International Prize for Arabic Fiction

The International Prize for Arabic Fiction has developed into one of the most prestigious international prizes for Arabic literature. The Institute of Strategic Dialogue, which developed the prize in collaboration with the Booker Prize Foundation and the Emirates Foundation, was instrumental in establishing the award and facilitating it as a sustainable and independent initiative.

The prize is designed to promote Arabic literary merit and to encourage wider reading and writing in the Arab world. It also aims to promote global translations and regular exchanges between Arab and Western publishers and writers. The prize was launched in Abu Dhabi in April 2007. Submissions from publishers are called at the end of April every year. A panel of six international judges, made up of literary experts, publishers and academics, are selected each year in July. The shortlist of six winning titles is announced at two simultaneous press conferences in London and Abu Dhabi in January. The prize is announced at the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair in March.

In the prize's first year, over 130 titles from 18 different countries were submitted for judicial review, a number which has continued to grow ever since. Each shortlisted author receives US $10,000, with the winner receiving a further $50,000.

For more information on the International Prize for Arabic Fiction click here

Previous Winners:

2009 – Azazeel (Beelzebub), Youssef Ziedan (Egypt)

2008 – Sunset Oasis, Baha Taher (Egypt)