International Dublin Literary Award
The International Dublin Literary Award (Irish: Duais Liteartha Idirnáisiúnta Bhaile Átha Chliath) is presented each year for a novel written or translated into English. It promotes excellence in world literature and is solely sponsored by Dublin City Council, Ireland. At €100,000, the award is one of the richest literary prizes in the world. If the winning book is a translation (as it has been nine times), the prize is divided between the writer and the translator, with the writer receiving €75,000 and the translator €25,000.[1] The first award was made in 1996 to David Malouf for his English language novel Remembering Babylon.[2]
International Dublin Literary Award | |
---|---|
Awarded for | a novel written in or translated into English |
Location | Dublin, Ireland |
Presented by | Dublin City Public Libraries and Archive |
Formerly called | International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award |
Reward(s) | €100,000 |
First awarded | 1996 |
Currently held by | Emily Ruskovich for Idaho (2019) |
Most awards | 1 (all) |
Most nominations | 3 – Colm Tóibín, Colum McCann (author) 3 – Anne McLean (translator) |
Website | www |
Nominations are submitted by public libraries worldwide – over 400 library systems in 177 countries worldwide are invited to nominate books each year – from which the shortlist and the eventual winner are selected by an international panel of judges (which changes each year). The most recent winner is Emily Ruskovich who won for her novel Idaho.[3]
Eligibility and procedure
The prize is open to novels written in any language and by authors of any nationality, provided the work has been published in English or English translation. The presentation of the award is post-dated by two years from the date of publication. Thus, to win an award in 2017, the work must have been published in 2015. If it is an English translation, the work must have been published in its original language between two and six years before its translation.[4] The scope for inclusion has been subject to criticism; according to The Irish Times journalist Eileen Battersby, "many of the titles are already well known even at the time of the publication of the long list."[5]
Dublin City Public Libraries seek nominations from 400 public libraries from major cities across the world. Libraries can apply to be considered for inclusion in the nomination process.[6] The longlist is announced in October or November of each year, and the shortlist (up to 10 titles) is announced in March or April of the following year. The longlist and shortlist are chosen by an international panel of judges which rotates each year. Allen Weinstein was the non-voting chair of the panel from 1996 to 2003. As of 2017, the former Chief Judge of a US Court of Appeals, Eugene R. Sullivan, is the non-voting chair.[7] The winner of the award is announced each June.[4]
History
The award was established in 1994 as the International IMPAC Dublin Literary Award, a joint initiative of Dublin City Council and the American productivity company IMPAC, which had its European headquarters in Dublin.[8] James Irwin, president of IMPAC, established the prize money at €100,000. A trust fund was established to pay for the award and its maintenance. The award has been administered by Dublin City Public Libraries since its inception. IMPAC went defunct in the late-2000s when its founder and president James Irwin died in 2009.[8] In late 2013, the trust fund became exhausted and there was no money left to run the award.[8] The council agreed to step in and continue funding the award under the same brand name of the now-defunct company while seeking a new sponsor.[8] It was reported that the council paid €100,000 for the prize plus €80,250 in administration costs in 2015.[8] The award was subsequently renamed the International DUBLIN Literary Award in November 2015.
Describing the award as "the most eclectic and unpredictable of the literary world's annual gongs", the journalist Michelle Pauli posed the question in relation to the longlist for the 2004 edition, "Where would you find Michael Dobbs and Tony Parsons up against Umberto Eco and Milan Kundera for a €100,000 prize?"[9]
Winners and shortlists
– debut novel
Wins by language
Total | Language | Years |
---|---|---|
15 | English | 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2015, 2016, 2018, 2019 |
2 | French | 2002, 2004 |
2 | Spanish | 1997, 2014 |
1 | German | 1998 |
1 | Turkish | 2003 |
1 | Norwegian | 2007 |
1 | Dutch | 2010 |
1 | Portuguese | 2017 |
References
- "Dutch writer wins world's biggest literature prize". DutchNews.nl. 18 June 2010. Archived from the original on 19 June 2010. Retrieved 18 June 2010.
- Battersby, Eileen (17 June 1996). "Malouf wins first Impac literary award". The Irish Times. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- "Mike Mc Cormack's Solar Bones is the winner of the 2018 award! | International DUBLIN Literary Award". www.dublinliteraryaward.ie. Retrieved 16 June 2018.
- "FAQs". Dublin City Public Libraries. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- Battersby, Eileen (21 June 2017). "José Eduardo Agualusa wins €100,000 International Dublin Literary Award". The Irish Times. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
- "Libraries 2017". Dublin City Public Libraries. Retrieved 25 July 2017.
- "2017 Judging Panel". Dublin City Public Libraries. Retrieved 26 July 2017.
- Hilliard, Mark (31 May 2015). "New sponsor sought for €100,000 Impac literary Award". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 18 July 2015.
- Pauli, Michelle (18 November 2003). "Bestsellers make impact on eclectic longlist". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 15 July 2014. Retrieved 18 November 2003.
- "Search Results for: shortlist". International DUBLIN Literary Award Office. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- Battersby, Eileen (15 May 1997). "Spaniard awarded £100,000 Dublin literary prize". The Irish Times. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- Battersby, Eileen (9 June 2016). "International Dublin Literary Award won by Akhil Sharma's Family Life". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 20 July 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- Flood, Alison (11 June 2009). "Debut novelist takes €100,000 Impac Dublin prize". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 10 May 2017. Retrieved 22 June 2017.
- Yates, Emma (16 May 2001). "First novel takes fiction's richest prize". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 16 May 2001.
- "Controversial author picks up IMPAC Literary Award". The Guardian. 13 May 2002. Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 13 May 2002.
- "Dublin literary prize awarded". Los Angeles Times. 18 June 2004. Archived from the original on 3 October 2015. Retrieved 24 June 2017.
- "Pulitzer Prize Winner to Read, Speak on Campus". UNC Global. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
- Witchel, Alex (3 May 2009). "His Irish Diaspora". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 16 July 2016. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
- Pauli, Michelle (14 June 2007). "Biggest literary prize goes to little-known Norwegian". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 14 June 2007.
- Flood, Alison (17 June 2010). "Dutch gardener reaps Impac prize". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 19 June 2010. Retrieved 23 June 2017.
- Taylor, Charlie (15 June 2011). "Colum McCann wins Impac award". The Irish Times. Archived from the original on 24 December 2011. Retrieved 15 June 2011.
- Flood, Alison (13 June 2012). "Jon McGregor wins International Impac Dublin Literary Award". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 6 March 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2012.
- Lea, Richard (7 June 2013). "Kevin Barry wins Impac award". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 30 October 2013. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
- "Vasquez celebrates book prize win". Irish Independent. 12 June 2014. Retrieved 12 June 2014.
- Flood, Alison (17 June 2015). "Impac prize goes to 'consummate wordsmith' Jim Crace for Harvest". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 18 June 2015. Retrieved 18 June 2015.
- Flood, Alsion (9 June 2016). "Akhil Sharma wins €100,000 Dublin International literary award". The Guardian. Archived from the original on 9 June 2016. Retrieved 9 June 2016.
- "The 2017 winner is announced!". International DUBLIN Library Award Office. 21 June 2017. Archived from the original on 21 June 2017. Retrieved 21 June 2017.
- "The 2019 Shortlist". International Dublin Literary Award. Retrieved 5 April 2019.