2026年度「現代日本文学の翻訳・普及事業」
国際文芸フォーラム2026
“BUNGAKU DAYS” Rebranded as the “Japan International Literary Forum”
Announcing the Award Ceremony and the Japan International Literary Forum for the 10th Japan International Translation Competition
- The Agency for Cultural Affairs, Government of Japan, has selected the winners of the 10th Japan International Translation Competition, an initiative aimed at discovering and fostering emerging translators of Japanese literature. To mark this occasion, the Agency will host the award ceremony along with a symposium entitled Japan International Literary Forum 2026. In Part I of the symposium, novelist Yuzuki Asako, novelist Otani Akira, translator Sam Bett, and Konosu Yukiko—translator, literary critic, and member of the judging committee for the 10th competition—will take the stage to explore the theme of resonance between authors and translators. In Part II, novelist Kirino Natsuo, Ogawa Satoshi, Ken Mori of Tuttle-Mori Agency, and Hiroshi Arai of Bungeishunju will engage in a discussion on the potential of literature, exploring the frontiers of creative production and international publishing. Experts in Japanese literature and literary translation will come together to exchange ideas and consider new perspectives and possibilities.
Japan International Literary Forum 2026
[ Commemorating the Award Ceremony for the Japan International Translation Competition and Symposium ]
| Date : | Thursday, February 12, 2026, 3:00 p.m. (Doors open at 2:00 p.m.) | ||||||||||
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| Venue : | Sola city Conference Center, Ochanomizu, sola city Hall (2nd floor) | ||||||||||
| Capacity : | 400 (Admission free) | ||||||||||
| Language : | Japanese (English simultaneous interpretation available) | ||||||||||
| Program : |
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| Registration: |
To attend Japan International Literary Forum, please register below by Friday, February 6. |
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Award Ceremony for the 10th Japan International Translation Competition
For the 10th Competition, we called for submissions of the source text,“Nijūninme Rūru” by Inoue Areno, for the Contemporary Literature Category. For the Classical Literature Category, the source text was “Iseki Takako Nikki" by Iseki Takako (Annotated by Fukasawa Akio). After a rigorous judging process, the winners for each language and category were selected in January 2026. We are delighted to host an in-person award ceremony in Japan as we did last year, welcoming the winners and members of the judging committee.
Judging Committee
Contemporary Literature Category/English
Kendall Heitzman (Translator of Japanese literature, Associate Professor of Japanese Literature, University of Iowa)
Konosu Yukiko (Translator of English-language literature, Literary Critic)
Stephen Snyder (Translator of Japanese Literature, Professor of Japanese Studies, Interim President, Middlebury College)
Konosu Yukiko (Translator of English-language literature, Literary Critic)
Stephen Snyder (Translator of Japanese Literature, Professor of Japanese Studies, Interim President, Middlebury College)
Contemporary Literature Category/Spanish
Marina Bornas (Translator of Japanese literature, Audiovisual Translator)
Noya Fumiaki (Translator of Latin American literature, Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo)
Alfredo López Pasarin (Translator of Japanese literature, Professor at Waseda University)
Noya Fumiaki (Translator of Latin American literature, Professor Emeritus at the University of Tokyo)
Alfredo López Pasarin (Translator of Japanese literature, Professor at Waseda University)
Classical Literature Category/English
Janine Beichman (Scholar and translator of Japanese Literature, Professor Emeritus at Daito Bunka University)
Peter MacMillan (Translator of Japanese literature, Poet)
Meredith McKinney (Translator of Japanese literature, Honorary Associate Professor at the Australian National University)
Moriyama Megumi (Poet, Translator of Japanese literature)
Peter MacMillan (Translator of Japanese literature, Poet)
Meredith McKinney (Translator of Japanese literature, Honorary Associate Professor at the Australian National University)
Moriyama Megumi (Poet, Translator of Japanese literature)
Prize Winners
Contemporary Literature Category/English
Grand Prize
- Chelsea Marie Bernard
- Born in 1991 in the United States. After earning a Bachelor of Arts in Drama and Japanese from Bennington College in Vermont, Chelsea Marie Bernard completed postbaccalaureate studies in East Asian Languages and Cultures at Columbia University in New York. She later earned an associate degree in health sciences from Cabrillo College in Santa Cruz. Though she had been preparing for a career change into nursing from professional Japanese–English business translation, following the receipt of the Grand Prize, she plans to pursue literary translation in parallel, aiming to further develop her skills and steadily accumulate experience.
Second Prize
- Joseph Sabatino
- Born in 1992 in the United States. After working as a content moderator for TikTok, Joseph Sabatino spent approximately five years in Japan (in Tsuruga City, Fukui Prefecture) as an Assistant Language Teacher (ALT) at a high school and a junior high school. Although he has no formal professional experience in translation, he is active as a writer and poet in English and has translated web novels, amateur manga, songs, and poetry. Through this competition's translation project, he finds himself drawn to the idea of approaching translation not as a mechanical process, but as an art form.
Second Prize
- Nicolas Keen
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Born in the United Kingdom in 1971. Nicolas Keen earned an honours degree in Computing Science (Software Engineering) from the University of Greenwich. He studied Japanese independently for a number of years, qualifying as a Japanese-English translator for Gengo.com. Employment history includes office work and research. Currently self-employed (online retail).
He entered this year’s competition because he found the source text stimulating and wanted to challenge himself to improve on his effort in the previous competition. In the future, he would like to broaden his knowledge of Japanese literature by reading more widely, and he hopes to continue developing his skills in literary translation.
Contemporary Literature Category/Spanish
Grand Prize
- Mikel García Alija
- Born in 1995 in Spain. Mikel García Alija graduated from the University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU) with a master’s degree in Secondary Education Teacher Training. He currently works as a postdoctoral researcher at IIS Biobizkaia. He enjoys translating works that require ingenuity and thought, such as song lyrics, wordplay, jokes and words with double meanings. His future goal is to produce translations that fully convey the details and nuances of the original texts while remaining easy to read for Spanish speakers.
Second Prize
- Silvia Liaño Pons
- Born in 1986 in Spain. Silvia Liaño Pons graduated from the National University of Distance Education, Spain with a bachelor’s degree in English Studies. She currently teaches geography and history at the Ministry of Education in Cantabria, Spain. She aspires to build a career as a literary translator. To this end, she intends to undertake specialist training in literary translation while building a network of contacts with specialists in the translation industry.
Second Prize
- Alberto Millán Martín
- Born in 1982 Spain. After graduating in Translation and Interpreting from the Autonomous University of Barcelona, Alberto Millán Martín obtained a PhD in Japanese Language and Culture from the University of Osaka. He currently works as an associate professor at Keio University. He specializes in linguistics, the intellectual history of translation, and the history of Japanese education. His main research focuses on the reception of Western civilization in modern Japan and the role translation played in this reception. His future goal is to rediscover and introduce to a global audience lesser-known and difficult-to-translate works of Japanese literature from the Meiji era to Shōwa eras.
Classical Literature Category/English
Grand Prize
- Ryan Hintzman
- Born in 1994 in the United States. Ryan Hintsman earned a PhD in Comparative Literature from Yale University and currently serves as an Assistant Professor of Japanese Classical Literature at Indiana University Bloomington. His translation practice aims to bring the aesthetic sensibilities and vitality of traditional Japanese poetry to global readers. Through translations, he seeks to make the pleasures and philosophical richness of waka poetry accessible to a broad international readership and to build a foundation for new appreciation of Japanese classical literature, both within and beyond the world of literary studies.
Second Prize
- Ito Kinji
- Born in 1975 in Yamaguchi Prefecture, Japan. Ito Kinji earned a PhD in Translation Studies from the State University of New York at Binghamton. He currently serves as an Associate Professor in the Japanese Language Program at Appalachian State University. He is convinced that the refined aesthetic sensibilities and universal themes found in Japanese literature have the power to resonate with readers worldwide, transcending linguistic and cultural boundaries. As a translator committed to conveying the true value of Japanese literature to a global audience, he seeks to expand the scope of his work and activities.
Second Prize
- Matthieu Felt
- Born in 1982 in the United States. Matthieu Felt earned a PhD in Japanese Literature from Columbia University and currently serves as an Associate Professor of Japanese Language and Literature in the Department of Languages, Literatures, and Cultures at the University of Florida. Specializing in premodern Japanese studies with a focus on Japanese mythology, he is continuously engaged in an English translation project of the Nihon Shoki, with the first volume scheduled for publication in 2026. Going forward, through literary translations of Heian-period narratives, he aims to bring the diversity and richness of premodern Japanese literature to a wider readership.
Symposium
Part Ⅰ
How Translators Elevate Writers: Sharing Your Taste with the World
Yuzuki Asako (Novelist)
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Otani Akira (Novelist)
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©Danny Gugger
Sam Bett (Translator of Japanese literature)
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©新潮社
Moderator : Konosu Yukiko (Translator of English-language literature, Literary Critic)
Part Ⅱ
The Potential of Literature: Conversations with Authors on the Frontiers of Global Literary Business
©Keiichi SUTO
Kirino Natsuo (Novelist)
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Ogawa Satoshi (Novelist)
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Ken Mori (President, Tuttle-Mori Agency, Inc.)
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Moderator : Arai Hiroshi (Director, Rights Department, Bungeishunju Ltd.)
| Inquiries about Japan International Literary Forum 2026 : | Please contact us through the "Inquiry" page on the JLPP website. https://www.jlpp.go.jp/jp/inquiry/index.php |
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