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![]() "in the field of literature, produced the most outstanding work in an idealistic direction". | |
Date |
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Location | Stockholm, Sweden |
Presented by | Swedish Academy |
First awarded | 1901 |
Currently held by | to be announced |
Website | 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature |
The 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature is an international literary prize established according to Alfred Nobel's will [1] that will be announced by the Swedish Academy in Stockholm, Sweden, in October 2025 and awarded on 10 December 2025. [2]
Every year, beginning in November of last year, thousands of letters across the world are sent to the Swedish Academy, endorsing well celebrated and little-known authors for the Nobel Prize.
Such nominations can only be done by qualified nominators, namely members of the Swedish Academy and of other academies, institutions and societies which are similar to it in construction and purpose; professors of literature and of linguistics at universities and colleges; previous Nobel Prize laureates in Literature; and chairpersons of writers' organizations qualifying as representative of their countries' production of literature and belles lettres. [3] Among the fundamental rules in making nominations include not making them public – but some still do as previous years – nor nominating oneself which automatically disqualifies the nominee during deliberations. [4] [5]
Despite the secrecy, many notable writers around the globe are perennially expected to be among the official nominees and favored to win the prestigious literary prize.
Among last year's favorite authors to win the prize, according to The Guardian and Literary Hub , include Can Xue, Haruki Murakami, Ludmila Ulitskaya, Ersi Sotiropoulos, Salman Rushdie, Don DeLillo, Thomas Pynchon, László Krasznahorkai, César Aira, Gerald Murnane, Anne Carson and Ngũgĩ wa Thiong’o. [6] [7]
The following list features authors considered multiple times for the prize along with the current number of their books the Nobel Library possess. [8] [9] [10] [11] The amount of copies helps determine the Swedish Academy's interest on a particular author. [12]
Author | Birth Year | Country | Numbers of Books | Genre(s) |
---|---|---|---|---|
Peter Ackroyd | 1949 | ![]() | 22 | novel, biography, essays, poetry |
Naja Marie Aidt | 1963 | ![]() | 33 | poetry, short story, novel, drama |
César Aira | 1949 | ![]() | 36 | novel, short story, essays, translation |
Ibrahim al-Koni | 1948 | ![]() | 31 | novel, essays, history |
Isabel Allende | 1942 | ![]() | 35 | novel, short story, memoirs |
José Eduardo Agualusa | 1960 | ![]() | 21 | novel, short story, essays |
Homero Aridjis | 1940 | ![]() | 70 | poetry, novel, drama, short story, essays |
Margaret Atwood | 1939 | ![]() | 129 | novel, short story, poetry, essays, literary criticism |
Bernardo Atxaga | 1951 | ![]() | 23 | novel, short story, poetry |
John Banville | 1945 | ![]() | 23 | novel, short story, drama, screenplay, essays |
Alessandro Baricco | 1958 | ![]() | 25 | novel, drama, short story, essays |
Julian Barnes | 1946 | ![]() | 33 | novel, short story, essays |
Bei Dao | 1949 | ![]() | 45 | poetry, short story, essays, memoirs |
Tahar Ben Jelloun | 1944 | ![]() | 66 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Stefano Benni | 1947 | ![]() | 26 | novel, short story, poetry, drama, essays |
Aase Berg | 1967 | ![]() | 24 | poet, literary critic |
Wolf Biermann | 1936 | ![]() | 23 | poetry, songwriting |
Ana Blandiana | 1942 | ![]() | 25 | novel, poetry, essays, drama, translation |
Can Xue | 1953 | ![]() | 24 | novel, short story, literary criticism |
Emmanuel Carrère | 1957 | ![]() | 20 | novel, essays, biography, screenplay |
Anne Carson | 1950 | ![]() | 49 | poetry, essays |
Mircea Cărtărescu | 1958 | ![]() | 41 | novel, poetry, short story, literary criticism, essays |
Patrick Chamoiseau | 1953 | ![]() | 30 | novel, essays, autobiography, screenplay |
Hélène Cixous | 1937 | ![]() | 91 | essays, literary criticism, philosophy, drama, poetry |
Mia Couto | 1955 | ![]() | 61 | novel, short story, essays |
Rachel Cusk | 1967 | ![]() | 24 | novel, essays, drama |
Lydia Davis | 1947 | ![]() | 23 | short story, novel, essays |
Don DeLillo | 1936 | ![]() | 59 | novel, short story, drama, screenplay, essays |
Anita Desai | 1937 | ![]() | 25 | novel, short story |
Ananda Devi | 1957 | ![]() | 26 | novel, short story, poetry |
Jean Echenoz | 1947 | ![]() | 25 | novel, short story, essays |
Inger Edelfeldt | 1956 | ![]() | 33 | novel, short story, translation |
Carl-Göran Ekerwald | 1923 | ![]() | 38 | novel, short story, essays, literary criticism |
Kerstin Ekman | 1933 | ![]() | 71 | novel, essays, screenplay |
Anna Enquist | 1945 | ![]() | 23 | novel, poetry |
Viktor Yerofeyev | 1947 | ![]() | 23 | novel, essays |
Jenny Erpenbeck | 1967 | ![]() | 22 | novel, short story, drama, essays |
Franck Étienne | 1939 | ![]() | 25 | novel, poetry, drama, essays |
Knut Faldbakken | 1941 | ![]() | 21 | novel, short story, essays |
Nuruddin Farah | 1945 | ![]() | 25 | novel, short story, drama |
Jean-Pierre Faye | 1925 | ![]() | 22 | philosophy, essays, novel, poetry |
Dominique Fernandez | 1929 | ![]() | 21 | novel, essays |
Elena Ferrante | 1943 | ![]() | 25 | novel, essays |
Aris Fioretos | 1960 | ![]() | 47 | novel, essays, translation |
Magnus Florin | 1955 | ![]() | 32 | novel, drama, essays |
Kjartan Fløgstad | 1944 | ![]() | 48 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Richard Ford | 1944 | ![]() | 22 | novel, short story, screenplay |
Tua Forsström | 1947 | ![]() | 37 | poetry, drama, essays |
Niels Frank | 1963 | ![]() | 22 | poetry, essays |
Katarina Frostenson | 1953 | ![]() | 99 | poetry, biography, essays, drama, translation |
Athol Fugard | 1932 | ![]() | 21 | drama, novel, memoirs |
Robin Fulton | 1937 | ![]() | 32 | poetry, essays, translation |
Eric Fylkeson | 1950 | ![]() | 24 | poetry, essays |
Jonas Gardell | 1963 | ![]() | 24 | novel, drama, screenplay |
Jörgen Gassilewski | 1961 | ![]() | 22 | poetry, essays |
Sylvie Germain | 1954 | ![]() | 23 | novel, short story, essays |
Amitav Ghosh | 1956 | ![]() | 27 | novel, essays |
Pere Gimferrer | 1945 | ![]() | 55 | poetry, novel, essays, translation, literary criticism |
David Grossman | 1954 | ![]() | 35 | novel, essays |
Vigdís Grímsdóttir | 1953 | ![]() | 21 | poetry, short story, drama |
Durs Grünbein | 1962 | ![]() | 73 | poetry, essays, novel |
Einar Már Guðmundsson | 1954 | ![]() | 47 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Lennart Hagerfors | 1946 | ![]() | 24 | novel, essays |
Gunnar Harding | 1940 | ![]() | 81 | poetry, novel, essays, translation |
Dick Harrison | 1966 | ![]() | 34 | history, essays, novel |
Paal-Helge Haugen | 1945 | ![]() | 27 | novel, poetry, drama |
Christoph Hein | 1944 | ![]() | 28 | novel, drama, essays |
Christina Hesselholdt | 1962 | ![]() | 23 | novel, short story, essays |
Michel Houellebecq | 1957 | ![]() | 49 | novel, poetry, essays |
Siri Hustvedt | 1955 | ![]() | 22 | novel, essays, translation |
Roy Jacobsen | 1954 | ![]() | 37 | novel, short story, autobiography |
Drago Jančar | 1948 | ![]() | 25 | novel, short story, drama, essays |
Ann Jäderlund | 1955 | ![]() | 32 | poetry, drama |
Carsten Jensen | 1952 | ![]() | 21 | novel, essays, literary criticism |
Per Christian Jersild | 1935 | ![]() | 42 | novel, essays |
Lídia Jorge | 1946 | ![]() | 33 | novel, short story, essays, poetry |
Theodor Kallifatides | 1938 | ![]() | 43 | novel, poetry, essays, translation |
Einar Kárason | 1955 | ![]() | 20 | novel, poetry, essays |
Daniel Kehlmann | 1975 | ![]() | 22 | novel, drama |
Vénus Khoury-Ghata | 1937 | ![]() | 53 | novel, poetry, short story |
Eeva Kilpi | 1928 | ![]() | 24 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Jamaica Kincaid | 1949 | ![]() | 26 | novel, essays, short story |
Esther Kinsky | 1956 | ![]() | 20 | novel, poetry, translation |
Erling Kittelsen | 1946 | ![]() | 20 | poetry, novel, short story, drama, translation |
Jan Kjærstad | 1953 | ![]() | 31 | novel, short story, essays |
Ivan Klíma | 1931 | ![]() | 49 | novel, drama, memoirs |
Bengt af Klintberg | 1938 | ![]() | 34 | short story, essays |
Alexander Kluge | 1932 | ![]() | 28 | essays, philosophy, drama |
Karl Ove Knausgård | 1968 | ![]() | 52 | novel, autobiography, essays |
Ko Un | 1933 | ![]() | 37 | poetry, essays |
Pavel Kohout | 1928 | ![]() | 24 | novel, drama, poetry, autobiography |
Urszula Kozioł | 1931 | ![]() | 26 | poetry, novel, short story, drama |
Hanna Krall | 1935 | ![]() | 70 | novel, essays |
László Krasznahorkai | 1954 | ![]() | 40 | novel, short story, translation |
Julia Kristeva | 1941 | ![]() | 38 | novel, essays, philosophy |
Ryszard Krynicki | 1943 | ![]() | 20 | poetry, translation |
Stig Larsson | 1955 | ![]() | 39 | novel, short story, drama, poetry, essays, screenplay |
Peter Laugesen | 1942 | ![]() | 38 | poetry, drama |
Kristoffer Leandoer | 1962 | ![]() | 49 | poetry, short story, novel, essays |
Mara Lee | 1972 | ![]() | 23 | poetry, novel, translation |
Sven-Eric Liedman | 1939 | ![]() | 26 | essays, philosophy, history |
Rosa Liksom | 1958 | ![]() | 24 | novel, short story |
Birgitta Lillpers | 1958 | ![]() | 21 | novel, poetry |
Ewa Lipska | 1945 | ![]() | 43 | poetry, essays |
Lotta Lotass | 1964 | ![]() | 44 | novel, short story, drama, essays |
António Lobo Antunes | 1942 | ![]() | 98 | novel, short story, essays |
Ulf Lundell | 1949 | ![]() | 25 | songwriting, novel, poetry |
Marie Lundquist | 1950 | ![]() | 39 | poetry, essays, translation |
Alain Mabanckou | 1966 | ![]() | 31 | novel, poetry, essays |
Svend Åge Madsen | 1939 | ![]() | 32 | novel, short story, drama |
Claudio Magris | 1939 | ![]() | 107 | essays, translation, novel, short story |
Andreï Makine | 1957 | ![]() | 27 | novel |
David Malouf | 1934 | ![]() | 25 | novel, short story, poetry, essays, drama |
Norman Manea | 1936 | ![]() | 23 | novel, essays |
Dacia Maraini | 1936 | ![]() | 27 | novel, short story, essays, drama |
Merete Mazzarella | 1945 | ![]() | 38 | essays, novel, autobiography, literary criticism |
Ian McEwan | 1948 | ![]() | 38 | novel, short story, screenplay, drama |
Gabriela Melinescu | 1942 | ![]() | 34 | poetry, essays, translation |
Eduardo Mendoza Garriga | 1943 | ![]() | 27 | novel, short story, drama, essays |
Rosa Montero | 1951 | ![]() | 20 | novel, short story |
Quim Monzó | 1952 | ![]() | 24 | novel, short story, essays |
Terézia Mora | 1971 | ![]() | 20 | novel, poetry, screenplays |
Paul Muldoon | 1951 | ![]() | 40 | poetry, essays, literary criticism |
Antonio Muñoz Molina | 1956 | ![]() | 48 | novel, short story, essays |
Haruki Murakami | 1949 | ![]() | 47 | novel, short story, essays |
Gerald Murnane | 1939 | ![]() | 26 | novel, short story, essays, poetry, memoirs |
Adolf Muschg | 1934 | ![]() | 26 | novel, poetry, essays |
Péter Nádas | 1942 | ![]() | 69 | novel, drama, essays |
Marie NDiaye | 1967 | ![]() | 28 | novel, short story, essays, drama, screenplay |
Carlos Nejar | 1939 | ![]() | 24 | poetry, novel, essays, translation |
Ulf Karl Olov Nilsson | 1965 | ![]() | 23 | poetry, essays |
Cees Nooteboom | 1933 | ![]() | 76 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Svante Nordin | 1946 | ![]() | 36 | essays, philosophy |
Amélie Nothomb | 1966 | ![]() | 35 | novel, short story |
Fredrik Nyberg | 1968 | ![]() | 20 | poetry, essays |
Joyce Carol Oates | 1938 | ![]() | 179 | novel, drama, poetry, short story, essays, literary criticism |
Yōko Ogawa | 1962 | ![]() | 31 | novel, short story |
Ben Okri | 1959 | ![]() | 30 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Tommy Olofsson | 1960 | ![]() | 25 | poetry, essays |
Michael Ondaatje | 1943 | ![]() | 30 | novel, poetry, essays |
Cynthia Ozick | 1928 | ![]() | 26 | novel, short story, essays |
Vasilis Papageorgiou | 1955 | ![]() | 22 | novel, drama, poetry, essays |
Victor Pelevin | 1962 | ![]() | 46 | novel, short story, essays |
Malte Persson | 1976 | ![]() | 26 | poetry, essays, translation |
Lyudmila Petrushevskaya | 1938 | ![]() | 46 | novel, short story, drama, poetry, essays |
Agneta Pleijel | 1940 | ![]() | 57 | novel, poetry, drama, essays, literary criticism |
Álvaro Pombo | 1939 | ![]() | 23 | novel, short story, poetry |
Thomas Pynchon | 1937 | ![]() | 20 | novel, short story, essays |
Yann Queffélec | 1949 | ![]() | 20 | novel, essays |
Pascal Quignard | 1948 | ![]() | 50 | novel, short story, essays |
Björn Ranelid | 1949 | ![]() | 35 | novel, short story, biography, essays |
Renzo Ricchi | 1936 | ![]() | 22 | drama, poetry, short story, essays |
Carme Riera | 1948 | ![]() | 30 | novel, short story, essays, screenplay |
Marilynne Robinson | 1943 | ![]() | 21 | novel, essays |
Jacques Roubaud | 1932 | ![]() | 32 | poetry, novel, essays |
Dina Rubina | 1953 | ![]() | 20 | novel, short story, essays |
Luiz Ruffato | 1961 | ![]() | 20 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Salman Rushdie | 1947 | ![]() | 60 | novel, short story, essays, autobiography |
Ali Ahmad Said | 1930 | ![]() | 77 | poetry, essays, translation |
Olga Sedakova | 1949 | ![]() | 33 | poetry, essays, translation |
Steve Sem-Sandberg | 1958 | ![]() | 41 | novel, essays |
Sigurjón "Sjón" Sigurðsson | 1962 | ![]() | 38 | novel, poetry, drama, screenplay |
Ali Smith | 1962 | ![]() | 26 | novel, short story, drama, essays |
Zadie Smith | 1975 | ![]() | 22 | novel, short story, essays, drama |
Dag Solstad | 1941 | ![]() | 40 | novel, short story, drama |
Vladimir Sorokin | 1955 | ![]() | 41 | novel, short story, drama, screenplay, essays |
Peter Stamm | 1963 | ![]() | 25 | drama, novel, essays |
Andrzej Stasiuk | 1960 | ![]() | 46 | novel, short story, essays |
Jón Kalman Stefánsson | 1963 | ![]() | 20 | novel, poetry |
Botho Strauss | 1944 | ![]() | 64 | drama, novel, essays |
Su Tong | 1963 | ![]() | 22 | novel, short story, essays |
Graham Swift | 1949 | ![]() | 23 | novel, short story |
Pia Tafdrup | 1952 | ![]() | 55 | poetry, essays |
Yoko Tawada | 1960 | ![]() | 41 | novel, short story, poetry |
Paul Theroux | 1941 | ![]() | 26 | novel, short story, essays |
Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o | 1938 | ![]() | 54 | novel, drama, short story, essays |
Søren Ulrik Thomsen | 1956 | ![]() | 20 | poetry, essays |
Kirsten Thorup | 1942 | ![]() | 24 | novel, short story |
Pär Thörn | 1977 | ![]() | 21 | poetry, essays |
Thomas Tidholm | 1943 | ![]() | 20 | poetry, drama, short story, translation |
Enrico Tiozzo | 1945 | ![]() | 50 | essays, literary criticism |
Jean-Philippe Toussaint | 1957 | ![]() | 22 | novel, screenplay |
Colm Tóibín | 1955 | ![]() | 47 | novel, short story, essays |
Viktoriya Tokareva | 1937 | ![]() | 25 | novel, short story, screenplay |
Tatyana Tolstaya | 1951 | ![]() | 31 | novel, short story, essays |
Michel Tremblay | 1942 | ![]() | 29 | novel, short story, drama, screenplay |
Antti Tuuri | 1944 | ![]() | 21 | novel, translation, screenplay |
Anne Tyler | 1941 | ![]() | 21 | novel, short story, literary criticism |
Lyudmila Ulitskaya | 1943 | ![]() | 67 | novel, short story, drama |
Zoé Valdés | 1959 | ![]() | 21 | novel, poetry, screenplay |
René Vázquez Díaz | 1952 | ![]() | 29 | novel, poetry, drama |
Tomas Venclova | 1937 | ![]() | 31 | poetry, essays, philology |
Enrique Vila-Matas | 1948 | ![]() | 60 | novel, short story, essays |
Ivan Vladislavic | 1957 | ![]() | 26 | novel, short story, essays |
Jan Erik Vold | 1939 | ![]() | 60 | poetry, essays, novel, drama |
Kjell Westö | 1961 | ![]() | 24 | novel, short story, poetry, essays |
Magnus William-Olsson | 1960 | ![]() | 54 | poetry, essays, translation |
Dorrit Willumsen | 1940 | ![]() | 20 | novel, short story, poetry |
Jeanette Winterson | 1959 | ![]() | 45 | novel, short story, memoirs |
Per Wästberg | 1933 | ![]() | 257 | novel, poetry, biography, essays, literary criticism |
Yan Lianke | 1958 | ![]() | 41 | novel, short story |
Yang Lian | 1955 | ![]() | 41 | poetry, essays |
Yu Hua | 1960 | ![]() | 38 | novel, short story, essays |
Serhiy Zhadan | 1974 | ![]() | 22 | poetry, short story, essays |
The 2025 Nobel Committee consists of the following members: [13]
Committee Members | |||||
Seat No. | Picture | Name | Elected | Position | Profession |
---|---|---|---|---|---|
4 | ![]() | Anders Olsson (b. 1949) | 2008 | committee chair | literary critic, literary historian |
11 | ![]() | Mats Malm (b. 1964) | 2018 | associate member permanent secretary | translator, literary historian, editor |
9 | ![]() | Ellen Mattson (b. 1963) | 2019 | member | novelist, essayist |
14 | ![]() | Steve Sem-Sandberg (b. 1958) | 2021 | member | journalist, author, translator |
13 | ![]() | Anne Swärd (b. 1969) | 2019 | member | novelist |
16 | ![]() | Anna-Karin Palm (b. 1961) | 2023 | associate member | novelist, culture writer |
The Nobel Prize in Literature, here meaning for Literature, is a Swedish literature prize that is awarded annually, since 1901, to an author from any country who has, in the words of the will of Swedish industrialist Alfred Nobel, "in the field of literature, produced the most outstanding work in an idealistic direction". Though individual works are sometimes cited as being particularly noteworthy, the award is based on an author's body of work as a whole. The Swedish Academy decides who, if anyone, will receive the prize.
The Nobel Prize in Chemistry is awarded annually by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences to scientists in the various fields of chemistry. It is one of the five Nobel Prizes established by the will of Alfred Nobel in 1895, awarded for outstanding contributions in chemistry, physics, literature, peace, and physiology or medicine. This award is administered by the Nobel Foundation, and awarded by the Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences on proposal of the Nobel Committee for Chemistry which consists of five members elected by the Academy. The award is presented in Stockholm at an annual ceremony on 10 December, the anniversary of Nobel's death.
The 1969 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Irish author Samuel Beckett (1906–1989) "for his writing, which - in new forms for the novel and drama - in the destitution of modern man acquires its elevation".
The 2022 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the French author Annie Ernaux "for the courage and clinical acuity with which she uncovers the roots, estrangements and collective restraints of personal memory". It was announced by the Swedish Academy on 6 October 2022. Ernaux was the 16th French writer – the first Frenchwoman – and the 17th female author, to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The 1938 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the American author Pearl S. Buck (1892–1973) "for her rich and truly epic descriptions of peasant life in China and for her biographical masterpieces." Buck was the first female American to be awarded the Nobel Prize and the third American recipient following Eugene O'Neill in 1936 and Sinclair Lewis in 1930. She was also the fourth woman to receive the prize.
The 1956 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Spanish poet Juan Ramón Jiménez (1881–1958) "for his lyrical poetry, which in Spanish language constitutes an example of high spirit and artistical purity" He is the third Spanish recipient of the prize after the dramatist Jacinto Benavente in 1922.
The 1970 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Soviet-Russian novelist Aleksandr Solzhenitsyn (1918–2008) "for the ethical force with which he has pursued the indispensable traditions of Russian literature." For political reasons he would not receive the prize until 1974. Solzhenitsyn is the fourth Russian recipient of the prize after Ivan Bunin in 1933, Boris Pasternak in 1958 and Mikhail Sholokhov in 1965.
The 1916 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Swedish poet and prose writer Verner von Heidenstam (1859–1940) "in recognition of his significance as the leading representative of a new era in our literature." Heidenstam was the second Swedish Nobel laureate in Literature after Selma Lagerlöf in 1909.
The 1909 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Swedish author Selma Lagerlöf (1858–1940) "in appreciation of the lofty idealism, vivid imagination and spiritual perception that characterize her writings." She became the first woman and first Swede to be awarded the prize.
The 1972 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the German author Heinrich Böll (1917–1985) "for his writing which through its combination of a broad perspective on his time and a sensitive skill in characterization has contributed to a renewal of German literature." Böll is the fifth German author to be recipient of the prize.
The 1974 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded jointly to Swedish authors Eyvind Johnson (1900–1976) "for a narrative art, farseeing in lands and ages, in the service of freedom" and Harry Martinson (1904–1978) "for writings that catch the dewdrop and reflect the cosmos." The winners were announced in October 1974 by Karl Ragnar Gierow, permanent secretary of the Swedish Academy, and later sparked heavy criticisms from the literary world.
The 1907 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the British writer Rudyard Kipling (1865–1936) "in consideration of the power of observation, originality of imagination, virility of ideas and remarkable talent for narration which characterize the creations of this world-famous author." He is the first English-language writer to receive the prize, and being aged 41, is its youngest recipient to date.
The 1913 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Bengali polymath Rabindranath Tagore (1861–1941) "because of his profoundly sensitive, fresh and beautiful verse, by which, with consummate skill, he has made his poetic thought, expressed in his own English words, a part of the literature of the West." He is the first and remains only the Indian recipient of the prize. The award stemmed from the idealistic and accessible nature of a small body of translated material, including the translated Gitanjali.
The 1973 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Australian writer Patrick White (1912–1990) "for an epic and psychological narrative art which has introduced a new continent into literature." He is the first and the only Australian recipient of the prize.
The 1968 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the Japanese writer Yasunari Kawabata (1899–1972) "for his narrative mastery, which with great sensibility expresses the essence of the Japanese mind." He is the first Japanese recipient of the prize.
The 1915 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the French author Romain Rolland (1866–1944) "as a tribute to the lofty idealism of his literary production and to the sympathy and love of truth with which he has described different types of human beings." The prize was awarded the following year on November 9, 1916 and he is the third Frenchman who became a Nobel recipient for the literature category.
The Nobel Committee for Literature is the Nobel Committee responsible for evaluating the nominations and presents its recommendations to the Swedish Academy, which then selects, through votation, the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The 2024 Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded to the South Korean author Han Kang "for her intense poetic prose that confronts historical traumas and exposes the fragility of human life". It was announced by the Swedish Academy in Stockholm, Sweden, on 10 October 2024 and was awarded on 10 December 2024.