Hungarian novelist László Krasznahorkai has won the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature, the Swedish Academy announced on Thursday, citing “his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art.”

The prize, awarded by the Swedish Academy, is worth 11 million Swedish crowns (about $1.2 million).

Established under the will of Swedish inventor and industrialist Alfred Nobel, the Nobel prizes for achievements in literature, the sciences and peace have been presented since 1901.

Announcing the decision, Mats Malm, the Academy’s permanent secretary, repeated the citation praising Krasznahorkai’s body of work for its artistic force amid apocalyptic themes.

Past laureates of the literature prize include Sully Prudhomme (the first winner in 1901), William Faulkner (1949), Winston Churchill (1953), Orhan Pamuk (2006) and Jon Fosse (2023). Han Kang of South Korea won last year, becoming the 18th woman to receive the award; the first was Sweden’s Selma Lagerlöf in 1909.

Over the years, the Academy’s selections have drawn both acclaim and criticism.

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