Sharjah International Book Fair

Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) is an 11-day international book fair held annually in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates. It is one of the world's largest book fairs, and it has over 400 literary events.

The book fair debuted in 1982 under the guidance and patronage of Sheikh Sultan bin Muhammad Al-Qasimi, the UAE Supreme Council Member and Ruler of Sharjah.

About
When the fair was launched in 1982, it included a small number of publishers and the books were purchased by Sheikh Sultan Al-Qasimi himself.

The book fair acts as a platform for people from diverse backgrounds to meet their favorite authors, buy their favorite books, and network with publishers, librarians, literary agents, artists, and teachers.

Events
Sharjah International Book Fair (SIBF) hosts a number of diverse events every year, catering to people with all kinds of interests, these events include:

Book signings
Every year, the book fair hosts a number of book signings. In 2023, under the theme of "We Speak Books", the fair brought around 600 authors from all over the world to sign their new books.

Panel discussions
The book fair hosts a number of panel discussions every year, bringing a wide range of speakers from all kinds of fields and covering many different topics.

Workshops
In its focus on art and creativity, the book fair organizes a number of creative workshops every year. In 2023, its latest edition, the book fair organized 60 workshops. These workshops cover different topics, from art to calligraphy to technology.

Performances
Other than celebrating literature, the fair aims to celebrate culture as a whole. Therefore, it hosts a number of performances, musical and theatrical, every year. In 2023, the fair hosted 130 theatrical performances, including an Emirati-made play titled 'Barcode Prison.'

Awards at the book fair
The book fair honors winners of different types of competitions based on different topics and themes, and they include the following:


 * Best Emirati Novel
 * Best Emirati Academic Book
 * Best Emirati Creative Literature Book
 * Best Emirati First Novel Book Award
 * Best Arabic Novel
 * Best International Fiction Book
 * Best International Non-Fiction Book
 * Sharjah Publisher Recognition Awards

These awards are honored by Sheikha Bodour Bint Sultan Al Qasimi, the Chairperson of the Sharjah Book Authority (SBA).

==Translations Grant == The fund was launched in 2011, on the occasion of the 30th annual Sharjah International Book Fair. The US$300000 fund was launched continuing SIBF's efforts to build knowledge-based improved networking, cultural understanding and to promote cross-cultural education. The Sharjah International Book Fair's Translations Grant Fund offers a new and rich cultural experience that gains unprecedented interest at both private and official levels, as it provides funding assistance to both Arab and foreign publishers for the translation of literary works and various titles into various languages. SIBF will provide funding assistance to Arab and foreign publishers for the translation of literary works and various titles into major languages Fiction, Memoir, History, Cookery, Children's Stories, Adult's Stories, Poetry and Scientific Books. And historic 1000 BC old books.

==SIBF Publishers Conference == SIBF, since its past four editions, has been taking off with a two-day Publishers Conference designed to encourage the buying and selling of rights. The SIBF Publishers Conference attracts publishers, wholesalers and booksellers. It is designed to be attractive to a global audience and we expect attendance from publishers and a range of professionals from the international rights community, including translation rights specialists. It also attracts some of the best writing talent and translators in the Arab world. Discussion panels shed light on interesting and important topics, with speakers from all around the world, all about publishing, translating, etc.