Chronicle 2019; An eventful and productive year for the Icelandic Literature Center
Numerous interesting events and successful collaborations within the literary scene both at home and abroad marked the passing year.
The year 2019 was exceptionally eventful for the Icelandic Literature Center and numerous interesting events come to mind. Good and successful collaborations within the literary scene both at home and abroad with writers, translators, and institutions were of great significance. A few of last year's main projects and events are listed below.
Translation Days in Oslo
Icelandic literature, writers and translators garnered attention in Oslo at the beginning of March within the extensive programme of Oversatte dager in Litteraturhuset. Participants counted for instance Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir and Bergsveinn Brigisson, the translator Tone Myklebost, and Hrefna Haraldsdóttir from the ILC. The Icelandic embassy in Norway organised the Icelandic programme, which was very well attended.
Iceland Guest of Honour at the Gdansk Book Fair
Iceland was the guest of honour at a three-day book fair in Gdansk in Poland towards the end of March. Iceland's participation was noted by literary figures and the Polish media, and the Icelandic writers Hallgrímur Helgason, Einar Kárason, Sigríður Hagalín Björnsdóttir, and Elísabet Jökulsdóttir received a very warm welcome indeed. They all participated in panel discussions on their works, Icelandic literature, translations, culture, politics, and other issues that the panel leaders and members of the audience, who took an active part in the sessions, wanted to address.
The Icelandic Literature Center managed the Icelandic contribution to the fair in Gdansk in collaboration with the book fair's management that hosted the Icelandic group, which included one of the most distinguished Polish translators of Icelandic literature, Jacek Godek, pictured in here in the sidebar.
Silvia Cosimini and John Swedenmark received the 2019 Orðstír Award
The President of Iceland presented the honorary award Orðstír at a ceremony at Bessastaðir, the President's residence, on the 23rd of April, making it the third time the prize was awarded. This time it went to the translators Silvia Cosimini from Italy and John Swedenmark from Sweden.
Orðstír is an honorary award for translation of Icelandic literature into foreign languages. It is awarded every other year in conjunction with the Reykjavik International Literary Festival to individuals who have translated works from Icelandic to another language to an outstanding standard and with such success that it promotes the prominence of Icelandic culture on foreign ground.
18 Translators at an International Translators' Seminar in Reykjavik
An international translators' seminar was held on the 29th – 30th of April in Veröld, Vigdís' House, with 18 translators from ten different linguistic areas taking part. There were old hands and newbies at the seminars and the languages they translate into is Polish, Czech, Norwegian, Swedish, Danish, English, Russian, Latvian, German, and Italian.
The goal of the ILC with hosting a translators' seminar in Iceland is to advance and enhance relations with active translators of Icelandic literature and demonstrate how appreciated their work is, as translators are great ambassadors of literature, spreading the word all around. The organisers of the seminar also want to encourage and inspire new, up-and-coming translators and enable all participants to get in touch with the Icelandic literary scene and contemporary culture.
Auður – Childrens' and YA Literary Fund. First Time Allocation!
In May the very first allocation from the Auður fund was made, and this children's and young adult literary fund is a part of the Ministry of Education, Science and Culture's action plan to boost Icelandic, and is intended to support quality reading material for younger readers. 20 works received grants this round, various sorts; long textbooks for youngsters, illustrated books for toddlers, and everything in between.
Two New Authors Received Grass Roots Grants
In June the ILC awarded two emerging writers Grass Roots Grants for their work. The writers were Auður Stefánsdóttir for the children's book Í gegnum þokuna, and Kristján H. Guðmundsson for the short story collection Afkvæni. The Minister of Education, Science and Culture presented the writers with the grants at a ceremony at the Icelandic Writers' Union headquarters, Gunnarshús.
The Grass Roots Grants are awarded annually for works of emerging writers, regardless of age, to encourage them to stay the course.
Icelandic Publishers Strengthen Bonds with Swedish Colleagues in Stockholm
In June, the Icelandic Literature Center collaborated with the Swedish Literature Exchange in a publishers exchange. Three Icelandic publishers went to Stockholm while three of their Swedish colleagues took their place in Iceland for three days. Similar exchanges have taken place between other Nordic countries with great success. The goal with this exercise is to strengthen ties between colleagues, promote Icelandic literature in Sweden, increase the number of translations and their distribution in Sweden. The Icelandic publisher agreed that the trip to Stockholm was a success in every way.
The Icelandic Literature Center at Book Fairs Abroad
Like in the past few years, the ILC took part in principal book fairs abroad to promote Icelandic literature among international publishers, agents, translators, and other interested parties. As per usual, the London Book Fair was held in spring and the ILC shared the Nordic stand with sister centers from the Nordic Countries. The Icelandic Embassy in London held an event in conjunction with the fair where writer Yrsa Sigurðardóttir, her translator Victoria Cribb, and Quentin Bates had an interesting talk about literature and their importance. In addition, the first lady of Iceland, Eliza Reid, held an interesting lecture on Icelandic literature.
One of the largest book fairs in the world took place in Frankfurt in October. Publishers and other key players in the literary world attend the fair. The ILC was in the Icelandic stand, which was managed by the Icelandic Publishers´ Association, and met with publishers, agents, and others, introducing Icelandic literature and grant opportunities.
Auður Ava, Kristín, Ragnar, and Sigrún at the Gothenburg Book Fair
The Gothenburg Book Fair was held at the end of September and like in the past years, Icelandic authors participated in the extensive programme. Auður Ava Ólafsdóttir, Kristín Ómarsdóttir, Ragnar Jónasson, and Sigrún Eldjárn appeared at various events and received a warm welcome. They for instance discussed tradition, modernity, imagination, lyricism, crime fiction and superheroes, in addition to partaking in various events across the city.
The Icelandic Literature Center manages the programme with the Icelandic writers in collaboration with the fair's management. The Icelandic stand at the book fair is set up in collaboration with Promote Iceland. Icelandic books are promoted and sold, many in Swedish translation, and that aspect is managed by the Icelandic Publishers' Association. From 2012, 46 Icelandic authors have participated in the Gothenburg Book Fair, some more than once.
Reading Survey
The ILC in collaboration with key figures in the literary scene commissioned a survey at the end of the year regarding Icelanders' attitude to book reading and more. The results show that reading has increased, especially with regard to audio books, and Icelanders now read 2,3 books a year on average. The most prolific readers are women and families with children.
Young people read a lot in other languages than Icelandic and most readers get inspiration for reading material from friends and relative. An overwhelming majority believes that public financial support of literature is vital, and it is evident that there is a dynamic discussion on literature that impacts what people read.
This autumn the Icelandic Literature Center launched a new translators' web with a list of active translators of Icelandic into other languages. On the web you can find extensive and accessible information on the translators, their education and background, and their principal works translated from Icelandic. The user can look up translators by name or language here. The list is updated on a regular basis.A New and Accessible Translators' Web Launched
Reading Report Grants Awarded for the First Time
The role of the Icelandic Literature Center is to enhance literary culture in Iceland, promote Icelandic literature abroad, and to increase its distribution. That is for instance achieved with grant allocations for publications and translations. The ILC forges on in this field by adding two new grant categories this year, with the aforementioned Auður – Childrens' and Young Adult Fund and Reading Report Grants.
The Reading Report Grants are modeled on a Nordic version and are meant for foreign publishers and agents who are considering publishing Icelandic literature in translation and would like a professional report. These grants are meant to encourage and promote more translations and publications, and so boost distribution of Icelandic literature abroad.
Multifarious Activities of the Center
The summary above only highlights a part of the ILC's activities, and an important factor of the operations is the various grant allocations, that is to say, grants awarded to enhance and strengthen domestic publication and translation into Icelandic and foreign languages. Furthermore, the ILC paves the way for writers with travel grants for promotional tours abroad and offers travel and subsistence expenses for translators from Icelandic into foreign languages in collaboration with the Icelandic Writers' Union. Information on all the Center's grants can be found here.
We would like to thank all those we were fortunate to collaborate with in the year 2019, at home and abroad, and look forward to collaborations and new adventures this year!