Israelyan English Translation Grant

The Israelyan English Translation Grant is offered by the International Armenian Literary Alliance (IALA) and was made possible by a donation from Souren A. Israelyan. The program supports literary translation through a monetary award and related promotional support. For the 2026 grant, IALA states that one translator will receive $3,500 for a work-in-progress demonstrating exceptional literary and creative ability. The stated program description identifies the project as translation from an English source text into Eastern Armenian and limits the eligible contemporary literary works to a list selected by IALA. The selected fiction, nonfiction, and poetry titles are by Armenian authors writing in English and were chosen for their diversity of voices and subject matter and their connection to the Armenian literary community. The grant is intended to encourage the development of translated literature and to support translators working with English-language literature. In addition to the $3,500 monetary award, IALA states that it will support recipients in promoting their publications through its website and social media channels, book reviews, readings, and discussions. The source does not state a cost-sharing or matching requirement. Projects must be translations in progress and must not yet be under a publication contract. A previously published short excerpt does not make a project ineligible, provided that no more than ten percent of the work has previously been published. The final manuscript of the translation must be completed by December 2027. Applicants must be over 21 at the time of application and must be active IALA members when applying. IALA offers several discounted or free memberships each year for people with low incomes or who are unemployed. Members of the IALA board of directors and advisory board are ineligible. No previous publication record is required. Applicants may submit one application per year, unsuccessful applicants may apply again in the future, and grant recipients must wait two years before reapplying. Source texts must be selected from IALA's specified list and must be translated directly from the source language into the target language without intermediary or relay translation. The eligibility section states that the translation must be made into English, while the main grant description states that the grant supports translation from an English source text into Eastern Armenian; these statements conflict in the supplied source and should be verified with IALA. For poetry projects, applicants must provide eight to ten translated poems from the collection they intend to complete with the grant. For all other texts, applicants must provide a 5,000-word translation sample from the proposed work. Every application also requires a brief biography and a personal statement summarizing the translator's relationship to the selected work and why the applicant chose to translate it. Applicants should also be prepared to answer questions about their vision for publication after the translation is completed, including contacts with interested publishers or presses to which they intend to submit the completed work. Applications and translation samples containing text generated by artificial intelligence or other machine-based tools are strictly prohibited. If a selected work is not in the public domain, the applicant is responsible for ensuring that translation rights remain available and have not already been sold for a translation in progress. Applicants should notify the rights holder that they are translating a sample for the grant application and intend to complete and publish the translation if awarded. IALA also expects members to interact respectfully and professionally with staff, board members, and community members and reserves the right to deny applications or restrict membership or program participation when conduct is considered inappropriate or harmful to the community. Applications are reviewed through a blind panel process. Judging focuses on the translator's adaptation of the author's craft and style and the quality of the translation in preserving the author's intent. IALA also prioritizes the expression of people from unique and marginalized backgrounds, considers the translator's connection with the source work, and expects the personal statement to explain how the grant would help the translator complete the project. Tatevik Ayvazyan is identified as the judge for the 2026 grant. IALA reserves the right not to award the grant if applications do not meet the review criteria, and all decisions are final and are not subject to appeal or reconsideration. The application is open through September 30, 2026, at 11:59 PM Eastern Time, and the source states that the full application will be posted online on September 1, 2026. No separate letter of intent, concept paper, pre-proposal, or other pre-application gating requirement is stated. No award notification date or separate project start date is provided. The successful translator must complete the final manuscript by December 2027. No program email address, telephone number, or explicit PDF application or guidelines URL is provided in the supplied material.

Prioritize a translation that preserves the author's intent, craft, and style. Use the personal statement to demonstrate a meaningful connection with the source work and explain specifically how the grant will help complete the project. Provide a credible vision for publication after completion. IALA also prioritizes expression from individuals from unique and marginalized backgrounds. Do not include text generated by artificial intelligence or other machine-based tools.