The establishment of the Book Institute was initiated by the Minister of Culture, Waldemar Dąbrowski.
[1] At the time of its inauguration, the Book Institute operated in the Villa Decius, and after renovation, it moved to the building at 1 Szczepańska Street.
On 1 April 2010, the Book Institute took over the publishing of magazines under the patronage of the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage.
The award was presented for the first time during the Congress of Translators of Polish Literature in Krakow in 2005.
[2] In 2015, it moved to a historic building purchased from Radio Kraków at 6 Wróblewskiego Street.