Ukraine will fund the publication of 100 translations of Ukrainian books in 33 countries worldwide. These are the results of a competition for translation projects under the Translate Ukraine programme, implemented by the Ukrainian Book Institute with the support of the Ministry of Culture of Ukraine.
As noted by Deputy Prime Minister for Humanitarian Policy and Minister of Culture Tetyana Berezhna, Ukrainian literature is an important component of the country’s cultural presence globally:
“Through books, we tell our story — our history and our resilience. It is important that these stories are read in dozens of countries. The Translate Ukraine programme helps make Ukrainian books more accessible.”
This year, the competition received 179 applications from publishers around the world — 18 more than last year. Following the technical screening, 176 projects from 119 publishers in 44 countries were shortlisted for evaluation. Based on the expert panel’s assessment, 100 translation initiatives were approved and will be implemented over the course of the year.
The competition took place in two stages: a technical review of applications by the Institute’s specialists and an evaluation by the expert panel.
In total, Ukrainian books will be translated into 30 languages. The largest number of publications will be in Polish (9), English (8) and Serbian (7). A significant number of translations are also planned in Czech and German (6 each), as well as Arabic, French and Italian (5 each). Other languages include Slovak, Spanish, Lithuanian, Latvian, Macedonian, Greek, Croatian, Bulgarian, Georgian, Swedish, Azerbaijani, Portuguese, Bengali and others.
Publications under the programme will appear not only in Europe but also on other continents. In particular, Mykhaylo Kotsyubynskyy’s Shadows of Forgotten Ancestors and Taras Shevchenko’s The Haidamaks will be published in Lebanon. In Egypt, Natali Misiuk’s children’s book That’s Me at Grandma Ustya’s will be published in Arabic.
In Brazil, Liubko Deresh’s The Gaze of Medusaand Artur Dron’s Hemingway Knows Nothing will be published in Portuguese. In India, translations of classic Ukrainian poets will be published in Bengali.
Among the most popular titles with international publishers is the war testimony Hemingway Knows Nothing, which will be translated into eight languages. The mystical detective novel I See You Are Interested in Darkness by Illarion Pavliuk has also attracted significant interest — it will be published in Finnish, Czech, Polish, Romanian and Azerbaijani. Sofia Andrukhovych’s novel Amadoka will be translated into French, Spanish, Lithuanian and Azerbaijani.
The Translate Ukraine programme aims to raise the profile of Ukrainian literature worldwide, support translators and publishers, and expand access to works by Ukrainian authors for readers in various countries.