The Georg Büchner Prize (German: Georg-Büchner-Preis) is the most important literary prize for German language literature. The award is named after dramatist and writer Georg Büchner, author of Woyzeck and Leonce and Lena. The Georg Büchner Prize is awarded annually for authors "writing in the German language who have notably emerged through their oeuvre as essential contributors to the shaping of contemporary German cultural life".[1]
| Georg Büchner Prize | |
|---|---|
 Portrait of Georg Büchner, pencil drawing by the Darmstadt theater painter Philipp August Joseph Hoffmann | |
| Awarded for | authors writing in the German language whose work is considered especially meritorious and who have made a significant contribution to contemporary German culture |
| Location | Darmstadt |
| Country | Germany |
| Presented by | Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung |
| Reward(s) | €50,000 |
| First awarded | 1923 |
| Website | www |
History
The Georg Büchner Prize was created in 1923 in memory of Georg Büchner and was only given to artists who came from or were closely tied to Büchner's home of Hesse. It was first awarded in 1923. Among the early recipients were mostly visual artists, poets, actors, and singers.[2]
In 1951, the prize changed to a general literary prize, awarded annually by the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung. It goes to German language authors, and the annual speech by the recipient takes place in Darmstadt. Since 2002, the prize has been endowed with €50,000.
The Georg Büchner Prize and the Nobel Prize in Literature
Five winners of the Georg Büchner Prize, Günter Grass (1965), Heinrich Böll (1967), Elias Canetti (1972), Peter Handke (1973) and Elfriede Jelinek (1998) were awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in subsequent years. The Georg Büchner Prize is frequently seen as an indicator for potential future Nobel Prize winners writing in the German language. Most recently, however, the Swedish Academy in Stockholm preceded the German Academy for Language and Literature in awarding a prolific writer from the German sprachraum. Herta Müller received the Nobel Prize in Literature but has not yet been awarded the Georg Büchner Prize.[3]
Recipients of the literary prize, since 1951
Recipients 1923–50
- 1923 Adam Karrillon (1853–1938) and Arnold Mendelssohn (1855–1933)
- 1924 Alfred Bock (1859–1932) and Paul Thesing (1882–1954)
- 1925 Wilhelm Michel (1877–1942) and Rudolf Koch (1876–1934)
- 1926 Christian Heinrich Kleukens (1880–1954) and Wilhelm Petersen (1890–1957)
- 1927 Kasimir Edschmid (1890–1966) and Johannes Bischoff (1890–1957)
- 1928 Richard Hoelscher (1867–1943) and Well Habicht (1884–1966)
- 1929 Carl Zuckmayer (1896–1977) and Adam Antes (1891–1984)
- 1930 Nikolaus Schwarzkopf (1884–1962) and Johannes Lippmann (1858–1935)
- 1931 Alexander Posch (1890–1950) and Hans Simon (1897–1982)
- 1932 Albert H. Rausch (1882–1949) and Adolf Bode (1904–1970)
- 1933–44 not given
- 1945 Hans Schiebelhuth (1895–1944)
- 1946 Fritz Usinger (1895–1982)
- 1947 Anna Seghers (1900–83)
- 1948 Hermann Heiss (1897–1967)
- 1949 Carl Gunschmann (1895–1984)
- 1950 Elisabeth Langgässer (1899–1950)
See also
Notes
External links
- Georg-Büchner-Preis Archived 30 June 2014 at the Wayback Machine, official site (in German)