The Halldór Laxness international literary prize to be presented for the fifth time
The Halldór Laxness International Literary Prize will be presented at Nordic House in Reykjavík for the fifth time on Thursday, 10 September. The prize is awarded every other year to an internationally renowned author who has contributed to the renewal of the art of storytelling. This was precisely the reasoning given by the Swedish Academy when Halldór Laxness was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1955.
The prize also aims to promote the name and legacy of Halldór Laxness on the international stage. It is presented by the Reykjavík International Literary Festival, the Ministry of Culture, Innovation and Higher Education, Business Iceland, Gljúfrasteinn, and Forlagið, Halldór Laxness’s publisher in Iceland. Nordic House is a partner of the 2026 Halldór Laxness International Literary Prize.
The prize was first presented in 2019, when British author Ian McEwan received it. Two years later, Turkish author Elif Shafak was awarded the prize, followed in 2022 by Ukrainian author Andrei Kurkov. Salman Rushdie received the prize in 2024.
This year, the prize goes to Polish author Olga Tokarczuk. She will receive the award on Thursday, 10 September, with the programme beginning at 5:00 p.m. at Nordic House. Logi Einarsson, Minister of Culture, Innovation and Higher Education, will present Tokarczuk with the prize, which consists of €15,000 and a prize medal. Following the ceremony, Halla Oddný Magnúsdóttir and Halldór Guðmundsson will lead a conversation with Tokarczuk on stage. Admission is free and open to everyone, subject to capacity.
In the jury’s citation, Salman Rushdie says:
“Olga Tokarczuk is simply one of the world’s foremost living writers. In her work, tragedy, comedy, history and irony come together in an exceptionally rich literary blend. I am delighted that she has accepted the Laxness Prize. In doing so, she has honoured us all greatly.”
On the afternoon of Friday, 11 September, an event will be held at Forlagið Bookshop on Fiskislóð, where poets Ewa Marcinek, Maó Alheimsdóttir and Jakub Stachowiak will read from their work alongside Olga Tokarczuk.
The 2026 jury for the Halldór Laxness International Literary Prize consisted of Salman Rushdie, recipient of the 2024 Halldór Laxness International Literary Prize; media personality Egill Helgason; and Stella Soffía Jóhannesdóttir, chair of the board of the Reykjavík International Literary Festival.
Two books by Olga Tokarczuk have been published in Icelandic, both translated by Árni Óskarsson and published by Bjartur. Drive Your Plow Over the Bones of the Dead was published in 2022, followed in 2025 by the novel House of Day, House of Night. Her short story “The Dancer” has also been published in a translation by Steinunn G. Helgadóttir in Tímarit Máls og menningar, issue 4, 2024.
Olga Tokarczuk was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2018. She has received numerous other awards for her work, including the International Booker Prize and Poland’s most prestigious literary award, the Nike Award, which she has won twice. Her work includes four short-story collections, nine novels and three collections of essays. Tokarczuk has also written an opera libretto based on one of her novels, demonstrating the breadth of her work as an author and her ability to work across different media.
Tokarczuk studied psychology at university, and her knowledge of the field is reflected in her writing. She explores mythical and timeless themes, creating both challenging worlds and fascinating characters in her work. Her books are highly popular with general readers and have also received widespread critical acclaim.
