Ragnar Frisch
Who was Ragnar Frisch?
Nobel laureate: Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences (1969)
Biographical data adapted from Wikipedia’s article on Ragnar Frisch (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Biography
Ragnar Anton Kittil Frisch (1895-1973) was a Norwegian economist who turned economics into a quantitative science with his groundbreaking work in econometrics and mathematical modeling. Born in Christiania (now Oslo) on March 3, 1895, Frisch changed economic analysis by adding statistical methods and math rigor to a field once mainly driven by theory. He made a lasting impact on economics by creating terms like "econometrics" in 1926, and "microeconomics" and "macroeconomics" in 1933.
Frisch earned his dr.philos. degree at the University of Oslo in 1926, with a thesis in mathematics and statistics. After his doctorate, he researched in the United States for five years at the University of Minnesota and Yale University. Though offered a full professor position at Yale in 1930-31, he was persuaded by Norwegian colleagues to return home. In 1931, he became Professor of Economics and Statistics at the Faculty of Law, University of Oslo, and went on to start the Institute of Economics in 1932.
During his career, Frisch showed great leadership in developing the foundation of modern economics. He co-founded the Econometric Society in 1930 and edited its leading journal, Econometrica, for 21 years. His work with Jan Tinbergen on business cycle modeling earned them the first Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1969 for their dynamic models analyzing economic processes. In 1933, Frisch created the first statistically-based model of business cycles, setting a new standard for research in economics.
Frisch worked at the University of Oslo until retiring in 1965, spending over 30 years enhancing economic education and research in Norway. His influence reached many students and collaborators who spread his methods worldwide. He was married twice, first to Marie Smedal and then to Astrid Johannessen, and was honored with fellowships in the Econometric Society in 1933 and the Institute of Mathematical Statistics in 1947. He passed away in Oslo on January 31, 1973, leaving a discipline that continues to grow from his methodological ideas.
Before Fame
Frisch grew up when economics was shifting from classical political economy to more scientific methods. In the early 20th century, there was a growing interest in using math and statistics in social sciences, inspired by progress in physics and engineering. This environment shaped Frisch's education at the University of Oslo, where he learned both mathematics and economics. During his formative years, major economic disruptions like World War I and its aftermath highlighted the need for better ways to understand economic changes, likely influencing his later work on business cycle modeling.
Key Achievements
- Won the first Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences in 1969 with Jan Tinbergen
- Coined the terms 'econometrics' (1926), 'microeconomics' and 'macroeconomics' (1933)
- Developed the first statistically informed model of business cycles in 1933
- Co-founded the Econometric Society in 1930 and edited Econometrica for 21 years
- Established economics as a quantitative and statistically informed science
Did You Know?
- 01.The Frisch Medal, awarded annually by the Econometric Society for the best econometrics paper published in the previous five years, was named in his honor
- 02.He edited the journal Econometrica for 21 consecutive years, shaping the direction of quantitative economics research
- 03.The Grand Auditorium at the Institute of Economics, University of Oslo, bears his name
- 04.He declined a full professorship at Yale University in 1931 after pressure from Norwegian colleagues to return home
- 05.The Frisch Centre for Applied Economic Analysis at the University of Oslo was established to continue his research tradition
Family & Personal Life
Awards & Honors
| Award | Year | Details |
|---|---|---|
| Nobel Prize in Economic Sciences | 1969 | for having developed and applied dynamic models for the analysis of economic processes |
| Fellow of the Econometric Society | 1933 | — |
| Honorary Doctor of Stockholm University of Economics | 1959 | — |
| Fellow of the Institute of Mathematical Statistics | 1947 | — |