Hungarian author László Krasznahorkai wins 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature

Hungarian novelist László Krasznahorkai, renowned for narratives that often unfold in single, sprawling sentences, has been awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature, reported Associated Press.

The Swedish Academy recognised him for his “compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art.”

Several of Krasznahorkai’s works, including Satantango and The Melancholy of Resistance, have been adapted into films by Hungarian director Béla Tarr, bringing his intense literary vision to the screen.

What the Nobel committee said

Steve Sem-Sandberg of the Nobel Committee highlighted Krasznahorkai’s unique perspective.

“Artistic gaze which is entirely free of illusion, and which sees through the fragility of the social order combined with his unwavering belief in the power of art,” he said.

The judges also described him as a “great epic writer in the Central European tradition that extends through (Franz) Kafka to Thomas Bernhard, and is characterized by absurdism and grotesque excess.”

International recognition and accolades

At 71, Krasznahorkai could not be immediately reached for comment and did not speak at the announcement. His awards include the 2015 Man Booker International Prize, where judges praised his “extraordinary sentences… their tone switching from solemn to madcap to quizzical to desolate as they go their wayward way.”

He also won the National Book Award for Translated Literature in 2019 for Baron Wenckheim’s Homecoming.

Hungary’s first winner in nearly two decades

Krasznahorkai becomes the first Hungarian author to win the Literature Nobel since Imre Kertesz in 2002. He joins a prestigious list of laureates, including Ernest Hemingway, Toni Morrison, and Kazuo Ishiguro, added AP.

This year’s Literature Prize is the fourth Nobel announced, following Medicine, Physics, and Chemistry. The Nobel Peace Prize will be revealed on Friday, October 10, and the Nobel Memorial Prize in Economic Sciences is set for Monday, October 13.

The Nobel award ceremonies are scheduled for December 10, marking the anniversary of Alfred Nobel’s death in 1896. Each prize carries 11 million Swedish kronor (around $1.2 million), along with an 18-carat gold medal and a diploma.