The Praemium Erasmianum Foundation is a Dutch cultural institution that works in

the humanities Humanities are List of academic disciplines, academic disciplines that study aspects of human society and culture. In the Renaissance, the term contrasted with Divinity (academic discipline), divinity and referred to what is now called classi ...

, the

social science Social science is one of the branches of science, devoted to the study of societies and the relationships among individuals within those societies. The term was formerly used to refer to the field of sociology, the original "science of soc ...

and

the arts The arts are a very wide range of human practices of creative expression, storytelling and cultural participation. They encompass multiple diverse and plural modes of thinking, doing and being, in an extremely broad range of media. Both ...

. It was founded in 1958 by

Prince Bernhard of Lippe-Biesterfeld , house = Lippe , father = Prince Bernhard of Lippe , mother = Armgard von Cramm , birth_date = , birth_name = Count Bernhard of Biesterfeld , birth_place = Jena, Saxe-Weimar-Eisenach, Germany , death_date = ...

. The aim of the Foundation is to strengthen the position of the arts, the social sciences and the humanities. The Foundation is motivated by the ideas of

Desiderius Erasmus Desiderius Erasmus Roterodamus (; ; English: Erasmus of Rotterdam or Erasmus;''Erasmus'' was his baptismal name, given after St. Erasmus of Formiae. ''Desiderius'' was an adopted additional name, which he used from 1496. The ''Roterodamus'' wa ...

, from whom it derives its name, and European cultural traditions.

Humanistic Humanism is a philosophical stance that emphasizes the individual and social potential and agency of human beings. It considers human beings the starting point for serious moral and philosophical inquiry. The meaning of the term "humani ...

values, such as tolerance,

cultural pluralism Cultural pluralism is a term used when smaller groups within a larger society maintain their unique cultural identities, whereby their values and practices are accepted by the dominant culture, provided such are consistent with the laws and value ...

and

critical thinking Critical thinking is the analysis of available facts, evidence, observations, and arguments to form a judgement. The subject is complex; several different definitions exist, which generally include the rational, skeptical, and unbiased analysis ...

, are reflected in the choice of the Erasmus Prize laureates and in the activities around the theme of the Prize.

Governance

The Foundation's patron is King

Willem-Alexander of the Netherlands Willem-Alexander (; Willem-Alexander Claus George Ferdinand; born ) is King of the Netherlands, having acceded to the throne following Beatrix of the Netherlands, his mother's abdication in 2013. Willem-Alexander was born in Utrecht as the old ...

. It is governed by a

board Board or Boards may refer to: Flat surface * Lumber, or other rigid material, milled or sawn flat ** Plank (wood) ** Cutting board ** Sounding board, of a musical instrument * Cardboard (paper product) * Paperboard * Fiberboard ** Hardboard, a ty ...

with members representing the cultural, scholarly and business communities in the Netherlands. the Board consists of

Ernst Hirsch Ballin Ernst Maurits Henricus Hirsch Ballin (born 15 December 1950) is a retired Dutch politician of the Christian Democratic Appeal (CDA) party and jurist. After the election of 1989 Hirsch Ballin was appointed as Minister of Justice in the Cab ...

(Chair), Jet de Ranitz (Vice-Chair), Tom de Swaan (Treasurer), Désanne van Brederode,

Barnita Bagchi Barnita Bagchi (born 12 June 1973) is a Bengali-speaking Indian feminist advocate, historian, and literary scholar. She is a faculty member in literary studies at Utrecht University, and was previously at the Institute of Development Studies, ...

Naomi Ellemers ttps://www.afm.nl/en AFM Naomi Ellemers (born 31 January 1963 in Amsterdam) is a distinguished professor of social psychology at Utrecht University since September 2015.Maria Grever Maria may refer to: People * Mary, mother of Jesus * Maria (given name), a popular given name in many languages Place names Extraterrestrial *170 Maria, a Main belt S-type asteroid discovered in 1877 *Lunar maria (plural of ''mare''), large, da ...

, Bregtje van der Haak, Bas ter Haar Romeny,

Fouad Laroui Fouad Laroui (born 12 August 1958) is a Moroccan economist and writer, born in Oujda, Morocco. After his studies at the Lycée Lyautey (Casablanca), he joined the prestigious École Nationale des Ponts et Chaussées (Paris, France), where he stu ...

, Rick Lawson,

Axel Rüger Axel may refer to: People * Axel (name), all persons with the name Places * Axel, Netherlands, a town ** Capture of Axel, a battle at Axel in 1586 Arts, entertainment, media * ''Axel'', a 1988 short film by Nigel Wingrove * ''Axel'', a Cirque d ...

, Henk Scholten,

Ed Spanjaard Eduard Philip Spanjaard (born 22 December 1948), known professionally as Ed Spanjaard, is a Dutch conductor and pianist. Early life Spanjaard was born in 1948 in Haarlem. His father was a psychiatrist and amateur pianist, and his mother a fl ...

and Frank van Vree. the organisation has three staff members, and the director is Shanti van Dam. Funding for the Foundation originally came from the Dutch lottery and the Sport Totaliser, although it is now financially independent.

Prizes

The Foundation awards the

Erasmus Prize The Erasmus Prize is an annual prize awarded by the board of the Praemium Erasmianum Foundation to individuals or institutions that have made exceptional contributions to culture, society, or social science in Europe and the rest of the world. It ...

, which is an annual prize that is awarded to individuals or institutions who have made exceptional contributions to

culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...

society A society is a group of individuals involved in persistent social interaction, or a large social group sharing the same spatial or social territory, typically subject to the same political authority and dominant cultural expectations. Socie ...

, or

Europe Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a Continent#Subcontinents, subcontinent of Eurasia ...

and the rest of the world. The Foundation organizes a wide range of academic and cultural activities around the Erasmus Prize award ceremony, as well as an essay or publications based on the laureate and their work. The Foundation has also awarded annual Research Prizes since 1988. it awards up to five prizes of €3,000 each to PhD graduates who have written an outstanding

thesis A thesis ( : theses), or dissertation (abbreviated diss.), is a document submitted in support of candidature for an academic degree or professional qualification presenting the author's research and findings.International Standard ISO 7144: ...

in the humanities and social sciences. The prizes are awarded by the Foundation's director at a ceremony that normally takes place in May.

References

External links

{{Authority control Foundations based in the Netherlands 1958 establishments in the Netherlands