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The world-renowned Nobel Prize in Literature for 2025 has been bestowed upon the Hungarian author László Krasznahorkai, as revealed by the Nobel awarding body.

The Jury praised the seventy-one-year-old's "powerful and prophetic collection that, amidst end-times dread, reasserts the force of creative expression."

A Legacy of Bleak Narratives

Krasznahorkai is celebrated for his dark, melancholic novels, which have won numerous accolades, such as the 2019 National Book Award for translated literature and the prestigious Man Booker International Prize.

A number of of his novels, including his novels his debut and another major work, have been turned into cinematic works.

Initial Success

Originating in Gyula, Hungary in 1954, Krasznahorkai first made his mark with his mid-80s debut novel Satantango, a bleak and hypnotic portrayal of a collapsing rural community.

The work would later secure the Man Booker International Prize recognition in translation nearly three decades later, in 2013.

An Unconventional Prose Technique

Often described as postmodern, Krasznahorkai is known for his extended, meandering prose (the 12 chapters of Satantango each are a single paragraph), apocalyptic and pensive subjects, and the kind of relentless intensity that has led critics to compare him to Gogol, Melville and Kafka.

This work was notably made into a lengthy movie by cinematic artist Béla Tarr, with whom Krasznahorkai has had a enduring working relationship.

"Krasznahorkai is a great author of grand narratives in the Central European literary tradition that includes Franz Kafka to the Austrian writer, and is defined by the absurd and bizarre extremes," stated the Nobel chair, leader of the Nobel jury.

He characterized Krasznahorkai’s prose as having "evolved into … continuous language with long, winding phrases lacking full stops that has become his signature."

Critical Acclaim

Sontag has referred to the author as "the contemporary from Hungary expert of the apocalyptic," while the writer W.G. Sebald praised the broad relevance of his perspective.

Just a small number of Krasznahorkai’s works have been translated into the English language. The critic James Wood once remarked that his books "get passed around like rare currency."

International Inspiration

Krasznahorkai’s career has been shaped by journeys as much as by his writing. He first left communist the country in 1987, staying a period in West Berlin for a fellowship, and later drew inspiration from Eastern Asia – notably Mongolia and China – for novels such as one of his titles, and another novel.

While working on this novel, he explored across the continent and lived for a time in Ginsberg's New York home, describing the legendary writer's assistance as essential to completing the novel.

Author's Perspective

Inquired how he would describe his writing in an conversation, Krasznahorkai said: "Letters; then from letters, vocabulary; then from these words, some concise lines; then additional phrases that are lengthier, and in the chief exceptionally extended sentences, for the duration of 35 years. Elegance in prose. Fun in despair."

On audiences encountering his books for the first time, he continued: "If there are individuals who haven’t read my novels, I couldn’t recommend a particular book to read to them; on the contrary, I’d recommend them to step out, rest somewhere, possibly by the banks of a creek, with nothing to do, nothing to think about, just remaining in silence like boulders. They will in time come across someone who has previously read my novels."

Nobel Prize Context

Before the announcement, oddsmakers had listed the frontrunners for this year’s prize as the Chinese writer, an avant garde Chinese author, and Krasznahorkai himself.

The Nobel Prize in Literature has been awarded on 117 previous occasions since 1901. Current winners are Ernaux, Bob Dylan, Abdulrazak Gurnah, Louise Glück, Peter Handke and Tokarczuk. Last year’s winner was Han Kang, the South Korean writer most famous for The Vegetarian.

Krasznahorkai will formally be presented with the award and diploma in a function in December in the Swedish capital.

Updates to come