Petrarca-Preis was a European literary and translation award named after the Italian Renaissance poet Francesco Petrarca or Petrarch. Founded in 1975 by German art historian and publisher Hubert Burda,[1] it was primarily designed for contemporary European poets, but some occasional non-Europeans appear in the list of laureates.
The award was first distributed over a twenty-year period (1975–95) and included the categories Literature and Translation. Then it was followed for a decade (1999–2009) by a Hermann-Lenz-Preis and resumed in 2010. The first jury consisted of fluxus participant Bazon Brock, poets Michael Krüger and Nicolas Born, and novelist Peter Handke. When the prize resumed in 2010, Peter Handke and Michael Krüger still were on the jury, together with the authors Alfred Kolleritsch (himself awarded in 1978) and Peter Hamm. "We want to support a national and regional culture in Europe", founder Hubert Burda initially said at the 2011 awards. An explicit goal was to watch out all over Europe for authors who gave a distinctive voice to their prevailing culture.[2] The Petrarca-Preis consisted of €20,000, and it could be shared between several winners. The ceremony was usually held in places which Francesco Petrarch at some point visited.