Hungarian Author László Krasznahorkai Wins Nobel Prize in Literature

STOCKHOLM — László Krasznahorkai, the Hungarian writer, is renowned for his philosophical novels that often consist of lengthy sentences filled with dark humor. On Thursday, he was recognized with a literary award for his “compelling and visionary work that reminds us of the power of art in the midst of apocalyptic fear.”

Some of his notable works, such as his debut film, *Satantango*, and *The Melancholy of Resistance*, have been adapted into films by the acclaimed Hungarian director Béla Tarr.

The Nobel Prize jurors commended Krasznahorkai’s “artistic eye for the fragility of the social order, devoid of illusions, yet paired with a steadfast belief in the power of art.”

The 71-year-old author has received various accolades, including the Man Booker International Prize in 2015. Judge Booker praised Krasznahorkai for his “extraordinary prose,” which shifts from solemn to reckless, quizzical to bleak, as he navigates his unique narrative style.

In 2019, he also earned the American Book Award for Translated Literature for *The Homecoming of Baron Wenkheim*.

Krasznahorkai is the first Hungarian to be awarded this prize since Imre Kertesz in 2002, joining a notable group of past winners like Ernest Hemingway, Toni Morrison, and Kazuo Ishiguro.

Since its inception, the Swedish Academy’s Nobel Committee has awarded the Prize for Literature 117 times to 121 recipients. Just last year, the prize went to South Korean author Han Kang, whose work “confronts historical trauma and reveals the fragility of human life.”

The 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature comes amidst other Nobel announcements, including those for medicine, physics, and chemistry—all of which have already been revealed.

The Nobel Peace Prize winners are set to be announced on Friday, while the final award, the Nobel Prize in Economics, will follow on Monday.

The ceremony for the Nobel Prizes is scheduled for December 10th, marking the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death in 1896. Nobel, a prosperous Swedish businessman, is famously known as the inventor of dynamite.

Each award recipient will receive 11 million Swedish krona (roughly $1.2 million), an 18-carat gold medal, and a certificate.