Peter von Matt

Peter von Matt (born 20 May 1937) is a Swiss philologist and author.

Born in Lucerne, Peter von Matt grew up in Stans in the canton of Nidwalden. He studied Art History as well as German and English studies in Zurich and received a doctorate with Emil Staiger on Franz Grillparzer. In 1970, he received his post doctorate lecturing qualifications with a work on E. T. A. Hoffmann.

From 1976 to 2002, von Matt taught at the University of Zurich as a Professor of Newer German Literature. He was a guest professor at Stanford University in 1980 and a Fellow of the Institute for Advanced Study, Berlin in 1992/93. Von Matt is a member of the Deutsche Akademie für Sprache und Dichtung, the Berlin-Brandenburg Academy of Sciences and Humanities, and the Sächsische Akademie der Künste (Saxon Academy of the Arts). He writes regular contributions for the Frankfurter Anthologie. He is married to literary critic Beatrice von Matt-Albrecht and lives with her in Dübendorf near Zurich.