The 2024 prize is awarded to Professor Dick Davis (Ohio State University), who in recent years has translated two verse romances by the twelfth century poet Nezami Ganjavi: Layli and Majnun (Mage, 2020; Penguin Classics, 2021) and Khosrow and Shirin (Mage, 2024; Penguin Classics, 2025). Nezami is a canonical poet of classical Persian literature, recognized
The second 2025 Persian Translation Prize goes to The Shape of Extinction (Asemana Books), a collection of Bijan Jalali’s minimalist poems by poet Abeeda Shahid Talukder and Aria Fani (UWash), which masterfully conveys Jalali’s meditative style. Poet and author of Ghazal Cosmopolitan provides a brilliant reflection of the collection and the translators’ work: “where Fani’s
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For 2025, the first prize goes to M.R. Ghanoonparvar (UT Austin) for his translation of Ghazaleh Alizadeh’s two-volume novel The House of the Edrisis (1991-2) (Syracuse UP). The House of Edrisis plays on historical parallels of the Islamic Revolution in Iran within its setting of 1910s Soviet Turkmenistan. Following the drama and dissolution of the powerful
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Sassan Tabatabai won the 2023 Persian Translation Prize for his translation of Sadeq Hedayat’s Blind Owl. Tabatabai holds a prominent position as the head of the Persian program at Boston University, where he regularly teaches all levels of Persian language and literature. His multifaceted expertise extends beyond academia, encompassing roles as a poet, translator, editor,
Patricia J. Higgins is a University Distinguished Professor of Anthropology, Emerita, at SUNY Plattsburgh. Her UC Berkeley Ph.D. was based, in part, on research she conducted on education and socialization in elementary schools Tehran, Iran, from 1969 to 1971; she carried out further research on Iranian education as a Fulbright Lecturer at Tehran University in
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Pouneh Shabani-Jadid won the 2021 Persian Translation Prize for her translation of Iraj Pezeshkzad’s Hafez in Love. Formerly a Senior Faculty Lecturer of Persian Language and Linguistics at McGill University’s Institute of Islamic Studies, Pouneh Shabani-Jadidi is currently an Instructional Professor of Persian in the University of Chicago’s Department of Near Eastern Languages and Civilizations.
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Nastaran Kherad’s translation of The Neighbors (Austin, TX: Center for Middle Eastern Studies, 2013), by Ahmad Mahmoud, tells the story of a young man whose involvement in Iran’s oil industry in the 1950s leads him to discover that the world is bigger than the poverty surrounding him.
Charand-o Parand: Revolutionary Satire from Iran, 1907-1909 (New Haven: Yale University Press, 2016), translated by Janet Afary and John R. Perry, gives a new audience access to the essays and newspaper columns of Ali-Akbar Dehkhoda, which entertain as they offer a critical evaluation of Iran’s old political order.
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Jason Bahbak Mohaghegh was awarded this prize for his translation of Born upon the Dark Spear: Selected Poems of Ahmad Shamlu (Contra Mundum Press, 2015). Known for his voice of resilient defiance and political dissent, Shamlu is one of the most prominent literary figures in twentieth century Iran, evidenced by his nomination for a Nobel
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For his volume entitled Hafez: Translations and Interpretations of the Ghazals (Miami Univ. Press). In this volume Squires, who is an accomplished Irish poet and lived in Iran for three years, captures the energy and depth of the iconic poet Hafez in contemporary English without archaisms or a predetermined interpretation. It displays a supple and
For his translation of Vis and Ramin, an ancient Persian epic composed by the poet Fakhraddin Gorgani. The Prize was announced by AIIS President Franklin Lewis in August 2012 at a conference of the International Society of Iranian Studies in Istanbul. No winner has been announced yet for 2013. Davis is Chair of of Near
For her translation of Sin: Selected Poems of Forough Farrokhzad (Univ of Arkansas Press 2008, preface by Alicia Ostriker). Frank Lewis, the president of the American Institute for Iranian Studies, notes that this musical and compelling version draws the reader along and catches the exquisite balance and pacing of the poet’s language; he hopes that
Joint award, with Kaveh Sava, for their translation of a collection of poems of Simin Behbehani, entitled Cups of Sin.
Joint award, with Farzaneh Milani, for their translation of a collection of poems of Simin Behbehani, entitled Cups of Sin.
For his book entitled Translating the Garden (Univ of Texas Press), coupling the difficult work of Shahrokh Meskoob (Dialogue in the Garden) with a companion essay on translation.
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For her translation of Haft Paykar (Oxford Press), a medieval Persian romance written by Nizami of Ganja, who died around 1209.
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For his translation of the first volume of the Masnavi, by Jalal al-Din Rumi. Oxford’s Mojadeddi brings scholarly rigor to this translation of the first of six volumes by a classic poet who has not always been well served by translators.
Jointly awarded, with Rachel Lehr, for their translation of The Sands of Oxus: Boyhood Reminiscences of Sadriddin Aini (Costa Mesa: Mazda Books, 1998).
Jointly awarded, with John Perry, for their translation of The Sands of Oxus: Boyhood Reminiscences of Sadriddin Aini (Costa Mesa: Mazda Books, 1998).
Jointly awarded, with Afkham Darband, for their translation of Farid-Ud-Din Attar’s classic text, The Conference of the Birds.
Jointly awarded, with Dick Davis, for their translation of Farid-Ud-Din Attar’s classic text, The Conference of the Birds.
For his translation of the Rostam and Esfandyar episodes of Ferdowsi’s Shahnameh, Iran’s national epic. It has been called “clearly the finest English verse translation of Ferdowsi in existence.”