# Omar M. Yaghi

_American chemist of Arabic descent (born 1965)_

Canonical: https://diginpl.com/people/omar-m-yaghi
Last updated: 2026-10-31

> Omar Mwannes Yaghi (Arabic: عمر مُؤنس ياغي; born February 9, 1965) is a chemist best known for developing metal–organic frameworks (MOFs) and pioneering reticular chemistry. He was awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Chemistry, shared with Richard Robson and Susumu Kitagawa, for this work.

## Quick facts

- **Born:** 9 February 1965 ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252#P569))
- **Place of birth:** Amman ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252#P19))
- **Citizenship:** Jordan; United States ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252#P27))
- **Occupation:** chemist; university teacher ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252#P106))
- **Education:** University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; State University of New York at Albany ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252#P69))
- **Official website:** yaghi.berkeley.edu/bio.html ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252#P856))
- **Awards:** King Faisal Prize in Science; Centenary Prize; Albert Einstein World Award of Science; BBVA Foundation Frontiers of Knowledge Award; MRS Medal Award; Gregori Aminoff Prize; Wolf Prize in Chemistry; Mustafa Prize; Newcomb Cleveland Prize; Fellow of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences; August Wilhelm von Hofmann Medal; Clarivate Citation Laureates; Wilhelm Exner Medal; Nobel Prize in Chemistry; Order of King Abdullah II for Excellence ([Wikidata](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252#P166))

## About

From 2012 to 2026, Yaghi was a University Professor and James and Neeltje Tretter Endowed Chair in Chemistry at the University of California, Berkeley. In July 2026, he left the university to lead a newly-established artificial intelligence and material science research institute at Tsinghua University. Analysts and media outlets characterized the move as a significant indicator of shifting geopolitical dynamics in scientific research, driven by factors such as changing federal funding structures in the United States and expanded institutional recruitment initiatives by China.

Yaghi is also an affiliate scientist at Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, founding director of the Berkeley Global Science Institute, and a member of the U.S. National Academy of Sciences and the German National Academy of Sciences Leopoldina. In January 2025, he became the seventh president of the World Cultural Council, an international organization promoting cultural and scientific advancement.

## Questions

**When was Omar M. Yaghi born?**  
Omar M. Yaghi was born on 9 February 1965 in Amman.

**Where did Omar M. Yaghi study?**  
Omar M. Yaghi was educated at University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, State University of New York at Albany.

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## Sources

- [Wikipedia (English): Omar M. Yaghi](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Omar_M._Yaghi) — [CC BY-SA 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
- [Wikidata item Q743252](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q743252) — [CC0 1.0](https://creativecommons.org/publicdomain/zero/1.0/)
- [Image: Omar Yaghi 413953 by Christopher Michel 1-7-2025.jpg by Christopher Michel (CC BY-SA 4.0)](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Omar_Yaghi_413953_by_Christopher_Michel_1-7-2025.jpg)

## Licence and attribution

Text from the Wikipedia article Omar M. Yaghi, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. This page's text is shared under the same licence. Facts from Wikidata (CC0). Image: Omar Yaghi 413953 by Christopher Michel 1-7-2025.jpg — Christopher Michel, CC BY-SA 4.0.

## Cite this page

"Omar M. Yaghi". DigiNepal. Last updated 31 October 2026. https://diginpl.com/people/omar-m-yaghi. Retrieved 15 November 2026.