National Humanities Medal
The National Humanities Medal honors individuals or groups whose work has deepened the nation’s understanding of the humanities, broadened citizens’ engagement with the humanities, or helped preserve and expand Americans’ access to important resources in the humanities. The award, given by the National Endowment for the Humanities, was established in 1988 as the Charles Frankel Prize. In 1997 it was renamed the National Humanities Medal.
National Humanities Medal Recipients
Allan Bloom (1930–1992)
AB’49, AM’53, PhD’55; Professor in History, 1964–69; Chairman, Department of History, 1967–70; John Matthews Manly Distinguished Service Professor; Professor in the Committee on Social Thought, 1979–92; John U. Nef Distinguished Service Professor, 1992
Daniel J. Boorstin (1914–2004)
Professor in History, 1944–64; Preston and Sterling Morton Distinguished Service Professor, 1964–69
Earl Shorris (1936-2012)
X’54
Eileen Jackson Southern (1920–2002)
AB’40; AM’41
Gertrude Himmelfarb
PhD’50
James M. Buchanan Jr.
PhD’48
Katherine Dunham
PhB’36
Luis Leal (1907–2010)
AM’41, PhD’50
Martin Marty
PhD’56; Professor in the Divinity School, 1963–78; Fairfax M. Cone Distinguished Service Professor, 1978–98; Fairfax M. Cone Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus, 1998–present
Mary Ann Glendon
AB’59, JD’61; Master of Comparative Law, 1963
Milton J. Rosenberg
Professor in Psychology and the College, 1965–96; Professor Emeritus in Psychology, 1996–present
Mortimer J Adler
Associate Professor in Philosophy of Law, 1930–42; Professor in Philosophy of Law, 1942–52; Visiting Lecturer, 1963–68
Philip Roth
AM’55
Ralph Ellison (1913–1994)
Humanities Faculty, 1961
Richard J. Franke
University Trustee
Saul Bellow (1915–2005)
X’39; Raymond W. and Martha Hilpert Gruner Distinguished Service Professor in the Committee on Social Thought and in English, 1962–1993; chairman of the Committee on Social Thought, 1970–76
Studs Terkel
PhB’32, JD’34
Thomas Sowell
PhD’68
Walter Berns
PhD, AM; Faculty, 1984, 1989
William H. McNeill
AB’38, AM’39; Robert A. Milikan Distinguished Service Professor in History, 1947–87; Robert A. Millikan Distinguished Service Professor Emeritus in History, 1987–present