Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation announces languages for 12th edition
Doha
The Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding has announced the languages for its upcoming 12th edition in 2026, months ahead of the nomination and application period, which is scheduled to take place from January 1 to March 31, 2026, via the award's official website: www.hta.qa.
In a statement on Wednesday, the award explained that the early announcement of the upcoming edition's languages comes in response to repeated requests from translators and publishers, contributing to the enhancement of the quality of nominated works and promoting competitiveness and excellence.
The Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding has selected the languages for the 2026 edition in the Single Book Category, choosing English and Chinese among the most widely spoken languages globally.
Chinese returns to the award after being featured in two previous editions, reaffirming the deep Arab-Chinese cultural ties and the growing momentum in translation between the two languages. The total prize amount in this category is $200,000, distributed among the top three winners in each translation direction: from Arabic and into Arabic.
In the Achievement Category, which honours distinguished career paths and cumulative efforts in the field of translation, whether by individuals or institutions, five languages have been selected: Italian, Azerbaijani, Fula (Fulani), in addition to English and Chinese. One prize of $100,000 will be awarded for each language.
The statement clarified that the selection of the award's languages each year is based on in-depth field studies conducted by a committee of experts and specialists in translation and comparative studies. The selection is guided by precise criteria that take into account the volume of knowledge and translation exchange with the Arabic language, geographical reach, and cultural diversity, reflecting the award's philosophy of promoting intercultural dialogue and expanding the circles of understanding between cultures.
The Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding is one of the world's leading independent prizes in the field of translation.
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