Czech Republic

Increased support for translations of Czech literature

The Ministry of Culture of the Czech Republic has increased its support for the publication of Czech literature abroad. The terms of the new Support Programme allow for claims of up to 70% of the total cost of publishing . Within the application for a grant to publish the translation of a complete book, it is possible to ask for a

translation grant (up to 50% of the total cost of publishing)
cover design costs, graphic design, typesetting, printing (up to 50% of the total cost of publishing)
copyright costs (up to 15% of the total cost of publishing) and
promotion costs (up to 25% of the total cost of publishing).

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Residencies at Czech Literary Centre (deadline: 1 June 2017)

The newly founded Czech Literary Centre (http://www NULL.czechlit NULL.cz/en/) organises two- to four-week residencies for foreign writers, translators, critics and literary scholars who are interested in, and want to learn more about Czech literature and culture.

The aim of the residencies, in form of creative scholarships and without any age limit, is to support literature, creative dialogue and international cultural exchange. →

Translation of fiction at Book World Prague 2016, the 22nd international Prague book fair and literary festival (12-15 May 2016)

Among numerous events relating to foreign authors and their translators, the programme features several items on the translation of fiction and children’s literature.

On Thursday 12 May, literary agent Andrew Nurnberg will give a talk about copyright and changes in attitudes of American and British copyright holders towards the Czech and Slovak book-markets over the last 20 years. →

Residencies for translators in Prague (deadline for application: 29 February 2016)

Thanks to the title of UNESCO Creative City of Literature Prague was able to start a residency program for authors and translators.

In 2016 the two months residencies are available in the following periods: July – August; September – October; November – 15th of December.

Applications can be sent in until 29 February 2016. →

Conference on poet, translator and reader Jan Zábrana

On 6 and 7 November, the international conference Jan Zábrana: Poet – Translator – Reader was held in Prague at the Department of Translation Studies, Faculty of Arts of Charles University.

The conference focused on three major areas of Zábrana’s work: his own poetry and fiction, his translations of modern English, American, Russian, French and Spanish literature, and finally his literary journalism in which he introduced the authors he valued highly (Jesenin, Pasternak, Mandelstam, Babel, Ferlinghetti, Plath, Stevens, Ginsberg, Parra and many others) to the public. →

Czech Mind Award to Martin Hilský

The Czech Mind Award, a prize presented by the Government of the Czech Republic for exceptional results in research, development and innovation, has been awarded to a literary translator, treasured colleague Martin Hilský.

(http://www NULL.ceatl NULL.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/czech NULL.awards NULL.william-shakespeare-martin-hilsky NULL.oct15 NULL.jpg)Martin Hilský

Prof. Hilský is a recipient of the Jungmann Prize, the Tom Stoppard Prize, the State Award for Translation, and the President’s Medal of Merit, as well as an Honorary Member of the British Empire for his lifelong achievement as translator, writer, and teacher. →

Several Czech translation prizes awarded

The Czech Literary Translators’ Guild (OP) celebrated International Translation Day at its annual award ceremony on 6 October by its Hall of Fame to Miroslav Jindra, a State Prize winner and a renowned translator from English.

(http://www NULL.ceatl NULL.eu/wp-content/uploads/2015/10/czech NULL.awards NULL.Miroslav-Jindra NULL.oct15 NULL.jpg)Miroslav Jindra

Fostering poetry translation, OP regularly grants the Hana Žantovská Scholarship, this time to the State Prize laureate Jiří Pelán translating selected baroque poetry to be published by Opus, a small publishing house praised by OP for its abiding devotion to quality literature and poetry in this year’s Cramerius Laudation. →

The 2014 Czech State Prize for Translation to Jiří Pechar

The 2014 Czech State Prize for Translation, awarded on the recommendation of the Czech Literary Translators’s Guild, has been conferred to Jiří Pechar, renowned translator from French, Italian, Spanish and German, and translation theory scholar and writer. Pechar’s work has focused on fiction, poetry and social science texts, mostly from Romance languages. →

2014 Josef Jungmann Prize for Robert Svoboda, and other Czech translation awards

The Czech Literary Translators’ Guild celebrated International Translation Day with its annual awards ceremony. The Hana Žantovská Scholarship for poetry translation went to Michael Alexa for his translation of the Polish poet Adam Zagajewski, while Martina Knápková won the Tomáš Hrách Prize for debut translators with Super Sad True Love Story by Gary Shteyngart. →

Call for application: Visegrad Literary Residency Programme Autumn 2014

The Visegrad Literary Residency Programme, established 2012 by the International Visegrad Fund, provides for a series of residency stays and literary events open to writers of fiction and non-fiction, poets, essayists, and critics, as well as to literary translators, publicists and journalists from the Visegrad Countries (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). →

The 2013 Czech State Prize for Translation to Vratislav Jiljí Slezák

The 2013 Czech State Prize for Translation has been awarded to the renowned translator and Renaissance man Vratislav Jiljí Slezák, a founding member of the Czech Literary Translators’ Guild and a laureate of its Josef Jungmann Translation Prize. He received the award for his excellent translations of the complete work of Hermann Hesse and other German speaking authors, including T. →

The Czech translators’ prize goes to Anežka Charvátová

The Czech Literary Translators’ Guild has awarded its main annual translation prize (the Josef Jungmann prize) to the hispanist Anežka Charvátová for her translation of the voluminous apocalyptic novel 2666 by Chilean author Roberto Bolaño (published by Argo), taking into account her translations of other works by same author. The jury remarked on the exceptional variety of genres and narratives mastered in the translation of this novel, a polyphony ranging from the philosophical to the vulgar, including expressive and witty jargon. →

The BabelMatrix project has entered a new phase

Ever since its creation shortly after the turn of the millennium, the BabelMatrix project has undergone several transformations, and it continues to grow.

The aim of this site (http://www NULL.babelmatrix NULL.org/), which is dedicated to literary translation and translators, is to showcase the richness of world literature in translation by presenting extracts that invite readers to continue reading. →

Czech ‘Magnesia Litera’ translation prize goes to Věra Koubová

Now in its twelfth year, Magnesia Litera is a prestigious Czech literary prize presented annually for the best books published in the previous year. Besides the overall prize, awards were presented in eight literary categories (prose, poetry, translation, children’s literature, non-fiction, debut writing, publishing achievement and readers’ choice) at a ceremony broadcast live on national prime-time television on April 24, 2013. →

Call for applications: Visegrad Literary Residency Program

The Visegrad Literary Residency Program, established in 2012 by the International Visegrad Fund, consists of a series of residencies and literary events available to fiction and non-fiction writers, poets, essayists, and critics, as well as to literary translators, publicists and journalists from the Visegrad Countries (Czech Republic, Hungary, Poland and Slovakia). →

2012 Josef Jungmann Prize to Josef Rauvolf

The Czech Literary Translators’ Guild, represented by a jury consisting of distinguished literary translators and hosted by the Prague Goethe-Institut, awarded its annual prizes of merit to the best translations published last year. The ceremony, commemorating the saint’s day of St. Jerome, the patron saint of translators, celebrated its 21st anniversary and was held on October 4, 2012. →

Czech State Prize for translation goes to Martin Hilský

Martin Hilský, renowned Czech translator of English and American literature, was awarded the 2011 State Prize, subsidized by the Ministry of Culture to the sum of 300.000 CZK (€ 11.000), for his translation of the Complete Works of William Shakespeare. This collection, published in a single volume by Academia this year, was presented at the Prague Book Fair 2011 where Martin Hilský participated on a public event called ‘Colourful Sonnet Tones’ organized by CEATL and the Czech Literary Translators’ Guild. →

Josef Jungmann Prize 2011 to Petr Zavadil

The Czech Literary Translators’ Guild, represented by a jury consisting of distinguished literary translators and hosted by the Prague Goethe-Institut, awarded its annual prizes of merit to the best translations published last year. The ceremony, commemorating the saint’s day of St. Jerome, the patron saint of translators, celebrated its 20th anniversary and was held on October 6, 2011. →

The Czech ‘Magnesia Litera’ translation prize goes to Radka Denemarková

Magnesia Litera (http://www NULL.magnesia-litera NULL.cz), which is awarded for the tenth time this year, has since its inception become a prestigious Czech literary prize for the previous year’s best book. Besides the main prize, books in eight literary categories (prose, poetry, translation, children’s book, non-fiction, discovery of the year, publishing achievement and readers’ choice) are awarded during a ceremony broadcast in prime time on national public television. →