Polish Women Writers

Olga Tokarczuk is a Polish writer and public intellectual. She is one of the most critically acclaimed authors of her generation in Poland. She was awarded the 2018 Nobel Prize in Literature, becoming the first female Polish writer to receive the honor. Her works have been translated into almost 40 languages. She is also a clinical psychologist. 

Polish cosmetologist and author Blanka Lipinska is best-recognised for her 365 Dni trilogy, first novel of which was adapted into an eponymous film. She co-wrote screenplay of the film and also did a cameo. English translation of first book of the trilogy was released in January 2021, while its second book titled That Day is scheduled for a 2022 release.

Wisława Szymborska was a Polish poet, essayist, and translator. In 1996, she was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature for her poetry. Her works have been translated into numerous languages, including English, Arabic, Japanese, Hebrew, and Chinese. She also translated French literature, especially Baroque poetry, into Polish. She actively wrote until her death at the age of 88. 

Antonina Zabinska worked as a Warsaw Zoo director along with her husband, Jan. She was also a promising author. During World War II, she and her husband sheltered countless Jews in their zoo. Her story, penned in her own diary, Ludzie i zwierzęta, later inspired Diane Ackerman’s book The Zookeeper's Wife.

Polish writer and painter Roma Ligocka, who fled from the Kraków Ghetto during German occupation of Poland in Second World War, is best known for her works as a successful set designer in theatre, film and television, and for her memoir The Girl in the Red Coat. Other novels of Ligocka include Znajoma z lustre and Kobieta w podróży.

Agnieszka Osiecka was a Polish poet, playwright, TV writer, film director, and journalist. Widely regarded as an icon of Polish culture, Osiecka was also a prolific songwriter, having penned the lyrics of over 2000 songs. Thanks to her large body of work, Osiecka is regarded as one of the most prolific and important persons in postwar Polish history and culture.  

Maria Konopnicka was a Polish poet, children's writer, novelist, translator, critic, journalist, and activist for Polish independence and women's rights. Counted among the most prominent poets of Poland's Positivist period, Maria Konopnicka first gained prominence after the publication of her poem In the Mountains. A number of memorials and statues have been erected across Poland in her honor.

Eliza Orzeszkowa was a Polish novelist whose works revolved around the social and political conditions of her then-occupied country. One of the most important writers of the Positivism movement in Poland, Eliza Orzeszkowa was nominated for the prestigious Nobel Prize in Literature in 1905 along with Leo Tolstoy and Henryk Sienkiewicz.

Maria Dąbrowska was a Polish writer, essayist, novelist, playwright, and journalist. She is best remembered for her historical novel Nights and Days, which were written in four separate volumes between 1932 and 1934. Maria Dąbrowska received five nominations for the Nobel Prize in Literature. In 1935, she was honored by the Polish Academy of Literature with the prestigious Golden Laurel. 

Klementyna Suchanow is a Polish activist, writer, and editor. She is credited with co-founding a women's rights social movement called All-Poland Women's Strike. Despite being arrested on a couple of occasions for protesting against the government and officials, Klementyna Suchanow continues to participate in street protests for various causes. Her biography Gombrowicz: I, the Genius has received critical acclaim.

One of the best novelists and playwrights from the Naturalist school of Poland, Gabriela Zapolska had initially had a failed acting career. Of her countless works, only a few survive, such as the farce Mrs. Dulska’s Morality. Highly influenced by naturalist author Émile Zola, she also included a journalistic tone.

Remembered as the queen of lyrical poetry and compared to Greek poet Sappho, Maria Pawlikowska-Jasnorzewska was a pioneering figure of Polish lyrical poetry. The daughter of Polish painter Wojciech Kossak, she is known for works such as Raw Silk and A Rose and Burning Forests.

Maria Kuncewiczowa was a Polish novelist and writer whose works explored motherhood, femininity, sexuality, and desire. She achieved national and international fame after the release of her 1936 psychological novel Cudzoziemka, which was translated into many languages. In 1938, Maria Kuncewiczowa was honored by the Polish Academy of Literature with the prestigious Golden Laurel award.

Vera Maslovskaya was a Belarusian poet, teacher, and nationalist. Working for an independent Belarus during the interwar period, Maslovskaya established some of the first schools that imparted education in the Belarusian language. Also a socialist, Vera Maslovskaya is often counted among the originators of the Belarusian women's movement.