Elias Canetti  is an Austrian writer of Jewish origin. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for literature in 1981.
He was born in Ruse on July 25 in 1905 to parents who were descendants of the Sephardic Jews in Spain - Matilda and Jacques Canetti  and here he experienced the early years of his childhood. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for his book “The Tongue Set Free”, which describes memories of his early years.
In 1911 the family moved to Manchester, England, where his father became an employee in a trade company. In 1912 his father died. As the writer says in his memoirs , this happened after learning the news that The Balkan War broke out. In 1913 his mother took him together with his brothers to Vienna.
Canetti spent his school years in Austria, Switzerland and Germany. In 1924 he returned to Austria, where he studied chemistry.
His first major literary work “Blinding” was published in 1935. The other more significant works are “The Human Province”( 1973), “The Conscience of  Words” (1975), “The Tongue Set Free”(1979), ”The Torch in my Ear” (1980), “The Play of the Eyes”(1985), “The Secret heart of the Clock” (1985). The works of Canetti are remarkable for their complexity and psychoanalytical features.
In 1981 Canetti  was awarded the Nobel Prize in literature for his book “The Tongue Set Free”. The author describes in it memories of his early years. He left a lasting imprint on his experience in Rustchuk.
During the ceremony of  the Novel Prize in Swedish Royal Academy of Sciences, Canetti  makes a remarkable speech, which clearly expressed his negative attitude towards war.
Elias Canetti died on August 13,1994 in Zurich.
In 2005 Elias Canetti was awarded posthumously the title of “honorary citizen of Ruse”.