Presented the Holberg Prize

Stephen Greenblatt is a literary scholar and professor at Harvard University. He received the award for his groundbreaking research on Shakespeare and the Renaissance and for his influential voice in the humanities over the past 40 years. He has published 12 books and numerous articles.

A leading Shakespearian scholar

Dr Greenblatt is regarded as one of the foremost experts on William Shakespeare and Renaissance literature. His biography of Shakespeare entitled Will in the World: How Shakespeare Became Shakespeare from 2004 is his most popular book, and has been translated into 16 languages. In its decision the jury writes that Greenblatt “has provided us a vocabulary through which we can approach the task of understanding our times and its history”.

Dr Greenblatt is recognised as one of the founders of “New Historicism” in the 1980s, a critical approach that seeks to understand literature through its social and cultural context. He has received a number of other awards and recognitions, including the National Book Award in 2011 and the Pulitzer Prize for general non-fiction in 2012, both for his book The Swerve: How the World Became Modern.

The Holberg Prize

The Holberg Prize is named after the Danish-Norwegian writer Ludvig Holberg. The prize helps to increase awareness of the value of academic scholarship within the arts, humanities, social sciences, law and theology. The Holberg Prize was established by the Storting, and is administered by the University of Bergen on assignment from the Ministry of Education and Research. The prize winner receives NOK 4.5 million.

The Nils Klim Prize awarded to Swedish researcher

The Nils Klim Prize was also presented in Bergen. The prize is awarded annually to Nordic scholars under the age of 35 for outstanding contributions within the arts and humanities, social sciences, law or theology. This year’s winner is Sanja Bogojević, a Swedish professor of legal studies. She won the award on the basis of her research on the EU, environmental law and emissions trade. Her research resulted in the book “Emissions Trading Schemes: Markets, States and Law” from 2013.

The Nils Klim Prize is named after the hero of Ludvig Holberg’s only novel, Nils Klim’s Subterranean Journey. The prize winner receives NOK 250 000.