Thornton Wilder Prize

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Thornton Wilder Prize for Translation is an American award given by the American Academy of Arts and Letters. It honors a translator, scholar, or patron who has made a significant contribution to literary translation. The prize was established in 2009 by Tappan Wilder and Catharine Wilder Guiles, the nephew and niece of Thornton Wilder, and the first award was in 2009. It is awarded every two years and usually comes with about $20,000.

The prize honors Thornton Wilder’s own dedication to translation; he translated works by authors such as Ibsen and Sartre and shared royalties with his German translators. Winners are chosen by the Academy’s Literature Awards Committee from nominations submitted by Academy members.

Notable recipients include Gregory Rabassa (2009), Edith Grossman (2022), and Charlotte Mandell and Michael F. Moore (2024), who shared the award.