A total of approximately €700,000 in grants was awarded this year, including more than half a million euros in translation grants to publishers outside Finland. Fully 81 percent of applications were approved for a grant.
The number of applications received in 2020 increased by about a quarter over the previous year’s figure. All in all, grants were awarded for translations of Finnish literature into 40 languages. The largest numbers of grants were awarded for translations into Estonian, German and Russian.
Among authors of books for adults, 10 grants were awarded for translations of Max Seeck’s The Faithful Reader (published in the US as The Witch Hunter), with 9 grants going to works by Sofi Oksanen, 8 to Kjell Westö’s Tritonus, and works by Selja Ahava and Laura Lindstedt each receiving 7 grants. Five grants each went to works by Juhani Karila (author of Fishing for the Little Pike), Pajtim Statovci and Mia Kankimäki.
As usual, the children’s/YA author whose works received the most translation grants this time is Timo Parvela (19 translation grants), with Aino Havukainen & Sami Toivonen, creators of Tatu and Patu, following in second place with 11 grants. In joint third place with 10 translation grants this year were Riikka Jäntti, author of the ‘Little Mouse’ books, and Mauri Kunnas. Next were Laura Ertimo (9 grants) and Magdalena Hai (8 grants). Tove Jansson, a perennial favourite, was also represented with 13 translation grants across her books for adults and children.
Another title worth highlighting is Volter Kilpi’s modernist classic Alastalon salissa (‘In Alastalo’s Parlour’), originally published in 1933, which has been translated into German by Stefan Moster. Mare Verlag has received a translation grant and will publish the book in Germany Autumn 2021.
