An award, sometimes called a distinction, is given to a recipient as a token of recognition of excellence in a certain field. When the token is a medal, ribbon or other item designed for wearing, it is known as a decoration. An award may be described by three aspects: 1) to whom it is given to 2) what 3) by whom, all varying according to purpose. The recipient is often awarded to an individual, a student, athlete or representative of a group of people, be it an

organisation An organization or organisation ( Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is an entity—such as a company, or corporation or an institution ( formal organization), or an association—comprising one or more people and having a pa ...

, a

sports team A sports team is a group of individuals who play a team sport together. The number of players in the group depends on the sport. The highest level of a sports team is a professional sports team. In professional sports, the athletes are very t ...

or a whole

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. When referring to a specific polity, the term "country" may refer to a sovereign state, state with limited recognition, constituent country, ...

. The award item may be a decoration or an insignia suitable for wearing, such as a

medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be in ...

badge A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and fir ...

, award pin or rosette. It can also be a token object such as a certificate,

diploma A diploma is a document awarded by an educational institution (such as a college or university) testifying the recipient has graduated by successfully completing their courses of studies. Historically, it has also referred to a charter or offi ...

, championship belt,

trophy A trophy is a tangible, decorative item used to remind of a specific achievement, serving as recognition or evidence of merit. Trophies are most commonly awarded for sports, sporting events, ranging from youth sports to professional level athlet ...

or plaque. The award may also be accompanied by a

title of honor A title of honor or honorary title is a title bestowed upon individuals or organizations as an award in recognition of their merits. Sometimes the title bears the same or nearly the same name as a title of authority, but the person bestowed do ...

, and an object of direct cash value, such as

prize money Prize money refers in particular to naval prize money, usually arising in naval warfare, but also in other circumstances. It was a monetary reward paid in accordance with the prize law of a belligerent state to the crew of a ship belonging to ...

or a

scholarship A scholarship is a form of Student financial aid, financial aid awarded to students for further education. Generally, scholarships are awarded based on a set of criteria such as academic merit, Multiculturalism, diversity and inclusion, athleti ...

. Furthermore, an is an award given, typically in

education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

, that does not confer the recipient(s) a higher standing but is considered worth mentioning in an

honour Honour (Commonwealth English) or honor (American English; American and British English spelling differences#-our, -or, see spelling differences) is a quality of a person that is of both social teaching and personal ethos, that manifests itself ...

able way. An award may be conferred as a

state decoration A state decoration is an object, such as a medal or the insignia of an Order (distinction), order, that is awarded by a sovereign state to honor the recipient. The term includes civil awards and decorations, as well as military awards and decorat ...

by a

sovereign ''Sovereign'' is a title that can be applied to the highest leader in various categories. The word is borrowed from Old French , which is ultimately derived from the Latin">-4; we might wonder whether there's a point at which it's appropriate to ...

state State most commonly refers to: * State (polity), a centralized political organization that regulates law and society within a territory **Sovereign state, a sovereign polity in international law, commonly referred to as a country **Nation state, a ...

dynasty A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a monarchy, monarchical system, but sometimes also appearing in republics. A dynasty may also be referred to as a "house", "family" or "clan", among others. H ...

or other

public authority A public-benefit nonprofit corporationnonprofit A nonprofit organization (NPO), also known as a nonbusiness entity, nonprofit institution, not-for-profit organization, or simply a nonprofit, is a non-governmental (private) legal entity orga ...

(see

fount of honour The fount of honour () is a person, who, by virtue of their official position, has the exclusive right of conferring legitimate titles of nobility and orders of chivalry on other persons. Origin During the High Middle Ages, European knights ...

), or a private organisation or individual. The latter may also include ecclesiastical authorities, such as in the case of

ecclesiastical award An Ecclesiastial award is an official award, honor or Privilege (canon law), privilege presented by ecclesiastical authority. Eastern Orthodox Church In the Eastern Orthodox Church certain official awards and honours may be bestowed upon memb ...

s. For example, the

Nobel Prize The Nobel Prizes ( ; ; ) are awards administered by the Nobel Foundation and granted in accordance with the principle of "for the greatest benefit to humankind". The prizes were first awarded in 1901, marking the fifth anniversary of Alfred N ...

recognizes contributions to society, while the

Pulitzer Prize The Pulitzer Prizes () are 23 annual awards given by Columbia University in New York City for achievements in the United States in "journalism, arts and letters". They were established in 1917 by the will of Joseph Pulitzer, who had made his fo ...

honors literary achievements. An award may be a public acknowledgment of excellence without any tangible token or prize. Awards for

sports tournament A tournament is a competition involving at least three competitors, all participating in a sport or game. More specifically, the term may be used in either of two overlapping senses: # One or more competitions held at a single venue and concent ...

s often take the form of

cup A cup is an open-top vessel (container) used to hold liquids for drinking, typically with a flattened hemispherical shape, and often with a capacity of about . Cups may be made of pottery (including porcelain), glass, metal, wood, stone, pol ...

s, following a tradition harking back to the ancient Greek tripod given to winners in athletic contests. The

Stanley Cup The Stanley Cup () is the championship trophy awarded annually to the National Hockey League (NHL) playoff champion. It is the oldest existing trophy to be awarded to a professional sports franchise in North America, and the International Ic ...

is a modern example. In contrast, awards for employee recognition often take the form of plaques or crystal pieces. An award may carry a monetary

prize A prize is an award to be given to a person or a group of people (such as sporting teams and organizations) to recognize and reward their actions and achievements.

given to the recipient. Finally, an award may recognize participation rather than victory. There is controversy regarding the appropriateness of participation awards for students in

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

schools. A relative field to awards is

phaleristics Phaleristics, from the Greek mythological hero Phalerus (, ''Phaleros'') via the Latin ('heroics'), sometimes spelled faleristics, is an auxiliary sciences of history, auxiliary science of history and numismatics which studies Order (distinction ...

, an auxiliary science of history and

numismatics Numismatics is the study or collection of currency, including coins, tokens, paper money, medals, and related objects. Specialists, known as numismatists, are often characterized as students or collectors of coins, but the discipline also inclu ...

which studies orders,

fraternities A fraternity (; whence, " brotherhood") or fraternal organization is an organization, society, club or fraternal order traditionally of men but also women associated together for various religious or secular aims. Fraternity in the Western conce ...

and award items, such as medals and other decorations.

See also

References

Further reading