### Mia Couto Wins 2024 FIL Award for Literature in Romance Languages
**Guadalajara, Jalisco** – The renowned Portuguese writer António Emílio Leite Couto, who writes under the name Mia Couto, has been honored with the 2024 FIL Award for Literature in Romance Languages. Born in 1955 in Beira, Mozambique, Couto is celebrated for his linguistic innovation and his ability to weave together chronicles, short stories, and novels.
The jury for the 2024 FIL Award included esteemed members like Carlos Reis (Portugal), Graciela Montaldo (Argentina), Jerónimo Pizarro (Colombia), Juan Luis Cebrián (Spain), Lucía Melgar (Mexico), Oana Fotache Dubălaru (Romania), and Vittoria Borsò (Germany). They highlighted Couto’s work for its ability to reframe relationships among Portuguese-speaking communities and draw attention to the African continent’s historical, cultural, and geopolitical connections. His narrative invites readers to engage differently with history and the natural world.
This year, the FIL Award for Literature in Romance Languages received 58 nominations, featuring 49 authors from 20 countries. Couto’s notable works include novels like “Sleepwalking Land,” “The Last Flight of the Flamingo,” “The Lioness’ Confusion,” and “The Tuner of Silences,” along with short story collections such as “Voices Made Night” and “Every Man is a Race.”
Couto has garnered numerous accolades, including the National Literature Prize in Portugal (1993), the National Literature Prize in Mozambique (1995), the Camões Prize (2013), and the Neustadt International Prize for Literature (2014). He is also a member of the Brazilian Academy of Letters.
Couto is the fifth Portuguese-language author to win the FIL award, following in the footsteps of Nélida Piñón (1995), Rubem Fonseca (2003), António Lobo Antunes (2008), and Lídia Jorge (2020). The FIL Award for Literature in Romance Languages, organized by several cultural and educational institutions in Guadalajara, includes a $150,000 prize and recognizes the lifetime achievement of authors in any literary genre. The award ceremony will take place at the opening of the FIL Guadalajara on Saturday, November 30.
**Past Winners of the FIL Award for Literature in Romance Languages**:
– 1991: Nicanor Parra
– 1992: Juan José Arreola
– 1993: Eliseo Diego
– 1994: Julio Ramón Ribeyro
– 1995: Nélida Piñón
– 1996: Augusto Monterroso
– 1997: Juan Marsé
– 1998: Olga Orozco
– 1999: Sergio Pitol
– 2000: Juan Gelman
– 2001: Juan García Ponce
– 2002: Cintio Vitier
– 2003: Rubem Fonseca
– 2004: Juan Goytisolo
– 2005: Tomás Segovia
– 2006: Carlos Monsiváis
– 2007: Fernando del Paso
– 2008: António Lobo Antunes
– 2009: Rafael Cadenas
– 2010: Margo Glantz
– 2011: Fernando Vallejo
– 2012: Alfredo Bryce Echenique
– 2013: Yves Bonnefoy
– 2014: Claudio Magris
– 2015: Enrique Vila-Matas
– 2016: Norman Manea
– 2017: Emmanuel Carrère
– 2018: Ida Vitale
– 2019: David Huerta
– 2020: Lídia Jorge
– 2021: Diamela Eltit
– 2022: Mircea Cărtărescu
– 2023: Coral Bracho
– 2024: Mia Couto
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### **Additional News Update**
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