Established in 1962, the ‘Nordic Council Literature Prize’ (350,000 Danish kr) is awarded every year for a work of literature that meets “high literary and artistic standards” and is written in one of the languages of the Nordic countries. Eligible works are: novels, plays, collections of poetry, short stories or essays that were published for the first time during the last four years (two years for works written in Danish, Norwegian, or Swedish). The prize is among the most prestigious awards available to Nordic authors. The winner is chosen by an adjudication committee appointed by the Nordic Council: the committee consists of ten members (two each from Denmark, Finland, Iceland, Norway and Sweden) experts in their own country’s literature, as well as their neighbouring countries; additional members may be added if works are nominated from Åland, the Faroe Islands, Greenland or the Sami language area. The intent of the prize is to “increase interest in the literature of neighbouring countries as well in Nordic cultural fellowship”. Winner of the 2021 edition was Niviaq Korneliussen, from Greenland, with the novel ‘Naasuliardarpi‘ (‘Flower Valley’ in English) – the first time a title written in Greenlandic is awarded the prize.
Read more: Nordic Countries Literature Prize
