Nobel Prize Winners from the LGBTQ Community
The Nobel Prize is one of the most prestigious global prizes. Originating in Sweden out of the estate of chemist Alfred Nobel (the inventor of dynamite), six prize categories are awarded each year: Peace, Literature, Physics, Chemistry, Physiology and Medicine, and Economics. The prizes are conferred on individuals or groups who are considered to have made the most notable contribution to their field up to the year of the award.
Having LGBTQ representation on the list of Nobel Prize award recipients confirms the contribution of members of the community to society's progress on many issues. This has been the case for many years. In fact, several LGBTQ individuals were the first recipients for other communities. Sweden's Selma Lagerlof was the first woman and first Swedish individual to receive the prize; Jane Addams of the United States was the first American woman to receive the honour; Chile's Gabriela Mistral was the first Latin American to receive the honour; and Australia's Patrick White has been the only Australian individual to receive the Literature prize.
The field of Literature has the most LGBTQ award honourees with seven recipients, followed by Peace with three honourees and Physiology and Medicine with two honourees. No LGBTQ individuals in Economics or Physics have received a Nobel Prize. The recipients in 2022 were particularly notable with two LGBTQ honourees on the list.
We look forward to adding individuals to the list in the coming years.
- Jane Addams, United States, 1931 - Peace. First American woman to receive the honour.
- Vicente Aleixandre, Spain, 1977 - Literature.
- Jacinto Benavente, Spain, 1922 - Literature.
- Carolyn Bertozzi, United States, 1922 - Chemistry.
- Bjornstjerne Bjornson, Norway, 1903 - Literature.
- Andre Gide, France, 1947 - Literature.
- Dag Hammarskjold, Sweden, 1961 - Peace.
- Selma Lagerlof, Sweden, 1909 - Literature. First Woman, and first Swedish individual, to receive the honour.
- Thomas Mann, Germany, 1929 - Literature.
- Roger Martin du Gard, France, 1937 - Literature.
- Gabriela Mistral, Chile, 1945 - Literature. First Latin American to receive the honour.
- Svante Paabo, Sweden, 2022 - Physiology and Medicine.
- Maria Ressa, Philippines, 2021 - Peace.
- Otto Heinrich Warburg, Germany, 1931 - Physiology and Medicine.
- Patrick White, Australia, 1973 - Literature. Only Australian individual to win the prize.
See Also
- Pulitzer Prize Winning LGBTQ Authors and Poets
- Order of Canada
- New Zealand Order of Merit
- Order of Australia
- LGBTQ Recipients of the Order of Merit
- LGBTQ Recipients of the Presidential Medal of Freedom
- LGBTQ Individuals Who Have Received France's Highest Honours
- LGBTQ Members of the Order of Orange-Nassau