The Lesser Talked About Abel Prize

Each year, the King of Norway bestows the Abel Prize on a remarkable mathematician or group of mathematicians.

The Niels Henrik Abel Award was inspired by the Nobel Prizes and named after the honoured Norwegian mathematician who created it, Niels Henrik Abel. The prize money totals 7.5 million Norwegian kroner. It was increased from 6 million NOK in 2019.

When Norwegian mathematician Sophus Lie found out that Alfred Nobel's ideas for yearly prizes did not include a prize in mathematics, he proposed the formation of the Abel Prize in 1899. In 1902, King Oscar II of Sweden and Norway announced his readiness to sponsor the formation of a mathematical award to supplement the Nobel Prizes, but the institution of the prize was blocked by the breakup of the union between Norway and Sweden in 1905. It was not until 2001 that the Government of Norway founded the prize with the express goal of giving gifted mathematicians their own equivalent of the prestigious Nobel Prize. The Abel Committee, whose members are appointed by the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters, is responsible for choosing the winners.

From 1947 until 1989, the Nobel Peace Prize was presented in a ceremony held at the aula of the University of Oslo. The Abel Prize Committee also sponsors a biannual Abel Symposium, which is hosted by the Norwegian Mathematical Society.

History

In 2001, as enthusiasm for the idea of the award grew, a committee was established to draft a proposal, which was eventually presented to the Prime Minister of Norway in May of that year. The Norwegian government stated in August 2001 that the prize will be given annually beginning in 2002, Abel's bicentennial year. Although Atle Selberg was given a posthumous Abel Award in 2002, the first official Abel Prize was presented in 2003.

In 2010, a publication series featuring the work of Abel Laureate winners was launched. The first three books cover the time periods between 2003 and 2007, 2008 and 2012, and 2013 and 2017.

The Abel Prize committee cited "the fundamental importance of her work on analysis, geometry, and mathematical physics" in recognizing Karen Uhlenbeck as the first woman to receive the honor in 2019.

The Bernt Michael Holmboe Memorial Prize was launched in 2005. It honors Abel's professor and strives to improve education.

Funding and selection criteria

Nominees for the Abel Prize can come from anybody, but no one can nominate themselves. A living nominee is required. If the recipient of an award passes away after being announced as the winner, the reward will be given to his or her heirs.

Each year in March, after a nomination from the Abel Committee, comprised of five eminent mathematicians, the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters announces the recipient of the Abel Prize. Members of the Committee can come from any country, not just Norway. In addition to being nominated by the International Mathematical Union and the European Mathematical Society, the Norwegian Academy of Science and Letters votes on who will receive this honor.