Abel Prize

The Abel Prize (Template:IPAc-en Template:Respell; Template:Langx {{#invoke:IPA|main}}) is awarded annually by the King of Norway to one or more outstanding mathematicians.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It is named after the Norwegian mathematician Niels Henrik Abel (1802–1829) and directly modeled after the Nobel Prizes;<ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite journal</ref><ref>Template:Cite news</ref><ref name="maa">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref> as such, it is widely considered the Nobel Prize of mathematics.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> It comes with a monetary award of 7.5 million Norwegian kroner (NOK, about Template:US$ in Template:Year; increased from 6 million NOK in 2019).

The Abel Prize's history dates back to 1899, when its establishment was proposed by the Norwegian mathematician Sophus Lie when he learned that Alfred Nobel's plans for annual prizes would not include a prize in mathematics. In 1902, King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway indicated his willingness to finance the creation of a mathematics prize to complement the Nobel Prizes, but the establishment of the prize was prevented by the dissolution of the union between Norway and Sweden in 1905. It took almost a century before the prize was finally established by the Government of Norway in 2001, and it was specifically intended "to give the mathematicians their own equivalent of a Nobel Prize."<ref name="maa" /> The laureates are selected by the Abel Committee, the members of whom are appointed by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters.

The award ceremony takes place in the aula of the University of Oslo, where the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded between 1947 and 1989.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Abel Prize board has also established an Abel symposium, administered by the Norwegian Mathematical Society, which takes place twice a year.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

History

The prize was first proposed in 1899, to be part of the celebration of the 100th anniversary of Niels Henrik Abel's birth in 1802.<ref name="History">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref> The Norwegian mathematician Sophus Lie proposed establishing an Abel Prize when he learned that Alfred Nobel's plans for annual prizes would not include a prize in mathematics. King Oscar II was willing to finance a mathematics prize in 1902, and the mathematicians Ludwig Sylow and Carl Størmer drew up statutes and rules for the proposed prize. However, Lie's influence decreased after his death, and the dissolution of the union between Sweden and Norway in 1905 ended the first attempt to create an Abel Prize.<ref name="History" />

File:Oslo Universitet 2.jpg

The prize is awarded in the aula of the Domus Media building of the University of Oslo Faculty of Law, where the Nobel Peace Prize was formerly awarded (it is now presented in Oslo City Hall)

After interest in the concept of the prize had risen in 2001, a working group was formed to develop a proposal, which was presented to the Prime Minister of Norway in May. In August 2001, the Norwegian government announced that the prize would be awarded beginning in 2002, the two-hundredth anniversary of Abel's birth. Atle Selberg received an honorary Abel Prize in 2002, but the first actual Abel Prize was awarded in 2003.<ref name="History" /><ref>Template:MacTutor Biography</ref>

A book series presenting Abel Prize laureates and their research was commenced in 2010. The first three volumes cover the years 2003–2007, 2008–2012, and 2013–2017 respectively.<ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref><ref>Template:Cite book</ref>

In 2019, Karen Uhlenbeck became the first woman to win the Abel Prize, with the award committee citing "the fundamental impact of her work on analysis, geometry and mathematical physics.<ref>Template:Cite news</ref> The Bernt Michael Holmboe Memorial Prize was created in 2005. Named after Abel's teacher, it promotes excellence in teaching.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Selection criteria and funding

Anyone may submit a nomination for the Abel Prize, although self-nominations are not permitted. The nominee must be alive. If the awardee dies after being declared the winner, the prize will be awarded posthumously.

The Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters declares the winner of the Abel Prize each March after recommendation by the Abel Committee, which consists of five leading mathematicians. Both Norwegians and non-Norwegians may serve on the Committee. They are elected by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters and nominated by the International Mathematical Union and the European Mathematical Society.<ref name="History" /><ref name="Nomination">{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Funding

The Norwegian Government gave the prize an initial funding of NOK 200 million (about €21.7 million<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>) in 2001. Previously, the funding came from the Abel foundation, but today the prize is financed directly through the national budget.

The funding is controlled by the Board, which consists of members elected by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters.<ref name="Nomination" /> The current board consists of Ingrid Kristine Glad (chair), Aslak Bakke Buan, Helge K. Dahle, Kristin Vinje, Cordian Riener and Gunn Elisabeth Birkelund.<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation |CitationClass=web }}</ref>

Laureates

Year	Laureate(s)	Image	Institution(s)	Citation
2003	Template:Sortname	File:Jean-Pierre Serre 2003.jpg	Collège de France	"For playing a key role in shaping the modern form of many parts of mathematics, including topology, algebraic geometry and number theory."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2004	Template:Sortname	File:Michael Francis Atiyah (cropped).jpg	University of Edinburgh University of Cambridge	"For their discovery and proof of the index theorem, bringing together topology, geometry and analysis, and their outstanding role in building new bridges between mathematics and theoretical physics."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Template:Sortname	File:Isadore Singer 1977 (re-scanned 2; border-less) (cleaned) (cropped).jpg	Massachusetts Institute of Technology University of California, Berkeley
2005	Template:Sortname	File:Peter Lax in Tokyo.jpg	Courant Institute (NYU)	"For his groundbreaking contributions to the theory and application of partial differential equations and to the computation of their solutions."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2006	Template:Sortname	File:Carleson cropped.jpg	Royal Institute of Technology	"For his profound and seminal contributions to harmonic analysis and the theory of smooth dynamical systems."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2007	Template:Sortname	File:Srinivasa Varadhan Heidelberg.JPG	Courant Institute (NYU)	"For his fundamental contributions to probability theory and in particular for creating a unified theory of large deviation."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2008	Template:Sortname	File:John Griggs Thompson (cropped).jpg	University of Florida	"For their profound achievements in algebra and in particular for shaping modern group theory."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Template:Sortname	File:Jacques Tits (2008) (cropped).jpg	Collège de France
2009	Template:Sortname	File:Mikhael Gromov (cropped).jpg	Institut des Hautes Études Scientifiques<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref> Courant Institute (NYU)<ref>Template:Cite news</ref>	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2010	Template:Sortname	File:John Tate (cropped).jpg	University of Texas at Austin	"For his vast and lasting impact on the theory of numbers."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2011	Template:Sortname	File:John Milnor, 1993 Oct (portioned).jpg	Stony Brook University	"For pioneering discoveries in topology, geometry, and algebra."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2012	Template:Sortname	File:Szemeredi1.JPG	Alfréd Rényi Institute Rutgers University	"For his fundamental contributions to discrete mathematics and theoretical computer science, and in recognition of the profound and lasting impact of these contributions on additive number theory and ergodic theory."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2013	Template:Sortname	File:Pierre Deligne (2005) (cropped).jpg	Institute for Advanced Study	"For seminal contributions to algebraic geometry and for their transformative impact on number theory, representation theory, and related fields."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2014	Template:Sortname	File:Yakov G Sinai photo.jpg	Princeton University Landau Institute for Theoretical Physics<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>	"For his fundamental contributions to dynamical systems, ergodic theory, and mathematical physics."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2015	Template:Sortname	File:John Forbes Nash, Jr. by Peter Badge cropped.jpg	Princeton University	"For striking and seminal contributions to the theory of nonlinear partial differential equations and its applications to geometric analysis."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Template:Sortname	File:Louis Nirenberg (cropped).jpeg	Courant Institute (NYU)
2016	Template:Sortname	File:Andrew wiles1-3.jpg	University of Oxford<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref><ref>Template:Cite press release</ref>	"For his stunning proof of Fermat's Last Theorem by way of the modularity conjecture for semistable elliptic curves, opening a new era in number theory."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2017	Template:Sortname	File:Yves Meyer.jpg	École normale supérieure Paris-Saclay	"For his pivotal role in the development of the mathematical theory of wavelets."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2018	Template:Sortname	File:Langlands2 (cropped).jpg	Institute for Advanced Study	"For his visionary program connecting representation theory to number theory."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2019	Template:Sortname	File:Karen Uhlenbeck (cropped).jpg	University of Texas at Austin	"For her pioneering achievements in geometric partial differential equations, gauge theory and integrable systems, and for the fundamental impact of her work on analysis, geometry and mathematical physics."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2020	Template:Sortname	File:Professor Hillel Furstenberg Cropped.jpg	Hebrew University of Jerusalem	"For pioneering the use of methods from probability and dynamics in group theory, number theory and combinatorics."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Template:Sortname	File:Grigory Margulis (2006) (cropped).jpg	Yale University
2021	Template:Sortname	File:László Lovász (2017) (cropped).jpg	Eötvös Loránd University	"For their foundational contributions to theoretical computer science and discrete mathematics, and their leading role in shaping them into central fields of modern mathematics".<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
	Template:Sortname	File:Avi Wigderson (London 2012) Cropped.jpg	Institute for Advanced Study
2022	Template:Sortname	File:Dennis Sullivan at MSRI (cropped).jpg	Stony Brook University CUNY Graduate Center	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2023	Template:Sortname	File:Luis Caffarelli (2013) (cropped).jpg	University of Texas at Austin	"For his seminal contributions to regularity theory for nonlinear partial differential equations including free-boundary problems and the Monge–Ampère equation."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2024	Template:Sortname	File:Michel Talagrand (cropped).jpg	Centre national de la recherche scientifique	citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>
2025	Template:Sortname	File:Masaki Kashiwara (2018) (2) (cropped).jpg	Research Institute for Mathematical Sciences	"For his fundamental contributions to algebraic analysis and representation theory, in particular the development of the theory of D-modules and the discovery of crystal bases."<ref>{{#invoke:citation/CS1|citation	CitationClass=web }}</ref>

See also

• Fields Medal
• List of prizes known as the Nobel or the highest honors of a field
• List of mathematics awards

External links

• Template:Official website
• Official website of the Abel Symposium
• {{#invoke:Template wrapper|{{#if:|list|wrap}}|_template=cite web

|_exclude=urlname, _debug, id |url = https://mathworld.wolfram.com/{{#if:AbelPrize%7CAbelPrize.html}} |title = Abel Prize |author = Barile, Margherita |website = MathWorld |access-date = |ref = Template:SfnRef }}

• What is the Abel Prize? Millennium Mathematics Project & Isaac Newton Institute