List of members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee

A white and green room with a wooden table in the middle, surrounded by turquoise and wooden chairs. The walls are lined with portraits and have two dark, wooden doors.
The committee meeting room at the Norwegian Nobel Institute
The first meeting of the committee in 1897. From the left Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson, John Lund, Hans Jacob Horst, Jørgen Løvland, Christian Lange and Carl Berner.

The five members of the Norwegian Nobel Committee award the Nobel Peace Prize every year. They are appointed by the Parliament of Norway and roughly represent the political makeup of that body. The committee was established in 1897, and has awarded the prize most years since 1901. Fifty-four people have sat on the committee, of which ten have been women. Thirteen have been chair and six deputy chair. Since 2009, the members are former parliamentarians Thorbjørn Jagland ( Labour Party), Henrik Syse (deputy chair ), Inger-Marie Ytterhorn (Progress Party) .

Historically, the committee's members have represented seven political parties, including the Liberal Party, the Centre Party and the Christian Democratic Party. The awards in 1935 (to Carl von Ossietzky), 1973 (to Henry Kissinger) and 1994 (to Yasser Arafat) caused members of the committee to withdraw due to disagreement with the committee decision. Six people have sat as the committee's secretary, who is also director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute. Since 1990, this has been Geir Lundestad, professor of history at the University of Oslo.

Appointment

The five-member Norwegian Nobel Committee was established on 5 August 1897, after the Parliament of Norway accepted the duty to award the Nobel Peace Prize as stated in the will of Alfred Nobel.[1] The first prize was awarded in 1901.[2] The Committee is assisted by a secretariat that is part of the Norwegian Nobel Institute.[3] In 1901, the committee was renamed the Nobel Committee of the Parliament of Norway, but this was reverted in 1977.[1] In 1948, the election system was changed to make the committee more proportional to the representation in parliament.[4] From then until 1967, the Labour Party, who held a majority in parliament, had three representatives in the committee.[2]

It is no longer possible for active parliamentarians to sit on the committee, except for the last half year of parliamentary representation, if they have stated that they will not run for re-election. This allowed Jagland and Valle to sit on the committee in 2009, while they were still elected. The appointment is made by parliament after nominations by the parties who are to be represented in the committee.

Since 2009, the Labour Party had two seats, while the three next-largest parties, the Progress Party, the Conservative Party and the Socialist Left Party, each have one representative (3 left-wing members, 2 right-wing members). The remaining parties in parliament are not represented.[5]

Current/past members

Two men in suits standing in three-quarter portrait. The man in his forties to the right looks proud, while holding a diploma and a medal in a case. The man in his sixties to the left looks satisfied.
Thorbjørn Jagland awarding the 2009 Prize to Barack Obama

Thorbjørn Jagland (born 5 November 1950) has sat on and chaired the committee since 2009. He is a Labour Party politician from Lier and sat in parliament representing Buskerud from 1993 to 2009. Jagland is former party leader (1992–2002), Prime Minister (1996–97), Minister of Foreign Affairs (2000–01) and President of the Parliament (2005–09). Since 2006, Jagland has chaired the Oslo Center and since 2009 been Secretary General of the Council of Europe. He holds a master's degree in economics and has never held full-time employment outside politics or in his party.[6][7]

Kaci Kullmann Five (born 13 April 1951) has sat on the committee since 2003 and been deputy chair since 2009. She is a Conservative Party politician from Bærum and sat in parliament representing Akershus from 1981 to 1997. Five is former Minister of Trade and Shipping (1989–90) and party leader (1991–94). Since leaving politics, she has been a business executive and board member, and since 2002 a consultant. She holds a master's degree in political science.[6][8]

Sissel Rønbeck (born 24 May 1950) has sat on the committee since 1994. She is a Labour Party politician from Oslo and sat in parliament representing Oslo from 1977 to 1993. Rønbeck is former Minister of Administration and Consumer Affairs (1979–81), Minister of the Environment (1986–89) and Minister of Transport and Communications (1996–97). She had leave of absence from the committee during her last term as minister. Rønbeck has no higher education. Since 1993, she has been vice president at the Norwegian Directorate for Cultural Heritage.[6][9]

Inger-Marie Ytterhorn (born 18 September 1941) has sat on the committee since 2000. She is a Progress Party politician from Bergen and Oslo, and sat in parliament representing Hordaland from 1989 to 1993, and as a deputy member of parliament from 1993 to 2001. Ytterhorn has higher education in linguistics. She is a retired sole proprietor.[6][10]

Ågot Valle (born 26 May 1945) has sat on the committee since 2009. She is a Socialist Left Party politician from Levanger and Bergen and sat in parliament representing Hordaland from 1997 to 2009. She is former President of the Odelsting (2001–05) and a physiotherapist by profession, although now retired.[6][11]

Members

Head and shoulders of a middle-aged man looking with dignity to the left of the viewer. He is bald, has a short, but stout, beard, and is wearing small glasses and a tie-less suit.
Jørgen Løvland was the first chair, from 1901 to 1921.
Head and shoulders of a man in his seventies talking into a mounted microphone. He is conservatively dressed in a suite and wears round glasses.
Francis Sejersted was chair from 1991 to 1999.
Half-portrait of a man in his seventies looking away from the viewer. He wears a suit and glasses.
Ole Danbolt Mjøs was chair from 2003 to 2008.

The committee has had 54 different members. Thirteen people have been chair and six deputy chair. Ten women have sat on the committee, starting with Aase Lionæs in 1949. From 2009, four of the board's five members are women. Christian Lous Lange is the only person to have both sat on the committee and been its secretary, and the only peace laureate to have sat on the committee. Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson was, however, awarded the Nobel Literature Prize. The longest-serving members are Hans Jacob Horst and Aase Lionæs, who both served for 30 years. The longest-sitting chair is Gunnar Jahn, who sat for 26 years as chair and 29 years on the committee. The longest period without any changes to the committee was the 15 years from 1949 to 1963. The shortest-sitting member was Esther Kostøl, who sat for less than a year in 1997.[2][6]

Seven political parties have been represented in the committee. The first committee consisted exclusively of members of the Liberal Party. The party was represented on all committees until 1973, after which it has not had a seat. In 1907, Francis Hagerup became the first representative from the Conservative Party, and this party has been represented on the board since. The Labour Party has been represented on the board since 1919, when Halvdan Koht became a member. The Agrarian Party (since named the Centre Party) was first represented on the board by Birger Braadland in 1938. The Christian Democratic Party was first represented by Erling Wikborg in 1965, the Socialist Left Party by Hanna Kvanmo in 1991 and the Progress Party by Inger-Marie Ytterhorn in 2000.[2]

Three awards have resulted in members withdrawing from the committee. Following the 1935 award to the German pacifist Carl von Ossietzky, Johan Ludwig Mowinckel and Halvdan Koht withdrew. Koht was later re-appointed to the committee.[2] Following the 1973 award to Lê Đức Thọ and Henry Kissinger, Einar Hovdhaugen and Helge Rognlien withdrew. Following the 1994 award to Yasser Arafat, Shimon Peres and Yitzhak Rabin, Kåre Kristiansen withdrew.[2][12][13]

Member Start End Tenure (years) Party Chair Deputy chair
Jørgen Løvland 1901192121Liberal1901–21—
John Lund 1901191212Liberal—1901–13[14]
Bjørnstjerne Bjørnson 190119066Liberal——
Johannes Steen 190119044Liberal——
Hans Jacob Horst 1901193030Liberal—1914–22[14]
Carl Berner 1905191814Liberal——
Francis Hagerup 1907192014Conservative——
Cornelius Bernhard Hanssen 1913193927Liberal—1922–39[14][15]
Halvdan Koht 1919194422[note 1]Labour——
Fredrik Stang 1921194020Conservative1922–40—
Wollert Konow (SB) 192219243Liberal——
Christian Holtermann Knudsen 192419241Labour——
Johan Ludwig Mowinckel 1925193612Liberal——
Axel Thallaug 193119333Conservative——
Christian Lous Lange 193419386Labour——
Gunnar Jahn 1938196629Liberal1941–66—
Birger Braadland 1938194810[note 2]Agrarian——
Anders Vassbotn 193819392Liberal——
Carl Joachim Hambro 1940196322[note 3]Conservative—1945–49[16]
Martin Tranmæl 1940196324Labour——
Halvard Manthey Lange 194519483[note 4]Labour——
Christian Oftedal 194619472Liberal——
Herman Smitt Ingebretsen 194619461Conservative——
Aase Lionæs 1949197830Labour 1968–78—
Gustav Natvig-Pedersen 196419663Labour—1949–65[16][17]
Nils Langhelle 196419663Labour19671965–66[17]
John Lyng 196419652Conservative——
Erling Wikborg 196519695Christian Democratic——
Bernt Ingvaldsen 196719759Conservative19671967,
1968–75[17]
Helge Refsum 196719726Centre——
Helge Rognlien 196719737Liberal——
John Sanness 1970198112Labour1979–81—
Einar Hovdhaugen 197319731Centre——
Egil Aarvik 1974198916Christian Democratic1982–891976–81
Trygve Haugeland 1974198411Centre——
Sjur Lindebrække 197619816Conservative——
Else Germeten 197919846Labour——
Gidske Anderson 1982199312Labour19901981–90
1991–93
Francis Sejersted 1982199918Conservative1991–991990
Odvar Nordli 1985199612Labour——
Gunnar Stålsett 1985200217[note 5]Centre—2000–02
Kaare Sandegren 199019963[note 6]Labour——
Kåre Kristiansen 199119944Christian Democratic——
Hanna Kvanmo 1991200212Socialist Left—1993–98
Sissel Rønbeck 1994present16[note 7]Labour——
Gunnar Berge 199720026Labour2000–021999
Esther Kostøl 199719971Labour——
Inger-Marie Ytterhorn 2000present11Progress——
Ole Danbolt Mjøs 200320086Christian Democratic2003–08—
Berge Furre 200320086Socialist Left—2003–08
Kaci Kullmann Five 2003present8Conservative—2009–
Thorbjørn Jagland 2009present2Labour2009–—
Ågot Valle 2009present2Socialist Left——

Secretaries

Head and shoulders man in his sixties who is speaking. He is wearing a casual, white shirt.
Geir Lundestad has been secretary since 1990.

Since 1990, the secretary has been Geir Lundestad (born 1945), director of the Norwegian Nobel Institute and adjunct professor of international history at the University of Oslo. He holds a doctorate from the University of Tromsø from 1976, where he worked as an associate and later professor of American civilization and then history. He has also been a research fellow at Harvard University and the Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars.[18]

Secretary Start End Tenure (years)
Christian Lous Lange 190119099
Ragnvald Moe 1910194536
August Schou 1946197318
Tim Greve 197419774
Jakob Sverdrup 1978198912
Geir Lundestad 1990present20

Notes and references

Notes

  1. ↑ Halvdan Koht did not serve from 1937 through 1940.[2]
  2. ↑ Birger Braadland did not serve in 1941.[2]
  3. ↑ Carl Joachim Hambro was on leave of absence in 1946.[2]
  4. ↑ Halvard Manthey Lange was on leave of absence in 1946.[2]
  5. ↑ Gunnar Stålsett did not serve in 1994.[2]
  6. ↑ Kaare Sandegren only served in 1990, during the last quarter of 1993 and the last quarter of 1996.[2]
  7. ↑ Sissel Rønbeck was on leave of absence in parts of 1996 and 1997.[2]

References

  1. 1 2 Heffermehl, 2008: 53–54
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 Nobel Foundation. "The Norwegian Nobel Committee Since 1901". Archived from the original on 16 April 2010. Retrieved 16 April 2010.
  3. ↑ Norwegian Nobel Institute. "The Nobel Institute". Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  4. ↑ Heffermehl, 2008: 84–85
  5. ↑ Helljesen, Geir. "Bare nordmenn i Nobelkomiteen". Norwegian Broadcasting Corporation (in Norwegian). Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Norwegian Nobel Institute. "Committee members". Archived from the original on 19 November 2009. Retrieved 14 October 2009.
  7. ↑ Parliament of Norway. "Thorbjørn Jagland" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  8. ↑ Parliament of Norway. "Kaci Kullmann Five" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  9. ↑ Parliament of Norway. "Sissel Rønbeck" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  10. ↑ Parliament of Norway. "Inger-Marie Ytterhorn" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  11. ↑ Parliament of Norway. "Ågot Valle" (in Norwegian). Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  12. ↑ Nobel Foundation. "Kristiansen, Kåre Gulbrand". Retrieved 15 October 2009.
  13. ↑ Wiedswang, Kjetil. "The Other Nobel Controversy". Foreign Policy. Retrieved 17 December 2009.
  14. 1 2 3 Norwegian Nobel Committee. Aarsberetninger fra Det Norske Stortings Nobelkomité 1900–1930 (in Norwegian). Parliament of Norway.
  15. ↑ Norwegian Nobel Committee. Aarsberetninger fra Det Norske Stortings Nobelkomité 1931–1945 (in Norwegian). Parliament of Norway.
  16. 1 2 Norwegian Nobel Committee. Aarsberetninger fra Det Norske Stortings Nobelkomité 1946–1960 (in Norwegian). Parliament of Norway.
  17. 1 2 3 Norwegian Nobel Committee. Beretning fra Det Norske Stortings Nobelkomité for 1961–1975 (in Norwegian). Parliament of Norway.
  18. ↑ Nobel Foundation. "Geir Lundestad". Archived from the original on February 20, 2009. Retrieved 15 October 2009.

Bibliography

  • Heffermehl, Fredrik (2008). Nobels vilje (in Norwegian). Oslo: Vidarforlaget. ISBN 978-82-7990-074-0.

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