Nobel Prize to be presented today; Why Is Nobel Prize Given On December 10?
Every December 10, the world turns its attention to Stockholm and Oslo for the Nobel Prize ceremonies.
It’s no different in 2025, as recipients, families, scientists, world-renowned intellectuals, and former winners gather in Stockholm for the 2025 Nobel Prize presentation.
WHY IS NOBEL PRIZE GIVEN ON DECEMBER 10?
The Nobel Prize is presented on the death anniversary of Alfred Nobel, the Swedish inventor behind dynamite and the prizes bearing his name.
Nobel died on December 10, 1896, in San Remo, Italy, from a cerebral haemorrhage at age 63. In his will, signed a year earlier, he directed nearly his entire fortune, about 31 million Swedish kronor, equivalent to billions today, toward annual prizes for those conferring “the greatest benefit to humankind” in physics, chemistry, physiology or medicine, literature, and peace.
The first awards in 1901 fell exactly on that date, five years after his passing, establishing an unbroken custom now over a century old. Ceremonies unfold in grand halls: Sweden’s King Carl XVI Gustaf presents diplomas, medals, and cash prizes (11 million SEK per category in 2025) to laureates in physics, chemistry, medicine, literature, and economics at Stockholm Concert Hall, followed by a lavish banquet at City Hall.
