Ovid Prize
Encyclopedia
The Ovid Prize, established in 2002, is a literary prize awarded annually to an author from any country, in recognition of a body of work. Past recipients include Orhan Pamuk
, Andrei Codrescu
, Amoz Oz, Jorge Semprún
and António Lobo Antunes
. It is named in honour of the Roman poet Ovid
, who died in exile in Tomis (contemporary Constantza), on the Black Sea
, in Romania
. Laureates are awarded 10,000 euros.
The Ovid Festival Prize, worth 5,000 euros, was also established in 2002. Past recipients include George Szirtes
, Tomaž Šalamun
, and Ismail Kadare
. The prize underwent a change of mandate in 2007. Since 2008, it has been awarded to a prominent young talent.
Both Prizes are the joint initiative of the Writers' Union of Romania and the Romanian Cultural Institute
. The winners are nominated by the Festival jury. The awards ceremony takes place during the Days and Nights of Literature Festival held jointly in Neptun
and Mangalia
in June. The Prize is also referred to as the Ovidius Prize.
The 2011 Laureate was the Czech writer Milan Kundera
. In a letter addressed to the chairman of the jury, Milan Kundera, who could not attend the ceremony, accepted the award. Kundera donated the prize to Humanitas Publishing House which has published most of his works in a Romanian translation, with the mention that the money should go to assisting Romanian literature.
Orhan Pamuk
Ferit Orhan Pamuk , generally known simply as Orhan Pamuk, is a Turkish novelist. He is also the Robert Yik-Fong Tam Professor in the Humanities at Columbia University, where he teaches comparative literature and writing....
, Andrei Codrescu
Andrei Codrescu
Andrei Codrescu is a Romanian-born American poet, novelist, essayist, screenwriter, and commentator for National Public Radio. He was Mac Curdy Distinguished Professor of English at Louisiana State University from 1984 until his retirement in 2009....
, Amoz Oz, Jorge Semprún
Jorge Semprún
Jorge Semprún Maura was a Spanish writer and politician who lived in France most of his life and wrote primarily in French. From 1953 to 1962, during the era of Francisco Franco, Semprún lived clandestinely in Spain working as an organizer for the exiled Communist Party of Spain, but was expelled...
and António Lobo Antunes
António Lobo Antunes
António Lobo Antunes, GCSE, MD ; born 1 September 1942) is a Portuguese novelist and medical doctor.-Life and career:António Lobo Antunes was born in Lisbon as the eldest of six sons of João Alfredo de Figueiredo Lobo Antunes , prominent Neurologist and Professor, close collaborator of Egas Moniz,...
. It is named in honour of the Roman poet Ovid
Ovid
Publius Ovidius Naso , known as Ovid in the English-speaking world, was a Roman poet who is best known as the author of the three major collections of erotic poetry: Heroides, Amores, and Ars Amatoria...
, who died in exile in Tomis (contemporary Constantza), on the Black Sea
Black Sea
The Black Sea is bounded by Europe, Anatolia and the Caucasus and is ultimately connected to the Atlantic Ocean via the Mediterranean and the Aegean seas and various straits. The Bosphorus strait connects it to the Sea of Marmara, and the strait of the Dardanelles connects that sea to the Aegean...
, in Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
. Laureates are awarded 10,000 euros.
The Ovid Festival Prize, worth 5,000 euros, was also established in 2002. Past recipients include George Szirtes
George Szirtes
George Szirtes is a Hungarian-born British poet, writing in English, as well as a translator from the Hungarian language into English. He has lived in the United Kingdom for most of his life.-Life:...
, Tomaž Šalamun
Tomaz Salamun
Tomaž Šalamun is a Slovenian poet. He was born in 1941 in Zagreb, Croatia, and raised in Koper, Slovenia. He has published 39 collections of poetry in his native Slovenian language. Šalamun spent two years at the University of Iowa Writer's Workshop in the 1970s and has lived for periods of time in...
, and Ismail Kadare
Ismail Kadare
Ismail Kadare is an Albanian writer. He is known for his novels, although he was first noticed for his poetry collections. In the 1960s he focused on short stories until the publication of his first novel, The General of the Dead Army. In 1996 he became a lifetime member of the Academy of Moral...
. The prize underwent a change of mandate in 2007. Since 2008, it has been awarded to a prominent young talent.
Both Prizes are the joint initiative of the Writers' Union of Romania and the Romanian Cultural Institute
Romanian Cultural Institute
The Romanian Cultural Institute is a state-funded institution that promotes Romanian culture and civilization in Romania and abroad. The ICR was formerly set up through reorganization of the Romanian Cultural Foundation and Romanian Cultural Publishing Foundation...
. The winners are nominated by the Festival jury. The awards ceremony takes place during the Days and Nights of Literature Festival held jointly in Neptun
Neptun
Neptun may refer to:*Neptun, Romania, resort town on the southeast Black Sea coast of Romania*Neptun , educational administration system used by universities and colleges in Hungary*SK Neptun, Swedish swim team...
and Mangalia
Mangalia
Mangalia , is a city and a port on the coast of the Black Sea in the south-east of Constanţa County, Romania.The municipality of Mangalia also administers several summer time seaside resorts: Cap Aurora, Jupiter, Neptun, Olimp, Saturn, Venus.-History:...
in June. The Prize is also referred to as the Ovidius Prize.
The 2011 Laureate was the Czech writer Milan Kundera
Milan Kundera
Milan Kundera , born 1 April 1929, is a writer of Czech origin who has lived in exile in France since 1975, where he became a naturalized citizen in 1981. He is best known as the author of The Unbearable Lightness of Being, The Book of Laughter and Forgetting, and The Joke. Kundera has written in...
. In a letter addressed to the chairman of the jury, Milan Kundera, who could not attend the ceremony, accepted the award. Kundera donated the prize to Humanitas Publishing House which has published most of his works in a Romanian translation, with the mention that the money should go to assisting Romanian literature.
2004
- Amos OzAmos OzAmos Oz is an Israeli writer, novelist, and journalist. He is also a professor of literature at Ben-Gurion University in Be'er Sheva....
, Israel - Tomaž ŠalamunTomaz SalamunTomaž Šalamun is a Slovenian poet. He was born in 1941 in Zagreb, Croatia, and raised in Koper, Slovenia. He has published 39 collections of poetry in his native Slovenian language. Šalamun spent two years at the University of Iowa Writer's Workshop in the 1970s and has lived for periods of time in...
, Slovenia