The Lithuanian National Prize ( lt, Nacionalinė kultūros ir meno premija), established in 1989, is an award granted for achievements in culture and the arts. It has been awarded annually in six categories since 2006 (between 1989 and 2006 there were nine categories). The prize is formally bestowed on February 16, when the decorations and diplomas are presented to the laureates at Presidential Palace, commemorating the anniversary of the 1918

Act of Independence of Lithuania The Act of Independence of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Nepriklausomybės Aktas) or the Act of February 16, also the Lithuanian Resolution on Independence ( lt, Lietuvos Nepriklausomybės Nutarimas), The signed document is actually titled simply '' ...

. The award honors significant recent achievements in cultural fields and works by artists or art collectives. The honorees may be citizens of

Lithuania Lithuania (; lt, Lietuva ), officially the Republic of Lithuania ( lt, Lietuvos Respublika, links=no ), is a country in the Baltic region of Europe. It is one of three Baltic states and lies on the eastern shore of the Baltic Sea. Lithuania ...

or members of the

Lithuanian World Community The Lithuanian World Community ( lt, Pasaulio lietuvių bendruomenė or PLB) is a non-governmental and non-profit organization established in 1949 that unifies Lithuanian communities abroad. The Constitution of the Lithuanian World Community decla ...

. When the award was first established, works accomplished during the previous five years were considered; this period was extended to seven years in 2008. The candidacies are open each year until September 15, and the winners are announced on December 15. Each "Lithuanian National Prize" consists of a memorial sign, a diploma, and a monetary grant (circa 104,000

litas The Lithuanian litas (ISO currency code LTL, symbolized as Lt; plural ''litai'' (nominative) or ''litų'' (genitive) was the currency of Lithuania, until 1 January 2015, when it was replaced by the euro. It was divided into 100 centų (genit ...

). A single person can only receive the National Prize once. The candidates for the Prize are now nominated by professional associations and societies; before 2008 the nominations could be made by members of the public. The laureates are selected by a special committee. there were 156 laureates of the Prize.

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