Here is a list of Nobel Prize winners in India or the Indian Nobel Prize laureates, who have been awarded the prestigious Nobel Prizes for their outstanding contributions to the world. The Nobel Prizes, instituted in 1901, are the international awards established according to the will of the Swedish chemist Alfred Nobel. Currently there are 8 Indian who have won the Nobel Prize awards – the first being Rabindranath Tagore in 1913 and the last being Venkatraman Ramakrishnan (Venki Ramakrishnan) in 2009. In this list of Indian Nobel Prize winners prepared by general knowledge quiz blog, one can find the name of Indian Nobel Prize laureates, the year they were honored with Nobel Prize, and the field they were specializing in.
List of Nobel Prize Winners from India
Rabindranath Tagore - Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913
Rabindranath Tagore was the first Indian to be honoured with the Nobel Prize. Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 for his most famous composition “Gitanjali”. Rabindranath Tagore, also known as Gurudev or Bhanu Shingho, was born in Calcutta. Rabindranath Tagore is the composer of the Indian national anthem Jana Gana Mana, and Amar Shonar Bangla, the Bangladeshi national anthem.
C. V. Raman – Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930
CV Raman or Sir Chandrasekhar Venkata Raman is the first Indian scientist to win the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930. C.V Raman was awarded Nobel Prize for his discovery of “Raman effect” or “Raman scattering”. Sir Chandrasekhar Venkata Raman was born in Thiruvanaikkaval, in the Trichy district of Tamilnadu.
Other notable awards received by C.V. Raman include
Dr. Hargobind Khorana – Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology in 1968
Dr. Har Gobind Khorana or Hargobind Khorana was the first Indian to win Nobel Prize for Medicine or Nobel Prize for Physiology in 1968. Dr. Har Gobind Khorana shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1968 with Marshall W. Nirenberg and Robert W. Holley for interpreting the genetic code and studying its function in protein synthesis.
Mother Teresa - Nobel Prize for Peace in 1979
Mother Teresa was the first Indian to win Nobel Peace for Prize in 1979. Mother Teresa is the only Indian to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Born as Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, Mother Teresa was a Catholic nun of Albanian (today’s Skopje, Republic of Macedonia). Mother Teresa was a world famous Humanitarian who adopted the Indian citizenship. She founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950 at Calcutta (Kolkata), India.
Other notable points about Mother Teresa include
Dr. Subramanyan Chandrasekhar – Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983
Dr. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was an Indian-born American astrophysicist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was born on 19th October 1910 in a Tamil Hindu family at Lahore in India (Lahore is now a part of Pakistan). Dr. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar shared the 1983 Nobel Prize for Physics with American astrophysicist Wilfred Alfred Fowler. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was the nephew of 1930 Nobel Prize for Physics laureate Sir C. V. Raman.
Other notable awards received by Chandrasekhar include
Dr. Amartya Sen – Nobel Prize for Economics in 1998
Dr. Amartya Sen is a world famous Indian economist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Economics in 1998 for his contributions to welfare economics. Amartya Sen was born in 1933 at Santiniketan, a small town near Bolpur, in West Bengal, India.
V.S. Naipaul – Nobel Prize for Literature in 2001
V.S. Naipaul, also known as Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul and Sir Vidia Naipaul, is the Nobel Prize for Literature winner in 2001. V.S. Naipaul is a Trinidadian writer born in 1932 to parents of Indian descent. Sir Vidia Naipaul is a master of modern English prose and is well known for his extensive works in English Literature.
Other notable literary prizes and awards received by V.S. Naipaul include
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan – Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, also known as Venki Ramakrishnan, is an Indian-born American structural biologist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009. Ramakrishnan was born at Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu in 1952. Venkatraman Ramakrishnan shared the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Thomas A. Steitz and Ada E. Yonath for their studies of the structure and function of the ribosome.
Other notable awards received by Venkatraman Ramakrishnan are
List of Nobel Prize Winners from India
Rabindranath Tagore - Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913
Rabindranath Tagore was the first Indian to be honoured with the Nobel Prize. Tagore was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1913 for his most famous composition “Gitanjali”. Rabindranath Tagore, also known as Gurudev or Bhanu Shingho, was born in Calcutta. Rabindranath Tagore is the composer of the Indian national anthem Jana Gana Mana, and Amar Shonar Bangla, the Bangladeshi national anthem.
C. V. Raman – Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930
CV Raman or Sir Chandrasekhar Venkata Raman is the first Indian scientist to win the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1930. C.V Raman was awarded Nobel Prize for his discovery of “Raman effect” or “Raman scattering”. Sir Chandrasekhar Venkata Raman was born in Thiruvanaikkaval, in the Trichy district of Tamilnadu.
Other notable awards received by C.V. Raman include
- Knight Bachelor in 1929
- Bharat Ratna in 1954
- Lenin Peace Prize in 1957
Dr. Hargobind Khorana – Nobel Prize for Medicine and Physiology in 1968
Dr. Har Gobind Khorana or Hargobind Khorana was the first Indian to win Nobel Prize for Medicine or Nobel Prize for Physiology in 1968. Dr. Har Gobind Khorana shared the Nobel Prize for Medicine in 1968 with Marshall W. Nirenberg and Robert W. Holley for interpreting the genetic code and studying its function in protein synthesis.
Mother Teresa - Nobel Prize for Peace in 1979
Mother Teresa was the first Indian to win Nobel Peace for Prize in 1979. Mother Teresa is the only Indian to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Born as Agnes Gonxha Bojaxhiu, Mother Teresa was a Catholic nun of Albanian (today’s Skopje, Republic of Macedonia). Mother Teresa was a world famous Humanitarian who adopted the Indian citizenship. She founded the Missionaries of Charity in 1950 at Calcutta (Kolkata), India.
Other notable points about Mother Teresa include
- Bharat Ratna in 1980
- Mother Tereas was beatified by Pope John Paul II and given the title Blessed Teresa of Calcutta
Dr. Subramanyan Chandrasekhar – Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983
Dr. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was an Indian-born American astrophysicist who was awarded the Nobel Prize for Physics in 1983. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was born on 19th October 1910 in a Tamil Hindu family at Lahore in India (Lahore is now a part of Pakistan). Dr. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar shared the 1983 Nobel Prize for Physics with American astrophysicist Wilfred Alfred Fowler. Subrahmanyan Chandrasekhar was the nephew of 1930 Nobel Prize for Physics laureate Sir C. V. Raman.
Other notable awards received by Chandrasekhar include
- Copley Medal in 1984
- National Medal of Science in 1966
- Padma Vibhushan in 1968
Dr. Amartya Sen – Nobel Prize for Economics in 1998
- Dr. Amartya Sen was awarded India's highest civilian award, Bharat Ratna in 1999.
V.S. Naipaul – Nobel Prize for Literature in 2001
V.S. Naipaul, also known as Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul and Sir Vidia Naipaul, is the Nobel Prize for Literature winner in 2001. V.S. Naipaul is a Trinidadian writer born in 1932 to parents of Indian descent. Sir Vidia Naipaul is a master of modern English prose and is well known for his extensive works in English Literature.
- John Llewellyn Rhys Prize in 1958
- Somerset Maugham Award in 1960
- Hawthornden Prize in 1964
- W. H. Smith Literary Award in 1968
- Booker Prize in 1971
- David Cohen Prize for a lifetime's achievement in British Literature in 1993
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan – Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009
Venkatraman Ramakrishnan, also known as Venki Ramakrishnan, is an Indian-born American structural biologist who won the Nobel Prize in Chemistry in 2009. Ramakrishnan was born at Chidambaram, Tamil Nadu in 1952. Venkatraman Ramakrishnan shared the 2009 Nobel Prize in Chemistry with Thomas A. Steitz and Ada E. Yonath for their studies of the structure and function of the ribosome. Other notable awards received by Venkatraman Ramakrishnan are
- Louis-Jeantet Prize for Medicine in 2007
- Padma Vibhushan in 2010
