The Nike Literary Award (Polish: Nagroda Literacka „Nike", pronounced [ˈnikɛ]) is a literary prize awarded each year for the best book of a single living author writing in Polish and published the previous year. It is widely considered the most important award for Polish literature.[1] Established in 1997 and funded by Gazeta Wyborcza, Poland's second largest daily paper, and the consulting company NICOM, it is conferred annually in October. It is open for nominees from all literary genres, including non-fiction essays and autobiographies.

Nike Award
2005 Nike Award ceremony with former Polish president Aleksander Kwaśniewski
Awarded forbest book of a single living author writing in the Polish language published the previous year
CountryPoland
Presented byGazeta Wyborcza and Agora Foundation
Reward(s)PLN 100,000 ($25,000)
First awarded1997; 27 years ago (1997)

Each year, a nine-member jury selects the laureate in a three-stage process. Twenty official nominees are accepted in May, out of which seven finalists are declared in September. The final decision does not take place until the day of the award ceremony in October. The award consists of a statuette referring to the Greek goddess Nike, designed by the prominent Polish sculptor Kazimierz Gustaw Zemła, and a cash prize of currently PLN 100,000 (ca. $25,000).

In addition to the main jury award, there is an audience award based on the outcome of a vote on the seven official finalists conducted by Gazeta Wyborcza. The verdicts of the audience and jury have converged only occasionally (2000, 2001, 2004, 2015, 2018, 2019 and 2021). Two laureates of the award have been awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature: Czesław Miłosz (1980) and Olga Tokarczuk (2018). Tokarczuk and Wiesław Myśliwski are the only individuals to date to have received the Nike Award twice.

Laureates edit

Title and details of English translation stated where available.

Jury award edit

Year Picture Author Title English title Genre(s) Ref.
2023 Zyta Rudzka   Ten się śmieje kto ma zęby Only Those with Teeth Can Smile Novel
2022 Jerzy Jarniewicz   Mondo Cane Mondo Cane Poetry [2]
2021 Zbigniew Rokita   Kajś. Opowieść o Górnym Śląsku Kajś: A Tale of Upper Silesia Reportage [3]
2020 Radek Rak   Baśń o wężowym sercu The Snake Heart Fairy Tale Fantasy novel [4]
2019 Mariusz Szczygieł   Nie ma No There Reportage [5]
2018 Marcin Wicha   Rzeczy, których nie wyrzuciłem Things I Didn't Throw Out Collection of essays [6]
2017 Cezary Łazarewicz   Żeby nie było śladów. Sprawa Grzegorza Przemyka So There'll Be No Traces. Grzegorz Przemyk's Case Reportage [7]
2016 Bronka Nowicka Nakarmić kamień To Feed a Stone Poetry [8][9]
2015 Olga Tokarczuk   Księgi Jakubowe The Books of Jacob Novel [10]
2014 Karol Modzelewski   Zajeździmy kobyłę historii. Wyznania poobijanego jeźdźca We'll Ride the Mare of History to the Ground: Confessions of a Bruised Rider Autobiography [11][12]
2013 Joanna Bator   Ciemno, prawie noc Dark, Almost Night Novel [13]
2012 Marek Bieńczyk   Książka twarzy Book of Faces Collection of essays [14]
2011 Marian Pilot   Pióropusz Plume Novel [15]
2010 Tadeusz Słobodzianek Nasza klasa Our Class Play [16]
2009 Eugeniusz Tkaczyszyn-Dycki   Piosenka o zależnościach i uzależnieniach A Song of Dependencies and Addictions Poetry [17]
2008 Olga Tokarczuk   Bieguni Flights Novel [18]
2007 Wiesław Myśliwski   Traktat o łuskaniu fasoli Treatise on Shelling Beans Novel [19]
2006 Dorota Masłowska   Paw królowej The Queen's Peacock Novel [20]
2005 Andrzej Stasiuk   Jadąc do Babadag Travelling to Babadag Novel [21]
2004 Wojciech Kuczok   Gnój Muck Novel [22]
2003 Jarosław Marek Rymkiewicz   Zachód słońca w Milanówku Sunset in Milanówek Poetry [23]
2002 Joanna Olczak-Roniker   W ogrodzie pamięci In the Garden of Memory Novel [24]
2001 Jerzy Pilch   Pod Mocnym Aniołem The Strong Angel Inn Novel [25]
2000 Tadeusz Różewicz   Matka odchodzi Mother Is Leaving Poetry [26]
1999 Stanisław Barańczak   Z chirurgiczną precyzją Surgical Precision Poetry [27]
1998 Czesław Miłosz   Piesek przydrożny Road-side Dog Poetry [28]
1997 Wiesław Myśliwski   Widnokrąg Horizon Novel [29]

Audience award edit

Year Author Title English title Genre(s)
2023 Grzegorz Piątek Gdynia obiecana. Miasto, modernizm, modernizacja 1920-1939 Gdynia Promised: City, Modernism, Modernization 1920-1939 Reportage[30]
2022 Joanna Ostrowska Oni. Homoseksualiści w czasie II wojny światowej Them. Homosexuals in WWII Reportage[31]
2021 Zbigniew Rokita Kajś. Opowieść o Górnym Śląsku Kajś. A Tale of Upper Silesia Reportage
2020 Joanna Gierak-Onoszko 27 śmierci Toby'ego Obeda 27 Deaths of Toby Obed Collection of reportages
2019 Mariusz Szczygieł Nie ma No There Reportage
2018 Marcin Wicha Rzeczy, których nie wyrzuciłem The Things I Didn't Throw Away Collection of essays
2017 Stanisław Łubieński Dwanaście srok za ogon The Birds They Sang Collection of essays
2016 Magdalena Grzebałkowska 1945. Wojna i pokój 1945. War and Peace Reportage
2015 Olga Tokarczuk Księgi Jakubowe The Books of Jacob Novel
2014 Ignacy Karpowicz Ości Bones Novel
2013 Szczepan Twardoch Morfina Morphine Novel[32][33]
2012 Andrzej Franaszek Miłosz: biografia Miłosz: A Biography Biography
2011 Sławomir Mrożek Dziennik 1962–1969 Journals 1962–1969 Diary
2010 Magdalena Grochowska Jerzy Giedroyc. Do Polski ze snu Jerzy Giedroyc. To Poland from Dream Biography
2009 Krzysztof Varga Gulasz z turula Turul Goulash Collection of essays
2008 Olga Tokarczuk Bieguni Flights Novel
2007 Mariusz Szczygieł Gottland Gottland Collection of reportages
2006 Wisława Szymborska Dwukropek Colon Poetry
2005 Ryszard Kapuściński Podróże z Herodotem Journeys with Herodotus Autobiography
2004 Wojciech Kuczok Gnój Muck Novel
2003 Dorota Masłowska Wojna polsko-ruska pod flagą biało-czerwoną Snow White and Russian Red Novel
2002 Olga Tokarczuk Gra na wielu bębenkach Playing on Many Drums Collection of short stories
2001 Jerzy Pilch Pod Mocnym Aniołem The Strong Angel Inn Novel
2000 Tadeusz Różewicz Matka odchodzi Mother Is Leaving Poetry
1999 Olga Tokarczuk Dom dzienny, dom nocny House of Day, House of Night Novel
1998 Zygmunt Kubiak Mitologia Greków i Rzymian The Mythology of the Greeks and Romans History
1997 Olga Tokarczuk Prawiek i inne czasy Primeval and Other Times Novel

Most nominations (1997–2022) edit

See also edit

References edit

  1. ^ "NAGRODA LITERACKA NIKE 2022". tvn24.pl (in Polish). Retrieved December 14, 2022.
  2. ^ Dariusz Nowacki (October 12, 2022). "The Peculiar Standing of Poetry". culture.pl. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
  3. ^ "Writer Zbigniew Rokita wins top Polish literary award". polskieradio.pl. October 4, 2021. Retrieved October 5, 2023.
  4. ^ "Radek Rak wins the 2020 Nike Literary Award". tvn24.pl. October 5, 2020. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  5. ^ "Writer Mariusz Szczygieł scoops top Polish literary award". polskieradio.pl. October 6, 2019. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  6. ^ "Marcin Wicha wins prestigious Nike literary award for his short stories collection". tvn24.pl. October 9, 2018. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  7. ^ Matt Day (August 23, 2018). "Writers in arms: TFN talks to the award-winning leading lights of Polish literature Ewa Winnicka and Cezary Łazarewicz". thefirstnews.com. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  8. ^ "Bronka Nowicka". lit-across-frontiers.org. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  9. ^ "Bronka Nowicka laureatką Nagrody Literackiej Nike". wp.pl (in Polish). October 2, 2016. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  10. ^ Damian Gajda (October 4, 2015). "Nagroda Literacka Nike 2015 dla Olgi Tokarczuk". onet.pl (in Polish). Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  11. ^ "The 2014 Nike Literary Award Goes to Karol Modzelewski". culture.pl. October 6, 2014. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  12. ^ "Nagroda Nike 2014". Gazeta Wyborcza (in Polish). May 14, 2015. Retrieved May 14, 2015.
  13. ^ Tadeusz Sobolewski, Michał Wybieralski (October 6, 2013). "Nike 2013 dla Joanny Bator za książkę "Ciemno, prawie noc"". Gazeta Wyborcza (in Polish). Retrieved October 17, 2013.
  14. ^ "Poland's top literary award goes to essayist Marek Bieńczyk". thenews.pl. October 8, 2012. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  15. ^ "Writer Marian Pilot Has Won the 2011 Nike Award". culture.pl. October 2, 2011. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  16. ^ "Tadeusz Słobodzianek laureatem Nike". rmf24.pl (in Polish). October 3, 2010. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  17. ^ Agnieszka Le Nart. "WHO'S WHO AND WHY:EUGENIUSZ TKACZYSZYN-DYCKI". biweekly.pl. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  18. ^ Jarosław Klejnocki (October 6, 2008). "Nike 2008 dla Olgi Tokarczuk". polityka.pl (in Polish). Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  19. ^ "Nagroda NIKE dla Wiesława Myśliwskiego". onet.pl (in Polish). October 7, 2007. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  20. ^ "Nagroda Nike dla Doroty Masłowskiej". interia.pl (in Polish). October 1, 2006. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  21. ^ "Andrzej Stasiuk laureatem Literackiej Nagrody NIKE". rmf24.pl (in Polish). October 2, 2005. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  22. ^ "Wojciech Kuczok laureatem nagrody NIKE". onet.pl (in Polish). October 4, 2004. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  23. ^ "Jarosław Marek Rymkiewicz laureatem Nike". onet.pl (in Polish). October 5, 2003. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  24. ^ Roman Pawłowski (October 6, 2022). "Nagroda Literacka "Nike" 2002 - Joanna Olczak-Ronikier za "W ogrodzie pamięci"". wyborcza.pl (in Polish). Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  25. ^ "Nagroda Literacka "Nike" 2001 - Jerzy Pilch za "Pod Mocnym Aniołem"". wyborcza.pl (in Polish). September 30, 2001. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  26. ^ Mariusz Cieślik (September 4, 2000). "Tadeusz Różewicz laureatem Nagrody Literackiej Nike 2000". wyborcza.pl (in Polish). Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  27. ^ "Nagroda Literacka "Nike" 1999 - Stanisław Barańczak za "Chirurgiczną precyzję"". wyborcza.pl (in Polish). September 4, 1999. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  28. ^ Szymon Hołownia (June 27, 1998). "Nagroda Literacka "Nike" 1998 - Czesław Miłosz za "Pieska przydrożnego"". wyborcza.pl (in Polish). Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  29. ^ "Nagroda Literacka "Nike" 1997 - Wiesław Myśliwski za "Widnokrąg"". wyborcza.pl (in Polish). October 4, 1997. Retrieved October 6, 2023.
  30. ^ "Writer Zyta Rudzka wins top Polish literary award". polskieradio.pl. October 2, 2023. Retrieved October 4, 2023.
  31. ^ "Silenced Memories: LGBT People in WWII". przekroj.pl. Retrieved October 2, 2022.
  32. ^ Bialystokonline.pl: Kultura i Rozrywka – Nike 2014. Nagroda Czytelników dla Ignacego Karpowicza
  33. ^ Wyborcza.pl: NIKE 2014: Śmierć, seks, rodzinne kłamstwa, sztuka latania... Fragmenty wszystkich nominowanych książek

External links edit