The Nobel Committee for Literature is the Nobel Committee responsible for evaluating the nominations and presents its recommendations to the Swedish Academy, which then selects, through votation, the Nobel Prize in Literature.
The committee members – usually five – are elected for three years among the Swedish Academy members, with the Permanent Secretary serving as an associate member. In assessing the qualifications of candidates, the committee invites the assistance of specially appointed expert advisers, which include translators, literary critics, and linguists.[1]
Every year in September, the Nobel Committee sends out nomination forms to hundreds of individuals and organizations qualified to nominate. Some uninvited nominations from other literary societies, academies, and individuals are also accepted.[1] Such forms must be completed and submitted on or before January 31st, the Nobel Committee's deadline for submissions.[1] [2]
From February to April, the Nobel Committee screens the nominations and presents a list for approval by the Swedish Academy. Immediately after the nominees are approved, the Committee evaluates and creates a list of 25 to 20 candidates for preliminary evaluation. After the deliberations, the Committee selects five priority candidates that they thoroughly assess specifically on their body of literary work and merits. From June to August, each Committee member prepares their respective findings and criticisms of the candidates.[1] [2]
In September, the Academy members receive the Committee members' assessments of the finalists and discuss the literary merits of the different candidates' contributions. Within this month, the Committee again sends out nomination forms for the following year's deliberations.[1] [2] In October, days before the announcement, the Academy selects the Nobel laureate in Literature through votation. A candidate must receive more than half of the votes cast.[1] [2] It rarely happens that the Academy proposes another candidate aside from the Committee's finalists, which causes distress and conflicts among the members.[1] [2]
In 2021 – the year when Tanzanian-born British author Abdulrazak Gurnah won the prize – Committee member Ellen Mattson was asked about what criteria the Committee uses in selecting a laureate, she responded saying:
Committee chair Anders Olsson also expressed his thoughts in October 2019 – the year American poet Louise Glück won – of what they look for writer worthy of becoming a Nobel laureate, saying:
The following Swedish Academy members form the current Nobel Committee for Literature since 2024:[3] [4]
| Committee Members | ||||||
| Seat No. | Picture | Name | Elected | Position | Profession | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 4 | Anders Olsson (b. 1949) | 2008 | committee chair | literary critic, literary historian | ||
| 11 | Mats Malm (b. 1964) | 2018 | associate member permanent secretary | translator, literary historian, editor | ||
| 9 | Ellen Mattson (b. 1963) | 2019 | member | novelist, essayist | ||
| 14 | Steve Sem-Sandberg (b. 1958) | 2021 | member | journalist, author, translator | ||
| 13 | Anne Swärd (b. 1969) | 2019 | member | novelist | ||
| 16 | Anna-Karin Palm (b. 1961) | 2023 | associate member | novelist, culture writer | ||