Guatemala to repatriate Nobel laureate Miguel Ángel Asturias

The remains of Nobel Prize-winning writer Miguel Ángel Asturias will be repatriated to Guatemala on November 12, following more than 50 years in France. Asturias, who won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1967, passed away in exile in Madrid in 1974 and was interred at the Père Lachaise cemetery in Paris.

The return is being organized by the government of President Bernardo Arévalo de León in coordination with the author's family. Guatemalan Minister of Culture and Sports, Luis Méndez Salinas, stated that the repatriation should serve as an opportunity for citizens to rediscover the work of one of the nation's most significant literary figures.

A series of cultural tributes are scheduled, including an exhibition of manuscripts and documents at the National Palace of Culture opening on November 3. Additionally, the play ‘La tumba del Gran Lengua’ by Joaquín Orellana will be presented. The commemorative activities will conclude with Asturias's interment at the Miguel Ángel Asturias Cultural Center on November 15.