List of Irish Nobel laureates and nominees

Since 1923, Ireland (which consists of the Republic of Ireland and Northern Ireland, a constituent part of the United Kingdom) has produced eleven Nobel laureates: one in Physics, one in Physiology or Medicine, four in Literature and five in Peace category.[1]

Two additional Nobel laureates in physics are sometimes included in this list: Guglielmo Marconi, whose mother was Irish, and Erwin Schrödinger, who became a naturalized Irish citizen in 1948 (he received the award in 1933).

Laureates

[edit]
Year Image Laureate Born Died Field Rationale
Citizens
1923 William Butler Yeats 13 June 1865 in Sandymount, Dublin 28 January 1939 in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, Alpes-Maritimes, France Literature "for his always inspired poetry, which in a highly artistic form gives expression to the spirit of a whole nation."[2]
1925 George Bernard Shaw 26 July 1856 in Dublin 2 November 1950 in Ayot St Lawrence, Hertfordshire, England Literature "for his work which is marked by both idealism and humanity, its stimulating satire often being infused with a singular poetic beauty."[3]
1933 Erwin Schrödinger 12 August 1887 in Vienna, Austria
(acquired Irish citizenship in 1948) 		4 January 1961 in Vienna, Austria Physics "for the discovery of new productive forms of atomic theory"[4]
(shared with English physicist Paul Dirac)
1951 Ernest Walton 6 October 1903 in Dungarvan, County Waterford 25 June 1995 in Belfast Physics "for their pioneer work on the transmutation of atomic nuclei by artificially accelerated atomic particles."[5]
(shared with English physicist John Cockcroft)
1969 Samuel Beckett 13 April 1906 in Foxrock, Dublin 22 December 1989 in Paris, France Literature "for his writing, which - in new forms for the novel and drama - in the destitution of modern man acquires its elevation."[6]
1974 Seán MacBride 26 January 1904 in Paris, France 15 January 1988 in Dublin Peace "for his efforts to secure and develop human rights throughout the world."[7]
(shared with Japanese politician Eisaku Satō)
1976 Betty Williams 22 May 1943 in Belfast 17 March 2020 in Belfast Peace "for the courageous efforts in founding a movement to put an end to the violent conflict in Northern Ireland."[8]
Mairead Maguire 27 January 1944 in Belfast —
1995 Seamus Heaney 13 April 1939 in Tamniaran, near Castledawson 30 August 2013 in Blackrock, Dublin Literature "for works of lyrical beauty and ethical depth, which exalt everyday miracles and the living past."[9]
1998 John Hume 18 January 1937 in Derry 3 August 2020 in Derry Peace "for their efforts to find a peaceful solution to the conflict in Northern Ireland."[10]
David Trimble 15 October 1944 in Belfast 25 July 2022 in Belfast
2015 William Cecil Campbell[a] 28 June 1930 in Ramelton, County Donegal — Physiology or Medicine "for their discoveries concerning a novel therapy against infections caused by roundworm parasites."[12]
(shared with Japanese biochemist Satoshi Ōmura and Chinese malariologist Tu Youyou)

Nominations

[edit]

Nominees

[edit]
Image Nominee Born Died Years Nominated Citation Nominator(s)
Physics
John Sealy Townsend 7 June 1868 in Galway, County Galway, Ireland 16 February 1957 in Oxford, England 1924, 1942 "for studies concerning the electrical conduction of gases (concerning the kinetics of electrons and ions) and directly measured the electrical charge. "[13] Jean Baptiste Perrin
(1870–1942)
 France
1944 "for his discovery of a phenomenon of the electron avalanche in electromagnetism (Townsend discharge)."[13] Victor Albert Bailey
(1895–1964)
 Australia
Literature
William Butler Yeats 13 June 1865 in Sandymount, Leinster, Ireland 28 January 1939 in Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, Alpes-Maritimes, France 1902 The Land of Heart's Desire (1894)
Cathleen ni Houlihan (1902)
The King's Threshold (1904)
Deirdre (1907)
The Green Helmet (1910)
The Wild Swans at Coole (1919)
The Tower (1928)
Last Poems and Plays (1940)[14] 		William E. H. Lecky
(1838–1903)
 Ireland
1914 George Noble Plunkett
(1851–1948)
 Ireland
1915, 1918 Per Hallström
(1866–1960)
 Sweden
1921 Erik Axel Karlfeldt
(1864–1931)
 Sweden
1922, 1923 Nobel Committee
George Bernard Shaw 26 July 1856 in Dublin, Ireland 2 November 1950 in Ayot St Lawrence, Hertfordshire, England 1911 Candida (1898)
Caesar and Cleopatra (1901)
Man and Superman (1902)
Major Barbara (1907)
The Doctor's Dilemma (1909)
Pygmalion (1913)
Saint Joan (1923)[15] 		Gilbert Murray
(1866–1957)
 Great Britain
1912 Kristian Birch-Reichenwald Aars
(1868–1917)
 Norway
1921 Henrik Schück
(1855–1947)
 Sweden
1924, 1925, 1926 Tor Hedberg
(1862–1931)
 Sweden
1926 Nathan Söderblom
(1866–1931)
 Sweden
Edward Dowden[b] 3 May 1843 in Cork, County Cork, Ireland 4 April 1913 in Dublin, Ireland 1913 Shakspere: A Critical Study of His Mind and Art (1875)
Shakespeare Primer (1877)
The Life of Percy Bysshe Shelley (1886)[16] 		James Lindsay
(1847–1913)
 Great Britain
Darrell Figgis 17 September 1882 in Dublin, Ireland 27 October 1925 in London, England 1922 Recollections of the Irish War (1900)
A Vision of Life (1909)
A Chronicle of Jails (1917)
The Return of the Hero (1923)[17] 		Thomas Rudmose-Brown
(1878–1942)
 Ireland
James Cousins 22 July 1873 in Belfast, Northern Ireland 20 February 1956 in Madanapalle, Andhra Pradesh, India 1935[c] The Sleep of the King (1902)
New Ways in English Literature (1912)
The Renaissance in India (1918)
A Bardic Pilgrimage (1934)[19] 		Rabindranath Tagore
(1861–1941)
 India
Seán O'Casey 30 March 1880
Dublin, Ireland 		18 September 1964
Torquay, Devon, England 		1949, 1950 The Shadow of a Gunman (1923)
Juno and the Paycock (1924)
The Plough and the Stars (1926)
The Silver Tassie (1927)
The End of the Beginning (1937)
Red Roses for Me (1942)
Cock-a-Doodle Dandy (1949)[20] 		Oscar Wieselgren
(1886–1971)
 Sweden
1950 Mary Elizabeth Morton
(1876–1957)
 Ireland
1955 Una Ellis-Fermor
(1894–1958)
 Great Britain
1957 Oscar Cargill
(1898–1972)
 United States
1959, 1961, 1962 Geoffrey Tillotson
(1905–1969)
 Great Britain
1961 Roy Pascal
(1904–1980)
 Great Britain
1963 The English PEN Club
Edward Plunkett, 18th Baron of Dunsany July 24, 1878 in London, England 25 October 1957 in Dublin, Ireland 1950 The Gods of Pegāna (1905)
The King of Elfland's Daughter (1924)
The Travel Tales of Mr. Joseph Jorkens (1931)[21] 		The Irish PEN Club
Lennox Robinson 4 October 1886 in Douglas, County Cork, Ireland 15 October 1958 in Dublin, Ireland 1957 The Clancy Name (1908)
The Whiteheaded Boy (1916)
The Big House (1926)
Drama at Inish (1933)[22]
Samuel Beckett 13 April 1906 in Foxrock, Dublin Ireland 22 December 1989 in Paris, France 1957 Murphy (1938)
Molloy (1951)
Malone Dies (1951)
Waiting for Godot (1952)
The Unnamable (1953)
Krapp's Last Tape (1958)
How It Is (1961)
Happy Days (1961)[23] 		Robert-Léon Wagner
(1905–1982)
 France
1963, 1966 Johannes Edfelt
(1904–1997)
 Sweden
1964, 1965, 1966, 1967, 1968 William Stuart Maguinness
(1903–1983)
 Great Britain
1964 Bengt Holmqvist
(1924–2002)
 Finland
1966 Léon Cellier et al.[d]
(1911–1976)
 France
1967, 1968 Nelly Sachs
(1891–1970)
 Sweden
1967 The Swedish PEN Club et al.[e]
1967, 1968 Siegbert Salomon Prawer
(1925–2012)
 Great Britain
1968 Matthew Hodgart et al.[f]
(1916–1996)
 Great Britain
1969 Christopher Ricks et al.[g]
(born 1933)
 Great Britain
Elizabeth Bowen 7 June 1899 in Dublin, Ireland 22 February 1973 in London, England 1958 The Last September (1929)
The House in Paris (1936)
The Heat of the Day (1949)
Eva Trout (1968)[24] 		Roman Jakobson
(1896–1982)
 Russia
Austin Clarke 9 May 1896 in Stoneybatter, Dublin, Ireland 19 March 1974 in Templeogue, Dublin, Ireland 1972 Night and Morning (1938)
Ancient Lights (1955)
Twice Round the Black Church (1962)
A Penny in the Clouds (1968)[25] 		Kenneth Deale
(1907–1974)
 Ireland
Desmond Clarke
(1907–1979)
 Ireland
Stanislaus Lynch 1907 in Ballyjamesduff, County Cavan, Ireland 1983 in County Cavan, Ireland 1972 Echoes of the Hunting Horn (1947)
A Hunting Man's Rambles (1951)
Hounds are Running! (1950)[25]
Francis Stuart 29 April 1902 in Townsville, Queensland, Australia 2 February 2000 in Fanore, County Clare, Ireland 1972 The Pillar of Cloud (1948)
Redemption (1949)
The Flowering Cross (1950)
Black List, Section H (1971)[25]
Peace
Arthur Griffith[h] 31 March 1871 in Dublin, Ireland 12 August 1922 in Dublin, Ireland 1922 "for [his role in the] peaceful negotiations with the Anglo-Irish Treaty in establishing Irish Free State."[26] Halvdan Koht
(1873–1965)
 Norway
Fr. William Ferris 1881 in Rattoo, County Kerry, Ireland 1971 in Ballylongford, County Kerry, Ireland 1938 "for his brochure The Democratic Constitution, in which he outlined an electoral system which guaranteed unanimity in choice of every spokesman or representative, securing perfect harmony in the counsels of all assemblies, local, national, and international."[27] Jed O'Sullivan[i] (?)
 Ireland
Raphael Armattoe[j] 12 August 1913 in Keta, Volta, Ghana 22 December 1953 in Hamburg, Germany 1948 "for his campaigns for the unification of British Togoland, the Gold Coast and French Togoland."[29] members of the Parliament of Ireland[k]
The Shop Stewards of the Belfast Shipyards Belfast, Northern Ireland 1970 "for their devoted efforts to prevent sectarian violence breaking out in the shipyards and contributing to inter-communal peace."[30] members of the Parliament of Ireland
Bloody Sunday families Bogside, Derry, Northern Ireland 2023 "for their commitment to peace and reconciliation during their long fight for truth and justice."[31][32] Colum Eastwood
(born 1983)
 Ireland

Notes

[edit]
  1. ^ Campbell acquired United States citizenship in 1964.[11]
  2. ^ Dowden died before the only chance to be rewarded.
  3. ^ The Nobel Prize in Literature has not been awarded this year.[18]
  4. ^ With another 1966 nominator namely William York Tindall (1903–1981)of the  United States.
  5. ^ Other 1967 nominators included Per-Olof Barck (1912–1978) of  Finland and Barbara Hardy (1924–2016) of  Great Britain.
  6. ^ Other 1968 nominators included Robert Brustein (1927–2023) of the  United States and Gerhard Heilfurth (1909–2006) of  Germany.
  7. ^ Other 1969 nominators included Jan Kott (1914–2001) of  Poland, Wolfgang Clemen (1909–1990) of  Germany, Martin Price (1920–2010) of the  United States and Helmut Kreuzer (1927–2004) of  Germany.
  8. ^ Griffiths was jointly nominated with David Lloyd George but died before the only chance to be rewarded.
  9. ^ The nomination was made by two members of the Irish national assembly, but the other name was illegible.
  10. ^ Armattoe was a resident of Northern Ireland at the time he was nominated for the Nobel Peace Prize.[28]
  11. ^ The nomination was also signed by MPs from Belfast, Northern Ireland. The nomination was also supported by Anthony Mulvey, R. Cinningham and Fred Peart, Baron Peart.

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Ireland's greatest and brightest – the nation's Nobel laureates". Irish Central. 24 November 2018. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  2. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Literature 1923". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  3. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Literature 1925". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  4. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Physics 1933". Nobel Foundation. Archived from the original on 17 October 2008. Retrieved 9 October 2008.
  5. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Physics 1951". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  6. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Literature 1969". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  7. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Literature 1974". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  8. ^ "The Nobel Peace Prize 1976". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  9. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Literature 1995". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  10. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Literature 1998". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  11. ^ Murphy, Darragh (9 October 2015). "Meet Ireland's new Nobel Laureate, William C Campbell". The Irish Times. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  12. ^ "The Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine 2015". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  13. ^ a b "Nomination archive – Sir John S Townsend". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  14. ^ "Nomination archive – William B Yeats". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  15. ^ "Nomination archive – George Bernard Shaw". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  16. ^ "Nomination archive – Edward Dowden". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  17. ^ "Nomination archive – Darrell Figgis". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  18. ^ Achintyarup Ray (19 October 2022). "When Nobel winner Rabindranath Tagore became Nobel nominator". The Times of India. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  19. ^ "Nomination archive – James H Cousins". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  20. ^ "Nomination archive – Sean O'Casey". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  21. ^ "Nomination archive – Edward J Moreton Drax Plunkett Dunsany". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  22. ^ "Nomination archive – Lennox Robinson". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  23. ^ "Nomination archive – Samuel Beckett". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  24. ^ "Nomination archive – Elisabeth Bowen". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  25. ^ a b c "Nobelarkivet-1972" (PDF). svenskaakademien.se. April 2020. Retrieved 12 December 2023.
  26. ^ "Nomination archive – Arthur Griffiths". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  27. ^ "Nomination archive – William Ferris". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  28. ^ "R. E. G. Armattoe: the 'Irishman' from West Africa". History Ireland. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  29. ^ "Nomination archive – Raphael Armattoe". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  30. ^ "Nomination archive – the Shop Stewards of the Belfast Shipyards". nobelprize.org. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  31. ^ Stanley Adams (29 January 2023). "Bloody Sunday families to be nominated for Nobel Prize". UK Daily News. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
  32. ^ Gerard Donaghy (29 January 2023). "MP Colum Eastwood to nominate 'inspirational' Bloody Sunday families for Nobel Peace Prize". The Irish Post. Archived from the original on 30 January 2023. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
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