2026 Jawad memorial prize
The ninth Jawad Memorial Prize for Urdu-English translation, 2026
IS OPEN FOR REGISTRATION.
The Jawad Memorial Prize for Urdu-English translation has been instituted to honor the life and literary legacy of Ali Jawad Zaidi (1916-2004). He was an Urdu poet, a freedom fighter and a polyphonic scholar who wrote several books of poetry and scholarly works such as 'A History of Urdu Literature', 'Uttar Pradesh ke Marsiyago' and several others. He also wrote commentary on a wide range of cultural themes, publishing significant books like 'Do Adbi School' and 'Islami Taraqqi Pasandi.' He was honoured with several awards, including the Padmashri, the Ghalib Award, the Mir Anis award and others. He was working on a project he called 'Urdu mein Ramkatha' when he passed away on December 6, 2004.
This prize focuses on translation across genres, recognizing that Ali Jawad Zaidi was deeply invested not only in writing Urdu poetry but also in preserving its history and literary traditions. It is our hope and endeavor that the prize will serve to continue his life's work in a small way.
The Jawad Memorial Prize is open to anyone living anywhere in the world. The winner gets USD 300 and a certificate, and the runner-up gets USD 150 and a certificate.. Submissions are judged blind. Please read the rules carefully before submitting.
Details and Rules:
For 2026, the Jawad Memorial Prize invites translations of Urdu poetry that relate to this year's theme: Unspoken.
Translators are invited to submit (unpublished) translations into English of an Urdu poem that has already been published somewhere (in a book, magazine, or online journal). You are free to interpret the theme as broadly as you like.
The deadline for submission is August 30, 2026. Please read the following rules carefully before submitting.
Details and Rules:
The word limit is 100-1,000 words. A few words more or less will not disqualify an entry. However, the indicated range must be respected.
The original poem in Urdu must either be free of copyright claims (65 years after the death of the author) or the translator must obtain the author's permission before submitting an entry, and should be able to furnish proof of this, if asked to do so.
Please send your translations to <sajz.contact@gmail.com> with 'Jawad Memorial Prize 2026 Submission' in the subject field.
Translators can submit more than one poem. However, send each entry as a separate email.
The original text (in Urdu) should be attached along with the translation. Both files should be in either pdf or jpeg or .doc format.
The translation must be sent as an attachment in .doc or .rtf format. The original Urdu author's name must be mentioned in the file submitted. However, the translator must not mention their name anywhere on the file that carries the translated text, as submissions are judged blind.
The translator's name and a brief biographical note (50 - 100 words) should be included in the body of the email.
The contest opens on June 01, 2026 and closes on Aug 30, 2026.
Winners will be announced in December 2026. The decision of the jury will be final.
Please note: there will be no award ceremony. Winners are contacted individually and awarded their respective prizes. Winning entries should be available for publication on the website as well as on any other media platform for publicity purposes.
Our best wishes to all translators. We look forward to your submissions.