KUWAIT CITY, Nov 23:  The 47th Kuwait International Book Fair held a dedicated event to spotlight the Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding, one of the most prestigious awards aimed at fostering cultural dialogue and knowledge exchange across nations.

A special symposium was organized within the cultural corridor of the fair to introduce the award, which was established by the State of Qatar. The event highlighted the award’s mission to promote international understanding through translation as a means of bridging cultural divides. The symposium featured interviews with previous award winners and showcased glimpses, photos, and video clips from the award’s global tours.

Moderated by Nasser Al-Haiba, the official spokesperson and media advisor of the award, the symposium included insightful presentations by Dr. Hanan Fayyad and Dr. Imtenan Al-Samadi, both members of the award's media team.

Dr. Al-Samadi emphasized the historical relationship between Arabs and translation, tracing its origins back to the Umayyad era. She mentioned Khalid bin Yazid bin Muawiyah, known as the Sage of Al Marwan, who was deeply interested in chemistry. Driven by his desire to transform metals into gold, he instructed Greek scholars in Alexandria to translate chemistry books from Greek and also ordered the translation of Aristotle’s Organon, a collection of works on logic. Dr. Al-Samadi described translation as both a bilingual communication and a creative process, stressing that a good translation is not only a cognitive act but also a creative one.

She further highlighted the golden age of translation during the reign of Caliph Al-Ma’mun, who sent scientific missions to acquire knowledge from original sources. Al-Ma’mun established the House of Wisdom in Baghdad, which became the first university and the greatest library in the Islamic world. It played a key role in translating the works of philosophers such as Plato, Aristotle, and Ptolemy. Dr. Al-Samadi underscored the importance of translation in bridging cultures and enabling societies to thrive, urging countries to prioritize translation efforts.

The Sheikh Hamad Award, which carries the slogan “From Arabic to Humanity,” bases its evaluation process on the “nature of the text.” Unlike other fields, translation is judged by type rather than quantity, with a particular focus on the humanities, as opposed to the natural sciences, which require specific terminology and large arbitration panels.

Dr. Fayyad shared that the idea behind the award stemmed from the significant role translation played in the rise of the Arab nation. The award, she explained, was born from this recognition and has grown into an international project focused on transparency, quality, and diversity. It includes an esteemed board of trustees and international arbitration committees.

She emphasized that the award reaches out to translators around the world, making efforts to travel to different countries and announce the award in order to ensure transparency and fairness in the distribution of results and awards. Dr. Fayyad also noted that many older translators, who may not be aware of such awards, are encouraged to participate in the Sheikh Hamad Award’s efforts to involve all translators, regardless of their awareness of the prize.

Established in 2015 in Qatar, the Sheikh Hamad Award for Translation and International Understanding is an international prize aimed at recognizing translators and supporting efforts to build cultural and civilizational bridges between peoples through translation. The award also seeks to encourage translations both to and from the Arabic language, enrich the Arabic library, and highlight the significance of translation as a cultural and intellectual endeavor.

Dr. Fayyad explained that the total financial value of the award amounts to two million US dollars, which is distributed across various categories.

This event is part of the exhibition’s broader efforts to highlight pioneering cultural initiatives that contribute to promoting dialogue and global peace.

The 47th Kuwait International Book Fair, which opened on Wednesday under the patronage of His Highness Sheikh Ahmad Abdullah Al-Ahmad Al-Sabah, Prime Minister of Kuwait, will continue until November 30.