Did you ever wonder which are the 11 Countries That Won the Most Nobel Prizes? If the answer is yes, you came to the right place. Nobel Prize is the most prestigious award in the domain of Literature, Chemistry, Peace, Physics, Physiology or Medicine and Economic Sciences a person can receive for its achievements. While you are at it check our 6 Youngest Nobel Prize Winners list as well.
The award was established in 1895 by Swedish inventor Alfred Nobel, widely known for his invention of dynamite. In his death will, he decided that the majority of his fortune should be used for establishing prizes for “greatest benefit on mankind”, citing physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace. Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences was added later in 1968 by Sweden’s central bank.
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Today there are several institutions that award the Nobel Prize. Three of them are based in Sweden, and one in Norway. Nobel Prize for physics, chemistry, and economic sciences awards The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences. Physiology or Medicine Nobel Prize award is awarded by Nobel Assembly at Karolinska Institutet, and the Swedish Academy is in charge for literature award. Nobel Prize for Peace is awarded by Norwegian Nobel Committee. According to the official data, 573 times Nobel Prize has been awarded to 900 people and organizations. Some of the recipients received the award more than once. Recipients come from all over the world, but some countries have more Nobel Prizes than others.
Figuring out the 11 Countries That Won the Most Nobel Prizes can be tricky business. Nobel Prize laureates by country can be summed in various ways. We have decided to use the official data from the Nobel Prize site, and to take into consideration the birthplace of recipients.
11. Austria/ Netherlands
We begin our list with two countries that have the same number of laureates and share our position 11.
Number of laureates: 17 each
10. Canada
Last Nobel Prize laureate from Canada was Arthur B. McDonald, who received the award for Physics in 2015.
Number of laureates: 18
9. Italy
First Nobel Prize laureate from Italy was Camillo Golgi, who received Nobel Prize for Physiology or Medicine in 1906.
Number of laureates: 19
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8. Japan
Most of the laureates from Japan received Prizes in the field of Chemistry or Physics.
Number of laureates: 23
7. Poland
Most famous Nobel Prize laureate from Poland is Marie Skłodowska Curie, who was the first women to won the Nobel Prize and first and only person to won it twice for different sciences.
Number of laureates: 26
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6. Russian Federation
Boris Pasternak Nobel Prize winner for Literature was forced by Communist Party of the Soviet Union in 1958 to decline the award.
Number of laureates: 27
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5. Sweden
First Nobel Prize that went to Sweden was in 1903 for Chemistry and Alfred Nobel’s home country is number 5 on our 11 Countries That Won the Most Nobel Prizes list.
Number of laureates: 29
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4. France
French-born writer Jean-Paul Sartre famously declined the award for Literature in 1964.
Number of laureates: 53
3. Germany
One of the greatest minds of the 20th century, Albert Einstein was German born, and received an award in the domain of Physics in 1921.
Number of laureates: 80
2. The United Kingdom
In 1973, the United Kingdom born laureates won three different Nobel Prizes for Literature, Chemistry, and Physics. Also, one of the most famous Nobel Prize laureates from the United Kingdom was its Prime Minister Sir Winston Churchill, who received Nobel Prize for literature.
Number of laureates: 94
1. The United States
The United States of America are by far the country with most Nobel Prize winners on our 11 Countries That Won the Most Nobel Prizes list. If we were to take into consideration award winners who at one point were based in the United States, USA would have more Nobel Prize laureates then every other country combined on this list. Most recently, United States President Barack Obama received a Nobel Prize for Peace, although the decision was heavily criticized.
Number of laureates: 257
