Hungarian Novelist László Krasznahorkai Wins 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature

STOCKHOLM, Sweden — The Royal Swedish Academy of Sciences has awarded the 2025 Nobel Prize in Literature to Hungarian novelist and screenwriter László Krasznahorkai. The announcement was made on October 9, 2025, recognizing the 71-year-old author for his ‘compelling and visionary oeuvre that, in the midst of apocalyptic terror, reaffirms the power of art.’

Krasznahorkai is known for his philosophical and darkly humorous novels. His works, which include acclaimed titles like “Satantango” and “The Melancholy of Resistance,” have been adapted into films by noted Hungarian director Béla Tarr. This achievement places him among an esteemed group of past laureates such as Toni Morrison, Ernest Hemingway, and Kazuo Ishiguro.

The award is a testament to Krasznahorkai’s unique voice in literature and his ability to tackle heavy themes. His writing has earned numerous accolades, including the 2019 National Book Award for translated literature and the 2015 Man Booker International Prize.

Krasznahorkai was born in Gyula, Hungary, in 1954 and made an impactful debut with his novel “Satantango” in 1985, which portrays a collapsing rural community. The book later won the Man Booker International Prize in English in 2013, nearly three decades after its initial publication.

Critics have likened Krasznahorkai’s style to that of classic authors like Gogol, Melville, and Kafka, noted for his long sentences and intense themes. Susan Sontag once referred to him as “the contemporary Hungarian master of apocalypse,” while W.G. Sebald praised the universality of his vision.

His travels have significantly influenced his writing. Krasznahorkai left communist Hungary in 1987 to spend a year in West Berlin and has drawn inspiration from places like Mongolia and China in works such as “The Prisoner of Urga” and “Destruction and Sorrow Beneath the Heavens.”

During the creation of his novel “War and War,” he lived in the New York apartment of Beat poet Allen Ginsberg, whom he credits with providing crucial support. Krasznahorkai will receive the Nobel medal and diploma at a formal ceremony in Stockholm in December.