The shortlisted manuscripts of the Safal-Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature have been announced today, Tuesday, January 10, 2022. The Safal Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature, formerly the Mabati-Cornell Prize, recognises writing in poetry and prose in the Kiswahili language. It is supported by Safal Group, through its subsidiaries Mabati Rolling Mills of Kenya […]
Katama Mkangi’s Walenisi, to be translated by Richard Prins’, is among the PEN America literary grant recipients 2023 announced on November 16, 2022. PEN America’s Literary Translation Fund awards grants to promote the publication and reception of translated world literature in English. It is juried by panels of esteemed, award-winning writers, editors, translators, and critics […]
The winners of the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature 2021 were announced at a ceremony in Nairobi, Kenya on Saturday, October 1, 2022. The Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature, sponsored by Madison Group, celebrates Kenyan writers in the categories of fiction for adults, youth (young adults), and children in English and Kiswahili every two years. […]
The shortlists for the Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature 2021 have been revealed by the Kenya Publishers Association today, September 19, 2022. The Jomo Kenyatta Prize for Literature celebrates Kenyan writers in the categories of fiction for adults, youth (young adults), and children in English and Kiswahili every two years. The awards, running since 1972, […]
Florence Chanya Mwaita, Omar Kibulanga, and Elias B. Shelukindo are the winners of the Hekaya Arts Initiative Kiswahili Writing Competition, supported by Common Voice. The announcement was made on May 19, 2022. Hekaya Arts Initiative is a Mombasa, Kenya-based arts organisation that seeks to elevate literature from the Indian Ocean coast. Their most famous initiative […]
The Swahili Literary Festival 2022 is set to happen in Mombasa and Kilifi, Kenya from March 18-20, 2022. The festival theme is “Exploring language(s) and Boundaries.” The announcement was made on February 10, 2022. In March 2019, the Hekaya Initiative organised the Swahili Literary Festival in Mombasa. It featured panels covering issues of interest to […]
The shortlist for the Nyabola Prize for Science and Speculative Fiction in Kiswahili 2021 was announced today, November 17, 2021. The Nyabola Prize for Science and Speculative Fiction in Kiswahili was founded to recognise short fiction with the intention of promoting the vocabulary of science and technology in Kiswahili in 2021. Writers were encouraged to […]
Euphrase Kezilahabi’s Rosa Mistika is one of the works given a translation grant by PEN America. The revelation was made on September 15, 2021. PEN/Heim Translation Fund Grants were established by PEN America following a gift of $730,000 by Michael Henry Heim, a noted literary translator in 2003. Heim believed that there was a ‘dismayingly […]
The judges for the Mabati-Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature 2021, unveiled on August 2, are Prof. Aldin K. Mutembei, Dr. Salma Omar and Dr. Joseph Nyehita Maitaria. Prof. Rocha Chimerah and Dr. Hamisi Babusa will judge The Nyabola Prize, a special 2021 award for youth writing science fiction and speculative fiction in Kiswahili, for […]
The Swahili Literary Festival 2021 which happens at the Kilindini Cultural Centre, Mombasa kicked off today and runs until March 8, 2021. The festival theme is “celebrating women.” The Hekaya Initiative organised the Swahili Literary Festival in Mombasa at the SwahiliPot Hub in 2019. In a first for that part of Kenya, there were panels […]
East African based prizes, Kendeka Prize for African Literature, and the Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature have made call outs for unpublished work. Kendeka Prize for African Literature The Kendeka Prize for African Literature started accepting entries from February 1 for its 2021 edition. The new prize is an initiative of Andrew Maina, […]
Kiswahili was the first language featured at the Afrolit Sans Frontières African Languages Edition on October 26, 2020. Afrolit Sans Frontières, a virtual literary festival for writers of African origin, was founded by author and publisher Zukiswa Wanner as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic international lockdowns. There have been five editions running since it […]
The Kalahari Short Stories Competition, organised by La Cene Littéraire, seeks entries in French, English and Kiswahili. It was officially opened today May 20, 2020. La Cene Littéraire is an organisation founded by Swiss lawyer Ngoãn Beti to celebrate the best in African writing. It hands out the Prix Les Afriques to an African or […]
The Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature 2020 has been postponed as a result of the Covid-19 pandemic’s impact on the business continuity of its sponsors. The Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature recognises writing in poetry and prose in African languages and encourages translation from, between and into African languages. The award, […]
The shortlist for the Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature 2019 was announced by its board chair, Abdilatif Abdalla, on December 15, 2019. The Mabati Cornell Kiswahili Prize for African Literature recognises writing in African languages and encourages translation from, between and into African languages. The award, founded by Dr Mukoma Wa Ngugi (Cornell […]
