, United States | 1971 | The Grass Roof (1931) The Happy Grove (1933) East Goes West: The Making of an Oriental Yankee (1937)[33] |
Robert Payne (1911–1983)  United Kingdom
|
.jpg)
|
Eun Kook Kim [김은국] |
13 March 1932 in Hamhung, South Hamgyong, North Korea | 23 June 2009 in Shutesbury, Massachusetts, United States | 1971 | The Martyred (1964) The Innocent (1968) Lost Names (1970) In Search of Lost Years (1985)[34] |
Baek Cheol (1908–1985) South Korea
|
|
Pak Tu-jin [박두진] |
10 March 1916 in Anseong, Gyeonggi, South Korea | 16 September 1998 in Seoul, South Korea | 1972 | The Sun (1949) A Prayer at Noon (1953) A Human Jungle (1963) Chronicles of Water and Stone (1973)[35] | |
.jpg)
|
Kim Chi-ha [김지하] |
4 February 1941 in Mokpo, South Jeolla, South Korea | 8 May 2022 in Wonju, Gangwon, South Korea | 1975 | Cry of the People (1974) The Gold Crowned Jesus (1978) The Middle Hour (1980) Heart's Agony (1998)[36] |
|
| Peace | ||||||
.JPG)
|
Ham Seok-heon [함석헌] |
13 March 1901 Yomju, North Pyongan, North Korea |
4 February 1989 Seoul, South Korea |
1979, 1985 | "for his lifelong commitment to peace and democracy, becoming an important Asian voice for human rights and non-violence known as 'seed idea' (ssi-al sasang)."[37][38] |  American Friends Service Committee United States
|
|
6 Korean women (part of the 1000 PeaceWomen)[i] | began in 2003 in Bern, Switzerland | 2005 | "in recognition of women's efforts and visibility in promoting peace all over the world." | Ruth-Gaby Vermont-Mangold (b. 1941)  Switzerland
| |
.jpg)
|
Marianne Stöger | 24 April 1934 Matrei am Brenner, Tyrol, Austria |
— | 2017, 2020 | "for their four decades of work on Sorok Island, looking after Hansen's disease patients with all their hearts."[39][40] | Kim Hwang-sik (born 1948) South Korea
|
.jpg)
|
Margaritha Pissarek | 9 June 1935 Austria |
29 September 2023 Austria | |||
Nominators
editThe following Korean individuals became qualified nominators of local and foreign contenders for the Nobel Prize in any category:[41]
| Image | Nominator | Born | Died | Nominee | Motivation | Year Nominated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Literature | ||||||
.png)
|
Baek Cheol [백철] |
18 March 1908 Uiju, North Pyongan, North Korea |
13 October 1985 Seoul, South Korea |
Yi Gwangsu (1892–1950)  North Korea
|
It Is Love (1909) Heartless (1917) Danjong Aesa (1929) Soil (1932) |
1970[42] |
| Eun Kook Kim (1932–2009) United States
|
The Martyred (1964) The Innocent (1968) Lost Names (1970) In Search of Lost Years (1985) |
1971[42] | ||||
| Pak Tu-jin (1916–1998) South Korea
|
The Sun (1949) A Prayer at Noon (1953) A Human Jungle (1963) Chronicles of Water and Stone (1973) |
1972[35] | ||||
| Peace | ||||||
|
|
Mun Hui-sok | — | 1977 South Korea |
Universal Esperanto Association (founded in 1908)  Netherlands
|
"for their contribution to eliminating misunderstandings, suspicion and hatred amongst nations through the international language Esperanto." | 1962[43] |
.png)
|
Rhee Hyo-sang [이효상] |
14 January 1906 Jung, Daegu, North Gyeongsang, South Korea |
18 June 1989 Seoul, South Korea |
Hermann Gmeiner (1919–1986)  Austria
|
"for founding SOS Children's Villages, and through his work gathering millions of people in the cause of good will for abandoned children." | 1965[44] |
|
|
Hi Sup Chung | — | — | Spurgeon Milton Keeney (1893–1988) United States
|
"for having, throughout his life, strived for freedom of the individual and full development of human beings as persons and for continuously striving for human betterment, for the dignity of the individual and for the coming together of all people." | 1969[45] |
|
|
Lee Hai-rang | — | — | Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973) United States
|
1972[46] | |
.jpg)
|
Kim Jong-pil [김종필] |
7 January 1926 South Chungcheong, South Korea |
23 June 2018 Seoul, South Korea |
1972[46] | ||
.jpg)
|
Kim Hwang-sik [김황식] |
9 August 1948 Jangseong, South Jeolla, South Korea |
|
Marianne Stöger (born 1934) Austria
|
"for their four decades of work on Sorok Island, looking after Hansen's disease patients with all their hearts." | 2020[39][40] |
| Margaritha Pissarek (1935–2023) Austria
| ||||||
Notes
edit- ^ Nobel laureates of Korean birth and origin but subsequently acquired foreign citizenship.
- ^ The 1987 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner Charles J. Pedersen has a Japanese mother and his Japanese first name was Yoshio (良男). He was born in Busan, Korea, Japanese protectorate, but later moved to Japan with his family at the age of 8 years to attend a convent school in Nagasaki.
- ^ Ryoo Ryong was named 2014 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Charles T. Kresge and Galen D. Stucky "for the design of functional mesoporous materials."[19][20]
- ^ Nam-Gyu Park was named 2017 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Tsutomu Miyasaka and Henry Snaith "for their discovery and application of perovskite materials to achieve efficient energy conversion."[21]
- ^ Taeghwan Hyeon was named 2020 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Christopher B. Murray and Moungi G. Bawendi "for synthesis of nanocrystals with precise attributes for a wide range of applications in physical, biological, and medical systems."[22]
- ^ Ho Wang Lee was named 2021 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Karl M. Johnson "for identification and isolation of the Hantaan virus (hantavirus), agent of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome."[23]
- ^ Charles Lee was named 2014 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Stephen W. Scherer and Michael H. Wigler "for their contributions to the discovery of large-scale copy number variation and its association with specific diseases."[20]
- ^ According to the Nobel nomination archives, Bun-ichi Hasama was a professor of pharmacology at the Keijō Imperial University. In 1938, he was jointly nominated with German physiologist Erich von Holst (1908–1962) and Russian biologist Alexander Gurwitsch (1874–1954).
- ^ The 6 Korean women who formed part in the 1000 PeaceWomen were Yoon Geum-Soon (?), Shin Heisoo (born 1950), Lee Hyun-Sook (?), Maria Rhie Chol-soon (?), Kim Sook-Im (?) and Jeong Yu-Jin (?).
References
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- ^ a b "Two Koreans up for Nobel Prizes". Korea JoongAng Daily. 25 September 2014. Archived from the original on 15 March 2023. Retrieved 10 March 2023.
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- ^ Nomination archive – Bun-ichi Hasama Archived 2023-03-16 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
- ^ Nomination archive – Younghill Kang Archived 2022-09-28 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
- ^ Nomination archive – Richard Eun Kook Kim Archived 2022-09-29 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
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- ^ Nomination archive – Nominators from Republic of Korea Archived 2023-03-16 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
- ^ a b Nomination archive – Chull Paik Archived 2023-03-16 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
- ^ Nomination archive – Mun Hui-Soh Archived 2023-03-16 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
- ^ Nomination archive – Rhee Hyo Sang Archived 2023-03-16 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
- ^ Nomination archive – Hi Sup Chung Archived 2023-03-16 at the Wayback Machine nobelprize.org
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