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The Camões Prize (, ), named after
Luís de Camões Luís Vaz de Camões (; or 1525 – 10 June 1580), sometimes rendered in English as Camoens or Camoëns ( ), is considered Portugal's and the Portuguese language's greatest poet. His mastery of verse has been compared to that of William Shakes ...
, is the most prestigious prize for literature in the
Portuguese language Portuguese ( or ) is a Western Romance language of the Indo-European language family originating from the Iberian Peninsula of Europe. It is the official language of Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Guinea-Bissau, Mozambique, Portugal and São Tom� ...
. The prize was established in 1989 and is supported by the governments of Brazil and Portugal. It is awarded annually to the author of an outstanding body of work written in Portuguese. Winners are selected by a jury and have included writers from Angola, Brazil, Cape Verde, Mozambique, and Portugal. The monetary award is , making it among the richest literary prizes in the world. Past winners include
José Saramago José de Sousa Saramago (; 16 November 1922 – 18 June 2010) was a Portuguese people, Portuguese writer. He was the recipient of the 1998 Nobel Prize in Literature for his "parables sustained by imagination, compassion and irony ith which ...
, Eugénio de Andrade, Eugénio de Andrade">ith which ...
, Eugénio de Andrade, Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, and Chico Buarque">Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen">Eugénio de Andrade">ith which ...
, Eugénio de Andrade, Sophia de Mello Breyner Andresen, and Chico Buarque.


History

The Camões Prize was first introduced by the Additional Protocol to the Cultural Agreement between the Government of the Portuguese Republic and the Government of the Federal Republic of Brazil, dated 7 September 1966, which creates the Camões Prize, signed in Brasilia on 22 June 1988, and approved in Portugal by Decree No. 43/88 of 30 November 1988. This Protocol was replaced by a new one between the Portuguese Republic and the Federative Republic of Brazil, signed in Lisbon on 17 April 1999, approved by Portugal through Decree 47/99 in the official gazette of 5 November 1999. The first award was made in 1989, with the winner being Miguel Torga. In 2006, José Luandino Vieira became the first person to refuse the award.


Description

The Camões Prize is considered the most prestigious literary award in the Portuguese-speaking world. It is awarded for a body of work that contributes to the dissemination and recognition of Portuguese language. It is awarded annually by the Portuguese ''Direção-Geral do Livro, dos Arquivos e das Biblioteca'' (National Book, Archives and Libraries Department) and the
Brazil Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
ian ''Fundação Biblioteca Nacional'' (National Library Foundation). The award consists of a cash prize contributed by Brazil and Portugal. The value of the prize is set annually by agreement between the two countries, and currently stands at . Writers in Portuguese from the
Community of Portuguese Language Countries The Community of Portuguese Language Countries (; : CPLP), also known as the Lusophone Commonwealth or Lusophone Community (), is an international organization and political association of Lusophone nations across four continents, where Portug ...
are considered for the prize. The winner is chosen by a specially designated jury, with representatives from Brazil, Portugal, and African countries with Portuguese as an official language.


Past winners


Winners per country

* – 15 * – 14 * – 3 * – 2 * – 2


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Camoes Prize Portuguese-language literary awards Brazilian literary awards Portuguese literary awards Awards established in 1989 1989 establishments in Brazil 1989 establishments in Portugal Literary awards honoring lifetime achievement