Guadalajara Book Fair welcomes Sharjah as guest of honor
The 36th Guadalajara International Book Fair (FIL) is honoured to welcome Sharjah as Guest of Honour. The largest book fair in Latin America, taking place from November 26 to December 4, 2022, is the main cultural event in the Spanish-speaking world.
Sharjah will be showcasing 57 Arabic books written by renowned Emirati authors and translated into Spanish; the cultural programme will also feature a selection of cultural, literary, media, and heritage activities, comprised of 27 sessions, presented by 20 cultural entities, with the participation of 24 Emirati and Arab authors and creatives, shedding light on Sharjah’s efforts to give community members access to books and highlight the role of published works as the primary source of education, science and knowledge.
The Sharjah Book Authority (SBA) will be leading the emirate’s cultural and literary programme at the book fair while hosting several entities and initiatives under its umbrella, including the Sharjah Publishing City (SPC), the Translation Grant, the Sharjah International Literary Agency (SILA), and the Arab Children’s Book Publisher Forum (ACBPF).
Sharjah’s rich program translates UAE’s cultural message and contributes to introducing Mexican people to Arab culture. It comprises book-launch, book-signing ceremonies, reading sessions, traditional shows, and poetry readings, including ‘The Voice of the World’ and ‘Visions’. The Mexican Illustrators’ reception will be organised by SBA, inviting all Mexican Illustrators who have participated in the Sharjah Children’s Book Illustration Exhibition between 2017 to 2021.
The programme’s spectrum of events and activities will be held in an enormous pavilion with a large space at the entrance of the book fair dedicated by FIL’s management. It features reading sessions, panel discussions, seminars as well as cultural, media and cinema symposiums, including a session themed ‘The Arabic Lexicon and Its Impact on the Spanish Language’, a panel titled ‘Book-Marketing Trends’, a media symposiums themed ‘Media: A Link Between the UAE and Mexico’, a cultural session titled ‘Travel Literature from the UAE to Mexico’, and a cinema symposiums under the theme ‘Keeping up with the Current Cinematic Situation in the UAE and Mexico’, to name a few.
Arabic Calligraphy will be present at the book fair as Sharjah’s Department of Culture will be holding an event themed ‘Arabic Calligraphy: Its History, Origins And Its Influence on Other Cultures’, and this authentic art will be further celebrated through the inauguration of the ‘Arabic Calligraphy Exhibition’ in collaboration with the The University of Guadalajara.
Sharjah will be showcasing the experiences and expertise of several cultural entities that translate its vision and cultural project. The Emirate’s pavilion at the event will see the participation of the Emirates Writers Union (EWU), Sharjah Broadcasting Authority (SBA), Emirates Publishers Association (EPA), Department of Culture, Dr. Sultan AlQasimi Center, University of Sharjah, Sharjah Archaeology Authority, Emirates Reprographic Right Management, Sharjah Institute for Heritage, Al Qasimi Publications, UAE Board on Books for Young people (UAEBBY), Kalimat Group (KG), Kalimat Foundation (KF), House of wisdom (HoW), and Sharjah Museum of Islamic Civilization.
The program will bring together a host of Emirati and Arab authors and creatives, namely Sultan Al Amimi, Kholoud Al Mualla, Abdullah Al Hadiya, Fahd Ali Al Maamari, Dr. Afra Atiq, Dr. Alyazia Khalifa, Jamal Al Shehi, Fatima Alnabouda, Dr. Hamad Bin Seray, Ali Al Abdan, Dr. Muhsin Al Ramli, Dr. Shihab Ghanem, Amal Al-Sahlawi, Sheikha Al-Mutairi, Raed Barqawi, Abdul Hamid Ahmed, Muhammad Al-Junaibi, Saeed Hamdan, Nasser Al-Dhairi, Saleha Obaid, Issa Youssef, Alia Al-Shamsi, Talal Al-Junaibi, and Amira bin Faris.
