A monograph or edited volume in translation, interpreting and intercultural studies, beyond the authorʼs first book.
A first monograph, single- or co-authored, in translation, interpreting and intercultural studies. It must be the first book, in any field, of every author; edited volumes are not eligible.
A book related to the languages and cultures of the Global South in translation, interpreting and intercultural studies.
IATIS Book Prizes
To recognise outstanding scholarship and contribution to the field, the International Association for Translation and Intercultural Studies (IATIS) triennially awards three book prizes, presented at the Awards Ceremony during the IATIS International Conference.
Each prize is named after a prominent scholar — a founding member of IATIS and/or a figure who has helped advance the discipline — in their honour.
Judging and Awards
The following provisions apply to all three prizes.
Up to five books will be shortlisted in each category.
In addition to the winning title, the committee may award up to two honourable mentions in each category.
Winning titles will be displayed prominently at the IATIS9 conference and given visibility through publicity on the IATIS website and social media.
Recipients will be invited to attend the Awards Ceremony at IATIS9, held at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, with their conference registration fee waived. Travel and accommodation costs must be arranged and met by the recipients themselves.
The Mona Baker Prize for an Outstanding Book in the Field of Translation, Interpreting and Intercultural Studies
The Mona Baker Prize honours outstanding and innovative scholarship in an English-language monograph or edited volume on translation, interpreting and intercultural studies. The work must be beyond the author’s/authors’ (or editor’s/editors’) first book.
2027 Prize: £400 and a certificate
Guidelines for Submission
The deadline for 2027 nominations is 31 March 2027. Prize committee members may continue to receive books after that date, but all nomination forms must be submitted by the deadline for a book to be considered.
There are no residence or nationality requirements; authors and editors of any background may submit their work for consideration.
Authors and editors must hold IATIS membership at the time of shortlisting.
Works with a copyright date of 2024, 2025 or 2026 are eligible for the 2027 competition.
Reference works, exhibition catalogues, translations, textbooks, poetry, fiction, travel books, memoirs and autobiographies are not eligible. Edited volumes of new essays are eligible; collections of previously published essays are not.
A book may be nominated for only one prize competition.
Books may be nominated by the author, editor or publisher; in all cases the publisher must complete the nomination form. Each press may nominate a maximum of six books for this prize.
Once a completed nomination form is received, the nominator will be sent the addresses of the prize committee members. A copy of each nominated book (print copies preferred) must be sent to every committee member.
The Theo Hermans Prize for an Outstanding First Book in the Field of Translation, Interpreting and Intercultural Studies
The Theo Hermans Prize honours outstanding and innovative scholarship in a first English-language monograph on translation, interpreting and intercultural studies. The book may be single- or co-authored, but it must be the first book, in any field, of every author at the time of its copyright date.
2027 Prize: £400 and a certificate
Guidelines for Submission
The deadline for 2027 nominations is 31 March 2027. Prize committee members may continue to receive books after that date, but all nomination forms must be submitted by the deadline for a book to be considered.
There are no residence or nationality requirements; authors of any background may submit their work for consideration.
Authors must hold IATIS membership at the time of shortlisting.
Original scholarly non-fiction works with a copyright date of 2024, 2025 or 2026 are eligible for the 2027 competition.
Co-authored books are eligible, provided the book is the first book of every author at the time of its copyright date. No author may have previously published a book in any field.
Reference works, exhibition catalogues, translations, textbooks, edited volumes, collections of previously published essays, poetry, fiction, travel books, memoirs and autobiographies are not eligible.
A book may be nominated for only one prize competition.
Books may be nominated by either the author or the publisher; in all cases the publisher must complete the nomination form. Each press may nominate a maximum of six books for this prize.
Once a completed nomination form is received, the nominator will be sent the addresses of the prize committee members. A copy of each nominated book (print copies preferred) must be sent to every committee member.
The Vicente L. Rafael Prize for an Outstanding Book in the Field of Translation, Interpreting and Intercultural Studies Related to the Languages and Cultures of the Global South
The Prize is awarded triennially to an outstanding English-language book on translation, interpreting and intercultural studies related to the languages and cultures of the Global South. The book may be the author’s (or authors’) first book or a later work.
2027 Prize: £400 and a certificate
Guidelines for Submission
The deadline for 2027 nominations is 31 March 2027. Prize committee members may continue to receive books after that date, but all nomination forms must be submitted by the deadline for a book to be considered.
There are no residence or nationality requirements; authors and editors of any background may submit their work for consideration.
Authors and editors must hold IATIS membership at the time of shortlisting.
Original scholarly non-fiction works with a copyright date of 2024, 2025 or 2026 are eligible for the 2027 competition.
Reference works, exhibition catalogues, translations, textbooks, poetry, fiction, travel books, memoirs and autobiographies are not eligible. Edited volumes of new essays are eligible; collections of previously published essays are not.
A book may be nominated for only one prize competition.
Books may be nominated by the author, editor or publisher; in all cases the publisher must complete the nomination form. Each press may nominate a maximum of six books for this prize.
Once a completed nomination form is received, the nominator will be sent the addresses of the prize committee members. A copy of each nominated book (print copies preferred) must be sent to every committee member.
NB — Scope of the Global South. For the purposes of this Prize, the “Global South” is understood not as a fixed geographical region but as a relational category encompassing the languages and cultures historically marginalised or peripheralised by colonialism, imperialism and the asymmetries of global power. It centres the languages and cultures of Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Caribbean, the Pacific, and the Middle East, and extends to Indigenous, diasporic and migrant communities wherever they are located, including within the Global North. Eligibility is determined by the languages and cultures a book engages rather than by the nationality or location of its author. The committee interprets borderline cases in the spirit of the Prize.
