rki.news
Sources: Xinhua
STOCKHOLM, Oct. 9 — Hungarian writer László Krasznahorkai has been awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature, becoming only the second Hungarian author to receive the prestigious honor, the Swedish Academy announced on Thursday.
The academy recognized Krasznahorkai “for his compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art.”
Born in 1954 in the southeastern Hungarian town of Gyula, near the Romanian border, Krasznahorkai gained international acclaim with his debut novel “Satantango” (1985), which established him as one of Central Europe’s most distinctive literary voices.
The Swedish Academy praised him as “a great epic writer in the Central European tradition that extends through Kafka to Thomas Bernhard,” marked by “absurdism and grotesque excess.” His later works, the academy noted, took on “a more contemplative, finely calibrated tone,” influenced by his travels in China and Japan.
Steve Sem-Sandberg, a member of the Nobel Committee, said Krasznahorkai’s four-decade career stands out for its “extraordinary consistency and sustained excellence.” He added that the author’s richly layered, apocalyptic narratives continue the European tradition of profound, character-driven storytelling.
The award brings renewed global attention to Hungarian literature and celebrates Krasznahorkai’s enduring influence on modern European fiction.