The award, presented by the Lithuanian PEN Centre and the Lithuanian Ministry of Culture, was handed over by the Lithuanian Minister of Culture, Vaida Aleknavičienė. The ceremony took place in the Pranciškus Smuglevičius Hall at Vilnius University Library.
“This award recognises the highest standards of translation and, at the same time, expresses gratitude for the bridges built between the historical experiences of Lithuania and Ukraine. The book The Hare’s Church tells of a shared resistance against the empire, and today, as Ukraine continues to courageously defend its freedom, this work takes on even deeper significance,” said Aleknavičienė.
She thanked the translator for introducing Lithuanian readers to Ukraine’s historical experience — from the Holodomor and Soviet terror to the war and the struggle for freedom — through works of fiction.
Rinkevičienė was commended for her meticulous and professional translation of the novel. The jury also highlighted her linguistic sensitivity and the richness of the translation. The Lithuanian edition of The Hare’s Church was published in 2025 by the Lithuanian Writers’ Union publishing house.
The Hare’s Church is a novel by Vasyl Shklyar about a Lithuanian partisan who finds himself in exile in Donbas and meets Ukrainian insurgents. The text explores joint resistance against the empire and the historical connections between the experiences of Lithuania and Ukraine.
Donata Rinkevičienė has been translating books from Ukrainian for six years. Among her best-known translations are Carbide by Andriy Liubka, Who Are You? by Artem Chekh, Call Sign for Job by Oleksandr Mykhed, the children’s book 36 and 6 Cats by Halyna Vdovichenko, The War That Changed Rondo by Romana Romanyshyn and Andriy Lesiv, as well as texts included in the anthology Martial Lawand other translations.
The ‘Translator’s Chair of the Year’ is one of the most prestigious awards in the field of literary translation in Lithuania. Winners receive a certificate, a cash prize and a chair, symbolising the solitary labour of the translator and the hope that this work may be made more comfortable. The chair features a different design each year. The tradition has been upheld for many years by the poet and patron Gintaras Bleizgys.