The academic Patrick Johansson (Ruen, 1946) yesterday received the 2025 Alfonso Reyes International Prize for his “outstanding career and contributions to the study of the pre-Hispanic indigenous world”, for which he found inspiration in the literary universe of the Monterrey author.
The award was presented in a ceremony at the Alfonsina Chapel of the University Library by the National Institute of Fine Arts and Literature, in conjunction with the Autonomous University of Nuevo León. The award consists of recognition, a plaque on the wall of honor of said venue and an economic stimulus.
The researcher, author of the book Alfonso Reyes and the indigenous worldthanked him for the distinction and highlighted the figure of the “universal Monterrey”. He pointed out that for Alfonso Reyes, the search for the deep meaning of things was fueled by his poetic vocation, which led him to explore resources that avoided “falsifications, stylizations or conceptual caricatures” of the native peoples.
He also cited works such as Vision of Anahuac, Tarahumara Herbs, Silhouette of Indian Jesus y The testimony of Juan Peñatexts that he considered fundamental to approach the pre-Hispanic world and enrich its historical, anthropological and philosophical perspective. “Alfonsina’s vision of the world became an indispensable propaedeutic for me,” he stated.
Patrick Johansson, who has collaborated since 1992 at the Faculty of Philosophy and Letters of the National Autonomous University of Mexico, is the author of an extensive work dedicated to indigenous cultures and languages, among which stand out Ahnelhuayoxóchitl: Flower without root, Pre-Columbian Nahua mortuary rites y Spanish and Nahuatl: Meeting of two worlds (1519-2019).
The Alfonso Reyes International Prize, created in 1973, recognizes outstanding figures of literature and humanism. Among the winners are Jorge Luis Borges, Octavio Paz, Mario Vargas Llosa, Carlos Pellicer and Alí Chumacero.