Aleksandar Tišma
Aleksandar Tišma (Александар Тишма; 16 January 1924 – 16 February 2003) was a Serbian writer, best known for his "Novi Sad" trilogy of novels: The Book of Blam (1972), The Use of Man (1976), and Kapo (1987).
Aleksandar Tišma

Branko Lučić · Matica srpska, Novi Sad, Serbia · CC BY-SA 3.0
- Name
- Aleksandar Tišma
- Born
- 16 January 1924
- Birthplace
- Horgoš, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes
- Died
- 16 February 2003
- Place of death
- Novi Sad, Serbia and Montenegro
- Education
- University of Belgrade
- Occupation
- Novelist, translator
- Awards
- NIN Award (1976) Austrian State Prize for European Literature (1995)
- Nationality
- Kingdom of Yugoslavia · Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia · Serbia
- Honours
- NIN Prize · Andrić Prize · Branko's Award · Leipzig Book Award for European Understanding · Austrian State Prize for European Literature
- Languages
- Serbian
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Aleksandar Tišma (Александар Тишма; 16 January 1924 – 16 February 2003) was a Serbian writer, best known for his "Novi Sad" trilogy of novels: The Book of Blam (1972), The Use of Man (1976), and Kapo (1987).
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wikidata · Q699950 · wikipedia · Aleksandar Tišma
In this article
Key facts
Key facts
• Name — Aleksandar Tišma • Native Name — Александар Тишма • Born — 16 January 1924 • Birthplace — Horgoš, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes • Died — 16 February 2003 • Place of death — Novi Sad, Serbia and Montenegro • Education — University of Belgrade • Occupation — Novelist, translator • Awards — NIN Award (1976) Austrian State Prize for European Literature (1995)
Biography
Biography
Tišma was born in Horgoš, Kanjiža on the present-day border of Serbia and Hungary, to a Serbian father and a Hungarian-speaking Jewish mother. He completed his elementary and middle school education in Novi Sad before going on to study economy and French language and literature in Budapest during World War II, finally graduating in Germanistics from the University of Belgrade Faculty of Philology. From 1945 to 1949 he worked as a journalist for Slobodna Vojvodina and Borba newspapers, and then as editor and redactor at Matica srpska until his retirement in 1982. Aleksandar Tišma also translated works of other authors from German and Hungarian into Serbian, notably Imre Kertész's novel Fatelessness. He became a corresponding member of the Vojvodina Academy of Sciences and Arts (VANU) in 1979 and was promoted into a regular member in 1984, and subsequently became a regular member of the Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts (SANU) upon their fusion 1992. From 2002, he was also a member of the Academy of Arts, Berlin. Tišma's works were concerned with themes of humanity's search for freedom, and suffering, violence, horror and guilt people encounter along the way. Along with Czesław Miłosz, Danilo Kiš and György Konrád, his works are sometimes classified as part of "Mitteleuropa" literature—dark and contemplative, yet humanistic and thought-provoking. In political affairs, Tišma often publicly supported and acted in favor of pro-democratic movements in Serbia, although he was reluctant to openly join any political organization. In 1993, as a sign of disagreement with Slobodan Milošević's regime and increasing nationalist hysteria in the country, he left Serbia and lived in self-imposed exile in France until 1996. He died in 2003, aged 79, in Novi Sad. His works have been translated into about 20 languages. Among other awards, he received the Novi Sad October Award (1966), the NIN Award for best novel of the year (for The Use of Man, 1976), the Andrić Prize (1979), the Austrian State Prize for European Literature (1995), and the French National Order of Merit (1997).
Novels
Novels
• Za crnom devojkom (1969). After a Black-Haired Girl • Knjiga o Blamu (1972). The Book of Blam, trans. Michael Henry Heim (Harcourt, 1998; New York Review Books, 2016). • Upotreba čoveka (1976). The Use of Man, trans. Ian Johnson (Harcourt, 1988) and Bernard Johnson (Faber and Faber, 1990; New York Review Books, 2014). • Begunci (1981). Fugitives • Vere i zavere (1983). Faith and Treason • Kapo (1987). Kapo, trans. Richard Williams (Harcourt, 1993; New York Review Books, 2020). • Široka vrata (1989). The Wide Door • Koje volimo (1990). Those We Love
Poetry
Poetry
• Naseljeni svet (1956). Inhabited World • Krčma (1961). Pub
Other
Other
• Drugde (1963). Elsewhere, travels • Šta sam govorio (1996). What I Spoke, interviews • Dnevnik 1942-2001 (2001). Diary, interviews
Life and career
Dated record
Life and career
The full dated record · 2 entries
1924
Aleksandar Tišma born at Horgoš.
2003
Aleksandar Tišma died at Novi Sad.
Places
Named by the record
Places
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Novi Sad
Residences
Horgoš.
Birth place
Collections of short stories
Collections of short stories
• Krivice (1965). Guilts • Nasilje (1965). Violence • Mrtvi ugao (1973). The Dead Angle • Povratak miru (1977). Return to the Peace • Škola bezbožništva (1978). School of Atheism • Hiljadu i druga noć (1987). A Thousand and Second Night
Recognition and collections
Where the work is held
Recognition and collections
Aleksandar Tišma received NIN Prize, Andrić Prize, Branko's Award, Leipzig Book Award for European Understanding and Austrian State Prize for European Literature.
Citations
References
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Partially resolved
The Encyclopedia exists whether or not anything is for sale. Corrections are recorded rather than overwritten, and every version of this record is kept. Published 14 August 2026.
Elsewhere in Books
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- Aleksandar VuksanovićAuthor
- Aleksandar VutimskiAuthor
- Aleksander BaumgardtenAuthor
- Aleksander Benedykt SobieskiAuthor
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