Why Jews Excel in Intellectual Achievement: From Talmud Study to Nobel Prizes

Charles Krauthammer was a renowned American Jewish commentator and a Pulitzer Prize–winning journalist, whose columns were published in more than 240 newspapers. In a well known interview he gave several years ago, he revealed what he believed was the source of his intellectual strength:

“From a young age, my father insisted that I learn Talmud. He told me, ‘I cannot promise that you will remain faithful to religious observance, but I will make sure that you will not be an ignoramus.’ I know how to read Talmud, I know how to read Rashi. Every Jew must know this. This is where our strength comes from.”

Why Jews Win So Many Nobel Prizes

Professor Israel Aumann, a Nobel Prize laureate in Economics, has addressed the question of why Jews win Nobel Prizes far beyond their proportion of the world’s population. He explains this phenomenon by pointing to the Jewish aspiration, throughout history, to study and to become scholars.

The Jewish population makes up less than a quarter of one percent of the world’s population, yet there is hardly a year without a Jewish Nobel Prize laureate.

The Western World and Jewish Representation

Professor Aumann, who won the Nobel Prize in Economics in 2005, explained in interviews how Nobel Prizes are distributed worldwide and why Jews are so prominently represented among the winners.

“The world’s population as a whole does not usually win Nobel Prizes,” he said. “Nobel Prizes are awarded more or less within the developed world, the Western world. True, a Japanese scientist recently won in physiology, but overall we are talking about the Western world. Even within the Western world, which may make up at most a quarter of the world’s population, the percentage of Jews is very high.”

Torah Study as a Supreme Value

According to Professor Aumann, Jewish prominence in science and scholarship began many generations ago.

“In Jewish culture, Torah study is the supreme value,” he explained. “There is nothing more important than Torah study. For hundreds and thousands of years, the Torah scholar was the highest ideal people aspired to.”

He added that both wealthy individuals and ordinary people traditionally sought a Torah scholar as a match for their daughters.

Intellectual Engagement Beyond the Study Hall

“Torah study is a value that does not exist in any other culture,” Professor Aumann said. “Intellectual engagement is the most highly regarded pursuit among Jews.”

He noted that this intellectual orientation naturally extends beyond religious study into other fields, such as physics and mathematics.

Professor Aumann also explained that many Jewish Nobel laureates receive their awards in scientific fields simply because there are more prizes in those disciplines.

“It’s not necessarily about the sciences,” he said. “There are more winners in science because there are more science prizes. Overall, our representation is quite strong, and I believe that this is due to intellectual engagement.”

When asked whether this trend would continue, Professor Aumann declined to speculate. “I am not a prophet, nor the son of a prophet,” he said. “When people ask me what will happen in the future, I answer: whatever will be, will be.”

Still, he added, “There is no reason to assume that the trend will stop. This has been the case since the Nobel Prize was first established.”

Life After the Nobel Prize

Asked about life after winning the Nobel Prize, Professor Aumann remarked with gentle humor that he tries to work, but is often interrupted.

“You asked me to come and speak about Nobel Prizes,” he said. “A significant portion of my time is now devoted to speaking about my Nobel Prize and those of others.”

He added that after the interview he planned to do some work, eat lunch, and later in the day study Talmud with his grandson.