Amartya Sen
Economist and philosopher, Nobel laureate in economics
- Age
- 92 yrs
- Birthday in 6 days
- Works listed
- 5
- Book
- Honours
- 3
- Most recent 2011
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Amartya Sen is an economist and philosopher who won the 1998 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his work on welfare economics, famine and social choice. His ideas helped shape the Human Development Index, and he received the Bharat Ratna in 1999.
Biography
Santiniketan
Sen was born on the campus of Rabindranath Tagore’s school in Santiniketan, and Tagore chose his name, Amartya, meaning “immortal”. As a nine-year-old he witnessed the Bengal famine of 1943, in which millions died — an experience that shaped his life’s work.
Famines and freedom
In Poverty and Famines (1981) he argued that famines are caused less by a shortage of food than by people losing the ability to buy it, and observed that no famine has occurred in a functioning democracy with a free press. He developed the capability approach, which judges development by what people are able to do and be, and helped Mahbub ul Haq create the Human Development Index.
Nobel Prize
He received the 1998 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his contributions to welfare economics and social choice theory. He has taught at Delhi, the London School of Economics, Oxford, Harvard and Cambridge, where he was Master of Trinity College from 1998 to 2004.
Writer
His books for general readers include Development as Freedom (1999), The Argumentative Indian (2005), Identity and Violence (2006), The Idea of Justice (2009) and the memoir Home in the World (2021). He received the Bharat Ratna in 1999 and was the first chancellor of the revived Nalanda University.
Timeline
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1933
Born in Santiniketan, Bengal Presidency, British India (now West Bengal)
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1959
PhD at Cambridge
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1981
Poverty and Famines
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1990
Helps create the Human Development Index
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1998
Nobel Prize; Master of Trinity College
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1999
Bharat Ratna; Development as Freedom
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2005
The Argumentative Indian
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2009
The Idea of Justice
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2021
Memoir Home in the World
Notable works
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1970
Collective Choice and Social Welfare Book
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1981
Poverty and Famines Book
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1999
Development as Freedom Book
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2005
The Argumentative Indian Book
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2009
The Idea of Justice Book
Awards and honours
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Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences
1998
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Bharat Ratna
1999
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National Humanities Medal (US)
2011
Did you know?
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1
Rabindranath Tagore chose his name.
-
2
He saw the Bengal famine of 1943 as a child.
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3
He argues that no famine has happened in a working democracy with a free press.
Connections
Frequently asked
Who is Amartya Sen?
Amartya Sen is an economist and philosopher who won the 1998 Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences for his work on welfare economics, famine and social choice. His ideas helped shape the Human Development Index, and he received the Bharat Ratna in 1999.
How old is Amartya Sen?
Amartya Sen is 92 years old, born on 3 November 1933 in Santiniketan, Bengal Presidency, British India (now West Bengal).
Where is Amartya Sen from?
Amartya Sen was born in Santiniketan, Bengal Presidency, British India (now West Bengal).
What is Amartya Sen known for?
Amartya Sen is best known for Welfare economics; the capability approach; Poverty and Famines; Development as Freedom.
What awards has Amartya Sen received?
Notable honours include Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences (1998), Bharat Ratna (1999), National Humanities Medal (US) (2011).
References
- Amartya Sen — Wikipedia. Wikipedia. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
- Amartya Sen — Britannica. Encyclopaedia Britannica. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
- Amartya Sen — IMDb. IMDb. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
- Amartya Sen — Nobel Prize facts. NobelPrize.org. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
- Amartya Sen — Goodreads author page. Goodreads. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
- Amartya Sen — Hindi Wikipedia. Wikipedia (Hindi). Retrieved 27 October 2026.
- Official website. scholar.harvard.edu. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
- Amartya Sen (Q132489) — structured data. Wikidata. Retrieved 27 October 2026.
Includes material from the Wikipedia article “Amartya Sen”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. That text is available under the same licence. Learn more
External links
About this profile
- Researched by the TrackFame editorial team; reviewed by Sanjay Sokal under our editorial policy
- First published 27 October 2026
- Last updated
Cite this page
“Amartya Sen.” TrackFame, last updated 28 October 2026. https://trackfame.com/person/amartya-sen
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