List of Czech writers

Below is an alphabetical list of notable Czech writers.

This is a dynamic list and may never be able to satisfy particular standards for completeness. You can help by editing the page to add missing items, with references to reliable sources.

A

• Daniel Adam z Veleslavína (1546–1599), lexicographer, publisher, translator, and writer
• Michal Ajvaz (born 1949), novelist and poet, magic realist
• Karel Slavoj Amerling, also known as Karl Slavomil Amerling or Slavoj Strnad Klatovský (1807–1884), teacher, writer, and philosopher
• Hana Andronikova (born 1967), writer
• Jakub Arbes (1840–1914), writer and journalist, realist
• Ludvík Aškenazy (1921–1986), writer and journalist
• Josef Augusta (1903–1968), paleontologist, geologist, and science popularizer

B

• Jindřich Šimon Baar (1869–1925), Catholic priest and writer, realist, author of the so-called country prose
• Bohuslav Balbín (1621–1688), writer and Jesuit
• Josef Barák (1833–1883), politician, journalist, and poet, member of the Májovci literary group
• Eduard Bass (1888–1946), writer, journalist, singer, and actor
• Jan František Beckovský (1658–1725), writer, historian, translator, and priest
• Kamil Bednář (1912–1972), poet, writer and translator
• Vavřinec Benedikt z Nudožer (1555–1615), mathematician, teacher, poet, translator, and philologist of Slovak origin, author of a Czech grammar
• Jan Beneš (1936–2007), writer and political prisoner
• Božena Benešová (1873–1936), prose writer.
• Alexandra Berková (1949–2008), novelist and screenwriter
• Zdeňka Bezděková (1907–1999), writer, philosopher and translator
• Petr Bezruč (1867–1958), poet and writer
• Konstantin Biebl (1898–1951), poet
• Jan Blahoslav (1523–1571), humanistic writer and composer
• Ivan Blatný (1919–1990), poet, member of Skupina 42 (Group 42)
• Lev Blatný (1894–1930), poet, author, theatre critic and Dramaturg
• Anna Bolavá (born 1981) novelist and poet
• Egon Bondy (1930–2007), philosopher, writer, and poet, the main personality of the Prague underground
• Tereza Boučková (born 1957), writer, dramatist and screenwriter
• Zuzana Brabcová (born 1959), novelist
• Arthur Breisky (1885–1910), writer, translator, playwright
• Otokar Březina (1868–1929), Symbolist poet and essayist
• Bedřich Bridel (1619–1680), baroque writer, poet, and missionary
• Max Brod (1884–1968), Jewish German-speaking author, composer, and journalist

C

• Josef Čapek (1887–1945)
• Karel Čapek (1890–1938)
• Karel Matěj Čapek-Chod (1860–1927)
• Svatopluk Čech (1846–1908)
• František Čelakovský (1799–1852), poet and translator
• Jan Čep (1902–1974)
• Zuzana Černínová z Harasova (1600–1654), letter writer
• Petr Chelčický (c. 1390 – c. 1460)
• Václav Cílek (born 1955), geologist and science popularizer

D

• Jakub Deml (1878–1961), priest and writer
• Dominika Dery (born 1975), poet, playwright, journalist, and memoirist, former ballet dancer
• Ivan Diviš (1924–1999), significant poet and essayist of the 2nd half of the 20th century
• Josef Dobrovský (1753–1829), linguist, lexicographer, and literary historian
• Jan Drda (1915–1970), prose writer and playwright
• Jaroslav Durych (1886–1962), prose writer, poet, playwright, journalist and surgeon
• Viktor Dyk (1877–1931), poet, prose writer, playwright and politician

E

• Pavel Eisner (1889–1958), writer, poet and translator
• Karel Jaromír Erben (1811–1870)
• Karla Erbová (born 1933), poet, prose writer, and journalist.[1

F

• Ota Filip (born 1930)
• Otakar Fischer (1883–1938), translator, poet, literary historian and playwright.
• Viktor Fischl (1912–2006), poet, novelist and diplomat.
• Smil Flaška z Pardubic (1340s-1403).
• František Flos (1864–1961), novelist
• Jaroslav Foglar (1907–1999), novelist.
• Jaroslav Erik Frič (born 1949), poet and musician
• Luděk Frýbort (1933–2019), writer
• Norbert Frýd (1913–1976), writer, novelist, journalist and diplomat
• Emilie Fryšová (1840–1920), teacher, ethnographer and writer
• Julius Fučík (1903–1943)
• Renáta Fučíková (born 1964), illustrator and author of children's books
• Ladislav Fuks (1923–1994), novelist.

G

• František Gellner (1881–1914), poet, short-story writer and anarchist.
• Adam Georgiev (born 1980), writer of gay literature
• Arnošt Goldflam (born 1949), playwright, director and actor.
• Hermann Grab (1903–1949), German-language writer
• Ladislav Grosman (1921–1981), novelist and screenwriter.
• Jiří Gruša (born 1938), poet, prose writer, translator, literary critic, and politician

H

• Václav Hájek z Libočan († 1553)
• František Halas (1901–1949)
• Vítězslav Hálek (1835–1874)
• Jaroslav Hašek (1883–1923)
• Jiří Haussmann (1898–1923)
• Václav Havel (1936–2011)
• Karel Havlíček Borovský (1821–1856)
• Iva Hercíková (1935–2007)
• Ignát Herrmann (1854–1935)
• Adolf Heyduk (1835–1923)
• Jaroslav Hilbert (1871–1936)
• Josef Hiršal (1920–2003), translator and poet
• Karel Hlaváček (1874–1898)
• Daniela Hodrová (born 1946)
• Vladimír Holan (1905–1980)
• Josef Holeček (1853–1929), South Bohemian writer, realist, author of the so-called country prose, and translator (Kalevala)
• Miroslav Holub (1923–1998), poet and immunologist
• Josef Hora (1891–1945)
• Egon Hostovský (1908–1973)
• Bohumil Hrabal (1914–1997)
• Petra Hůlová (born 1979), novelist, playwright, journalist
• Anna Regina Husová (1857–1945), teacher, writer and cultural historian
• Jan Hus (c. 1369/1370–1415)

J

• Vlasta Javořická (1890–1979)
• Josef Jedlička (1927–1990)
• Milena Jesenská (1896–1944), journalist, writer, and translator
• Alois Jirásek (1851–1930)
• Ivan Martin Jirous (1944–2011)
• Josef Jungmann (1773–1847), lexicographer, linguist, translator, and poet

K

• Franz Kafka (1883–1924)
• Siegfried Kapper (1821–1879), poet, writer, translator
• Jiří Karásek ze Lvovic (1871–1951)
• Egon Kisch (1885–1948), German-language writer
• Václav Kliment Klicpera (1792–1859), playwright
• Ivan Klíma (1931–2025), novelist and playwright
• Ladislav Klíma (1878–1928), philosopher and novelist
• Václav František Kocmánek (1607–1679)
• Pavel Kohout (born 1928), novelist, playwright, and poet
• Ján Kollár (1793–1852), Slovak poet
• Jan Amos Komenský (1592–1670)
• Karel Konrád (1899–1971)
• Vladimír Körner (born 1939), novelist
• Kosmas (c. 1045 – 1125)
• Petr Král (born 1941)
• Eliška Krásnohorská (1847–1926)
• Jiří Kratochvil (born 1940)
• Jan Křesadlo (1926–1995)
• Tomáš Krystlík (born 1947)
• Milan Kundera (1929–2023)

L

• František Langer (1888–1965), dramatist and prose writer
• Květa Legátová (1919–2012), novelist and writer
• Paul Leppin (1878–1945), German-language writer
• Gustav Leutelt (1860–1947), German-language writer
• Věra Linhartová (born 1938), writer, art historian
• Arnošt Lustig (1926–2011), novelist, short story writer and dramatist
• Óndra Łysohorsky (1905–1989), poet

M

• Karel Hynek Mácha (1810–1836)
• Josef Svatopluk Machar (1864–1942)
• Jiří Mahen (1882–1939)
• Marie Majerová (1882–1967), novelist.
• Jiří Marek (1914–1994), writer, journalist, screenwriter
• Rudolf Medek (1890–1940)
• Adam Václav Michna z Otradovic (1600–1676), composer and organ player
• Daniel Micka (born 1963), writer and translator from English
• Libuše Moníková (1945–1998), German-language writer
• Vilém Mrštík (1863–1912), novelist
• Jiří Mucha (1915–1991)

N

• Ondřej Neff (born 1945)
• Vladimír Neff (1909–1983)
• Božena Němcová (1820–1862)
• Ludvík Němec (born 1957), novelist.
• Jan Neruda (1834–1891)
• Josef Nesvadba (1926–2005)
• Stanislav Kostka Neumann (1875–1947), poet and novelist.
• Vítězslav Nezval (1900–1958)
• Arne Novák (1880–1939)
• Teréza Nováková (1853–1912), feminist, writer and editor.
• Karel Nový (1890–1980)

O

• Ivan Olbracht (1882–1952), writer, journalist and translator.
• Jiří Orten (1919–1941), poet.
• Jan Otčenášek (1924–1979), novelist and playwright.

P

• František Palacký (1798–1876), historian
• Vladimír Páral (born 1932), novelist
• Ota Pavel (1930–1973)
• Jan Pelc (born 1957)
• Ferdinand Peroutka (1895–1978)
• Josef Věromír Pleva (1899–1985)
• Alexej Pludek (1923–2002)
• Hynek z Poděbrad (1452–1492)
• Karel Poláček (1892–1945)
• Gabriela Preissová (1862–1946)
• Lenka Procházková (born 1951), prose writer

R

• Karel Václav Rais (1859–1926), realist novelist, author of the so-called country prose, numerous books for youth and children, and several poems
• Bohuslav Reynek (1892–1971)
• Sylvie Richterová (born 1945), poet and literary scholar
• Jaroslav Rudiš (born 1972), writer, journalist and musician.

S

• Petr Šabach (1951–2017)
• Pavel Josef Šafařík (1795–1861), Slovak Slavicist, literary historian, and poet
• František Xaver Šalda (1867–1937), critic and essayist.
• Zdena Salivarová (1933–2025), writer, translator and publisher
• Michal Šanda (born 1965)
• Prokop František Šedivý (1764 – c. 1810), playwright, actor, and translator of the National Revival era
• Jaroslav Seifert (1901–1986)
• Ondřej Sekora (1899–1967), writer, journalist, cartoonist, illustrator, caricaturist, graphic
• Karol Sidon (born 1942)
• Jan Skácel (1922–1989)
• Vladimír Škutina (1931–1995)
• Josef Škvorecký (1924–2012)
• Josef Václav Sládek (1845–1912), poet.
• Ladislav Smoček (born 1932), playwright and theater director
• Antonín Sova (1864–1928), Impressionist and Symbolist poet
• Fráňa Šrámek (1877–1952), anarchist, impressionist, and vitalist, poet, novelist, and dramatist
• Pavel Šrut (1940–2018)
• Petr Stančík (born 1968)
• Antal Stašek (1843–1931)
• Vladimír Šlechta (born 1960)
• Ela Stein-Weissberger (1930–2018), biographer
• Jan Nepomuk Štěpánek (1783–1844), playwright
• Tomáš Štítný ze Štítného (c. 1333 – 1401/09)
• Eduard Štorch (1878–1956)
• Františka Stránecká (1839–1888), writer and collector of Moravian folklore
• Ladislav Stroupežnický (1850–1892)
• Karolína Světlá (1830–1899)
• Růžena Svobodová (1868–1920)

T

• Karel Teige (1900–1951), art critic, journalist, and translator
• Felix Téver (1852 - 1932), pen name of Anna Lauermannová-Mikšová, writer and literary salon host
• Jindra Tichá (born 1937), writer and academic
• Pavel Tigrid (1917–2003), political journalist and essayist.
• Jan Tománek (born 1978) - Movie director and writer
• Filip Topol (1965–2013)
• Jáchym Topol (born 1962)
• Josef Topol (born 1935), playwright.
• Václav Beneš Třebízský (1849–1884)
• Josef Kajetán Tyl (1808–1856), playwright, writer and actor.

U

• Milan Uhde (born 1936), playwright and politician.
• Ota Ulč (born 1930), Czech-American author and columnist
• Hermann Ungar (1893–1929), German-language writer
• Eli Urbanová (1922–2012), Esperantist novelist and poet

V

• Josef Váchal (1884–1969)
• Ludvík Vaculík (1926–2015)
• Edvard Valenta (1901–1978)
• Vladislav Vančura (1891–1942)
• Fan Vavřincová (1917–2012)
• Jaroslav Velinský (1932–2012)
• Michal Viewegh (born 1962)
• Johannes von Tepl (c. 1350 – c. 1415)
• Jiří Voskovec (1905–1981)
• Alena Vostrá (1938–1992), novelist
• Jaroslav Vrchlický (1853–1912)

W

• Alena Wagnerová (born 1936)
• Magdalena Wagnerová (born 1960), writer and editor
• Jiří Weil (1900–1959)
• Richard Weiner (1884–1937)
• Jan Weiss (1892–1972)
• Jiří Weiss (1913–2004)
• Franz Werfel (1890–1945)
• Ivan Wernisch (born 1942)
• Zikmund Winter (1846–1912)
• Jana Witthedová (born 1948)
• Jiří Wolker (1900–1924)

Z

• Jan Zábrana (1931–1984)
• Jan Zahradníček (1905–1960)
• Pavel Zajíček (born 1951)
• Vojtěch Zamarovský (1919–2006)
• Antonín Zápotocký (1884–1957)
• Julius Zeyer (1841–1901), poet, dramatist and novelist.
• Miroslav Zikmund (1919–2021)
• Karel Zlín (born 1937)
• Anna Zonová (born 1962)

See also

• List of Czech women writers