# Leon M. Lederman

_American mathematician and physicist_

Canonical: https://diginpl.com/people/leon-m-lederman
Last updated: 2026-10-31

> Leon Max Lederman (July 15, 1922 – October 3, 2018) was an American experimental physicist who received the Nobel Prize in Physics in 1988, along with Melvin Schwartz and Jack Steinberger, for research on neutrinos. He also received the Wolf Prize in Physics in 1982, along with Martin Lewis Perl, for research on quarks and leptons. Lederman was director emeritus of Fermi National Accelerator Laboratory (Fermilab) in Batavia, Illinois. He founded the Illinois Mathematics and Science Academy, in Aurora, Illinois in 1986, where he was resident scholar emeritus from 2012 until his death in 2018.

## Quick facts

- **Born:** 15 July 1922 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P569))
- **Place of birth:** New York City ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P19))
- **Died:** 3 October 2018 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P570))
- **Place of death:** Rexburg ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P20))
- **Citizenship:** United States ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P27))
- **Occupation:** particle physicist; university teacher; physicist ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P106))
- **Education:** City College of New York; Columbia University; James Monroe High School ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P69))
- **Awards:** Guggenheim Fellowship; Grand Cross of the National Order of Scientific Merit; Nobel Prize in Physics; Elliott Cresson Medal; William Procter Prize for Scientific Achievement; Wolf Prize in Physics; Enrico Fermi Award; National Medal of Science; Philip Hauge Abelson Prize; Richtmyer Memorial Lecture Award; Fellow of the American Physical Society; Fellow of the Committee for Skeptical Inquiry; Washington Award ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695#P166))

## About

An accomplished scientific writer, he became known for his 1993 book The God Particle establishing the popularity of the term for the Higgs boson.

## Questions

**When was Leon M. Lederman born?**  
Leon M. Lederman was born on 15 July 1922 in New York City.

**Where did Leon M. Lederman study?**  
Leon M. Lederman was educated at City College of New York, Columbia University, James Monroe High School.

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## Sources

- [Wikipedia (English): Leon M. Lederman](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Leon_M._Lederman) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikidata item Q192695](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q192695) — [CC0 1.0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- [Image: Leon M. Lederman.jpg by FNAL (Public domain)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Leon_M._Lederman.jpg)

## Licence and attribution

Text from the Wikipedia article Leon M. Lederman, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Leon M. Lederman.jpg — FNAL, Public domain.

## Cite this page

"Leon M. Lederman". DigiNepal. Last updated 31 October 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/leon-m-lederman. Retrieved 6 November 2026.