The
Nobel Prize in Literature (Swedish:
Nobelpriset i litteratur) is awarded annually by the
Swedish Academy to authors for outstanding contributions in the field of literature. It is one of the five
Nobel Prizes established by the 1895
will of
Alfred Nobel, which are awarded for outstanding contributions in
chemistry,
physics, literature,
peace, and
physiology or medicine. As dictated by Nobel's will, the award is administered by the
Nobel Foundation and awarded by a committee that consists of five members elected by the Swedish Academy. The first Nobel Prize in Literature was awarded in 1901 to
Sully Prudhomme of France. Each recipient receives a medal, a diploma and a monetary award prize that has varied throughout the years. In 1901, Prudhomme received 150,782
SEK, which is equivalent to 7,731,004 SEK in December 2007. The award is presented in
Stockholm at an annual ceremony on December 10, the anniversary of Nobel's death.