The Georg Büchner Prize (German: Georg-Büchner-Preis) is the most important literary award for works written in the German language. It is named after Georg Büchner, a writer and dramatist who authored the plays Woyzeck and Leonce and Lena. This prize is given every year to authors who write in German and have become well-known for their body of work, which has helped shape modern German culture.

History

The Georg Büchner Prize was established in 1923 to honor Georg Büchner. It was given only to artists who were from or connected to Hesse, Büchner’s home region. The first award was given in 1923. Early winners included visual artists, poets, actors, and singers.

In 1951, the prize became a literary award given every year by the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung. It is now awarded to authors who write in the German language. Each year, the winner gives a speech in Darmstadt. Since 2002, the prize has been worth €50,000.

The Georg Büchner Prize and the Nobel Prize in Literature

Five people who won the Georg Büchner Prize—Günter Grass (1965), Heinrich Böll (1967), Elias Canetti (1972), Peter Handke (1973), and Elfriede Jelinek (1998)—later received the Nobel Prize in Literature. The Georg Büchner Prize is often considered a sign that a writer may one day win the Nobel Prize for literature in the German language. Recently, however, the Swedish Academy in Stockholm gave the Nobel Prize to a well-known writer from the German-speaking regions before the German Academy for Language and Literature did. Herta Müller received the Nobel Prize in Literature but has not yet received the Georg Büchner Prize.