Donald Keene Center of Japanese Culture invites applications for Japanese literature translation awards

The Donald Keene Center of Japanese Culture at Columbia University annually awards up to $6,000 in Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission Prizes for the Translation of Japanese Literature. A prize is given for the best translation of a modern work or a classical work, or the prize is divided between equally distinguished translations. Translators must be citizens or permanent residents of the United States.

Beginning in the 2017-2018 academic year, the Keene Center also occasionally awards Lindsley and Masao Miyoshi Translation Prizes and Grants of varying amounts, and divided between equally distinguished translations. These include: prizes up to $6000 given to outstanding translations by non-citizens or non-permanent-residents of the United States; prizes for translations of particular scholarly merit or significance; grants to promising translations-in-progress; subventions for forthcoming publication of especially deserving translations; and, in rare cases, lifetime achievement awards for translators with particularly distinguished careers.

The submission process for the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission Prizes and the Miyoshi Prizes and Grants is the same.

Deadline for submissions will be June 1, 2022.