Santiago Ramón y Cajal was a Spanish neuroscientist from the 19th century who won the Nobel Prize in Physiology or Medicine in 1906 for his work on the structure of the nervous system. He was born in 1852 in Spain and studied medicine, becoming a professor of histology and pathology. Some of his key accomplishments include being awarded prizes in Paris and Spain for his work, and publishing many studies on nervous system degeneration. His award of the 1906 Nobel Prize recognized his significant contributions to neuroscience through techniques like the silver staining method.