Georg Büchner Prize facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Georg Büchner Prize
Portrait of Georg Büchner, pencil drawing by the Darmstadt theater painter Philipp August Joseph Hoffmann
Presented by	Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung
Location	Darmstadt
Country	Germany
Reward	€50,000
First awarded	1923

The Georg Büchner Prize (German: Georg-Büchner-Preis) is Germany's most important award for writers who write in German. It's named after a famous German writer, Georg Büchner, who wrote plays like Woyzeck. This prize is given every year to authors whose work has greatly helped shape German culture today. The award is presented by the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung, which means the German Academy for Language and Literature.

History of the Georg Büchner Prize

The Georg Büchner Prize started in 1923. It was created to remember Georg Büchner. At first, the prize was only for artists who came from or had strong ties to Büchner's home region of Hesse.

In its early years, the prize went to many different kinds of artists. These included painters, poets, actors, and singers.

The prize changed in 1951. From then on, it became a general award for literature. It is now given out every year by the German Academy for Language and Literature. The award ceremony and a speech by the winner take place in Darmstadt, Germany. Since 2002, the prize has included €50,000 (about $55,000 USD).

Georg Büchner Prize and the Nobel Prize

The Georg Büchner Prize is often seen as a sign of future success. Several winners of this prize later won the Nobel Prize in Literature. This shows how important the Büchner Prize is in the world of German writing.

Some famous writers who won both prizes include:

• Günter Grass (Büchner in 1965, Nobel in 1999)
• Heinrich Böll (Büchner in 1967, Nobel in 1972)
• Elias Canetti (Büchner in 1972, Nobel in 1981)
• Peter Handke (Büchner in 1973, Nobel in 2019)
• Elfriede Jelinek (Büchner in 1998, Nobel in 2004)

However, sometimes the Nobel Prize comes first. For example, Herta Müller won the Nobel Prize in Literature before receiving the Georg Büchner Prize.

Images for kids

• 

  Botho Strauß, a winner in 1989.

• 

  Elke Erb, a winner in 2020.

See also

In Spanish: Premio Georg Büchner para niños

• German literature
• List of literary awards
• Sigmund Freud Prize