Norwegian Nobel Committee

The Norwegian Nobel Committee chooses who gets the Nobel Peace Prize each year. They do this for the estate of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, following his will.

Five members of the committee are chosen by the Norwegian Parliament. In his will, Alfred Nobel asked Norway’s parliament to pick the winners. The committee meets in the building of the Norwegian Nobel Institute. But since 1990, the actual prize giving happens in Oslo City Hall.

History

Further information: Alfred Nobel

Alfred Nobel died in December 1896. In January 1897, people learned about his will. He had written it in 1895. He said a Nobel Peace Prize should go to the person who does the most to help countries work together and support peace. Nobel left money for this prize. The Nobel Foundation now takes care of it.

At the time, Sweden and Norway were one country. The other prizes were given by groups in Sweden. So a new group was needed — the Norwegian Nobel Committee. The Norwegian Parliament agreed to create this group in April 1897. They decided how to choose the members in August 1897. The first Peace Prize was given in 1901 to Henri Dunant and Frédéric Passy. Over time, the committee became more independent. Today, the committee is mostly made up of politicians. It gets help from the Norwegian Nobel Institute, which was created in 1904. Each year, the committee looks at many nominations and asks the institute to learn more about some candidates.

List of Chairpersons

List of chairpersons

In January 1944, some people tried to take control of the Nobel Committee. Because of this, some members, including Jahn, left the group. The Swedish consulate-general in Oslo helped look after the Nobel Foundation's property.

1900–1901: Bernhard Getz 1901–1922: Jørgen Løvland 1922–1922: Hans Jacob Horst 1922–1941: Fredrik Stang 1941–1943: Gunnar Jahn 1944–1945: see below 1945–1945: Carl Joachim Hambro 1945–1966: Gunnar Jahn 1967–1967: Nils Langhelle 1967–1967: Bernt Ingvaldsen

1968–1978: Aase Lionæs 1979–1981: John Sanness 1982–1989: Egil Aarvik 1990–1990: Gidske Anderson 1991–1999: Francis Sejersted 2000–2002: Gunnar Berge 2003–2008: Ole Danbolt Mjøs 2009–2015: Thorbjørn Jagland 2015–2017: Kaci Kullmann Five 2017–2023: Berit Reiss-Andersen 2024–present: Jørgen Watne Frydnes

Members

Main article: List of members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee

The Norwegian Nobel Committee has five members. They help choose the winner of the Nobel Peace Prize each year. The Norwegian Parliament picks these members. As of 2025, the members are:

• Anne Enger, a former leader of the Centre Party and Minister of Culture.
• Asle Toje (Vice Chair), a scholar who studies foreign policy.
• Kristin Clemet, a former member of the Conservative Party who worked in the Norwegian Parliament.
• Jørgen Watne Frydnes (Chair), a businessman and leader of nonprofit groups.
• Gry Larsen, a former Labour Party official who handled foreign affairs for Norway.

Secretariat

The committee gets help from the Norwegian Nobel Institute, which is like its office. The leader of the institute is called the secretary. The secretary is not on the committee but works for the Norwegian Nobel Institute.

List of secretaries

• 1901–1909: Christian Lous Lange
• 1910–1945: Ragnvald Moe
• 1946–1973: August Schou
• 1974–1977: Tim Greve
• 1978–1989: Jakob Sverdrup
• 1990–2015: Geir Lundestad
• 2015–2025: Olav Njølstad
• 2025–present: Kristian Berg Harpviken