From theNobel Prize's establishment in 1901 until 1956,Germany had the highest number of Nobel laureates in the world.[1] Today, Germany is the nation with the3rd most Nobel Prize winners: 2nd most in the category ofphysics, 3rd most inchemistry[2] andphysiology or medicine,[3] and 4th most inliterature. Overall, there are112 German Nobel Prize laureates.
| Name | Year | Lifespan | Achievements | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Gustav Stresemann | 1926 | 1878–1929 | Reconciliation with France to ensure peace in Europe | |
| Ludwig Quidde | 1928 | 1858–1941 | Organization of peace conferences | |
| Carl von Ossietzky | 1935 | 1889–1938 | Commitment against German militarism as editor ofWeltbühne | |
| Albert Schweitzer | 1952 | 1875–1965 | Work against the nuclear armament | |
| Willy Brandt | 1971 | 1913–1992 | Ostpolitik | |
| Henry Kissinger | 1973 | 1923–2023 | Negotiation of a ceasefire in theVietnam War |
| Name | Year | Lifespan | Achievements | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Theodor Mommsen | 1902 | 1817–1903 | The History of Rome | |
| Rudolf Christoph Eucken | 1908 | 1846–1926 | "for serious seeking after truth, penetrating thought, breadth and warmth of presentation, with which he has represented and developed an ideal worldview in numerous works" | |
| Paul Heyse | 1910 | 1830–1914 | his fictional works | |
| Gerhart Hauptmann | 1912 | 1862–1946 | "for his fruitful and versatile work in the realm of dramatic poetry" | |
| Thomas Mann | 1929 | 1875–1955 | Buddenbrooks | |
| Hermann Hesse | 1946 | 1877–1962 | "for his work imbued with profound immersion that developed ever more boldly and incisively, revealing the ideals of classical humanism along with a high artistic style" | |
| Nelly Sachs | 1966 | 1891–1970 | "for her outstanding lyrical and dramatic works that interpret the fate of Israel with moving strength" | |
| Heinrich Böll | 1972 | 1917–1985 | Complete works | |
| Günter Grass | 1999 | 1927–2015 | Life's work | |
| Herta Müller | 2009 | * 1953 | Complete works |
| Name | Year | Lifespan | Achievements | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emil Fischer | 1902 | 1852–1919 | Research on sugar and purine groups | |
| Adolf von Baeyer | 1905 | 1835–1917 | Work on organic dyes and hydroaromatic compounds | |
| Eduard Buchner | 1907 | 1860–1917 | Discovery of cell-free fermentation | |
| Wilhelm Ostwald | 1909 | 1853–1932 | Work oncatalysis | |
| Otto Wallach | 1910 | 1847–1931 | Research in the field of cyclic hydrocarbons | |
| Richard Willstätter | 1915 | 1872–1942 | Research on chlorophyll | |
| Fritz Haber | 1918 | 1868–1934 | Development of a process for producingammonia | |
| Walther Nernst | 1920 | 1864–1941 | Research onthermochemistry | |
| Heinrich Otto Wieland | 1927 | 1877–1957 | Research onbile acids | |
| Adolf Windaus | 1928 | 1876–1959 | "for merits regarding the research on the structure of sterines and their relationship with vitamins" | |
| Hans von Euler-Chelpin | 1929 | 1873–1964 | "for research on sugar fermentation and the contribution of enzymes to this process" | |
| Hans Fischer | 1930 | 1881–1945 | Hemin synthesis | |
| Friedrich Bergius | 1931 | 1884–1949 | "for contributions to the discovery and development of chemical high-pressure processes" | |
| Carl Bosch | 1931 | 1874–1940 | Development of chemical high-pressure processes | |
| Richard Kuhn | 1938 | 1900–1967 | "for his work on carotenoids and vitamins" | |
| Adolf Butenandt | 1939 | 1903–1995 | Research onsteroid hormones | |
| Otto Hahn | 1944 | 1879–1968 | "for his discovery of the fission of heavy atomic nuclei" | |
| Otto Diels | 1950 | 1876–1954 | Discovery of theDiels-Alder reaction | |
| Kurt Alder | 1950 | 1902–1958 | Discovery of theDiels-Alder reaction | |
| Hermann Staudinger | 1953 | 1881–1965 | Founding ofpolymer chemistry | |
| Karl Ziegler | 1963 | 1898–1973 | Discoveries in the field ofpolymers | |
| Manfred Eigen | 1967 | 1927–2019 | Measurement of the rates of fast chemical reactions | |
| Gerhard Herzberg | 1971 | 1904–1999 | "for his contributions to the knowledge of the electronic structure and geometry of molecules, especially free radicals" | |
| Ernst Otto Fischer | 1973 | 1917–2007 | Research onorganometallic sandwich complexes | |
| Georg Wittig | 1979 | 1897–1987 | Wittig reaction | |
| Johann Deisenhofer | 1988 | * 1943 | "for the investigation of the three-dimensional structure of the reaction center ofphotosynthesis in a purple bacterium" | |
| Robert Huber | 1988 | * 1937 | "for the investigation of the three-dimensional structure of the reaction center ofphotosynthesis in a purple bacterium" | |
| Hartmut Michel | 1988 | * 1948 | "for the investigation of the three-dimensional structure of the reaction center ofphotosynthesis in a purple bacterium" | |
| Gerhard Ertl | 2007 | * 1936 | "for studies of chemical processes on solid surfaces" | |
| Stefan Hell | 2014 | * 1962 | "for the development of super-resolution fluorescence microscopy" | |
| Joachim Frank | 2017 | * 1940 | "for the development ofcryo-electron microscopy for high-resolution structure determination of biomolecules" | |
| Benjamin List | 2021 | * 1968 | "for the development of asymmetric organocatalysis to accelerate chemical reactions" |
| Name | Year | Lifespan | Achievements | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wilhelm Conrad Röntgen | 1901 | 1845–1923 | Discovery ofX-rays | |
| Philipp Lenard | 1905 | 1862–1947 | Research in solid state and atomic physics | |
| Ferdinand Braun | 1909 | 1850–1918 | Contribution to the development of wirelesstelegraphy | |
| Wilhelm Wien | 1911 | 1864–1928 | Research onthermal radiation | |
| Max von Laue | 1914 | 1879–1960 | Diffraction of X-rays by crystals | |
| Max Planck | 1918 | 1858–1947 | Discovery of thePlanck constant | |
| Johannes Stark | 1919 | 1874–1957 | Discovery of the opticalDoppler effect and theStark effect | |
| Albert Einstein | 1921 | 1879–1955 | "for his contributions to theoretical physics, especially for his discovery of the law of thephotoelectric effect" | |
| James Franck | 1925 | 1882–1964 | Confirmation of theBohr model of the atom | |
| Gustav Hertz | 1925 | 1887–1975 | Confirmation of theBohr model of the atom | |
| Werner Heisenberg | 1932 | 1901–1976 | Founding ofquantum mechanics | |
| Max Born | 1954 | 1882–1970 | Fundamental research in quantum mechanics | |
| Walther Bothe | 1954 | 1891–1957 | Development of thecoincidence method | |
| Rudolf Mößbauer | 1961 | 1929–2011 | Discovery of theMößbauer effect | |
| J. Hans D. Jensen | 1963 | 1907–1973 | Development of theshell model of atomic nuclei | |
| Maria Goeppert-Mayer | 1963 | 1906–1972 | Development of theshell model of atomic nuclei | |
| Klaus von Klitzing | 1985 | * 1943 | Discovery of thequantized Hall effect | |
| Gerd Binnig | 1986 | * 1947 | Development of thescanning tunneling microscope | |
| Ernst Ruska | 1986 | 1906–1988 | Invention of theelectron microscope | |
| Johannes Georg Bednorz | 1987 | * 1950 | Discovery of ceramichigh-temperature superconductors | |
| Wolfgang Paul | 1989 | 1913–1993 | Development of the ion trap (Paul trap) | |
| Hans Georg Dehmelt | 1989 | 1922–2017 | Development of theion trap | |
| Horst Ludwig Störmer | 1998 | * 1949 | "for the discovery of a new type of quantum fluid with fractionally charged excitations" | |
| Herbert Kroemer | 2000 | 1928–2024 | Development of semiconductor heterostructures for high-speed and optoelectronics | |
| Wolfgang Ketterle | 2001 | * 1957 | Generation of theBose–Einstein condensate | |
| Theodor W. Hänsch | 2005 | * 1941 | Development of thefrequency comb in connection with his other achievements | |
| Peter Grünberg | 2007 | 1939–2018 | "for the discovery ofgiant magnetoresistance (GMR)" | |
| Reinhard Genzel | 2020 | * 1952 | "for the discovery of asupermassive compact object at the center of our galaxy" | |
| Klaus Hasselmann | 2021 | * 1931 | "for groundbreaking contributions to the understanding of complex physical systems", specifically
|
| Name | Year | Lifespan | Achievements | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Emil Behring | 1901 | 1854–1907 | Work on serum therapy | |
| Robert Koch | 1905 | 1843–1910 | Discovery of the pathogens of anthrax, tuberculosis, and cholera | |
| Paul Ehrlich | 1908 | 1854–1915 | Foundation of immunology | |
| Albrecht Kossel | 1910 | 1853–1927 | "in recognition of his contributions to the knowledge of cell chemistry through his work on proteins, including the nuclear substances" | |
| Otto Fritz Meyerhof | 1922 | 1884–1951 | Research onmetabolism inmuscles | |
| Otto Heinrich Warburg | 1931 | 1883–1970 | Research oncellular respiration | |
| Hans Spemann | 1935 | 1869–1941 | Discovery of theorganizer effect and artificialcloning of organisms withHilde Mangold | |
| Otto Loewi | 1936 | 1873–1961 | "for discoveries in the chemical transmission of nerve impulses" | |
| Gerhard Domagk | 1939 | 1895–1964 | Discovery of the antibacterial effects of thesulfonamide drugprontosil | |
| Ernst Boris Chain | 1945 | 1906–1979 | Discovery ofpenicillin | |
| Hans Adolf Krebs | 1953 | 1900–1981 | Discovery of thecitric acid cycle | |
| Werner Forßmann | 1956 | 1904–1979 | "for discoveries on cardiac catheterization and pathological changes in the circulatory system" | |
| Feodor Lynen | 1964 | 1911–1979 | Research on the regulation of cholesterol and fatty acid metabolism | |
| Konrad Bloch | 1964 | 1912–2000 | Research on the regulation of cholesterol and fatty acid metabolism | |
| Max Delbrück | 1969 | 1906–1981 | Foundation of modern molecular biology and genetics | |
| Bernard Katz | 1970 | 1911–2003 | Work on the quantized form ofsynaptic transmission | |
| Karl von Frisch | 1973 | 1886–1982 | "discoveries regarding the organization and triggering of individual and social behavior patterns" | |
| Georges J. F. Köhler | 1984 | 1946–1995 | Research on theimmune system andmonoclonal antibodies | |
| Erwin Neher | 1991 | * 1944 | Discoveries on the function of individual ion channels in cells | |
| Bert Sakmann | 1991 | * 1942 | "for the development of a method for the direct detection of ion channels in cell membranes for the study of signal transmission within and between cells" | |
| Christiane Nüsslein-Volhard | 1995 | * 1942 | Research on the genetic control of early embryonic development | |
| Günter Blobel | 1999 | 1936–2018 | "for the discovery of signals embedded in proteins that control their transport and localization within the cell" | |
| Harald zur Hausen | 2008 | 1936–2023 | Research onhuman papillomavirus | |
| Thomas Südhof | 2013 | * 1955 | Research on the transport system ofcells |
| Name | Year | Life Dates | Distinguished Contributions | Image |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Reinhard Selten | 1994 | 1930–2016 | Research ongame theory |