The King Faisal Prize ( ar, جائزة الملك فيصل, formerly King Faisal International Prize), is an annual award sponsored by

King Faisal Foundation The King Faisal Foundation ( ar, مؤسسة الملك فيصل الخيرية; ''KFF''), is an international philanthropic organization established in 1976 with the intent of preserving and perpetuating King Faisal bin Abdulaziz's legacy. The fo ...

presented to "dedicated men and women whose contributions make a positive difference". The foundation awards prizes in five categories: Service to

Islam Islam (; ar, ۘالِإسلَام, , ) is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion centred primarily around the Quran, a religious text considered by Muslims to be the direct word of God (or '' Allah'') as it was revealed to Muhammad, the ...

;

Islamic studies Islamic studies refers to the academic study of Islam, and generally to academic multidisciplinary "studies" programs—programs similar to others that focus on the history, texts and theologies of other religious traditions, such as Easter ...

; the

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

language and

Arabic literature Arabic literature ( ar, الأدب العربي / ALA-LC: ''al-Adab al-‘Arabī'') is the writing, both as prose and poetry, produced by writers in the Arabic language. The Arabic word used for literature is '' Adab'', which is derived from ...

;

science Science is a systematic endeavor that builds and organizes knowledge in the form of testable explanations and predictions about the universe. Science may be as old as the human species, and some of the earliest archeological evidence ...

; and

medicine Medicine is the science and practice of caring for a patient, managing the diagnosis, prognosis, prevention, treatment, palliation of their injury or disease, and promoting their health. Medicine encompasses a variety of health care pr ...

. Three of the prizes are widely considered as the most prestigious awards in the Muslim world. The first King Faisal Prize was awarded to the Pakistani scholar

Abul A'la Maududi Abul A'la al-Maududi ( ur, , translit=Abū al-Aʿlā al-Mawdūdī; – ) was an Islamic scholar, Islamist ideologue, Muslim philosopher, jurist, historian, journalist, activist and scholar active in British India and later, following the part ...

in the year 1979 for his service to Islam. In 1981,

Khalid of Saudi Arabia Khalid bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, خالد بن عبد العزيز آل سعود ''Khalid ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Suʿūd'' ; 13 February 1913 13 June 1982) was a Saudi Arabian statesman and politician who served as King and Prime Minister o ...

received the same award. In 1984,

Fahd of Saudi Arabia Fahd bin Abdulaziz Al Saud ( ar, فهد بن عبد العزيز آل سعود ''Fahd ibn ʿAbd al ʿAzīz Āl Suʿūd'', ; 1920, 1921 or 1923 – 1 August 2005) was a Saudi Arabian politician who was King and Prime Minister of Saudi Arabia fr ...

was the recipient of the award. In 1986, this prize was co-awarded to Ahmed Deedat and French Roger Garaudy.

Award process

Designation of subjects

Each year, the selection committees designate subjects in Islamic Studies, Arabic Literature, and Medicine. Selected topics in Islamic Studies category are aimed at highlighting areas of importance in

Muslim Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abrah ...

societies. Arabic Literature topics relate to specialized areas within the

discipline Discipline refers to rule following behavior, to regulate, order, control and authority. It may also refer to punishment. Discipline is used to create habits, routines, and automatic mechanisms such as blind obedience. It may be inflicted on ot ...

. Topics in Medicine are supposed to reflect current areas of international concern. The Science category covers a broad range of subcategories e.g.

physics Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which ...

mathematics Mathematics is an area of knowledge that includes the topics of numbers, formulas and related structures, shapes and the spaces in which they are contained, and quantities and their changes. These topics are represented in modern mathematics ...

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a natural science that covers the elements that make up matter to the compounds made of atoms, molecules and ions: their composition, structure, proper ...

and

biology Biology is the scientific study of life. It is a natural science with a broad scope but has several unifying themes that tie it together as a single, coherent field. For instance, all organisms are made up of cells that process hereditary ...

Nomination

Islamic institutions,

universities A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United State ...

and previous winners of the King Faisal Prize can nominate a person for the award. Nominations from ordinary individuals or political parties are not accepted. The nominee or nominated institution(s) must be known for their leading practical or intellectual role in the service of

and

s. Nominated works must be published, benefit mankind and enrich human knowledge.

Selection

Winners of the Prize for category "Service to Islam" are chosen directly by the respective selection committee. For other Prize categories, pre-selection by

peer review Peer review is the evaluation of work by one or more people with similar competencies as the producers of the work ( peers). It functions as a form of self-regulation by qualified members of a profession within the relevant field. Peer revie ...

ers is carried out, which is followed by scrutiny of the works of worthy nominees by selected referees of each discipline. Autonomous, international, specialist selection committees are then convened at the

headquarters Headquarters (commonly referred to as HQ) denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are coordinated. In the United States, the corporate headquarters represents the entity at the center or the to ...

Riyadh Riyadh (, ar, الرياض, 'ar-Riyāḍ, lit.: 'The Gardens' Najdi pronunciation: ), formerly known as Hajr al-Yamamah, is the capital and largest city of Saudi Arabia. It is also the capital of the Riyadh Province and the centre of the ...

each January to make their final decisions.

Prizes

The prize in each of the five categories consists of: # A Certificate written in Arabic

Diwani Diwani is a calligraphic variety of Arabic script, a cursive style developed during the reign of the early Ottoman Turks (16th century - early 17th century). It reached its height of popularity under Süleyman I the Magnificent (1520–1566). ...

calligraphy Calligraphy (from el, link=y, καλλιγραφία) is a visual art related to writing. It is the design and execution of lettering with a pen, ink brush, or other writing instrument. Contemporary calligraphic practice can be defined ...

and signed by the Chairman of the Prize board, His Royal Highness Prince Khalid Al-Faisal Bin Abd Al-Aziz, enclosed in a binder of the finest leather inscribed with the winner’s name and a summary of his/her work which qualified him/her for the prize. # A 24 carat

gold medal A gold medal is a medal awarded for highest achievement in a non-military field. Its name derives from the use of at least a fraction of gold in form of plating or alloying in its manufacture. Since the eighteenth century, gold medals have be ...

weighing 200

gram The gram (originally gramme; SI unit symbol g) is a unit of mass in the International System of Units (SI) equal to one one thousandth of a kilogram. Originally defined as of 1795 as "the absolute weight of a volume of pure water equal to th ...

s, with one side bearing the liking of King Faisal, and the prize category written in Arabic, and the other holding the logo of the prize and the Prize category in English. # A check of SAR 750 thousand (an equivalent of US$ 200 thousand), distributed equally between the winners if they are more than one. Co-winners in any category share the monetary

grant Grant or Grants may refer to: Places *Grant County (disambiguation) Australia * Grant, Queensland, a locality in the Barcaldine Region, Queensland, Australia United Kingdom * Castle Grant United States * Grant, Alabama * Grant, Inyo County, ...

. The Prizes are awarded during a ceremony in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, under the auspices of the King of Saudi Arabia.

Country standings

The five countries with most award-winners 2022 were: Sydney Brenner was considered to be the first

Jew Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""T ...

to win the King Faisal Award, in 1992. Ronald Levy was reported to be a Jewish recipient in 2009.

Winners by subject

Service to Islam

Islamic Studies

Arabic language and literature

Medicine

Science

References

External links

Official Website of King Faisal Prize

Complete List of All-time Winners of King Faisal Award

PDF: Official Archive of all-time winners

{{Portal, Saudi Arabia Religion-related awards Science and technology awards Saudi Arabian awards 1979 establishments in Saudi Arabia International awards Saudi Arabian literary awards Islamic awards