Foregoers

Jeno (Eugene P.) Wigner (1902-1995) received the 1963 Nobel Prize in Physics together with Maria Goeppert-Mayerand Hans David Jensen „for his contributions to the theory of the atomic nucleus and the elementary particles, particularly through the discovery and application of fundamental symmetry principles. Wigner played an outstanding role in the peaceful and safe utilization of […]

György (Georg von) Békésy (1899-1972) the son of Alexander von Békésy, a diplomat, and his wife, Paula, received his early education in Munich, Constantinople, Budapest, and in a private school in Zurich. He received his Ph.D. in Physics in 1923 from the University of Budapest. He was the recipient of the 1961 Nobel Prize in […]

György (George de) Hevesy (1885-1966) George de Hevesy was born in Budapest on August 1st, 1885, the son of Louis de Hevesy, Court Counsellor and Eugénie, née Baroness Schosberger. He studied at the Budapest Technical University and Berlin technical University and he gained his doctor’s degree at the University of Freiburg in 1908. He was […]

Albert Szent-Györgyi (1893-1986) was born in Budapest, and obtained his diploma in medicine in 1917. For more than 10 years he toured the world, and at Cambridge he obtained his Ph. D. in chemistry. After returning home he took up a professorial position and headed a department at the University of Szeged, where shortly he […]

Richard Zsigmondy (1865-1929) was a recipient of the 1925 Nobel Prize in Chemistry „for his demonstration of the heterogeneous nature of colloid solutions and for the methods be used, which have since become fundamental importance in modern colloid chemistry”. He invented the ultramicroscope in the pursuit of his research. Zsigmondy was born in Vienna, but […]

Robert Bárány (1876-1936) was honored with the 1914 Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medical Science „for his work on the physiology and pathology of the vestibular apparatus”. In a speech he delivered upon receiving the Nobel prize in the discipline of otology, Bárány’s professional line, half a century later, George von Békésy spoke about the […]

Fülöp (Philipp von) Lénard (1862-1947) was the first scientist born in Hungary to win the Nobel Prize. His scientific career started under Eötvös in Budapest, but he later moved to Germany where he died. He was honored in physics in 1905 „for his work in connection with cathode rays”. His principal sphere of research covered […]

b. Doborjan, Hungary (now Raiding, Austria) 10/22/1811; d. Bayreuth, 7/31/1886, Germany Composer He was taught to play the piano by his father and then Czerny, establishing himself as a remarkable concert artist by the age of 12. He gave concerts around the whole world, but was active as a composer. The greatest pianist of his time, he […]

b. 3/25/1881, Nagyszentmiklós, Hungary, d. 9/26/1945, New York Composer Béla Bartók was one of the most significant musicians of the twentieth century. His music was invigorated by the themes, modes, and rhythmic patterns of the Hungarian and other folk music traditions he studied, which he synthesized with influences from his contemporaries into his own distinctive […]

b. 12/16/1882 Kecskemét, Hungary, d. 3/6/1967, Budapest Composer Along with Bartók and Ligeti, Zoltán Kodály is one of the three major figures in Hungarian music of the last century. Kodály’s many compositions show a strong affinity with the folk traditions of his country and include ballad operas, orchestral works, chamber music, choral works, songs, folk song […]