The Prix Goncourt (french: Le prix Goncourt, , ''The Goncourt Prize'') is a prize in

French literature French literature () generally speaking, is literature written in the French language, particularly by citizens of France; it may also refer to literature written by people living in France who speak traditional languages of France other than F ...

, given by the

académie Goncourt The Société littéraire des Goncourt (Goncourt Literary Society), usually called the Académie Goncourt (Goncourt Academy), is a French literary organisation based in Paris. It was founded in 1900 by the French writer and publisher Edmond de Go ...

to the author of "the best and most imaginative prose work of the year". The prize carries a symbolic reward of only 10 euros, but results in considerable recognition and book sales for the winning author. Four other prizes are also awarded: prix Goncourt du Premier Roman (first novel), prix Goncourt de la Nouvelle (short story), prix Goncourt de la Poésie (poetry) and prix Goncourt de la Biographie (biography). Of the "big six" French literary awards, the Prix Goncourt is the best known and most prestigious. The other major literary prizes include the

Grand Prix du roman de l'Académie française Le Grand Prix du Roman is a French literary award, created in 1914, and given each year by the Académie française. Along with the Prix Goncourt The Prix Goncourt (french: Le prix Goncourt, , ''The Goncourt Prize'') is a prize in French litera ...

, the

Prix Femina The Prix Femina is a French literary prize created in 1904 by 22 writers for the magazine '' La Vie heureuse'' (today known as '' Femina''). The prize is decided each year by an exclusively female jury. They reward French-language works writte ...

, the

Prix Renaudot The Prix Théophraste-Renaudot or Prix Renaudot () is a French literary award. History The prize was created in 1926 by ten art critics awaiting the results of deliberation of the jury of the Prix Goncourt. While not officially related to the ...

, the

Prix Interallié The prix Interallié (Interallié Prize), also known simply as ''l'Interallié'', is an annual French literary award, awarded for a novel written by a journalist. History The prize was started on 3 December 1930 by about thirty or so journa ...

and the

Prix Médicis The Prix Médicis is a French literary award given each year in November. It was founded in 1958 by and . It is awarded to an author whose "fame does not yet match his talent." The award goes to a work of fiction in the French language. In 19 ...

History

Edmond de Goncourt Edmond Louis Antoine Huot de Goncourt (; 26 May 182216 July 1896) was a French writer, literary critic, art critic, book publisher and the founder of the Académie Goncourt. Biography Goncourt was born in Nancy. His parents, Marc-Pierre Huot d ...

, a successful author, critic, and publisher, bequeathed his estate for the foundation and maintenance of the

Académie Goncourt The Société littéraire des Goncourt (Goncourt Literary Society), usually called the Académie Goncourt (Goncourt Academy), is a French literary organisation based in Paris. It was founded in 1900 by the French writer and publisher Edmond de Go ...

. In honour of his brother and collaborator, Jules Alfred Huot de Goncourt (1830–1870), the académie has awarded the Prix Goncourt every December since 1903. The jury that determines the winner meets at the '' Drouant'' restaurant in November to make its decision. Notable winners of the prize include Marcel Proust ('' In Search of Lost Time''), Simone de Beauvoir ('' The Mandarins''),

André Malraux Georges André Malraux ( , ; 3 November 1901 – 23 November 1976) was a French novelist, art theorist, and Minister of Culture (France), minister of cultural affairs. Malraux's novel ''La Condition Humaine'' (Man's Fate) (1933) won the Prix Go ...

(''

Man's Fate ''Man's Fate'' (French: ''La Condition humaine'', "The Human Condition") is a 1933 novel written by André Malraux about the failed communist insurrection in Shanghai in 1927, and the existential quandaries facing a diverse group of people associa ...

'') and

Marguerite Duras Marguerite Germaine Marie Donnadieu (, 4 April 1914 – 3 March 1996), known as Marguerite Duras (), was a French novelist, playwright, screenwriter, essayist, and experimental filmmaker. Her script for the film '' Hiroshima mon amour'' (1959) e ...

('' The Lover''). The award was initially established to provide talented new authors with a monetary award that would allow them to write a second book. Today, the Goncourt has a token prize amount (around 10 euros), about the same amount given in 1903, and so the prestige of the prize has been explained not because of the cash-value of the prize, but "in terms of the tremendous book sales it effects: the Goncourt winner becomes an instant millionaire."

Hervé Le Tellier Hervé Le Tellier (born 21 April 1957) is a French writer and linguist, and a member of the international literary group Oulipo (Ouvroir de Littérature Potentielle, which translates roughly as "workshop of potential literature"). He is its fou ...

's ''

The Anomaly ''The Anomaly'' is a 2014 British science fiction action thriller film co-written, directed by and starring Noel Clarke and also featuring Ian Somerhalder and Luke Hemsworth. The film was panned by critics. Plot Ex-soldier Ryan Reeve wakes ...

'', which won the Goncourt in 2020, exceeded a million copies in less than a year after its publication. In 1987, the

Prix Goncourt des Lycéens The Prix Goncourt des Lycéens is a French literary award created in 1987 as a sort of younger sibling of Prix Goncourt, a prestigious prize for French language literature. The ten members of the Académie Goncourt select twelve literary works as ...

was established, as a collaboration between the

, the French Ministry of Education, and

Fnac Fnac () is a large French retail chain selling culture, cultural and consumer electronics, electronic products, founded by André Essel and Max Théret in 1954. Its head office is in ''Le Flavia'' in Ivry-sur-Seine near Paris. It is an abbreviati ...

, a book, music, and movie retailer. The

is announced at the same ceremony as the Prix Goncourt. It has become known as something of a second-place prize.

Controversies

Prix Goncourt - Paris 3 novembre 2016 002

Within months of the first prize in 1903, it spawned a "hostile counter-prize" in the form of the

to counter the all-male Jury of the Goncourt with an all-female jury on the Femina. Some decisions for awarding the prize have been controversial, a famous case being the decision to award the prize in 1919 to Marcel Proust; this was met with indignation, since many in the public felt that the prize should have gone to

Roland Dorgelès Roland Dorgelès (; 15 June 1885 – 18 March 1973) was a French novelist and a member of the Académie Goncourt. Born in Amiens, Somme, under the name Roland Lecavelé (he adopted the pen name Dorgelès to commemorate visits to the spa town of ...

for ''Les Croix de bois'', a novel about the

First World War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The prize was supposed to be awarded to promising young authors, whereas Proust was not considered "young" at 48 – however Proust was a beginning author which is the only eligibility requirement, age being unimportant. In 1921, Rene Maran won the Goncourt with '' Batouala, veritable roman negre'', the first French novel to openly criticize European colonialism in Africa. The novel caused "violent reactions" and was banned in all the French colonies. In 1932, the prize was controversial for passing up

Louis-Ferdinand Céline Louis Ferdinand Auguste Destouches (27 May 1894 – 1 July 1961), better known by the pen name Louis-Ferdinand Céline ( , ) was a French novelist, polemicist and physician. His first novel ''Journey to the End of the Night'' (1932) won the '' Pr ...

's ''

Voyage au bout de la nuit ''Journey to the End of the Night'' (french: Voyage au bout de la nuit, 1932) is the first novel by Louis-Ferdinand Céline. This semi-autobiographical work follows the adventures of Ferdinand Bardamu in the World War I, colonial Africa, the Un ...

'' for Guy Mazeline's ''Les Loups''. The voting process became the basis of the 1992 book ''Goncourt 32'' by Eugène Saccomano. Although the award may only be given to an author once,

Romain Gary Romain Gary (; 2 December 1980), born Roman Kacew (, and also known by the pen name Émile Ajar), was a French novelist, diplomat, film director, and World War II aviator. He is the only author to have won the Prix Goncourt under two names. He i ...

won it twice, in 1956 for ''

Les racines du ciel ''The Roots of Heaven'' (french: Les Racines du ciel) is a 1956 novel by the Lithuanian-born French writer and WW II aviator, Romain Gary (born Roman Kacew). It received the Prix Goncourt for fiction. It was translated into English in 1957. Syno ...

'' and again under the pseudonym

Émile Ajar Romain Gary (; 2 December 1980), born Roman Kacew (, and also known by the pen name Émile Ajar), was a French novelist, diplomat, film director, and World War II aviator. He is the only author to have won the Prix Goncourt under two names. He i ...

in 1975 for '' La vie devant soi''. The Académie Goncourt awarded the prize to Ajar without knowing his real identity. A period of literary intrigue followed. Gary's cousin's son Paul Pavlowitch posed as the author for a time. Gary later revealed the truth in his posthumous book ''Vie et mort d'Émile Ajar''. In September 2021, the Goncourt attracted controversy after the jury decided, by a vote of 7 to 3, to include ''Les enfants de Cadillac'' by François Noudelmann on its 2021 list of finalists. Noudelmann is the partner of

Camille Laurens Laurence Ruel (born 6 November 1957), known by her pen name Camille Laurens, is a French writer and winner of the 2000 Prix Femina for ''Dans ces bras-là''. Laurens is a member of the Académie Goncourt. Career A graduate of humanities, Camil ...

, who is a member of the prize's jury. Laurens voted in favor of her partner's book. In October 2021, the

ultimately decided that it will no longer allow lovers and family members of the jury to be entered for consideration.

Selection and voting process

The Prix Goncourt is divided into three selection stages. The first selection is typically composed of fifteen finalists. The second selection is typically composed of eight finalists, narrowed down from the previous fifteen. A third and final selection leaves four finalists. In the voting rounds, a maximum of fourteen rounds can be carried out. To begin the deliberation process, the names of the four finalists are placed in a champagne bucket. In turn, the names are taken out and each member of the jury votes aloud in favour of, or in opposition to, the writer. An absolute majority—more than half the votes cast—is required until the tenth round, then a simple majority is sufficient to designate a winner. If, after fourteen rounds, there is no winner, the president's vote counts as double to determine a majority vote. At 12:45p.m., the Secretary General,

Philippe Claudel Philippe Claudel (born 2 February 1962) is a French writer and film director. Claudel was born in Dombasle-sur-Meurthe, Meurthe-et-Moselle. In addition to his writing, Claudel is a Professor of Literature at the University of Nancy. He direct ...

, appears in front of the crowd of journalists and announces the winner. The winner typically waits in a cafe near the ''Drouant'' so that they can arrive in time. The winner is interviewed by the media and is offered a symbolic check for ten euros.

Winners

Other awards

In addition to the Prix Goncourt for a novel, the Academy Awards four other awards, for first novel, short story, biography and poetry. As of March 2009, the académie changed the award name by dropping "bourses" ("scholarship") from the title. The prefix "prix" can be included or not, such as "Prix Goncourt de la Poésie" (Goncourt prize for Poetry) or "Goncourt de la Poésie" (Goncourt of Poetry). For example: "Claude Vigée was awarded a Goncourt de la Poésie in 2008". Or, "Claude Vigée won the 2008 prix Goncourt de la Poésie". The award titles are: The winners are listed below.

Prix Goncourt de la Biographie

Goncourt Prize for biography. Awarded in partnership with the city of Nancy. *1980 –

Jean Lacouture Jean Lacouture (9 June 1921 – 16 July 2015) was a journalist, historian and author. He was particularly famous for his biographies. Career Jean Lacouture was born in Bordeaux, France. He began his career in journalism in 1950 in ''Combat'' ...

, ''François Mauriac'' *1981 – Hubert Juin, ''Victor Hugo'' *1982 – Pierre Sipriot, ''René Depestre'' *1983 –

Ghislain de Diesbach Ghislain de Diesbach de Belleroche (born 6 August 1931 in Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary ...

, ''Madame de Staël'' *1984 – Jeanne Champion, ''Suzanne Valadon'' *1985 – Georges Poisson, ''Laclos ou l'Obstination'' *1986 –

Jean Canavaggio Jean Canavaggio (born 23 July 1936) is a French biographer and former emeritus professor of Spanish literature at the Paris West University Nanterre La Défense. Biography A former student of the École normale supérieure (class 1956), Jean Cana ...

, ''Cervantes'' *1987 – Michel Surya, ''Georges Bataille, la mort à l'œuvre'' *1988 – Frédéric Vitoux, ''La Vie de Louis-Ferdinand Céline'' *1989 –

Joanna Richardson Joanna Leah Richardson (8 August 1925 – 7 March 2008) was an English writer, translator and journalist. She wrote 21 biographies of literary writers and poets and was awarded the Prix Goncourt de la Biographie in 1989. Richardson also contribu ...

, ''Judith Gautier'' *1990 – Pierre Citron, ''Giono'' *1991 –

Odette Joyeux Odette Joyeux (5 December 1914 – 26 August 2000) was a French actress, playwright and novelist. Biography She was born in Paris, where she studied dance at the Paris Opera Ballet before taking the stage. Joyeux started her film career in 19 ...

, ''Le Troisième œil, la vie de Nicéphore Niepce'' *1992 –

Philippe Beaussant Philippe Beaussant (6 May 1930 – 8 May 2016) was a French musicologist and novelist, an expert on French baroque music, on which he has published widely. He was the founder of the Centre de Musique Baroque de Versailles, of which he was the ar ...

, ''Lully'' *1993 – Jean Bothorel, ''Louise de Vilmorin'' *1994 –

David Bellos David Bellos (born 1945) is an English-born translator and biographer. Bellos is Meredith Howland Pyne Professor of French Literature and Professor of Comparative Literature at Princeton University in the United States. He was director of Princeton ...

, ''Georges Perec'' *1995 – Henry Gidel, ''Les Deux Guitry'' *1996 –

Anka Muhlstein Anka Muhlstein (born 1935) is a historian and biographer. Early life Muhlstein was born to Anatol Mühlstein and Diane de Rothschild in Paris in 1935. During World War II, she stayed in New York City before returning to France in 1945. She was ma ...

, ''Astolphe de Custine'' *1997 –

Jean-Claude Lamy Jean-Claude Lamy (born 3 August 1941) was a French journalist, writer and publisher. Biography He was born in Valence (Drôme), Valence in the Drôme department. As a journalist, Jean-Claude Lamy joined ''France-Soir'' in the 60s where he staye ...

, ''Prévert, les frères'' *1998 –

Christian Liger Christian Liger (24 August 1935 – 3 December 2002) was a 20th-century French writer. Biography Christian Liger studied in Nîmes then at the University of Montpellier. He earned his doctorate in letters with a thesis entitled ''Les débuts ...

, ''Le Roman de Rossel'' *1999 – Claude Pichois and Alain Brunet, ''Colette'' *2000 – Dominique Bona, '' Berthe Morisot'' *2001 – Laure Murat, ''La maison du docteur Blanche'' *2002 – Jean-Paul Goujon, ''Une Vie Secrète (1870–1925)''; ''Mille lettres de Pierre Louÿs à Georges Louis (1890–1917)'' *2003 –

Pierre Billard Pierre Billard (3 July 1922 – 10 November 2016) was a French journalist, film critic and historian of cinema. Career Born in Dieppe (Seine-Maritime), Pierre Billard followed the courses of resistant Valentin Feldman during the Occupation o ...

, ''Louis Malle'' *2004 – Claude Dufresne, ''Appelez-moi George Sand'' *2005 –

Thibaut d'Anthonay Thibaut d'Anthonay is a French writer. He won the Prix Goncourt, Goncourt Prize for biography for his life of Jean Lorrain. He has also written historical novels, such as ''Le baron de Beausoleil''. References

French male writers Living p ...

, ''Jean Lorrain'' *2006 – Angie David, ''Dominique Aury'' *2007 – Patrice Locmant, ''Huysmans, le forçat de la vie'' *2008 – Jennifer Lesieur, ''Jack London'' *2009 – Viviane Forrester, ''Virginia Woolf'' *2010 –

Michel Winock Michel may refer to: * Michel (name), a given name or surname of French origin (and list of people with the name) * Míchel (nickname), a nickname (a list of people with the nickname, mainly Spanish footballers) * Míchel (footballer, born 1963), ...

, ''Madame de Stael'' *2011 – Maurizio Serra, ''Malaparte, vies et légendes'' *2012 –

David Haziot David Haziot (born 1947 in Casablanca) is a French writer. Holder of a Master of Philosophy at the Sorbonne on the cinema of Sergei Eisenstein, he then turned to fiction, biography, and essay. He obtained a prize of the Académie Française for h ...

, ''Le Roman des Rouart'' *2013 – Pascal Mérigeau, ''Jean Renoir'' *2014 –

Jean Lebrun Jean Lebrun at the in 2008 Jean Lebrun (14 May 1950, Saint-Malo, Ille-et-Vilaine) is a French journalist. A professor agrégé of history, he soon preferred journalism to the Éducation nationale. After he collaborated with '' Combat'', '' La ...

, ''Notre Chanel'' *2015 – Jean-Christophe Attias, ''Moïse fragile'' *2016 – Philippe Forest, ''Aragon'' *2017 – Marianne and Claude Schopp, ''Dumas fils ou l'Anti-Œdipe'' *2018 – Denis Demonpion, ''Salinger intime'' *2019 – Frédéric Pajak, ''Manifeste incertain, volume 7:

Emily Dickinson Emily Elizabeth Dickinson (December 10, 1830 – May 15, 1886) was an American poet. Little-known during her life, she has since been regarded as one of the most important figures in American poetry. Dickinson was born in Amherst, Massac ...

, Marina Tsvetaïeva, l'immense poésie'' *2021 – Pauline Dreyfous, ''Paul Morand''

Prix Goncourt de la Nouvelle

Goncourt Prize for short stories. Begun in 1974 in the form of scholarships. Awarded in partnership with the city of Strasbourg since 2001. *1974 – Daniel Boulanger, ''Fouette, cocher !'' *1975 –

S. Corinna Bille Stéphanie Corinna Bille (29 August 1912 – 24 October 1979) was a French-speaking writer from Switzerland. Bille was born in Lausanne, the daughter of Swiss painter Edmond Bille, and grew up in Sierre. Bille went to Paris, where she married but ...

, ''La Demoiselle sauvage'' *1976 –

Antoine Blondin Antoine Blondin (11 April 1922 – 7 June 1991) was a French writer. He belonged to the literary group called the '' Hussards''. He was also a sports columnist in ''L'Équipe''. Blondin also wrote under the name Tenorio. Biography Blondin was ...

, ''Quat'saisons'' *1977 –

Henri Gougaud Henri is an Estonian, Finnish, French, German and Luxembourgish form of the masculine given name Henry. People with this given name ; French noblemen :'' See the 'List of rulers named Henry' for Kings of France named Henri.'' * Henri I de Montm ...

, ''Départements et territoires d'outre-mort'' *1978 – Christiane Baroche, ''Chambres, avec vue sur le passé'' *1979 –

Andrée Chedid Andrée Chedid ( ar, أندريه شديد) (20 March 1920 – 6 February 2011), born Andrée Saab Khoury, was an Egyptian- French poet and novelist of Syrian/Lebanese descent. She is the recipient of numerous literar ...

, ''Le Corps et le Temps'' *1980 – Guy Lagorce, ''Les Héroïques'' *1981 – Annie Saumont, ''Quelquefois dans les cérémonies'' *1982 –

René Depestre René Depestre (born 29 August 1926, Jacmel, Haiti) is a Haitian poet and former communist activist. He is considered to be one of the most prominent figures in Haitian literature. He lived in Cuba as an exile from the Duvalier regime for ma ...

, ''Alléluia pour une femme-jardin'' *1983 –

Raymond Jean Raymond Jean (21 November 1925, Marseille – 3 April 2012, Gargas, Vaucluse, Gargas in the Vaucluse department) was a prolific French writer. He published more than 40 books in many genres, and won the Prix Goncourt de la nouvelle in 1983 for his ...

, ''Un fantasme de Bella B.'' *1984 –

Alain Gerber Alain may refer to: People * Alain (given name), common given name, including list of persons and fictional characters with the name * Alain (surname) * "Alain", a pseudonym for cartoonist Daniel Brustlein * Alain, a standard author abbreviation u ...

, ''Les Jours de vin et de roses'' *1985 – Pierrette Fleutiaux, ''Métamorphoses de la reine'' *1986 –

Jean Vautrin Jean Vautrin (17 May 1933 – 16 June 2015), real name Jean Herman, was a French writer, filmmaker and film critic. Life and career After studying literature at Auxerre, he took first place in the Id'HEC competition. He studied French lite ...

, ''Baby-boom'' *1987 –

Noëlle Châtelet Noëlle Châtelet (); born 16 October 1944 as Noëlle Jospin) is a French writer and lecturer at the Paris Descartes University in the humanities. She is the author of essays, collections of short stories and novels translated into several lang ...

, ''Histoires de bouche'' *1988 –

Jean-Louis Hue Jean-Louis Hue (born 22 April 1949, Évreux) is a French journalist and writer. Biography Hue studied law and journalism. A freelancer for the magazines ' and ''Lui'', he later was appointed deputy editor-in-chief of the ecological monthly '. D ...

, ''Dernières Nouvelles du Père Noël'' *1989 – Paul Fournel, ''Les Athlètes dans leur tête'' *1990 – Jacques Bens, ''Nouvelles désenchantées'' *1991 – Rafaël Pividal, ''Le Goût de la catastrophe'' *1992 – Catherine Lépront, ''Trois gardiennes'' *1993 – Mariette Condroyer, ''Un après-midi plutôt gai'' *1994 –

Jean-Christophe Duchon-Doris ''Jean-Christophe'' (1904‒1912) is the novel in 10 volumes by Romain Rolland for which he received the Prix Femina in 1905 and the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1915. It was translated into English by Gilbert Cannan. The first four volumes ar ...

, ''Les Lettres du baron'' *1996 – Ludovic Janvier, ''En mémoire du lit'' *1997 – François Sureau, ''Le Sphinx de Darwin'' *1999 –

Elvire de Brissac Elvire de Brissac (born 19 January 1939) is a French novelist and biographer. Her awards include the Prix des Deux Magots, Grand prix des lectrices de Elle, Prix Contrepoint, Prix Goncourt, and the Prix Femina, Prix Femina Essai. Biography Elvir ...

, ''Les anges d'en bas'' *2000 – Catherine Paysan, ''Les Désarmés'' *2001 – Stéphane Denis, ''Elle a maigri pour le festival'' *2002 – Sébastien Lapaque, ''Mythologie Française'' *2003 –

, ''Les petites mécaniques'' *2004 – Olivier Adam, ''Passer l'hiver'' *2005 –

Georges-Olivier Châteaureynaud Georges-Olivier Châteaureynaud (born 1947 in Paris) is a French novelist and short story writer. He was awarded the Prix Renaudot in 1982 for the novel ''La Faculté des songes'' and the Prix Goncourt de la nouvelle in 2005 for ''Singe savant ta ...

, ''Singe savant tabassé par deux clowns'' *2006 – Franz Bartelt, ''Le Bar des habitudes'' *2007 – Brigitte Giraud, ''L'Amour est très surestimé'' *2008 –

Jean-Yves Masson Jean-Yves is a French masculine given name. Notable persons with that name include: * Jean-Yves André (born 1977), Mauritian footballer * Jean-Yves Anis (born 1980), French footballer * Yves Jean-Bart (born 1947), Haitian football executive * Jean ...

, ''Ultimes vérités sur la mort du nageur'' *2009 – Sylvain Tesson, ''Une vie à coucher dehors'' *2010 –

Éric-Emmanuel Schmitt Eric-Emmanuel Schmitt (born 28 March 1960) is a Franco–Belgian playwright, short story writer and novelist, as well as a film director. His plays have been staged in over fifty countries all over the world. Life Early years Eric-Emmanuel S ...

, ''Concerto à la mémoire d'un ange'' *2011 –

Bernard Comment Bernard Comment (born 20 April 1960) is a Swiss writer, translator, scriptwriter, and publisher of books. Early life Bernard Comment was born in Porrentruy, Switzerland, on 20 April 1960. He is a son of the artist Jean-François Comment. His elde ...

, ''Tout passe'' *2012 –

Didier Daeninckx Didier Daeninckx (born 27 April 1949 in Saint-Denis, Seine-Saint-Denis) is a French author and left-wing politician of Belgian descent, best known for his '' romans noirs''. Works translated into English *' (''Meurtres pour mémoire'') by Melvill ...

, ''L'Espoir en contrebande'' *2013 – Fouad Laroui, ''L'Étrange Affaire du pantalon de Dassoukine'' *2014 – Nicolas Cavaillès, ''Vie de monsieur Leguat'' *2015 –

Patrice Franceschi Patrice Franceschi (born December 18, 1954 in Toulon) is a French adventurer. Franceschi is also a writer, a documentary & film maker, a sailor and a pilot. He has been awarded several medals and distinctions. Patrice Franceschi was also at the or ...

, ''Première personne du singulier'' *2016 – Marie-Hélène Lafon, ''Histoires'' *2017 –

Raphaël Haroche Raphaël Haroche (born 7 November 1975), professionally known under his mononym Raphael, is a French singer–songwriter and actor. Personal and media life Raphael was born as Raphaël Haroche on 7 November 1975 in Paris, France, and was rais ...

, ''Retourner à la mer'' *2018 – Régis Jauffret, ''Microfictions 2018'' *2019 – Caroline Lamarche, ''Nous sommes à la lisière'' *2020 – Anne Serre, ''Au cœur d'un été tout en or'' *2021 –

Shmuel T. Meyer Shmuel T. Meyer is a French-Israeli author. He won the Prix Goncourt The Prix Goncourt (french: Le prix Goncourt, , ''The Goncourt Prize'') is a prize in French literature, given by the académie Goncourt to the author of "the best and most i ...

, ''Et la guerre est finie...''

Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman

Goncourt Prize for

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

. Awarded in partnership with the municipality of Paris. * 1990 – Hélène de Monferrand, ''Les amies d'Héloïse'' * 1991 – Armande Gobry-Valle, ''Iblis ou la défroque du serpent'' * 1992 – Nita Rousseau, ''Les iris bleus'' * 1993 – Bernard Chambaz, ''L'arbre de vies'' * 1994 –

Bernard Lamarche-Vadel Bernard Lamarche-Vadel (16 July 1949, Avallon. – 2 May 2000, La Croixille in Mayenne) was a French writer, poet, art critic and collector. Life The son of a veterinarian, self-taught, his tastes for art and literature earned him a paternal a ...

, ''Vétérinaires'' * 1995 – Florence Seyvos, ''Les apparitions'' * 1996 –

Yann Moix Yann Moix (, ; born 31 March 1968) is a French author, film director and television presenter. He is the author of ten novels and the recipient of several literary prizes. He has directed three films. He was a columnist on '' On n'est pas couch� ...

, ''Jubilations vers le ciel'' * 1997 – Jean-Christophe Rufin, ''L'abyssin'' * 1998 –

Shan Sa Shan Sa is the pseudonym of Yan Ni (born October 26, 1972, in Beijing, China), a French author and painter. ''The Girl Who Played Go'' was the first of her novels to be published outside France, and won the Prix Goncourt des Lycéens (a prize vo ...

, ''Porte de la paix céleste'' * 1999 – Nicolas Michel, ''Un revenant'' * 2000 – Benjamin Berton, ''Sauvageons'' * 2001 –

Salim Bachi Salim Bachi (born 1971, Algiers) is an Algerian novelist who grew up in Annaba, eastern Algeria. After a one-year stay in Paris in 1995, he returned there in 1997 to study literature. A pensioner at the French Academy in Rome in 2005, he now lives ...

, ''Le chien d'Ulysse'' * 2002 – Soazig Aaron, ''Le non-de Klara'' * 2003 – Claire Delannoy, ''La guerre, l'Amérique'' * 2004 –

Françoise Dorner Françoise Dorner (born 17 June 1949, Paris) is a French actress, screenwriter, author of plays and novels. Biography Actress Dorner appeared for the first time in the cinema thanks to Éric Le Hung who entrusted her in 1975 one of the main rol ...

, ''La fille du rang derrière'' * 2005 – Alain Jaubert, ''Val Paradis'' * 2006 – Hédi Kaddour, ''Waltenberg'' * 2007 – Frédéric Brun, ''Perla'' * 2008 –

Jakuta Alikavazovic Jakuta Alikavazovic (born 6 October 1979 in Paris) is a French writer. Her debut novel ''Corps volatils'' was awarded the prix Goncourt du premier roman. In 2021, her latest novel ''Night As It Falls'' was published in the United Kingdom by Faber ...

, ''Corps volatils'' * 2009 – Jean-Baptiste Del Amo, ''Une éducation libertine'' * 2010 –

Laurent Binet Laurent Binet (born 19 July 1972) is a French writer and university lecturer. His work focuses on the modern political scene in France. Biography The son of a historian,Valérie Trierweiler, October 18, 2010"Laurent Binet, retour sur un succès" ...

, '' HHhH'' * 2011 –

Michel Rostain Michel Rostain (born 28 September 1942, in Mende, Lozère, is a French lyric and musical theater director as well as a writer. Biography Michel Rostain began studying music as an autodidact at the age of seven. He pursued this intensely through ...

, ''Le Fils'' * 2012 – François Garde, ''Ce qu'il advint du sauvage blanc'' * 2013 – Alexandre Postel, ''Un homme effacé'' * 2014 – Frédéric Verger, ''Arden'' * 2015 –

Kamel Daoud Kamel Daoud ( ar, كمال داود; born June 17, 1970) is a French-Algerian writer and journalist. He currently edits the French-language daily '' Le quotidien d’Oran,'' for which he writes a popular column, "Raïna Raïkoum" (Our Opinion, Y ...

, '' The Meursault Investigation'' * 2016 –

Joseph Andras Joseph Andras (born 1984) is a French writer who lives in Le Havre. Biography In 2016, Joseph Andras published his first novel, ''De nos frères blessés'', dedicated to Fernand Iveton, a "pied-noir" worker and independentist. The book was a ...

, '. Author declined the prize. * 2017 – Maryam Madjidi, ''Marx et la poupée'' * 2018 – Mahir Guven, ''Grand frère'' * 2019 – Marie Gauthier, ''Court vêtue'' * 2020 – Maylis Besserie, ''Le Tiers Temps'' * 2021 – Émilienne Malfatto, ''Que sur toi se lamente le Tigre''

Prix Goncourt de la Poésie

Goncourt Prize for poetry. Established through the bequest of Adrien Bertrand (Prix Goncourt in 1914). The award is for the poet's entire career work. * 1985 – Claude Roy * 1986 – postponed to 1987 * 1987 –

Yves Bonnefoy Yves Jean Bonnefoy (24 June 1923, Tours – 1 July 2016 Paris) was a French poet and art historian. He also published a number of translations, most notably the plays of William Shakespeare which are considered among the best in French. He was pr ...

* 1988 – Eugène Guillevic * 1989 –

Alain Bosquet Alain Bosquet, born Anatoliy Bisk (russian: Анато́лий Биск) (28 March 1919 – 17 March 1998), was a French poet. Life In 1925, his family moved to Brussels and he studied at the Université Libre de Bruxelles, then at the Sorbonn ...

* 1990 – Charles Le Quintrec * 1991 – Jean-Claude Renard * 1992 – Georges-Emmanuel Clancier * 1993 – ''not awarded'' * 1994 – ''not awarded'' * 1995 – Lionel Ray * 1996 – André Velter * 1997 –

Maurice Chappaz Maurice Chappaz (21 December 1916, in Lausanne – 15 January 2009, in Martigny) was a French-language Swiss poet and writer. He published more than 40 books and won several literary awards, including his country's most notable award, the Gran ...

* 1998 –

Lorand Gaspar Lorand Gaspar (28 February 1925, in Târgu Mureș – 9 October 2019, in Paris) was a Hungarian–born French poet. Life Gaspar was born in February 1925 in Târgu Mureș, Romania. In 1943, he enrolled at Palatine Joseph University of Technolog ...

* 1999 –

Jacques Réda Jacques Réda (born 24 January 1929 in Lunéville) is a French poet, jazz critic, and ''flâneur''. He was awarded the Prix Valery Larbaud in 1983, and was chief editor of the ''Nouvelle Revue Française'' from 1987 to 1996. Works *''Amen'' (196 ...

* 2000 –

Liliane Wouters Liliane Wouters (5 February 193028 February 2016) was a Belgian poet, playwright, translator, anthologist and essayist. Life Wouters was born in Ixelles and taught school from 1949 to 1990. She met Albert Andrew Lheureux and his Théâtre de l'E ...

* 2001 – Claude Esteban * 2002 –

* 2003 –

Philippe Jaccottet Philippe Jaccottet (; 30 June 1925 – 24 February 2021) was a Swiss Francophone poet and translator. Life and work After completing his studies in Lausanne, he lived for several years in Paris. In 1953, he moved to the town of Grignan in ...

* 2004 –

Jacques Chessex Jacques Chessex (Payerne, 1 March 1934 – Yverdon-les-Bains, 9 October 2009) was a Swiss author and painter. Biography Chessex was born in 1934 in Payerne. From 1951 to 1953, he studied at Collège Saint-Michel in Fribourg, before undertaking ...

* 2005 –

Charles Dobzynski Charles Dobzynski (born 1929 Warsaw - 26 September 2014) was a French poet, journalist and translator. Life His family emigrated to France, where he was barely a year old. He narrowly escaped deportation during World War II. he published his firs ...

* 2006 –

Alain Jouffroy Alain Jouffroy (11 September 1928 – 20 December 2015) was a French writer, poet and artist. Jouffroy was born near Parc Montsouris, Paris. He was the first advocate of an Art Strike and formed the L'Union des Ecrivains during the strikes of ...

* 2007 – Marc Alyn * 2008 – Claude Vigée * 2009 –

Abdellatif Laabi Abdellatif Laâbi is a Moroccan poet, journalist, novelist, playwright, translator and political activist, born in 1942 in Fes, Morocco. Laâbi, then teaching French, founded with other poets the artistic journal Souffles, an important literar ...

* 2010 – Guy Goffette * 2011 –

Vénus Khoury-Ghata Vénus Khoury-Ghata (born 1937 in Bsharri, Lebanon) is a French-Lebanese poet and writer. Early life Venus Khoury-Ghata was born into a Maronite family, the daughter of a soldier that spoke French and a mother that was a peasant. She is the old ...

* 2012 –

Jean-Claude Pirotte Jean-Claude Pirotte (20 October 1939 – 24 May 2014) was a Belgian writer, poet and painter. A French language writer, his 2006 novel, ''Une adolescence en Gueldre'', won the Prix des Deux Magots. Life Early years Jean-Claude Pirotte was born ...

* 2013 – Charles Juliet * 2014 – ''not awarded'' * 2015 – William Cliff * 2016 – Le Printemps des Poètes * 2017 –

Franck Venaille Franck Venaille (1936 – 23 August 2018) was a French poet and writer.Anise Koltz * 2019 – Yvon Le Men * 2020 –

Michel Deguy Michel Deguy (23 May 1930 – 16 February 2022) was a French poet and translator. Biography Deguy was born in Paris on 23 May 1930. He taught French literature at the Universite de Paris VIII (Saint-Denis) for many years. He also served as dir ...

* 2021 –

Jacques Roubaud Jacques Roubaud (; born 5 December 1932 in Caluire-et-Cuire, Rhône) is a French poet, writer and mathematician Life and career Jacques Roubaud taught Mathematics at University of Paris X Nanterre and Poetry at EHESS. A member of the Oulipo gr ...

Bourse Goncourt Jeunesse

Goncrout Prize for children's literature. Awarded in partnership with the municipality of Fontvieille. Discontinued after 2007. *1999 – Claude Guillot and

Fabienne Burckel Fabienne is a feminine French and English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, o ...

, ''Le fantôme de Shanghai'' *2000 – Eric Battut, ''Rouge Matou'' *2002 –

Fred Bernard Fred may refer to: People * Fred (name), including a list of people and characters with the name Mononym * Fred (cartoonist) (1931–2013), pen name of Fred Othon Aristidès, French * Fred (footballer, born 1949) (1949–2022), Frederico R ...

and François Roca, ''Jeanne and le Mokélé'' and ''Jesus Betz'' *2003 – Yvan Pommaux, ''Avant la Télé'' *2004 – Jean Chalon and Martine Delerm, ''Un arbre dans la lune'' *2005 – Natali Fortier, ''Lili Plume'' *2006 – Bernard du Boucheron and

Nicole Claveloux Nicole Claveloux (; born June 23, 1940) is a French painter, illustrator and comic book artist. Biography She was born in Saint-Étienne and studied fine arts there. She moved to Paris in 1966, where she worked as an illustrator and comics artist ...

, ''Un roi, une princesse and une pieuvre'' *2007 – Véronique Ovaldé and Joëlle Jolivet, ''La très petite Zébuline''

Prix Goncourt des Lycéens

Notes and references

Notes References {{Authority control Goncourt Awards established in 1903 First book awards Short story awards Goncourt Biography awards 1903 establishments in France Children's literary awards

History

Controversies

Selection and voting process

Winners

Other awards

Prix Goncourt de la Biographie

Prix Goncourt de la Nouvelle

Prix Goncourt du Premier Roman

Prix Goncourt de la Poésie

Bourse Goncourt Jeunesse

Prix Goncourt des Lycéens

See also

Notes and references