List of Korean Nobel laureates and nominees
Korean Nobel laureates and nominees
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
As of 2023[update], the Nobel Prize has been awarded to 975 people and 27 organizations since it was founded in 1901.[1] As of October 2024[update], two Koreans have become a Nobel laureate: South Korean President Kim Dae-jung and writer Han Kang.
Kim was awarded the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize for his efforts to push for national reconciliation between the divided Koreas during a summit meeting in Pyongyang.[2][3] One American who was born in South Korea to non-Korean parents, Charles J. Pedersen, won the 1987 Nobel Prize in Chemistry.[4][5]
Despite only having two Nobel laureates, numerous North and South Korean individuals (both citizens within the country and living in diasporic communities) and organizations have been nominated for the prize in any category.[6][7]
It was speculated that poor basic science education in school and universities was behind this, and steps were proposed to improve.[8][9] In 2022, President Yoon Suk-yeol voiced optimism over the future of the field of science in Korea, saying "Korea will have Nobel laureates soon."[10] For comparison, Japan had 32 Nobel laureates in science as of 2026[update].
Laureates
| Year | Image | Laureate | Born | Died | Field | Citation | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Citizens | |||||||
| 2000 | .jpg) |
Kim Dae-jung [김대중] |
6 January 1924 Hauido, South Jeolla, South Korea |
18 August 2009 Seoul, South Korea |
Peace | "for his work for democracy and human rights in South Korea and in East Asia in general, and for peace and reconciliation with North Korea in particular."[11] | |
| 2024 | .png) |
Han Kang [한강] |
27 November 1970 Gwangju, South Korea |
N/a | Literature | "for her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life."[12] | |
| Diaspora[a] | |||||||
| 1987 | Charles J. Pedersen[b] | 3 October 1904 Busan, South Korea |
26 October 1989 Salem, New Jersey, United States |
Chemistry | "for their development and use of molecules with structure-specific interactions of high selectivity."[13] (jointly with American chemist Donald J. Cram and French chemist Jean-Marie Lehn) | ||
Nominations
The first Korean to earn a nomination for the Nobel Prize was the poet Yi Gwangsu.[14] Unfortunately he died in 1950, therefore his nomination was done posthumously and, according to the Nobel statutes, posthumous nominations are automatically disqualified during the committee's deliberations.[15] Only living individuals and existing organizations are permitted to be nominated.[15][16] Since then, other Koreans began getting nominated for the prestigious Swedish prize in different categories. The following list are the nominees with verified nominations from the Nobel Committee and recognized international organizations. There are also other purported nominees whose nominations are yet to be verified since the archives are revealed 50 years after,[15] among them:
- For Physics: Benjamin W. Lee (1935–1977), Moo-Young Han (1934–2016), Jisoon Ihm[17] (born 1954), Noh Tae-won (born 1957) and Philip Kim[18] (born 1967).
- For Chemistry: Yoon Nung-min (1927–2009), Kim Kimoon (born 1954), Ryoo Ryong[c] (born 1955), Nam-Gyu Park[d] (born 1960), Hyeon Taeghwan[e] (born 1964) and YoungSoo Kim (born 1978).
- For Physiology or Medicine: Ho Wang Lee[f] (1928–2022), Yu Myeong-Hee (born 1954), V. Narry Kim (born 1969) and Charles Lee[g] (born 1969).
- For Literature: Kim Dongni (1913–1995), Hwang Sun-won[24] (1915–2000), Seo Jeong-ju[25] (1915–2000), Ku Sang (1919–2004), Pak Kyongni (1926–2008), Park Wan-suh[26] (1931–2011), Choe Inhun[27] (1936–2018), Ko Un[28] (born 1933), Claudia Lee Hae-in[29] (born 1933), Hwang Sok-yong[29] (born 1943), Yi Munyeol[26] (born 1948), Kim Hyesoon (born 1955), Yi Seungu (born 1959), Shin Kyung-sook (born 1963) and Kim Young-ha[26] (born 1968).
- For Peace: Chang Chun-ha (1918–1975), Kim Yong-ki (1908–1988), Chang Kee-ryo (1911–1995), Lee Tai-young (1914–1998), Lee Jong-wook (1945–2006), Archbp. Stephen Kim Sou-hwan (1922–2009), Park Won-soon (1955–2020), Han Seung-soo (born 1936), Ban Ki-moon[30] (born 1944), John Woong-Jin Oh (born 1944), Kim Jong-ki (born 1947), Moon Jae-in[31] (born 1953), Pomnyun Sunim (born 1953), Kitack Lim (born 1956), and Kim Jung-un[31] (born 1984).
- For Economics: Hyun-Song Shin (born 1959) and Ha-Joon Chang (born 1963).
Nominees
| Picture | Name[h] | Born | Died | Years Nominated | Notes | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Physiology or Medicine | ||||||||
.png){kind=spacer} |
Bun-ichi Hasama [挾間 文一][i] |
1898 Ōita, Japan |
1946 | 1938 | Nominated by Albrecht Bethe (1872–1954).[32] | |||
| Literature | ||||||||
.jpg) |
Yi Gwangsu [이광수] (posthumously nominated) |
1 February 1892 Chongju, North Pyongan, North Korea |
25 October 1950 Manpo, Chagang, North Korea |
1970 | Nominated by Baek Cheol (1908–1985).[33] | |||
.jpg) |
Younghill Kang [강용흘] |
5 June 1898 Hongwon, South Hamgyong, North Korea |
2 December 1972 Satellite Beach, Florida, United States |
1971 | Nominated by Robert Payne (1911–1983).[34] | |||
.jpg) |
Eun Kook Kim [김은국] |
13 March 1932 Hamhung, South Hamgyong, North Korea |
23 June 2009 Shutesbury, Massachusetts, United States |
1971 | Nominated by Baek Cheol (1908–1985).[35] | |||
.jpg) |
Pak Tu-jin [박두진] |
10 March 1916 Anseong, Gyeonggi, South Korea |
16 September 1998 Seoul, South Korea |
1972 | Nominated by Baek Cheol (1908–1985).[36] | |||
.jpg) |
Kim Chi-ha [김지하] |
4 February 1941 Mokpo, South Jeolla, South Korea |
8 May 2022 Wonju, Gangwon, South Korea |
1976 | [37][38] | |||
.jpg) |
Seo Jeong-ju [서정주] |
18 May 1915 Gochang, North Jeolla, South Korea |
24 December 2000 Seoul, South Korea |
1978, 1983, 1985, 1988, 1995 | [39] | |||
 |
Kim Dongni [김동리] |
24 November 1913 Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang, South Korea |
17 June 1995 Seoul, South Korea |
1985 | [40] | |||
.jpg) |
Ko Un [고은] |
1 August 1933 Gunsan, North Jeolla, South Korea |
(aged 96) | 2001, 2002, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2010, 2012, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024, 2025 | [41][42] | |||
.jpg) |
O Jeonghui [오정희] |
9 November 1947 Seoul, South Korea |
(aged 78) | 2013, 2014, 2015 | [43] | |||
.jpg) |
Mun Jeonghui [문정희] |
25 May 1947 Boseong, South Jeolla, South Korea |
(aged 79) | 2016, 2017, 2020, 2021, 2023 | [44] | |||
.jpg) |
Kim Hyesoon [김혜순] |
26 October 1955 Uljin, North Gyeongsang, South Korea |
(aged 70) | 2016, 2017, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022, 2023, 2024 | [45] | |||
.jpg) |
Choi Seung-ja [최승자] |
1952 Sejong City, South Korea |
(aged 74) | 2021 | [46] | |||
.jpg) |
Lee Hae-in [이해인] |
7 June 1945 Yanggu, Gangwon, South Korea |
(aged 81) | 2022, 2026 | [47] | |||
|
Han Kang [한강] |
27 November 1970 Gwangju, South Korea |
(aged 55) | 2023, 2024 | Awarded the 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature.[48] | |||
.jpg) |
Bae Suah [배수아] |
1965 Seoul, South Korea |
(aged 61) | 2024 | [49] | |||
| Peace | ||||||||
.JPG) |
Ham Seok-heon [함석헌] |
13 March 1901 Yomju, North Pyongan, North Korea |
4 February 1989 Seoul, South Korea |
1979, 1985 | [50] | |||
|
Kim Dae-jung [김대중] |
6 January 1924 Hauido, South Jeolla, South Korea |
18 August 2009 Seoul, South Korea |
1987, 1999, 2000 | Awarded the 2000 Nobel Peace Prize.[53][54] | |||
.jpg) |
Moon Ik-hwan [문익환] |
2 June 1918 Longjing, Jilin, China |
18 January 1994 Fukuoka, Japan |
1992 | [50] | |||
.png) |
Sun Myung Moon [문선명] |
6 January 1920 Chongju, North Pyongan, North Korea |
3 September 2012 Gapyeong, Gyeonggi, South Korea |
2002 | [55] | |||
|
Yoon Geum-soon [윤금순] |
1 October 1959 South Korea |
(aged 66) | 2005 | Nominated jointly by Ruth-Gaby Vermot-Mangold (1941–) as part of the 1000 PeaceWomen Across the Globe.[56] | |||
|
Shin Heisoo [신희수] |
23 June 1950 Gyeonggi, South Korea |
(aged 76) | 2005 | ||||
|
Lee Hyun-Sook [이현숙] |
1958 South Korea |
(aged 68) | 2005 | ||||
|
Maria Rhie Chol-soon [이철순] |
South Korea | N/a | 2005 | ||||
|
Kim Sook-Im [김숙임] |
South Korea | N/a | 2005 | ||||
|
Jeong Yu-Jin [정유진] |
27 July 1977 South Korea |
(aged 49) | 2005 | ||||
|
Song Sin-do [송신도] |
24 November 1922 Chūseinan, South Korea |
16 December 2017 Tokyo, Japan |
2005 | ||||
.jpg) |
Ban Ki-moon [반기문] |
13 June 1944 Eumseong, North Chungcheong, South Korea |
(aged 82) | 2014 | 8th Secretary-General of the United Nations (2007–2016)[57] | |||
.jpg) |
Marianne Stöger [고지선] |
24 April 1934 Matrei am Brenner, Tyrol, Austria |
(aged 92) | 2017, 2020 | [58][59] | |||
.jpg) |
Margaritha Pissarek [백수선] |
9 June 1935 Austria |
29 September 2023 Innsbruck, Tyrol, Austria |
2017, 2020 | ||||
.jpg) |
Hak Ja Han [한학자] |
10 February 1943 Anju, South Pyongan, North Korea |
(aged 83) | 2026 | Nominated by Ján Figeľ (1960–).[60] | |||
 |
People of South Korea | Korea | 2026 | [61] | ||||
Nominators
The following Korean individuals became qualified nominators of local and foreign contenders for the Nobel Prize in any category:[62]
| Image | Nominator | Born | Died | Nominee | Motivation | Year Nominated |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Literature | ||||||
.png) |
Baek Cheol [백철] |
18 March 1908 Uiju, North Pyongan, North Korea |
13 October 1985 Seoul, South Korea |
Yi Gwangsu (1892–1950)  North Korea |
It Is Love (1909) Heartless (1917) Danjong Aesa (1929) Soil (1932) |
1970[63] |
| Eun Kook Kim (1932–2009)  United States |
The Martyred (1964) The Innocent (1968) Lost Names (1970) In Search of Lost Years (1985) |
1971[63] | ||||
| Pak Tu-jin (1916–1998)  South Korea |
The Sun (1949) A Prayer at Noon (1953) A Human Jungle (1963) Chronicles of Water and Stone (1973) |
1972[64] | ||||
| Peace | ||||||
|
Mun Hui-sok | N/a | 1977 South Korea |
Universal Esperanto Association (founded in 1908)  Netherlands |
"for their contribution to eliminating misunderstandings, suspicion and hatred amongst nations through the international language Esperanto." | 1962[65] |
.png) |
Rhee Hyo-sang [이효상] |
14 January 1906 Jung, Daegu, North Gyeongsang, South Korea |
18 June 1989 Seoul, South Korea |
Hermann Gmeiner (1919–1986)  Austria |
"for founding SOS Children's Villages, and through his work gathering millions of people in the cause of good will for abandoned children." | 1965[66] |
|
Hi Sup Chung [정희섭] |
1 February 1920 Pyongwon, South Pyongan, North Korea |
26 October 1987 Uiwang, Gyeonggi, South Korea |
Spurgeon Milton Keeney (1893–1988) United States |
"for having, throughout his life, strived for freedom of the individual and full development of human beings as persons and for continuously striving for human betterment, for the dignity of the individual and for the coming together of all people." | 1969[67] |
|
Lee Hai-rang [이해랑] |
22 July 1916 Seoul, South Korea |
8 April 1989 Seoul, South Korea |
 Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973) United States |
1972[68] | |
.jpg) |
Kim Jong-pil [김종필] |
7 January 1926 South Chungcheong, South Korea |
23 June 2018 Seoul, South Korea |
1972[68] | ||
.jpg) |
Kim Hwang-sik [김황식] |
9 August 1948 Jangseong, South Jeolla, South Korea |
 |
Marianne Stöger (born 1934) Austria |
"for their four decades of work on Sorok Island, looking after Hansen's disease patients with all their hearts." | 2020[58][59] |
| Margaritha Pissarek (1935–2023) Austria | ||||||
Notes
- Nobel laureates of Korean birth and origin but subsequently acquired foreign citizenship.
- The 1987 Nobel Prize in Chemistry winner Charles J. Pedersen has a Japanese mother and his Japanese first name was Yoshio (良男). He was born in Busan, Korea, Japanese protectorate, but later moved to Japan with his family at the age of 8 years to attend a convent school in Nagasaki.
- Ryoo Ryong was named 2014 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Charles T. Kresge and Galen D. Stucky "for the design of functional mesoporous materials."[19][20]
- Nam-Gyu Park was named 2017 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Tsutomu Miyasaka and Henry Snaith "for their discovery and application of perovskite materials to achieve efficient energy conversion."[21]
- Taeghwan Hyeon was named 2020 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Christopher B. Murray and Moungi G. Bawendi "for synthesis of nanocrystals with precise attributes for a wide range of applications in physical, biological, and medical systems."[22]
- Ho Wang Lee was named 2021 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Karl Johnson "for identification and isolation of the Hantaan virus (hantavirus), agent of hemorrhagic fever with renal syndrome."[23]
- Charles Lee was named 2014 Clarivate Citation Laureate with Stephen W. Scherer and Michael H. Wigler "for their contributions to the discovery of large-scale copy number variation and its association with specific diseases."[20]
- The (*) asterisks on the name denote the nominees were expatriates who resided or died in Korea.
- According to the Nobel nomination archives, Bun-ichi Hasama was a professor of pharmacology at the Keijō Imperial University. In 1938, he was jointly nominated with German physiologist Erich von Holst (1908–1962) and Russian biologist Alexander Gurwitsch (1874–1954).