Chapeau (Extrait) :
The 45th Sharjah International Book Fair opened on Wednesday, November 4, at Expo Centre Sharjah, where the emirate’s ruler, Sheikh Dr Sultan bin Mohammed Al Qasimi, unveiled the first 143 volumes of a comprehensive Arabic encyclopaedia and launched a new international award named after the Abbasid caliph Harun Al-Rashid, according to Sharjah24 and Gulf News. The fair runs until November 15, with Oman as guest of honour.
An encyclopaedia in the making
The new reference work covers sciences, literature, the arts and notable figures. Its first 143 volumes were presented at the opening ceremony, and the full set is expected to be completed next year in both print and digital formats, Sharjah24 and the Dubai daily Al Bayan reported. More than 1,500 specialists around the world are working on the project, and the ruler asked the team to speed up and recruit more staff. A dedicated website was launched on the same day.
The Harun Al-Rashid Award for Sciences, Literature, Arts and Notable Figures will honour four scholars, researchers or creators each year for distinguished work in Arabic. Explaining the choice of name, Sheikh Sultan described the caliph as a patron of learning whose legacy has been treated unfairly by some historians. No prize amount has been announced.
The ruler also presented his latest publication, The Portuguese in the Indian Ocean, a 61-volume Arabic work with a matching English edition covering events from 1497 to 1750, based on 37 years of research. Portuguese archive officials and a representative of the Goa government’s archives attended the ceremony.
Honours for a Moroccan critic and a Catalan Thousand and One Nights
Moroccan academic Said Yaktine, recognised for his work on Arab literature and cultural studies, was named Cultural Personality of the Year. He called it a very special honour, linking it to roughly half a century of work on Arabic language and culture, according to Sharjah24.
The Sharjah Book Authority also handed the 2026 Turjuman Award to Catalan publisher Karwán for its Catalan translation of selected tales from One Thousand and One Nights, translated by Margarida Castells Criballés. Worth AED 1.4 million, the award rewards the translation of an original Arabic work into another language.
A record-sized programme
Held under the theme Made of Stories, this year’s edition brings together 3,212 publishers and exhibitors from 126 countries, with around 1.7 million titles on display and 1,500 cultural, creative and artistic events featuring 106 guests from 25 countries, Gulf News reported. The programme spans fiction, poetry, history and science, along with theatre, workshops and author meetings.
Sheikha Bodour bint Sultan Al Qasimi, who chairs the Sharjah Book Authority, framed the theme around the idea that the stories people read and pass on shape their identities.
Oman’s pavilion showcases historical works, rare manuscripts and contemporary publishing. Among its highlights is a manuscript presented as the oldest known Omani manuscript, copied in 531 AH (1137 AD). The Omani delegation includes 50 guests, among them 41 writers and poets. Speaking at the opening, Oman’s Minister of Culture, Sports and Youth, Sayyid Saud bin Hilal bin Hamad Al Busaidi, said the participation would deepen cooperation in publishing, translation, research and the creative industries.
Beyond Arabic and English, the halls also host publishers working in languages such as Malayalam and Urdu. India’s DC Books, a Malayalam publisher attending for the 18th year, brought nearly 5,000 titles, while Pakistan-based Book Corner, back for a second year, reported demand for Urdu translations of well-known English novels, Gulf News reported.
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