Today's Edition
SADEQ ALKHOORI (ABU DHABI)
The UAE is helping Arabic books reach wider international audiences by investing in practical routes that allow titles to travel beyond just translation: the rights deals, cultural promotion, distribution networks, grants, book fairs and direct contact with editors abroad.
Experts say these tools are "central" to helping Arabic authors move from local release into foreign editions, global libraries, digital platforms and new readerships.
The push is gaining momentum as the Abu Dhabi Arabic Language Centre (ALC) expands support for translation and rights circulation through its Spotlight on Rights programme, which helps publishers take Arabic content into fresh markets. The programme supports translated books, e-books and audiobooks.
The Centre said the 2025 edition received 1,633 applications from 113 publishing houses across 29 countries. Of those, 69 grants were approved for 36 Arab and international publishing houses.
Building the Route to Global Readers
Rashid Al Kous, Executive Director of the Emirates Publishers Association, said that the UAE is helping expand the international presence of Arabic books by building an integrated publishing ecosystem that covers production, distribution, translation and cultural promotion.
According to Al Kous, the UAE's major book fairs, literary festivals, cultural institutions, and partnerships with foreign markets are one of the main gateways for Arabic content to reach new readerships.
"Book fairs are no longer merely platforms for sales. They have become spaces for cultural exchange, partnership-building, and the circulation of publishing and translation rights," he told Aletihad.
At the same time, this ecosystem is strengthening the country's position as a leading regional and international publishing centre, Al Kous added.
He pointed out that professional translation opens the door for Arabic books to travel across cultures, but wider circulation depends on what happens after a title is translated.
Digital publishing, targeted marketing and cooperation with international stakeholders all play a role in turning translated works into books that readers can find and buy.
However, the bigger test is how publishers move strong Arabic content beyond the region and into the systems that bring books to readers.
"Distribution is a central link in the book industry's value chain," Al Kous said. "Today, it is not enough to rely on the quality of content; international distribution networks must also be built to help Arabic books enter global libraries and platforms."
Making Books Visible Abroad
Chip Rossetti, Editorial Director of the Library of Arabic Literature book series at NYU Abu Dhabi, agrees that the challenge is not only making Arabic books available in translation, but keeping them visible within the systems that lead to rights deals, publishing decisions and international circulation.
"A key aspect of the work we did with the Library of Arabic Literature was to inject Arabic literature into the bloodstream of 'world literature'," Rossetti told Aletihad.
That visibility, he added, depends on regular contact between Arabic-language publishers and book editors abroad, rather than one-off exposure at fairs or after major awards.
"What would help is a sustained outreach from Arabic-language publishing houses and organisations to book editors, so these new books are on their radar."
Rossetti believes that institutional backing, such as that found in the UAE, can make this work more consistent. This includes offices that promote books for translation, maintain contact with international editors and attend rights fairs such as Frankfurt and London.
Rights catalogues - like those published and distributed by the ALC - help turn that outreach into practical opportunities, Rosetti added. They list titles available for translation rights, often with English-language summaries and, in some cases, sample chapters translated for interested editors.
For international publishers, such catalogues make it easier to identify books that may suit their markets. For Arabic authors and publishers, they provide visibility and a clearer route into rights conversations that can close a foreign edition deal.
Rosetti also pointed to high-profile literary awards as another effective mechanism for helping Arabic content break into worldwide markets - especially when they come with translation funding.
One example is the Sheikh Zayed Book Award's translation grant, which supports the translation, publication and international distribution of literary and children's titles that have won or been shortlisted for the award.
In 2023 alone, the grant helped bring 10 translated works to publication in several languages, including French, English, German, Portuguese and Polish.
