Literary award · Japan · since 1949

Yomiuri Prize

Award. Established 1949 in Japan.

About Yomiuri Prize

The Yomiuri Prize for Literature (読売文学賞, Yomiuri Bungaku Shō) is a literary award in Japan. The prize was founded in 1949 by the Yomiuri Shimbun Company to help form a "strong cultural nation". The winner is awarded two million Japanese yen and an inkstone.

From the Wikipedia article “Yomiuri Prize”, licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0.

Recent winners

YearWinnerWinning work
2023Mieko Kawakami—
2020Masahiko Shimada—
2018Keiichiro Hirano—
2018Akira Higashiyama—
2017Hideo Levy—
2016Tetsuya Shiokawa—
2015Hiromi Kawakami—
2015Tomoyuki Hoshino—
2014Kiyoko Murata—
2012Osamu Ikeuchi—
2012Yoko Tawada—
2011Natsuo Kirino—
2011Serge Lamothe—
2010Toshiyuki Horie—
2010Saiichi Maruya—

From Wikidata; the list may be incomplete for some years.

Eligibility and entering

Check the official rules of the Yomiuri Prize for the current eligibility window, accepted formats, residency or language requirements and any entry fee. For most established prizes the publisher submits on the author's behalf, often with a limit on entries per imprint.

If you are self-published, look for an explicit statement that independently published books are accepted, and budget for entry fees and copies for judges.

Sources & data