10th JLPP International Translation Competition｜Japanese Literature Publishing Project

The Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan, is delighted to host the 10th JLPP International Translation Competition, aimed at discovering and fostering emerging translators of Japanese literature. In the 10th Competition, the target languages for the contemporary literature category are English and Spanish, while English is the target language for the classical literature category.

10th JLPP International Translation Competition flyer

Click the image to open the PDF file.

Source Text

Contemporary Literature Category

Fiction

“Nijūninme Rūru”

by Inoue Areno

The source text may be downloaded via the link below : “Nijūninme Rūru” by Inoue Areno

Biography of Author

Classical Literature Category

“Iseki Takako Nikki”

by Iseki Takako (Annotated by Fukasawa Akio)

Source texts may be downloaded via the links below : “Iseki Takako Nikki” by Iseki Takako
(The assigned source texts are the excerpts from the diary.)

Biography of Author

Prizes

The winners of the Contemporary Literature category (English and Spanish) and the Classic Literature category (English) will each receive a certificate, a trophy and a cash prize (grand prize of 1,000,000 yen and second prize of 250,000 yen).

Winners will be contacted individually and posted on this website at the end of January 2026. The translations of the prize winners will also be posted on this website, along with the judges' observations on their work.

Winners will be invited to translator-development events hosted by the JLPP, such as a translation workshop.

Judging Process

Submission
Period

June 1st (Sun) - June 30th (Mon) 2025 (JST)
Judging

July - November 2025
Winners
Announced

January 2026
Award
Ceremony

February 2026

Overview

Submission Period	Sunday, June 1st – Monday, June 30th, 2025 (JST)
Purpose	The JLPP International Translation Competition aims to foster the translators of the future while enrichening world literature by encouraging the translation of superb literary works from Japan.
Eligibility	There are no nationality or age-related eligibility criteria. However, because the purpose of the competition is to foster emerging translators, those who have published book-length literary translations are not eligible, although translations published in magazines and/or anthologies are permissible.
Target Languages and Source Texts	【Contemporary Literature Category】 Target Languages : English / Spanish Source text : [Fiction] “Nijūninme Rūru” by Inoue Areno 【Classical Literature Category】 Target Language : English Source text : Excerpts from “Iseki Takako Nikki” by Iseki Takako
Application Procedure	(1) Applications are to be submitted via the JLPP website. After visiting the "10th JLPP International Translation Competition" section, click on the "Application Page" banner to proceed with your application. For details on the application procedure, please refer to the Application Page, which will be available starting June 1, 2025. Applications submitted via email will be disqualified. (2) Applications submitted via any other methods will not be accepted. (3) Translation manuscripts must be formatted on A4 or letter-size paper, in portrait orientation, written horizontally, with approximately 32 lines per page (or double-spaced), using 12-point Times New Roman font, with left and right margins of at least 1.5 cm, specifying the “page number of total pages” on each page. Formatting discrepancies caused by differences in software will be selectively permitted. Files must be submitted as PDFs. When converting to PDF, please check for conversion errors and correct before submitting. (4) The name of the translator must not appear anywhere on the submitted translations. (5) Applications failing to comply with the above requirements will be disqualified, barring extenuating circumstances to be dealt with on a case-by-case basis.
Judging Process	(1) Judging will comprise a preliminary selection process, followed by a meeting of the judging committee members, who will examine the translations which passed the preliminary selection process and select the prize winners. (2) The Grand Prize will be awarded, in principle, to one (individual) translator in each language in each category whose translation is considered to be of exceptionally high quality. (3) Second Prizes will be awarded to no more than two translators in each language in each category whose translations are considered to be of very high quality. (4) At the discretion of the judging committee, Honorable Mentions will be awarded to (individual) translators whose efforts show great promise, but are not considered to qualify for the Grand Prize or a Second Prize. The number of Honorable Mentions will not exceed the total of the Grand Prize and the Second Prizes. (5) Those who have received the Grand Prize in past JLPP International Translation Competitions are not eligible for any prize.