Born: 4 February 1820, Austria
Died: 21 January 1862
Country most active: Czechia
Also known as: Barbora Panklová
Božena Němcová was a Czech writer during the final phase of the Czech National Revival movement and has been called the founder of modern Czech prose. She is also considered the country’s first feminist writer. Her grandmother Magdalena Novotná played an important part in her life, and Němcová would later write her most famous novel, 1855’s Babička (The Grandmother), featuring a title character inspired by her grandmother. She also published another novel that year, Pohorská vesnice (The village under mountains) and her popular short story Divá Bára the following year, as well as several collections of fairy tales and legends. Her first poem, To the Czech Women, was published April 5, 1843. Her image is featured on the 500 CZK denomination of the banknotes of the Czech koruna.