Tayeb Salih (Arabic: الطيب صالح‎) was a Sudanese writer. His writing is drawn from his experience of communal village life that is centered on people and their complex relationships; the motifs of his books deriving from his Islamic background and his experience of modern Africa, both pre- and post-colonial.

Salih achieved immediate acclaim when "Season of Migration to the North" (1966) was first published in Beirut. In 2001, the book was declared "the most important Arabic novel of the 20th century" by the Arab Literary Academy. The novel was banned in Saleh's native Sudan for several years despite the fact that it won him prominence and fame worldwide and was adapted into a theater production in Israel.

Salih's comic novel "The Wedding of Zein" was made into a drama in Libya and won Kuwaiti filmmaker Khalid Siddiq an award in the Cannes Festival in the late 1970s.

A group of Salih's friends and fans formed a committee to honour him in 1998. The committee collected $ 20,000 for Tayeb Salih’s personal use. However, he indicated his desire to utilize the money in launching a cultural initiative that supports literary life in Sudan. Abdelkarim Mirghani Cultural Centre's Board of Trustees established an independent secretariat to administer the Prize award and the associated activities. The winners are announced on 21 October of each year and the winning titles are published by Abdelkarim Mirghani Cultural Centre. The award of the Prize is usually accompanied by a conference on various aspects of Sudanese literature. The first Prize was awarded in 2003. In 2008, Abdelkarim Mirghani Cultural Centre launched another prize under the name Tayeb Salih Short Story Writing Prize for Youth.