Orhan Pamuk, Turkey's best-known novelist and incendiary social commentator, won the 2006 Nobel prize for Literature on Thursday.

Turkish novelist Orhan Pamuk, with an Ottoman era mosque in the background, talks during an interview with the Associated Press in Istanbul, Turkey, in this Jan. 30, 2002 file photo. Orhan Pamuk won the Nobel literature prize on Thursday, Oct. 12, 2006, for his works dealing with issues of identity and clashing cultures. The Swedish Academy said that Pamuk 'in the quest for the melancholic soul of his native city has discovered new symbols for the clash and interlacing of cultures.' [AP]

Here are some reactions to the news from Turkey.

PINAR KUR, A LEADING FEMALE TURKISH NOVELIST:

"For years, everybody has wished someone from Turkey would win the Nobel. But it is also known, both in Turkey and abroad, that this prize is much more related to politics than to literature, it is given more for political reasons. It is very unfortunate that this prize announcement was made on the same day as the (Armenian genocide) bill in France."

SUAT KINIKLIOGLU, GERMAN MARSHALL PLAN OF THE UNITED STATES

"With all due respect to Orhan Pamuk, whose books I read and like, I believe his comments on the Armenian genocide have been influential in his winning this prize. I think many Turks will see it in this way too and will not be cheering.

"And this is the worst day that this could happen, when the French parliament approves a bill making it a crime to deny the Armenian genocide.

"There is a political dimension to all this. I do not believe he was chosen purely on the basis of his artistic capacity, even though he is a great writer."

BUKET UZUNER, TURKISH NOVELIST AND SHORT-STORY WRITER

"From now maybe (the world) can speak about "Turkish Literature". I attach great importance to that. We had all hoped Yasar Kemal (veteran chronicler of rural life in Anatolia) would win the Nobel, everyone knows this, but I'm also happy for Pamuk to win this prize.

ZULFU LIVANELI, NOVELIST, COMPOSER AND SINGER

"It's a very nice thing that Turkey received a Nobel Prize. When we look at this from a long-term perspective, we can say ... there is a Turkish Literature."

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