Nobel Prizes 2024: How do nominations work?

Here’s a look at all those who can nominate people for the Nobels. The list is long – very long.

This year, the Nobel Prize winners will be announced from October 7 to 14. The six coveted prizes reward advancements in science, economics, literature and towards peace.

The awards were first handed out in 1901 and have seen winners, or laureates, ranging from Mother Teresa to Martin Luther King Jr. It’s not just individuals — organisations can win the awards too. And on many occasions, multiple people or organisations — or an individual and an organisation — have shared a Nobel Prize.

To win a Nobel, one has to be nominated first. This year, the Nobel Peace Prize, arguably the most watched award of the six on offer, had 286 nominations – 197 individuals and 89 organisations.

But how do people get nominated to start with?

The committee tasked with selecting the winner for each award sends out nomination forms or invitations for proposals to “qualified nominators”.