Hungarian Master Laszlo Krasznahorkai Awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature
STOCKHOLM, October 9, 2025 – The Royal Swedish Academy has awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature to the Hungarian novelist and screenwriter Laszlo Krasznahorkai, heralding his “compelling and visionary oeuvre” that explores the complexities of existence in a fractured world.
Krasznahorkai, 71, becomes only the second Hungarian author to receive the prestigious award. In its citation, the Academy recognized his body of work “for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art.”
The announcement, made on Thursday in Stockholm, confirms Krasznahorkai’s status as a towering figure in contemporary literature. While his dense, hypnotic prose has long earned him a cult following and critical acclaim, the Nobel Prize catapults him to the broadest international recognition.
Born in the small southeastern Hungarian town of Gyula, Krasznahorkai’s writing is deeply informed by his experiences living under communism. His literary horizons expanded dramatically after he first moved abroad in 1987 to West Berlin on a fellowship, a journey that marked the beginning of extensive travels which have profoundly influenced his work.
His novels, short stories, and essays, often characterized by their long, intricate sentences and philosophical depth, have found a particularly devoted audience in Germany, where he lived for long periods, and in his native Hungary, where he is widely regarded as the country’s most important living author.
Reacting to the news, Krasznahorkai’s English-language translator, the poet George Szirtes, encapsulated the author’s unique power. “He is a hypnotic writer,” Szirtes told the AFP news agency. “He draws you in until the world he conjures echoes and echoes inside you, until it’s your own vision of order and chaos.”
Krasznahorkai is perhaps best known internationally for his collaborations with acclaimed filmmaker Béla Tarr, including the screenplays for the seminal works “Sátántangó” and “The Turin Horse.” His major novels, such as “The Melancholy of Resistance,” “Baron Wenckheim’s Homecoming,” and “Seiobo There Below,” have established him as a singular voice, one that confronts apocalyptic themes while steadfastly affirming the enduring necessity of artistic creation.