Berggruen Prize for Philosophy and Culture

The Berggruen Prize for Philosophy and Culture is a US$1-million award given each year to a significant individual in the field of philosophy.^[1] It is awarded by the Berggruen Institute to "thinkers whose ideas have helped us find direction, wisdom, and improved self-understanding in a world being rapidly transformed by profound social, technological, political, cultural, and economic change."^[2]

The Berggruen Prize was first awarded in 2016 with the overt purpose of becoming a "Nobel prize for philosophy".^[3][4] The first recipient of the Berggruen Prize was the Canadian philosopher Charles Taylor, whose work "urges us to see humans as constituted not only by their biology or their personal intentions, but also by their existence within language and webs of meaningful relationships."^{[5][6][7][8][9]}

The prize is awarded annually in October, with a ceremony at the New York Public Library. In 2016, ceremony speakers included University of Pennsylvania president Amy Gutmann and journalist Fareed Zakaria.^[10] The ceremony honoring Japanese philosopher Kojin Karatani was held in Tokyo, Japan.^[11] In 2024, the ceremony was held in Washington, D.C., at the National Museum of African American History and Culture, with journalist Michel Martin serving as a speaker.^[12][13]