International Prize for Arabic Fiction
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The International Prize for Arabic Fiction (IPAF) (Arabic: الجائزة العالمية للرواية العربية), also known as "the Arabic Booker", is regarded as the most prestigious and important literary prize in the Arab world.
Its aim is to reward excellence in contemporary Arabic creative writing and to encourage the readership of high-quality Arabic literature internationally through the translation and publication of winning and shortlisted novels in other major languages. In addition to the prize itself, IPAF supports other literary initiatives. In 2009, IPAF launched its inaugural nadwa (writers' workshop) for emerging writers of fiction in Arabic.
The prize is administered by the Booker Prize Foundation in London, and is currently funded by Department of Culture and Tourism, Abu Dhabi (DCT).
Each year, the winner of the prize receives US$50,000, and the six shortlisted authors receive US$10,000 each.
Rules and entry
Full Rules of Entry are available to view .
Trustees
- Yasir Suleiman CBE, Professor of Arabic, University of Cambridge, Chair of Trustees
- Evelyn Smith, Booker Prize Foundation, Company Secretary
- Isobel Abulhoul OBE, CEO, Emirates Literature Foundation
- Yassin Adnan, Moroccan journalist, broadcaster and writer
- Abdulla Majed Al Ali, executive director of the UAE national archive, columnist, formerly involved in a number of cultural initiatives in the UAE, including the Sheikh Zayed Book Award, the Kalima Translation Project, the Abu Dhabi Book Fair and Abu Dhabi libraries
- Nujoom Alghanem, poet, script writer and a multi-award-winning Emirati filmmaker
- Rasheed El-Enany, Egyptian literary scholar, Professor Emeritus of the University of Exeter
- Omar Ghobash, Emirati author, businessman, and diplomat
- Rana Idriss, Director of publisher Dar al-Adab, Beirut
- Michel S. Moushabeck, Founder and President of Interlink Publishing Group, Inc., writer, editor, and musician, USA
- Zaki Nusseibeh, UAE Minister of State
- Sherif-Joseph Rizk, Director of publishing house Dar al-Tanweer, Egypt
- Ahdaf Soueif, Egyptian author and political and cultural commentator
- Jonathan Taylor, former chair of the Booker Prize Foundation
- Fleur Montanaro, Prize Administrator
Winners and nominees
= winner
| Year | Status | Author | Title | Country | Publisher |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Winner | Bahaa Taher | Sunset Oasis | Egypt | na |
| Shortlist | Jabbour Douaihy | June's Rain | Lebanon | Dar An Nahar, Beirut | |
| Elias Farkouh | The Land of Purgatory | Jordan | na | ||
| Khaled Khalifa | In Praise of Hatred | Syria | Amisa, Damascus | ||
| May Menassa | Walking in the Dust | Lebanon | na | ||
| Mekkaoui Said | Swan Song | Egypt | na | ||
| 2009 | Winner | Youssef Ziedan | Azazeel | Egypt | na |
| Shortlist | Inaam Kachachi | The American Granddaughter | Iraq | Dar Al-Jadid, Beirut | |
| Mohamed El-Bisatie | Hunger | Egypt | Dar Al-Adab, Beirut | ||
| Habib Selmi | The Scents of Marie-Claire | Tunisia | Dar Al-Adab, Beirut | ||
| Ibrahim Nasrallah | Time of White Horses | Palestine/Jordan | Arab Scientific Publishers, Beirut and Algiers | ||
| Fawaz Haddad | The Unfaithful Translator | Syria | na | ||
| Longlist | Ezzedine Choukri Fishere | Intensive Care | Egypt | na | |
| Abdelkarim Jouaiti | Platoon of Rain | Morocco | na | ||
| Ali al-Muqri | Black Taste, Black Odour | Yemen | Dar Al-Saqi, Beirut | ||
| Ali Bader | The Tobacco Guard | Iraq | na | ||
| Ibrahim al-Koni | The Tumour | Libya | Arab Instt. for Publishing and Studies, Beirut | ||
| Muhammed Abu Maatouk | The Bottle and the Genie | Syria | Al Kawkab, Beirut | ||
| Renée Hayek | Prayer for the Family | Lebanon | na | ||
| Bensalem Himmich | The Man from Andalucia | Morocco | Dar Al-Adab, Beirut | ||
| Yahya Yakhlif | Ma' Al Sama' | Palestine | Dar al Shorouk, Amman | ||
| Rabee Jaber | The Confessions | Lebanon | na | ||
| 2010 | Winner | Abdo Khal | Throwing Sparks | Saudi Arabia | na |
| Shortlist | Rabai al-Madhoun | The Lady from Tel Aviv | Palestine | Arab Institute for Research and Publishing, Beirut | |
| Mansoura Ez Eldin | Beyond Paradise | Egypt | na | ||
| Rabee Jaber | America | Lebanon | Arab Cultural Centre, Morocco and Lebanon | ||
| Mohamed Mansi Qandil | A Cloudy Day on the West Side | Egypt | Dar El-Shorouk, Cairo | ||
| Jamal Naji | When the Wolves Grow Old | Jordan | Ministry of Culture Publications, Amman | ||
| Longlist | Omaima Abdullah Al-Khamis | The Leafy Tree | Saudi Arabia | Dar Al-Mada, Damascus | |
| Ali Bader | Kings of the Sands | Iraq | Kaleem Publishing, Abu Dhabi | ||
| Muhsin Al-Ramli | Fingers of Dates | Iraq | Arab Scientific Publishers, Beirut | ||
| Abdullah Bin Bakheet | Street of Affections | Saudi Arabia | Dar Al-Saqi, Beirut | ||
| Samir Kacimi | A Great Day to Die | Algeria | Al-Ikhtilaf, Algeria | ||
| Alawiya Sobh | It's Called Love | Lebanon | na | ||
| Hassan Daoud | 180 Sunsets | Lebanon | Dar Al-Saqi, Beirut | ||
| Rosa Yaseen Hasan | The Guards of the Air | Syria | Al-Kawkab, Beirut | ||
| Mahmoud al-Rimawy | Who Will Cheer up the Lady? | Palestine | na | ||
| Sahar Khalifeh | Origin and Branch | Palestine | na | ||
| 2011 | Winner | Mohammed Achaari | The Arch and the Butterfly | Morocco | na |
| Raja'a Alem | The Dove's Necklace | Saudi Arabia | na | ||
| Shortlist | Bensalem Himmich | My Tormentor | Morocco | na | |
| Miral al-Tahawy | Brooklyn Heights | Egypt | na | ||
| Amir Tag Elsir | The Hunter of the Chrysalises | Sudan | Thaqafa I-al-Nashr - Cultural Publications | ||
| Khaled al-Berry | An Oriental Dance | Egypt | na | ||
| Longlist | Renée Hayek | A Short Life | Lebanon | na | |
| Fatin al-Murr | Common Sins | Lebanon | na | ||
| Ibtisam Ibrahim Teresa | The Eye of the Sun | Syria | na | ||
| Khairy Shalaby | Istasia | Egypt | na | ||
| Maha Hassan | Umbilical Cord | Syria | na | ||
| Maqbul Moussa al-Alawi | Turmoil in Jeddah | Saudi Arabia | na | ||
| Razan Naim al-Maghrabi | Women of Wind | Libya | na | ||
| Waciny Laredj | The Andalucian House | Algeria | na | ||
| Fawaz Haddad | God's Soldiers | Syria | na | ||
| Ali al-Muqri | The Handsome Jew | Yemen | na | ||
| 2012 | Winner | Rabee Jaber | The Druze of Belgrade | Lebanon | na |
| Shortlist | Jabbour Douaihy | The Vagrant | Lebanon | na | |
| Ezzedine Choukri Fishere | Embrace on Brooklyn Bridge | Egypt | na | ||
| Nasr Iraq | The Unemployed | Egypt | na | ||
| Bachir Mufti | Toy of Fire | Algeria | na | ||
| Habib Selmi | The Women of al-Basatin | Tunisia | na | ||
| Longlist | Fadi Azzam | Sarmada | Syria | na | |
| Rashid al-Daif | Paving the Sea | Lebanon | na | ||
| Sharbel Qatan | Suitcases of Memory | Lebanon | na | ||
| Hawra al-Nadawi | Under the Copenhagen Sky | Iraq | na | ||
| Youssef Ziedan | The Nabatean | Egypt | na | ||
| Mohamed al-Refai | Nocturnal Creatures of Sadness | Egypt | na | ||
| Ibrahim al-Zaarur | The Amazing Journey of Khair al-Din ibn Zard | Palestine | na | ||
| 2013 | Winner | Saud Alsanousi | The Bamboo Stalk | Kuwait | Arab Scientific Publishers |
| Shortlist | Sinan Antoon | Ave Maria | Iraq | Al-Jamal | |
| Jana Elhassan | I, She and Other Women | Lebanon | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Mohammed Hassan Alwan | The Beaver | Saudi Arabia | Dar al-Saqi | ||
| Ibrahim Issa | Our Master | Egypt | Bloomsbury Qatar Foundation | ||
| Hussein Al-Wad | His Excellency the Minister | Tunisia | Dar al-Janub | ||
| Longlist | Ashraf El-Ashmawi | Toya | Egypt | Al-Dar al-Masriya al-Lubnaniya | |
| Hoda Barakat | The Kingdom of this Earth | Lebanon | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Anwar Hamed | Jaffa Prepares Morning Coffee | Palestine | Arab Instt. for Research and Publishing | ||
| Rabee Jaber | The Birds of the Holiday Inn | Lebanon | Dar al-Tanwir | ||
| Elias Khoury | Sinalkul | Lebanon | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Waciny Laredj | Lolita's Fingers | Algeria | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Mohammed Abdel Nabi | The Return of the Sheikh | Egypt | Rawafid | ||
| Ibrahim Nasrallah | Lanterns of the King of Galilee | Palestine/Jordan | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Muhsin al-Ramly | The President's Gardens | Iraq | Thaqafa | ||
| Amin Zaoui | The Goatherd | Algeria | Al-Ikhtilef | ||
| 2014 | Winner | Ahmed Saadawi | Frankenstein in Baghdad | Iraq | Al-Jamal |
| Shortlist | Youssef Fadel | A Rare Blue Bird that Flies with Me | Morocco | Dar al-Adab | |
| Inaam Kachachi | Tashari | Iraq | Dar al-Jadid | ||
| Khaled Khalifa | No Knives in this City's Kitchens | Syria | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Abdelrahim Lahbibi | The Journeys of 'Abdi | Morocco | Africa East | ||
| Ahmed Mourad | The Blue Elephant | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouq | ||
| Longlist | Ibrahim Abdel Meguid | Clouds Over Alexandria | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouq | |
| Badryah El-Bishr | Love Stories on al-Asha Street | Saudi Arabia | Dar al-Saqi | ||
| Antoine Douaihy | The Bearer of the Purple Rose | Lebanon | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Amir Tag Elsir | 366 | Sudan | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Ismail Ghazali | The Season of Pike Fishing | Morocco | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Ismail Fahd Ismail | The Phoenix and the Faithful Friend | Kuwait | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Ashraf al-Khamaisi | God's Land of Exile | Egypt | Al-Hadara | ||
| Waciny Laredj | Ashes of the East: The Wolf who Grew Up in the Wilderness | Algeria | Al-Jamal | ||
| Ibrahim Nasrallah | The Edge of the Abyss | Palestine/Jordan | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Abdel Khaliq al-Rikabi | The Sad Night of Ali Baba | Iraq | Arab Institute for Research and Publishing | ||
| 2015 | Winner | Shukri Mabkhout | The Italian | Tunisia | na |
| Shortlist | Atef Abu Saif | A Suspended Life | Palestine | na | |
| Jana ElHassan | Floor 99 | Lebanon | na | ||
| Lina Hawyan Elhassan | Diamonds and Women | Syria | na | ||
| Hammour Ziada | The Longing of the Dervish | Sudan | na | ||
| Ahmed el-Madini | Willow Alley | Morocco | na | ||
| Longlist | Antoine Douaihy | Drowning in Lake Morez | Lebanon | na | |
| Ashraf al-Khamaisi | Sharp Turning | Egypt | na | ||
| Mohammed Berrada | Far from Clamour, Close to Silence | Morocco | na | ||
| Hadia Hussein | Riyam and Kafa | Iraq | na | ||
| Abdel Wahab al-Hamadi | Don't Tell Your Nightmare! | Kuwait | na | ||
| Hisham al-Khashin | Graphite | Egypt | na | ||
| Habib Abdulrab Sarori | The Daughter of Suslov | Yemen | na | ||
| Muna al-Sheemi | The Size of a Grape | Egypt | na | ||
| Jabbour Douaihy | The American Neighbourhood | Lebanon | na | ||
| Maha Hassan | Female Voices | Syria | na | ||
| 2016 | Winner | Rabai al-Madhoun | Destinies: Concerto of the Holocaust and the Nakba | Palestine | na |
| Shortlist | Mohamed Rabie | Mercury | Egypt | na | |
| Shahla Ujayli | A Sky Close to Our House | Syria | na | ||
| Tareq Bakari | Numedia | Morocco | na | ||
| Mahmoud Shukair | Praise for the Women of the Family | Palestine | na | ||
| George Yaraq | The Guard of the Dead | Lebanon | na | ||
| Longlist | Taleb Alrefai | Here | Kuwait | na | |
| Laila al-Atrash | Hymns of Temptation | Palestine | na | ||
| Ibrahim Farghali | The Temple of Silken Fingers | Egypt | na | ||
| Janan Jasim Halawi | People of the Palms | Iraq | na | ||
| Mahmoud Hasan al-Jasim | Mariam's Journey | Syria | na | ||
| Hazim Kamaledin | Desertified Waters | Iraq | na | ||
| Abdennour Mezzine | Letters of the Storm | Morocco | na | ||
| Ahmed Muhsin | Warsaw a Little While Ago | Lebanon | na | ||
| Hamed al-Nazir | The Prophecy of Saqqa | Sudan | na | ||
| Mohamed Mansi Qandil | The Black Brigade | Egypt | na | ||
| 2017 | Winner | Mohammed Hasan Alwan | A Small Death | Saudi Arabia | na |
| Shortlist | Najwa Binshatwan | The Slave Pens | Libya | na | |
| Ismail Fahd Ismail | Al-Sabiliat | Kuwait | na | ||
| Elias Khoury | Children of the Ghetto | Lebanon | na | ||
| Mohammed Abdel Nabi | In the Spider's Room | Egypt | na | ||
| Saad Mohammed Raheem | The Bookseller's Murder | Iraq | na | ||
| Longlist | Yassin Adnan | Hot Maroc | Morocco | na | |
| Sultan Al Ameemi | One Room Is Not Enough | United Arab Emirates | na | ||
| Amir Tag Elsir | The Witches' Resort | Sudan | na | ||
| Sinan Antoon | Index | Iraq | na | ||
| Ali Ghadeer | Swastika | Iraq | na | ||
| Zuheir al-Hiti | Days of Dust | Iraq | na | ||
| Abdelkarim Jouaiti | The North Africans | Morocco | na | ||
| Taissier Khalaf | The Slaughter of the Philosophers | Syria | na | ||
| Youssef Rakha | Paolo | Egypt | na | ||
| Renée Hayek | The Year of the Radio | Lebanon | na | ||
| 2018 | Winner | Ibrahim Nasrallah | The Second War of the Dog | Palestine/Jordan | Arab Scientific Publishers |
| Shortlist | Dima Wannous | The Frightened Ones | Syria | Dar al-Adab | |
| Aziz Mohammed | The Critical Case of K | Saudi Arabia | Dar Tanweer, Lebanon | ||
| Shahad Al Rawi | The Baghdad Clock | Iraq | Dar al-Hikma, London | ||
| Walid Shurafa | The Heir of the Tombstones | Palestine | Al Ahlia | ||
| Amir Tag Elsir | Flowers in Flames | Sudan | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Longlist | Antoine Douaihy | The Last Country | Lebanon | Arab Scientific Publishers | |
| Ahmad Abdulatif | The Earthen Fortress | Egypt | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Hamed al-Nazir | The Black Peacock | Sudan | Medad | ||
| Rasha Adly | Passion | Egypt | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Amin Zaoui | Leg Over Leg - in the Sighting of the Lovers' Crescent | Algeria | Al-Ikhtilef | ||
| Fadi Azzam | Huddud's House | Syria | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Amjad Nasser | Here is the Rose | Jordan | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Atef Abu Saif | Christina | Palestine | Al Ahlia | ||
| Hussein Yassin | Ali, the Story of an Honourable Man | Palestine | Dar al-Ru'aat | ||
| Taleb al-Refai | Al-Najdi | Kuwait | That al-Salasil | ||
| 2019 | Winner | Hoda Barakat | The Night Mail | Lebanon | Dar al-Adab |
| Shortlist | Adel Esmat | The Commandments | Egypt | Kotob Khan | |
| Inaam Kachachi | The Outcast | Iraq | Dar al-Jadid | ||
| Mohammed Al-Maazuz | What Sin Caused Her to Die? | Morocco | Cultural Book Center | ||
| Shahla Ujayli | Summer with the Enemy | Syria | Difaf Publishing | ||
| Kafa Al-Zou'bi | Cold White Sun | Jordan | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Longlist | Mohammed Abi Samra | Women Without Trace | Lebanon | Riyad al-Rayyes | |
| Jalal Barjas | Women of the Five Senses | Jordan | Arabic Institute for Research and Publishing | ||
| Mbarek Rabi | Western Mediterranean | Morocco | Arabic Institute for Research and Publishing | ||
| Omaima Abdullah Al-Khamis | Voyage of the Cranes in the Cities of Agate | Saudi Arabia | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Iman Yehia | The Mexican Wife | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouk | ||
| Maysalun Hadi | Mohammed's Brothers | Iraq | Dar al-Dhakira | ||
| Habib Sayah | Me and Haim | Algeria | Dar Mim | ||
| May Menassa | I Killed My Mother in Order to Live | Lebanon | Riyad al-Rayyes | ||
| Haji Jaber | Black Foam | Eritrea | Dar Tanweer (Lebanon) | ||
| Waciny Laredj | May — the Nights of Isis Copia | Algeria | Dar al-Adab | ||
| 2020 | Winner | Abdelouahab Aissaoui | The Spartan Court | Algeria | Dar Min |
| Shortlist | Alia Mamdouh | The Tank | Iraq | Al-Mutawassit | |
| Khalil Alrez | The Russian Quarter | Syria | Difaf Publishing | ||
| Jabbour Douaihy | The King of India | Lebanon | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Said Khatibi | Firewood of Sarajevo | Algeria | Al-Ikhtilef | ||
| Youssef Ziedan | Fardeqan – the Detention of the Great Sheikh | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouk | ||
| Longlist | Salim Barakat | What About Rachel, the Jewish Lady? | Syria | Arabic Institute for Research and Publishing | |
| Aisha Ibrahim | The War of the Gazelle | Libya | Tripoli Scientific Bookshop | ||
| Samir Kacimi | The Stairs of Trolar | Algeria | Editions Barzakh | ||
| Bachir Mefti | The Mingling of the Seasons | Algeria | Al-Ikhtilef | ||
| Rasha Adly | The Last Days of the Pasha | Egypt | Arab Scientific Publishers | ||
| Azher Jerjis | Sleeping in the Cherry Field | Iraq | Dar al-Rafidain | ||
| Magbool Al-Alawi | Seferberlik | Saudi Arabia | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Khaled Khalifa | No One Prayed Over Their Graves | Syria | Hachette Antoine/Naufal | ||
| Mohammed Eissa al-Mu'adab | Hammam Dhahab | Tunisia | Mesaa | ||
| Hassan Aourid | Al-Mutanabbi's Rabat | Morocco | Al-Markez al-Thaqafi al-Arabia | ||
| 2021 | Winner | Jalal Barjas | Notebooks of the Bookseller | Jordan | The Arabic Institute for Research and Publishing |
| Shortlist | Abdulatif Ould Abdullah | The Eye of Hammurabi | Algeria | Dar Mim | |
| Amira Ghenim | Calamity of the Nobility | Tunisia | Dar Mesaa | ||
| Dunya Mikhail | The Bird Tattoo | Iraq | Dar al-Rafidain | ||
| Habib Selmi | Longing for the Woman Next Door | Tunisia | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Abdelmajid Sebbata | File 42 | Morocco | Al-Markez al-Thaqafi al-Arabi | ||
| Longlist | Youssef Fadel | The Life of Butterflies | Morocco | Al-Mutawassit | |
| Abdullah Al-Eyaf | Hole to Heaven | Saudi Arabia | Dar Rashm | ||
| Sara al-Nams | J | Algeria | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Abbas Baydoun | Boxes of Desire | Lebanon | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Hamed al-Nazir | Two Green Eyes | Sudan | Dar Tanweer - Lebanon | ||
| Amara Lakhous | The Night Bird | Algeria | Manshurat al-Hibr | ||
| Abdullah Albsais | M for Murderer: S for Sa'id | Kuwait | Riwayat | ||
| Ahmed Zein | Fruit for the Crows | Yemen | Al-Mutawassit | ||
| Muhsin Al-Ramli | Daughter of the Tigris | Iraq | Dar al-Mada | ||
| Mansoura Ez Eldin | The Orchards of Basra | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouk | ||
| 2022 | Winner | Mohamed Alnaas | Bread on Uncle Milad's Table | Libya | Rashm |
| Shortlist | Khalid Al-Nasrallah | The White Line of Night | Kuwait | Dar Al Saqi | |
| Mohsine Loukili | The Prisoner of the Portuguese | Morocco | Dar Mim | ||
| Reem al-Kamali | Rose's Diary | UAE | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Bushra Khalfan | Dilshad | Oman | Takween | ||
| Tarek Emam | Cairo Maquette | Egypt | Al-Mutawassit | ||
| Longlist | Dima Al Shukr | Where Is My Name? | Syria | Dar Al Adab | |
| Yaa'rab al-Eissa | The White Minaret | Syria | Al-Mutawassit | ||
| Mohamed Tawfik | The Whisper of the Scorpion | Egypt | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Mona al-Shammari | The Maids of the Shrine | Kuwait | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Rouchdi Redouane | The Hungarian | Algeria | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Boumediene Belkebir | The Alley of the Italians | Algeria | Al-Ikhtilef | ||
| Haji Jabir | The Abyssinian Rimbaud | Eritrea | Takween | ||
| Belal Fadl | Mother of Mimi | Egypt | Dar al-Mada | ||
| Nizar Aghri | In Search of Azar | Syria | Al Kotob Khan | ||
| Ezzedine Choukri Fishere | Farah's Story | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouk | ||
| 2023 | Winner | Zahran Alqasmi | The Exile of the Water Diviner | Oman | Rashm |
| Shortlist | Fatima Abdulhamid | The Highest Part of the Horizon | Saudi Arabia | Masciliana | |
| Al-Sadiq Haj Ahmed | Drought | Algeria | Dar Dwaya | ||
| Najwa Binshatwan | Concerto Qurina Eduardo | Libya | Takween - Iraq | ||
| Azher Jirjees | The Stone of Happiness | Iraq | Dar Al-Rafidain - Lebanon | ||
| Miral al-Tahawy | Days of the Shining Sun | Egypt | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Longlist | Ahmad Abdulatif | The Ages of Daniel in the City of Threads | Egypt | Dar al-Ain | |
| Lina Huyan Elhassan | The Ruler of the Two Fortresses | Syria | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Ahmed El-Fakharany | Bar Lialina | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouk | ||
| Mohammed Harradi | The Melody of the Rabbit | Morocco | Al-Mutawassit | ||
| Sausan Jamil Hasan | My Name Is Zayzafoune | Syria | Al-Rabie | ||
| Aisha Ibrahim | The Box of Sand | Libya | Al-Mutawassit | ||
| Nasser Iraq | The Antikkhana | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouk | ||
| Rabia Raihane | The Family House | Morocco | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Qassem Tawfik | One Night is Enough | Jordan | Al Aan | ||
| May Telmissany | They All Say I Love You | Egypt | Dar al-Shorouk | ||
| 2024 | Winner | Basim Khandaqji | A Mask, the Color of the Sky | Palestine | Dar al-Adab |
| Shortlist | Rima Bali | Suleima’s Ring | Syria | Tanmia Publishing | |
| Osama Al-Eissa | The Seventh Heaven of Jerusalem | Palestine | Al Mutawassit | ||
| Raja Alem | Bahbel: Makkah Multiverse 1945-2009 | Saudi Arabia | Dar Tanweer | ||
| Ahmed Al-Morsi | Gambling on the Honor of Lady Mitsy | Egypt | Dar Dawen | ||
| Eissa Nasiri | The Mosaicist | Morocco | Masciliana | ||
| Longlist | Mohammed Abdel Nabi | Nearly Every Day | Egypt | Markez al-Mahrusa | |
| Badriya Albadri | Foumbi | Oman | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Sara Alsarraf | I Heard Everything | Iraq | Dar al-Hikma | ||
| Rashid al-Daif | The Other Face of the Shadow | Lebanon | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Dorra al-Fazi' | I Hide Passion | Tunisia | Sindbad | ||
| Saleh al-Hamad | Eye of the Kite | Saudi Arabia | Dar Rashm | ||
| Ahmed Menour | Storm Over the Islands | Algeria | Dar al-Tanweer Algeria | ||
| Salha Obeid | Spice Circle | UAE | Al-Mutawassit | ||
| Sufyan Rajab | Reader of the Tanners' Alley | Tunisia | Masciliana | ||
| Amin Zaoui | The Idols | Algeria | Daliman | ||
| 2025 | Winner | Mohamed Samir Nada | The Prayer of Anxiety | Egypt | Masciliana |
| Shortlist | Taissier Khalaf | The Andalusian Messiah | Palestine - Syria | Al Mutawassit | |
| Ahmed Fal Al Din | Danishmand | Mauritania | Masciliana | ||
| Nadia Najar | The Touch of Light | UAE | Al Mutawassit | ||
| Azher Jirjees | The Valley of the Butterflies | Iraq | Dar al-Rafidain | ||
| Haneen Al-Sayegh | The Women’s Covenant | Lebanon | Dar Al-Adab | ||
| Longlist | Jan Dost | The French Prisoner | Syria | Dar Al Saqi | |
| Ahmed Al-Malawany | Happy Dreams | Egypt | Kotopia | ||
| Sausan Jamil Hasan | Heiress of the Keys | Syria | Al-Rabie Publications | ||
| Inam Bioud | Houwariya | Algeria | Dar Mim | ||
| Ayman Ragab Taher | The Lamplighter | Egypt | Kayyan | ||
| Sumar Shihada | My Life Has Just Begun | Syria | Dar al-Karma | ||
| Iman Humaydan | Songs for the Darkness | Lebanon | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Hasan Kamal | The Stolen Novel | Egypt | Diwan | ||
| Aqeel Almusawi | The Weepers | Kuwait | Takween | ||
| Rashid al-Daif | What Zeina Saw and What She Didn’t | Lebanon | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| 2026 | Winner | Said Khatibi | Swimming Against the Tide | Algeria | Hachette Antoine |
| Shortlist | Ahmad Abdulatif | The Origin of Species | Egypt | Hayat Publications | |
| Najwa Barakat | The Absence of Mai | Lebanon | Dar al-Adab | ||
| Doaa Ibrahim | A Cloud Above My Head | Egypt | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Diaa Jubaili | The Seer | Iraq | Dar Rashm | ||
| Amin Zaoui | Siesta Dream | Algeria | Dar al-Ain | ||
| Longlist | Omaima Al-Khamis | The Al Musharaq Family’s Aunt | Saudi Arabia | Dar Al Saqi | |
| Abdelouahab Aissaoui | Grandma Touma's Cord | Algeria | Tashkeel | ||
| Nizar Chakroun | Days of the Murdered Fatimid | Tunisia | Dar Safsafa | ||
| Marwan Al-Ghafouri | Five Houses for God and a Room for My Grandmother | Yemen | Dar Al Saqi | ||
| Abdelsalem Ibrahim | The Solitude of the Kangaroo]] | Egypt | Tanmia | ||
| Abdelmajid Sebbata | In the Labyrinths of Mr. F N | Morocco | Al-Markez al-Thaqafi al-Arabi | ||
| Khalil Sweileh | Water of the Bride | Syria | All Prints | ||
| Sherifa Al-Toubi | The Flag: The Blowing of the Wind | Oman | Alaan Publishing | ||
| Abdo Wazen | Life Is Not a Novel | Lebanon | Al-Mutawassit | ||
| Essam El Zayaat | Hiding in a Hamster Wheel | Egypt | Dar Dawen |
2008
The winner was announced on 10 March 2008. The shortlist was announced on 29 January 2008, chosen from 131 entries.
2009
The winner was announced on 16 March 2009. The shortlist was announced on 10 December 2008. The longlist was announced on 11 November 2008, chosen from 121 entries.
2010
The winner was announced on 2 March 2010. The shortlist was announced on 15 December 2009. The longlist was announced on 17 November 2009, chosen from 115entries.
2011
The shortlist was announced 9 December 2010, chosen from a total of 123 submissions and a longlist of 16. The winners were announced on 14 March 2011, the eve of the Abu Dhabi International Book Fair. This marked the first time the award had been split, as well as the first female winner (Raja'a Alem).
2012
A total of 101 submissions from 15 countries were whittled down to a longlist of 13. This list was announced in November 2011. The final shortlist of six books was revealed on 11 January 2012. The winner was announced 27 March 2012.
2013
The longlist of 16 books was announced on 6 December 2012. The shortlist of six books was announced on 9 January 2013. The winner was announced on 23 April 2013.
2014
The longlist of 16 books was announced 7 January 2014. The shortlist of 6 books was announced 10 February 2014. The winner was announced 29 April 2014.
2015
On 13 February 2015 the shortlist was announced. The winner was announced 6 May 2015.
2016
The longlist was announced on 12 January 2016. The winner was announced 26 April 2016.
2017
The winner was announced 25 April 2017.
2018
The longlist was announced on 17 January 2018. The winner was announced 24 April 2018.
2019
The shortlist was announced on 5 February 2019, chosen from a total of 134 submissions from 9 Arab countries. The shortlist titles
2020
The winner was announced on 14 April 2020. The shortlist was announced on 4 February 2020. The longlist was announced on 17 December 2019, chosen from 128 entries.
2021
The longlist was chosen on 1 March 2021, chosen from 121 entries. The shortlist was announced on 29 March 2021 and the winner on 25 May 2021.
2025
The winner was announced on March the 24th 2025.
Judges
The judges since 2008 are listed below:
2008
2009
- Fakhri Saleh
- Hartmut Faehndrich
- Mohammad al-Murr
- Rasheed El-Enany
- Youmna el Eid
2010
- Taleb Alrefai
- Raja' Ben Salamah
- Saif al-Rahbi
- Frédéric LaGrange
2011
2012
2013
- Galal Amin
- Sobhi al-Boustan
- Ali Ferzat
- Barbara Michalak-Pikulska
- Zahia Smail Salhi
2014
- Saad A. Albazei (Chair)
- Ahmed Alfaitouri
- Zhor Gourram
- Abdullah Ibrahim
- Mehmet Hakki Suçin
2015
- Mourid Barghouti (Chair)
- Ayman A. El-Desouky
- Parween Habib
- Najim A. Kadhim
- Kaoru Yamamoto
2019
- Chair: Charafdin Majdolin, Moroccan critic and academic
- Fowziya Abu Khalid, Saudi Arabian poet, writer, academic and researcher i social and political issues
- Zulaikha Aburisha, Jordanian poet and activist
- Latif Zeitouni, Lebanese academic and literary critic
- Zhang Hong Yi, Chinese translator and researcher
2020
- Chair: Muhsin al-Musawi, an Iraqi literary critic and Professor of Classical and Modern Arabic Literature, Comparative and Cultural Studies at Columbia University
- Pierre Abi Saab, a Lebanese critic, journalist and co-founder of the Lebanese Al-Akhbar newspaper
- Reem Magued, an Eqyptian broadcaster, television journalist and trainer in journalism and media
- Amin Zaoui, an Algerian novelist who writes in both Arabic and French, and Professor of Comparative Literature and Contemporary Thought at the Central University of Algiers
- Viktoria Zarytovskaya, a Russian academic, researcher and translator of numerous works of Arabic literature into Russian including Ahmed Saadawi's Frankenstein in Baghdad, winner of the prize in 2014
2021
- Chair: Chawki Bazih, Lebanese poet and author
- Mohammed Ait Hanna, a Moroccan writer, translator and lecturer of Philosophy at the Regional Centre for Teaching Careers and Training in Casablanca
- Safa Jubran, a lecturer of Arabic Language and Modern Literature at the University of San Paolo in Brazil
- Ali Al-Muqri, a Yemeni writer twice longlisted for IPAF in 2009 and 2011 respectively
- Ayesha Sultan, an Emirati author, journalist, founding director of Warrak Publishing House and Vice President of the Emirates Writers Union
2022
- Shukri Mabkhout
- Ashur Etwebi
- Iman Humaydan
- Saadiah Mufarreh
- Baian Rayhanova
2025
- Mona Baker
- Said Bengrad
- Maryam Al-Hashimi
- Sampsa Peltonen
- Bilal Orfali
Statistics
As of 2020, the following authors have been nominated at least three times:
Three nominations
Four nominations
Countries
The countries with the most nominations are:
Sudan, Eritrea and the UAE have one nomination each.
IPAF Nadwa
- For details of the annual writers' workshop, see International Prize for Arabic Fiction Nadwa.
External links
- , official multi-lingual site.
- [permanent dead link], by George Walden, The Jerusalem Post, Mar 12, 2008
- , by Simeon Kerr, Financial Times, March 11, 2008
- , The Gulf Today, November 9, 2013