The National Commission for Culture and the Arts (NCCA), led by the National Committee on Language and Translation (NCLT), announced the winners of the Rolando S. Tinio Translator’s Prize on April 2, 2024.
This award aims to give greater prominence to the translation of texts and works written in various languages in the Philippines into the national language.
The two awardees are Ariel S. Tabag in the novel category and Manu Avenido in the poetry category.
Notably, Ariel is one of the editors of Bannawag Magazine, which is one of the nine magazines published by the Manila Bulletin. He also founded and oversees the Sanita Literary Awards and serves as the President of GUMIL Filipinas, the association of Ilocano writers in the Philippines and overseas.
Ariel is the author of "Karapote" (a collection of Ilokano stories, 2011), "Ay, Ni Reberen!" (an Ilokano novel, 2013), "Voice Tape and Other Selected Stories" (a collection of selected Ilokano stories, 2022), and "Manen, Adda Umuna" (a collection of Ilokano poems, 2023).
Meanwhile, Manu Avenido is a multilingual fictionist, poet, and playwright from Bohol. He has won the Palanca Award four times for his short stories in Cebuano. He has also been honored in competitions such as the Lumbera Awards, BATHALAD-Mindanao, Sinulog Awards for Literature (SINULAT), Balacuit, Kinalitkalit Flash Fiction Writing Contest, among others. Additionally, he has been a fellow in regional and national workshops including Faigao, lyas, ligan, and Lamiraw.
Most of Manu's short stories have been published in Bisaya Magasin and other anthologies. His debut collection of award-winning short stories, titled "Ikigai Ug Ubang Piniling Mga Sugilanon" (Advaux, 2023), with an English translation by Dr. Marjorie Evasco, received a Publication Grant in 2023 from the National Book Development Board.