Hans Keilson Literature Prize 2026

Hans Keilson
(1936-2011)

In our series "Against Forgetting", we commemorate the honorary citizen of Bad Freienwalde with this event.

Hans Keilson was born in Bad Freienwalde in 1909. The physician and writer emigrated to the Netherlands in 1936, where he lived until his death in 2011. His first novel, "Das Leben geht weiter" (Life Goes On), was published by S. Fischer in 1933. His novella "Komödie in Moll" (Comedy in Minor Key) has been translated into numerous languages ​​and became a worldwide bestseller in 2010. Hans Keilson received numerous awards, most recently the Johann Heinrich Merck Prize, the Moses Mendelssohn Medal, the Humboldt Medal, and the Welt Literature Prize.

Hans Keilson Literature Prize 2026

For the second time, we will be awarding the new Hans Keilson Literature Prize of the city of Bad Freienwalde as part of this event.

The Hans Keilson Literature Prize should be awarded every two years to authors who reflect on the topics of the Holocaust, i.e., the systematic murder of entire ethnic groups, especially the Jews, by National Socialism, right-wing extremism and anti-Semitism.

We thank the Sparkasse MOL, the district of MOL, and the town of Bad Freienwalde for their support. We also thank our club member, Prof. Eberhard Görner, the initiator of this project, for his commitment.

Jury:

Volker Braun - writer

Michael Faber - Publisher

Prof. Eberhard Görner - dramaturge/author

Christoph Hein - Writer

Dr. Reinhard Schmook - Folklorist/Author

Entry is free!

(You also have the option of supporting our association with a donation)

• Hof-Theater