High North News

Sámi novel wins Nordic Council literature prize for first time in 35 years

Linn Ophaug
nordic council literature prize literature sami people sami

Author Sigbjørn Skåden has won this year’s Nordic Council Literature prize for his Sámi-language novel Planterhaug (Láŋtdievvá).

It is the first time in 35 years that a Sámi-language novel has received the prestigious literary prize.

In its citation, the jury describes it as ”an original novel with rare playfulness and a deeply historical narrative that stands out in both Norwegian and Sámi contemporary literature”.

Norway swept the board, taking all five Nordic Council prizes. It is the first time in history that all winners of the Nordic region’s most prestigious awards have come from the same country.

”All of the adjudication committees work independently, so the Norwegian dominance is simply the result of each jury independently deciding to select Norwegian winners this year,” the press realese states.

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    In 2026, the Sámi Parliament received over 800 million Noregian kroner for the first time. Now the Sámi Parliament has decided that it needs an additional 767,5 million kroner, meaning a total of more than 1,5 billion kroner from the state in 2027, according to NRK.

    This demand follows the historic report from the Truth and Reconciliation Commision. The Sámi Parliament is calling on the state to take responsibility for closing the gap between the formal rights of the Sámi people and what is actually implemented in practice.

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    Among other things, they want to use the money for nred museum buildings, a Sámi language Commisioner, and efforts to rebuild in the aftermath of the Norwegiansation policy.

  • Sami village wins in court - can stop plans in northern Sweden

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  • Here are the nominees for the Nordic Council Literature Prize

    Trine Jonassen

    The nominees for the Nordic Council Literature Prize include novels, collections of poems and a short story collection.

    Denmark:

    Mette Moestrup with the poem collection Butterfly Nebula and Charlotte Weitze with the novel Ulvemælk.

    Finland:

    Pirkko Saisio with the novel Suliko and Quynh Tran with the novel När andra njuter.

    Faroe Islands:

    Marjun Syderbø Kjelnæs with the novel Marta, Marta.

    Greenland:

    Debora H. Kleist with the novel Sarsuatitat.

    Iceland:

    Eva Rún Snorradóttir with the novel Eldri konur and Jón Kalman Stefánsson with the novel Himintungl yfir heimsins ystu brún.

    Norway:

    Dag Johan Haugerud with the novel Sjelesorg.

    Norway/Sami language area:

    Sigbjørn Skåden with the novel Planterhaug / Láŋtdievvá.

    Sweden:

    Anna Hallberg with the poetry collection AN and Linda Örtenblad with the collection of short stories Kartotek över döda och återuppståndna.

    Åland:

    Sebastian Johans with the novel Svanhopp. Roman om död far.

    The winner of the 2026 Nordic Council Literature Prize will be announced on 20 October. The prize statuette will be presented to the winner at the Session of the Nordic Council in Helsinki on 27 October. The prize is worth DKK 300,000.

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