Recognized talent: Cikada Prize Chairman Lars Vargo (right) gives the ceramic artwork as part of the prize to poet Y Nhi.

The prize was granted to the HCM City-based poet at an award ceremony held last night at the Swedish Embassy in Ha Noi.

This is the first time that the award has gone to a Vietnamese poet. Earlier recipients were from Japan, South Korea and China.

Established in 2004 on the centennial of the Swedish Nobel laureate Harry Martinson's birth, the prize is for East Asian poets in recognition of the importance East Asian poetry held for Harry Martinson.

The prize consists of SEK 20,000 (about US$2,300) and a ceramic artwork by Swedish artist Gunilla Sundstrom.

Y Nhi was born in 1944 in Hoi An. Through her experience of the Viet Nam war, she has woven together memories of individual destinies with expressive images from everyday chores.

Her works include Trai Tim Noi Nho (Yearning Heart, 1974, along with Lam Thi My Da), Den Voi Dong Song (Come to the River, 1978), Nguoi Dan Ba Ngoi Dan (Knitting Woman, 1985), Mouse Tuyet (1991) and Vuon (Garden, 1998).

Her most recent book is the 2008 essay collection Nhung Guong Mat – Nhung Cau Tho (Faces – Poems).

In Sweden, Nhi and her works have been presented in The Anthology Yesterday – Twelve Vietnamese Poets. Her poems also have been translated into Russian, Spanish, German, French and English.

Swedish Ambassador to Viet Nam Camilla Mellander said, "The Cikada Prize contributes greatly to the embassy's efforts to promote cultural exchange between our countries. For several years the Swedish development co-operation focussed strongly on cultural projects in different areas, like literature, art, music and support to artists just to mention a few. Thanks to this co-operation, the works of numerous Vietnamese authors have been translated into Swedish and that has brought Sweden and Viet Nam closer to each other."

She said culture is a vital part of the society and it influences how people perceive the world.