[NlightNFotis]

I see this written a lot, and I don’t get it.

What matters for an award is that people recognise it as a prestigious accolade.

The economics prize, while not “official”, is still recognised by everyone in economics as the highest honour in the field. Who cares if it’s “official” or not?

Awards and prizes derive their value from their social recognition, which it has a solid amount of, at the very least.

[worstspotgain]

One could even argue it has all of the benefits and less of the dynamite scent.

[Maken]

There is nothing wrong with their connection with dynamite. Nobel designed it to prevent deaths in construction and mining, because nitroglycerine was way too dangerous (and way too useful to be abandoned). It's bad reputation comes from it's use in warfare, which is undeserved because it was not very well suited to that use and was quickly replaced by other solid explosives.

[NlightNFotis]

Depends on how much you consider that particular odour offensive :)

[etiam]

The significance is that it's not a Nobel prize. Saying that is simply formally wrong. It's a prize lobbied in (with a hefty donation) almost 70 years after the establishment, trying to raise the status of Economics as a scientific discipline by basking in the reflected glory of the actual Nobel prizes.

You may not care about the distinction, and if so that's your prerogative, but this Memorial prize in Economics, despite sharing in the festivities, is not in the same category and that's what you keep running into seeing pointed out.

[famouswaffles]

The General Public and Economists hold it in the same regard as other Nobel Prizes so appeal to 'formality' is pointless. The social recognition is the point of these awards so if it has that and is also often called the "Nobel Prize in Economics" then it's a Nobel Prize. They're literally announced and awarded together.

Nobody but a few nitpicks care about your distinction because it's not a real one. Might as well say "Money is not valuable because the material it's made up of has little intrinsic value". Well no, Money is valuable because society has decided it is.

[etiam]

Apologies to NlightNFotis for implicitly accusing you of being the griefer. I replied quickly between other tasks and evidently didn't pay due attention to the username. No misplaced offense intended.

[jfengel]

Do they get to go to the ceremony with the other laureates, meet the king, etc?

Of course that doesn't matter to anybody else, but I could see it mattering to the laureates themselves.

[tzs]

> Do they get to go to the ceremony with the other laureates, meet the king, etc?

Yes.