List of Bengali Nobel laureates

Since the inauguration of Nobel Prize in 1901, until 2024, three Bengali persons and one Bengali origin person—four in all, have won this award. The first Bengali as well as the first Asian to be awarded the Nobel Prize in 1913, was Rabindranath Tagore (born in British India, now India), in literature.[1] Later in 1998, Amartya Sen (born in British India, now India) in Economics, in 2006 Muhammad Yunus (born in British India, now Bangladesh) in Peace,[2] and in 2019 Abhijit Banerjee (born in India), won this award in Economics.[3]

## List

[edit]

Portrait  | Name  | Born & Died  | Country  | Field  | Year  | Rational

|
|
|
|
|
|

| Rabindranath Tagore | Born: 7 May 1861
Kolkata, Bengal, British India

Died: 7 August 1941
Kolkata, Bengal, British India |  British India | Literature | 1913  | For his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse, by which, with consummate skill, he has made his poetic thought, expressed in his own English words, a part of the literature of the West[4]
| Amartya Sen | Born: 3 November 1933

Shantiniketan, Bengal, British India

|  India | Economics | 1998  | For his contributions to welfare economics[5]

Human development theory, Capability approach

| Muhammad Yunus | Born: 28 June 1940
Hathazari, Chittagong, Bengal, British India |  Bangladesh | Peace | 2006  | For his contribution of the concept of the microcredit concept. and creating economic and social development from below.[6]Shared the Prize with Grameen Bank.[7]
| Abhijit Banerjee | Born: 21 February 1961
Krishnanagar, West Bengal, India |  USA | Economics | 2019  | For their experimental approach to alleviating global poverty[8]

Use of RCTs in development economics

## Nominees

[edit]

The following list consists of individuals who were nominated for the Nobel Prize but never won it.

Portrait  | Nominee  | Born  | Died  | Year(s)  | Field  | Country  | Note

|
|
|
|
|
|
|

| Rabindranath Tagore | 7 May 1861

Kolkata, Bengal, British India

| 7 August 1941

Kolkata, Bengal, British India

| 1913 | Literature |  British India | For his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse, by which, with consummate skill, he has made his poetic thought, expressed in his own English words, a part of the literature of the West.[4]
Nominated by:

* Thomas Sturge Moore (1870–1944)[9]

Won the 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature.

| Rabindranath Datta | 1 October 1883

Kolkata, Bengal, British India

| 6 July 1917

Kolkata, Bengal, British India

| 1916  | Literature |  British India | Nominated by:

* Mano M Gangedy
* Raya Yatindra N Chondhury[10]

| Upendranath Brahmachari | 19 December 1873

Sardanga, Purbasthali, Bengal, British India

| 6 February 1946

Kolkata, Bengal, British India

| 1929, 1942  | Physiology or Medicine |  British India | Discovered Urea Stibamine (antimonial compound for treatment of kala-azar) and a new disease, Post-kala-azar dermal leishmaniasis.[11]
Nominated by:

* Sudhamoy Ghosh (1890–1970)
* U P Basu
* M N Bose
* Subodh Chandra Mahalanobis (1867–1953)
* C C Bose[11]

| Meghnad Saha | 6 October 1893

Seoratali, Dhaka, Bengal, British India
(now in Gazipur, Bangladesh)

| 16 February 1956
New Delhi | 1930, 1937, 1939, 1940, 1951, 1955  | Physics |  British India

* * *

India | For developing the Saha ionization equation, used to describe chemical and physical conditions in stars.[12]
Nominated by:

* Debendra Mohan Bose (1885–1975)
* Sisir Kumar Mitra (1890–1963)
* Arthur Compton (1892–1962)[12]

| Harimohan Banerjee | —  | 3 September 1960

Kolkata, West Bengal, India

| 1934, 1936, 1938  | Peace

* * *

Literature |  British India | For his book "Secrets of Religion and Way to Peace".[13]
Nominated by:

* Devadatta Ramakrishna Bhandarkar (1875–1950)
* S K Gupta[13]

He also wrote a pamphlet called "View of Peace".[13]

| Bijay Chandra Majumdar | 27 October 1861

Khanakul, Faridpur, British India

(present-day Bangladesh)

| 30 December 1942

Kolkata, Bengal, British India

| 1937, 1939  | Literature |  British India | Nominated by:

* Sen Satyendranath (1909–?)
* Mukundadeb Chatterjee[14]

| Sanjib Kumar Chaudhuri | 5 September 1902

British India

| —  | 1938, 1939, 1950, 1951, 1955, 1959, 1967, 1968, 1970, 1971  | Peace

* * *

Literature |  British India

* * *

India | For his work for World Order, World Peace and World Federalism Movement and for his book "A Constitution for World Government" and for his authorship of treaties important to the world order and his services to humanity.[15]
Nominated by:

* Mahmoud Hasan (1897–?)
* K Danungo
* R. C. Majumdar (1888–1980)
* Lord John Boyd Orr (1880 – 1971)
* Lalita Rajya Laxmi
* Bateshwar Singh
* Primatha Chaudhuri
* D. P. Roy Choudhury[15]

He was the Vice-President of the Asian Congress for World Federation held at Hiroshima in 1952, and Chairman of a Commission in the special Session of the People's World Convention held in Paris in 1951.

| Sri Aurobindo Ghose | 15 August 1872
Kolkata, Bengal, British India | 5 December 1950
Pondicherry, French India

(present-day Pondicherry, Puducherry Union Territory, India)

| 1943, 1950  | Peace

* * *

Literature |  British India

* * *

India | Nominated by

* Francis Younghusband (1863–1942)
* Saileswar Sen[16]

| Satyendra Nath Bose | 1 January 1894

Kolkata, Bengal, British India

| 4 February 1974

Kolkata, West Bengal, India

| 1956, 1959, 1962, 1968, 1969, 1970  | Physics |  India | For developing the foundation for Bose–Einstein statistics and the theory of the Bose–Einstein condensate in Quantum Mechanics.[17]
Nominated by:

* Kedareswar Banerjee (1900–1975)
* Daulat Singh Kothari (1906–1993)
* Shibapratim Bagchi (?)
* Anindya Dutta (?)
* M. G. K. Menon (1928–2016)[17]

| Sudhindra Nath Ghose | 30 July 1899

Bardhaman, Bengal, British India

| 30 December 1965

London, England[18]

| 1965  | Literature |  United Kingdom | Nominated by:

* Henri de Ziégler (1885–1970)[19]

| Das Moni Roy | 12 February 1895

Memari, Bengal, British India

| —  | 1967  | Peace |  India | Nominated by:

* Subimal Kunnar Mukherjee[20]

| Binay Ranjan Sen | 1 January 1898

Dibrugarh, Assam, India

| 12 June 1993

Kolkata, West Bengal, India

| 1967, 1968  | Peace |  India | For his exceptional contribution to the peace of the world through his work at the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO).[21]
Nominated by:

* Rakel Seweriin (1906–1995)[21]
* Maurice Sauvé (1923–1992)[22]

| Jogesh Chandra Bhattacharya | c. 1895

British India

| 2 April 1960

India

| 1969  | Peace |  India | For his dedication to the propagation of spiritualism through which alone, he believes, peace will dawn on Earth. His book "Prayers for a New Advent" is groundbreaking in the field of propagation of the ideals of peace.[23]
Nominated posthumously by:

* Jugal Kishore Mundal[23]

| Tarasankar Bandyopadhyay | 27 July 1898

Labhpur, Birbhum, Bengal, British India

| 14 September 1971

Kolkata, West Bengal, India

| 1971, 1972, 1973  | Literature |  India | Nominated by:

* Krishna Kripalani (1907–1992)
* The Swedish Academy’s Nobel Committee[24]

| Suniti Kumar Chatterji | 26 November 1890

Shibpur, Howrah, Bengal, British India

| 29 May 1977

Kolkata, West Bengal, India

| 1972, 1973  | Literature |  India | Nominated by:

* Pratul Chandra Gupta (1910–1990)
* The Swedish Academy’s Nobel Committee[25]

| Sri Chinmoy | 27 August 1931

Boalkhali, Chittagong, Bengal, British India

(present-day Bangladesh)

| 11 October 2007

New York City, United States

| 1972, 1973, 1974  | Peace

* * *

Literature |  India | Nominated by:

* Bernard O´Kelly (1926–2005)
* Norman Holmes Pearson (1909–1975)
* Joseph Axelrod (1915–2010)
* Karl Kroeber (1926–2009)
* Peter A Pitzele (1941–)[26]
* Francis C. Cady[27]

| Mujibur Rahman | 17 March 1920

Tungipara, Bengal, British India

(present-day Bangladesh)

| 15 August 1975

Dhaka, Bangladesh

| 1975  | Peace |  Bangladesh | Nominated by:

* Abdul Malek Ukil (1924–1987)

Assassinated before the only chance to be rewarded.[28]

| Mahasweta Devi | 14 January 1926

Dhaka, Bengal, British India

(present-day Bangladesh)

| 28 July 2016

Kolkata, West Bengal, India

| 2012  | Literature |  India | [29]
| Taslima Nasrin | 25 August 1962

Mymensingh, East Pakistan

(present-day Bangladesh)

| (aged 62)  | 2005  | Peace |  Bangladesh | [30][31]
| Muhammad Yunus | 28 June 1940
Hathazari, Chittagong, Bengal, British India | (aged 85)  | 2006 | Peace |  Bangladesh | For his contribution of the concept of the microcredit concept. and creating economic and social development from below.[6]

Shared the 2006 Nobel Peace Prize with Grameen Bank.[7]

| Dr Ruhul Abid  | 1961

Dhaka, Bangladesh

| (aged 63–64)  | 2020  | Peace |  United States
Bangladesh | For his humanitarian healthcare initiatives through HAEFA, providing critical medical services to underprivileged communities, Rohingya refugees, and garment workers in Bangladesh, alongside pioneering digital health innovations like the Nirog system and COVID-19 response efforts.[32][33]

Jointly Nominated with HAEFA by:

* University of Massachusetts Boston[32]

| Ryan Saadi  | 6 December 1964

Ishwardi Upazila, Pabna, Bangladesh

| (aged 60)  | 2023  | Peace |  United States
Bangladesh | For his leadership in advancing accessible medical innovation and biotech solutions impacting global health equity through his role as CEO founder of Tevogen Bio.[34][35]

Nominated by:

* Dr. Curtis Patton (1940–)[36]

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Rabindranath Tagore: First Indian to be Honoured with Nobel Prize". News18. 7 October 2020. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
2. ^ "Bangladesh's 'banker to the poor' wins peace Nobel". gulfnews.com. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
3. ^ "3 Bengalis won the Nobel. Abhijit Banerjee first to wear dhoti". India Today. 11 December 2019. Retrieved 5 March 2021.
4. ^ a b "Nobel Prize in Literature 1913". Nobel Foundation. Archived from the original on 2008-10-15. Retrieved 2008-10-17.
5. ^ "The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 1998". Nobel Foundation. Archived from the original on 2014-10-11. Retrieved 2008-10-14.
6. ^ a b "The Nobel Peace Prize 2006". Nobel Foundation. Archived from the original on 2008-10-17. Retrieved 2008-10-20.
7. ^ a b "Yunus wins peace Nobel for anti-poverty efforts". NBC News. 13 October 2006.
8. ^ "The Sveriges Riksbank Prize in Economic Sciences in Memory of Alfred Nobel 2019". Nobel Foundation. Archived from the original on 2020-05-21. Retrieved 2021-10-07.
9. ^ Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Archive". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
10. ^ Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Archive". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
11. ^ a b Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Physiology or Medicine 1942 35-0". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
12. ^ a b Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Archive". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
13. ^ a b c Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Archive". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
14. ^ "Nomination Archive - Bensadhar Majumdar". NobelPrize.org. April 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
15. ^ a b "Nomination Archive – Sanjib Chaudhuri". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
16. ^ Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Archive". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
17. ^ a b Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Archive". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
18. ^ "Open University - Sudhindra Nath Ghose". open.ac.uk. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
19. ^ "Nomination Archive - Sudhin Ghose". NobelPrize.org. April 2020. Retrieved 11 November 2020.
20. ^ "Nomination Archive – Dasmoni Roy". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
21. ^ a b "Nomination Archive – Binaj Ranyan Sen". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 21 June 2022.
22. ^ "Nomination Archive – Binay Ranjan Sen". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
23. ^ a b "Nomination Archive – Jogesh Chandra Bhattacharya". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 10 October 2022.
24. ^ Mehlin, Hans (2024-05-21). "Nomination Archive". NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 2025-03-01.
25. ^ "Nomination Archive - Suniti Kumar Chatterji". NobelPrize.org. March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
26. ^ "Nomination Archive - Sri Chinmoy Kumar Ghose". NobelPrize.org. March 2024. Retrieved 14 March 2024.
27. ^ "Nominasjoner til Nobels fredspris – Nominasjoner 1973". media.digitalarkivet.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 10 October 2022.
28. ^ "Nominasjoner til Nobels fredspris – Nominasjoner 1975". media.digitalarkivet.no (in Norwegian). Retrieved 10 October 2022.
29. ^ "After Tagore, author Mahasweta Devi was nominated for 2012 Nobel Prize in Literature". Get Bengal. 20 October 2019. Retrieved 31 January 2024.
30. ^ "Taslima Nasreen nominated for Nobel Peace prize". bdnews24.com. 18 July 2005.
31. ^ "199 nominated for 2005 Nobel Peace Prize". NBC News. 25 February 2005.
32. ^ a b "Nobel Peace Prize: Bangladeshi-American Dr Ruhul Abid, his org HAEFA get nomination". The Daily Star. 2020-09-15. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
33. ^ "Dr. Ruhul Abid, nominated for the 2020 Nobel Peace Prize". Health and Education for All - HAEFA. 2022-07-06. Retrieved 2025-03-20.
34. ^ N. J. Warren (12 October 2022). "Tevogen Bio® Expresses Gratitude for 2023 Nobel Peace Prize Nomination of the Company and its Founding CEO Ryan Saadi in Recognition of its Novel Business Model to Alleviate Health Inequality". Business Wire. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
35. ^ "Bangladeshi physician nominated for Nobel Prize". Daily Bangladesh. 1 October 2022. Archived from the original on 2 February 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2023.
36. ^ "Tevogen Bio Expresses Gratitude for 2023 Nobel Peace Prize Nomination of the Company and its Founding CEO Ryan Saadi in Recognition of its Novel Business Model to Alleviate Health Inequality". Tevogen. Retrieved 2025-03-20.

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Indian Nobel laureates

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* Rabindranath Tagore (1913)

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* C. V. Raman (1930)

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* Mother Teresa (1979)
* Kailash Satyarthi (2014)

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* Amartya Sen (1998)

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