Wales Literature Exchange and Wales PEN Cymru in collaboration with Swansea University, Cymdeithas Cyfieithwyr Cymru, the University of Wales Trinity Saint David, the Polish Cultural Institute and O’r Pedwar Gwynt literary magazine are pleased to announce two translation competitions: Her Gyfieithu 2019 (from Polish into Welsh) and Translation Challenge 2019 (from Polish into English).

The Translation Challenge and Her Gyfieithu were established in 2009 in order to promote and celebrate the crucial contribution that translators make to enabling literature to travel across frontiers. Through the work of literary translators, authors and poets can reach new audiences as well as internationalise their careers. The prizes are also a recognition of literary translation as one of the creative arts and they aim to encourage new and emerging literary translators.

This year, the poems to translate are Inspekcja z Londynu, Wiadomość z wyspy Wight and Wyspa koronek by contemporary Polish poet, Wioletta Greg. The poems can be read here.

There is a £200 prize for this year’s challenge and the adjudicator will be Antonia Lloyd-Jones.

The deadline for entries is 10 May 2019 and the winner will be announced on 25 May 2019 at a special event at the Hay Festival.

To submit an entry, competitors should

• Compete through the Wales PEN Cymru website and a registration fee of £6 must be paid with each attempt.
• Send your translation to walespencymru@gmail.com by midnight 10 May 2019.
• Enter your name and contact details in the email, but a pseudonym in the appendix containing your translation.
• Competitors may submit more than one entry and must include a fee for each.
• Competitors may use any resource they wish to assist them in the challenge, and group work is also accepted. There is however only one prize.

For more information about the prize, click here.

The Translation Challenge is part of the Wales Literature Exchange work programme supported by Arts Council of Wales.