LAGERLOF, SELMA (1858— ), Swedish author, was born on Nov. 20, 1858, at Marbacke in Vermland where she grew up in a province rich in local tradition, and became a teacher in Landskrona. In a literary competition in a weekly paper she won the highest prize for some chapters of her first work Gosta Berlings Saga (Eng. trans., 1898), which was published in two volumes in 1891 and attracted great attention. The book is a collection of stories of Vermland life in the year 1830, related with vivid imagination and lyric style. In 1894 she published Osynliga Lankar (Invisible Links) and from 1895 onwards was able to devote herself entirely to writing. After visiting Italy for the purpose of extending her studies, she published in 1897 Antikrists &firakler (Eng. trans., 1898) depicting life in Sicily. In 1899 appeared Drottningar i Kungahlilla (Eng. trans., 1917), historical legends, as well as En Herrgdrdssagen (Eng. trans., The Legend of the Manor, 1922). After a journey to Palestine and the East in 1900 she published Jerusalem (2 vol., 1901-02, Eng. trans.,
2903), describing a religious movement in the Swedish province of Dalarne, which led to an emigration to Palestine. She also wrote Kristuslegender (1904); Nils Holgerssons underbara resa (2 vol., 1906-07, Eng. trans., 1908), a book for children; Liljecronas Hern (191I, Eng. trans., 1913) ; Korkarlen (1912) ; Dunungen (1914), a dramatized novel; Kejseren of Portugalien (1914, Eng. trans., 1916) ; Troll och Manniskor (Demons and Men) (2 vol., 1915, 1921) and Charlotte Lofvenskold (1925). In 1909 she won the Nobel prize for literature, and in 1914 was elected the first woman member of the Swedish Academy. Most of her books have been translated into other languages.
See J. Mortensen, Literary Biography (19o8) ; André Bellesort, La Suede (Iwo) ; also works with title Selma Lagerlof by 0. I. Lever tin (1904) ; M. Jepson (1913) ; M. Kristensen (1917).