Students in all departments and programs (undergraduate and graduate) across the University of Michigan are invited to submit literary translations of texts from Classical Arabic, Persian, Armenian, and Turkish. We know that there are many people inspired by the beauty of these languages who wish to render them more freely and creatively than classwork often involves. The contest is intended to highlight the work of students who are interested in the process of translation as a creative, intellectually meaningful enterprise. This contest is coordinated in conjunction with the U-M conference “After Alexander: Classical Texts in Arabic, Persian and Armenian” (April 18-19, 2016).

Rules and Prizes

1. Please submit your work anonymously in the following format: FOUR hard copies of your English translation (along with the original text) and ONE separate cover page (listing the title and author of the text you translated, your name and email address, and your undergraduate major or graduate program).

2. Submissions are due on Monday April 11, 2016 by 5:00pm to the Comparative Literature Main Office, 2021 Tisch Hall (2nd floor).

3. All submissions will be judged anonymously by a panel of faculty members from the Department of Near Eastern Studies.

4. Students affiliated with any UM department are eligible.

5. All work should consist of original translations/interpretations of works from Classical Arabic, Persian, Armenian, and Turkish.

6. Original works may be in prose or verse and translations may be in prose, verse, or other format, such as multi-media.

7. Maximum length of written submissions is five double-spaced pages.

8. In each category (undergraduate and graduate), the prizes will be $100 each.

9. Winners will be invited to present their translations on April 18, 2016 during the “After Alexander” conference.

Co-sponsored by Contexts for Classics, the Islamic Studies Program, and Near Eastern Studies at the University of Michigan https://lsa.umich.edu/contextsforclassics