Ragnar Frisch

Ragnar Frisch was a Norwegian economist and joint winner in 1969 of the very first Nobel Prize in Economics, along with Jan Tinbergen, for his research in econometrics. Ragnar Frisch's other areas of research included time series, linear regression analysis, production theory, and business cycles. He worked to establish economics as a science, founded the Econometric Society, and coined the terms "econometrics," "microeconomics," and "macroeconomics."

Frisch was born in 1895 in Norway. He began his career as a gold and silversmith apprentice in order to work in the family business. However, he became interested in economics through his university studies and decided to pursue that instead. He earned his Ph.D. in mathematics from the University of Oslo. After graduating, he became a professor and taught for many years. He died in 1973. The Ragnar Frisch Centre for Economic Research at the University of Oslo and the Frisch Medal for outstanding econometrics papers are named in his honor.