The Naoki Prize, officially , is a Japanese

literary award A literary award or literary prize is an award presented in recognition of a particularly lauded literary piece or body of work. It is normally presented to an author. Organizations Most literary awards come with a corresponding award ceremony. ...

presented biannually. It was created in 1935 by Kikuchi Kan, then editor of the ''Bungeishunjū'' magazine, and named in memory of novelist Naoki Sanjugo. Sponsored by the Society for the Promotion of Japanese Literature, the award recognizes "the best work of popular

literature Literature is any collection of written work, but it is also used more narrowly for writings specifically considered to be an art form, especially prose fiction, drama, and poetry. In recent centuries, the definition has expanded to inclu ...

in any format by a new, rising, or (reasonably young) established author." The winner receives a watch and one million yen. Kikuchi founded the Naoki Prize with the

Akutagawa Prize The is a Japanese literary award presented biannually. Because of its prestige and the considerable attention the winner receives from the media, it is, along with the Naoki Prize, one of Japan's most sought after literary prizes. History ...

, which targets a new or rising author of literary fiction. The two prizes are viewed as "two sides of the same coin" and inseparable from one another. Because of the prestige associated with the Naoki Prize and the considerable attention the winner receives from the media, it, along with the

, is one of Japan's most sought after literary awards of recognition.

Winners

Bungeishunjū is a Japanese publishing company known for its leading monthly magazine '' Bungeishunjū''. The company was founded by Kan Kikuchi in 1923. It grants the annual Akutagawa Prize, one of the most prestigious literary awards in Japan, as well as ...

maintains the official archive of past Naoki Prize winners.

1st–100th

101st to present

Winners available in English translation

* 1961 (45th) - Tsutomu Minakami (Tsutomu Mizukami), ''The Temple of the Wild Geese'' (''The Temple of the Wild Geese and Bamboo Dolls of Echizen'', trans. Dennis C. Washburn,

Dalkey Archive Press Dalkey Archive Press is an American publisher of fiction, poetry, foreign translations and literary criticism specializing in the publication or republication of lesser-known, often avant-garde works. The company has offices in Funks Grove, Il ...

, 2008) *1973 (69th) -

Hideo Osabe Hideo (ひでお) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: * Hideo Den (田英夫, 1923–2009), Japanese politician and news presenter * Hideo Fujimoto (藤本英雄, 1918–1997), Japanese baseball player * ...

(Hideo Osabe), ''Tsugaru Jonkarabushi'' and ''Tsugaru Yosarebushi'' (In ''Voices from the Snow'', trans. James N. Westerhoven,

Hirosaki University Press is a city located in western Aomori Prefecture, Japan. On 1 April 2020, the city had an estimated population of 168,739 in 71,716 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city is . Hirosaki developed as a castle town ...

, 2009) * 1979 (81st) -

Takashi Atōda is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings The name Takashi can have multiple different meanings depending on which kanji is used to write it. Some possible writings of the name include: *江詩 - "estuary , inlet, poem" *隆 - "pros ...

, ''Napoleon Crazy'' (Short story collection) ** "Napoleon Crazy" (''Napoleon Crazy and other stories'', trans. Stanleigh H. Jones, Kodansha International, 1986 / ''

Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine ''Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine'' is a bi-monthly American digest size fiction magazine specializing in crime fiction, particularly detective fiction, and mystery fiction. Launched in fall 1941 by Mercury Press, ''EQMM'' is named after the fict ...

'', March 1989) ** "The Visitor" (''Napoleon Crazy and other stories'', trans. Stanleigh H. Jones, Kodansha International, 1986 / ''Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine'', December 1988) ** "The Transparent Fish" (''Napoleon Crazy and other stories'', trans. Stanleigh H. Jones, Kodansha International, 1986) ** "Of Golf and Its Beginnings" (''The Square Persimmon and other stories'', trans. Millicent M. Horton,

Tuttle Publishing Tuttle Publishing, originally the Charles E. Tuttle Company, is a book publishing company that includes Tuttle, Periplus Editions, and Journey Editions.

, 1991) ** "A Treatise on Count St. German" (''The Square Persimmon and other stories'', trans. Millicent M. Horton, Tuttle Publishing, 1991) * 1986 (96th) -

Go Osaka is a Japanese writer of crime fiction, hardboiled, Thriller (genre), thriller, spy fiction and western fiction. He served as the 11th President of the Mystery Writers of Japan from 2001 to 2005. Outside of his literary works, he is also known fo ...

, ''The Red Star of Cadiz'' (trans. Usha Jayaraman, Kurodahan Press, 2008) * 1996 (115th) - Asa Nonami, ''The Hunter: A Detective Takako Otomichi Mystery'' (trans.

Juliet Winters Carpenter Juliet Winters Carpenter (born 1948) is an American translator of modern Japanese literature. Born in the American Midwest, she studied Japanese literature at the University of Michigan and the Inter-University Center for Japanese Language Studies ...

, Kodansha International, 2006) * 1997 (117th) - Jirō Asada, ''The Stationmaster'' (trans. Terry Gallagher,

Viz Media VIZ Media LLC is an American manga publisher, anime distributor and entertainment company headquartered in San Francisco, California. It was founded in 1986 as VIZ LLC. In 2005, VIZ LLC and ShoPro Entertainment merged to form the current VIZ M ...

, 2009 / Shueisha English Edition, 2013) * 1998 (119th) - Chōkitsu Kurumatani, ''The Paradise Bird Tattoo'' (trans. Kenneth J. Bryson, Counterpoint, 2010) * 2000 (123rd) -

Yoichi Funado better known by his pseudonym was a Japanese people, Japanese writer of adventure fiction. Biography Funado was born as Kenji Harada on February 8, 1944. During his student days, he traveled to Alaska. He graduated from Waseda University. Fun ...

, ''May in the Valley of the Rainbow'' (trans. Eve Alison Nyren, Vertical, 2006) * 2005 (134th) - Keigo Higashino, '' The Devotion of Suspect X'' (trans. Alexander O. Smith, Minotaur Books, 2011)

Nominees available in English translation

* 1963 (49th) - Toshiyuki Kajiyama, "The Remembered Shadow of the Yi Dynasty" (''The Clan Records: Five Stories of Korea'', trans. Yoshiko Dykstra,

University of Hawaii Press A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

, 1995) * 1963 (50th) - Masako Togawa, ''The Lady Killer'' (trans. Simon Grove,

Dodd, Mead and Company Dodd, Mead and Company was one of the pioneer publishing houses of the United States, based in New York City. Under several names, the firm operated from 1839 until 1990. History Origins In 1839, Moses Woodruff Dodd (1813–1899) and John S. T ...

, 1985) * 1983 (89th) - Kenzo Kitakata, ''The Cage'' (trans. Paul Warham, Vertical, 2006) * 1988 (100th) - Joh Sasaki, ''Zero Over Berlin'' (trans. Hiroko Yoda with Matt Alt, Vertical, 2004) * 1991 (105th) - Miyuki Miyabe, ''The Sleeping Dragon'' (trans. Deborah Iwabuchi, Kodansha America, 2010) * 1992 (108th) - Miyuki Miyabe, '' All She Was Worth'' (trans. Alfred Birnbaum, Mariner Books, 1999) * 1996 (115th) - Koji Suzuki, '' Dark Water'' (trans. Glynne Walley, Vertical, 2004) * 1997 (118th) - Natsuo Kirino, ''

Out Out may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Films * ''Out'' (1957 film), a documentary short about the Hungarian Revolution of 1956 * ''Out'' (1982 film), an American film directed by Eli Hollander * ''Out'' (2002 film), a Japanese film ba ...

'' (trans. Stephen Snyder, Kodansha, 2003 /

Vintage Vintage, in winemaking, is the process of picking grapes and creating the finished product—wine (see Harvest (wine)). A vintage wine is one made from grapes that were all, or primarily, grown and harvested in a single specified year. In cer ...

, 2005) * 1998 (120th) - Keigo Higashino, '' Naoko'' (trans. Kerim Yasar, Vertical, 2004) * 2000 (124th) -

Hideo Yokoyama is a Japanese novelist. Yokoyama specializes in mystery novels. He repeated his Kono Mystery ga Sugoi! No. 1 ranking in 2013 with ''Six Four'' (64). The English edition of ''Six Four'', translated by Jonathan Lloyd-Davies, was shortlisted ...

, "Motive" (original title: Dōki) (trans. Beth Cary, ''

'', May 2008) * 2001 (126th) - Ira Ishida, ''Call boy'' (trans. Lamar Stone, Shueisha English Edition, 2013) * 2002 (127th) -

Hideo Okuda Hideo (ひでお) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: * Hideo Den (田英夫, 1923–2009), Japanese politician and news presenter * Hideo Fujimoto (藤本英雄, 1918–1997), Japanese baseball player * Hid ...

, '' In the Pool'' (trans. Giles Murray, Stone Bridge Press, 2006) * 2005 (133rd) -

Hideo Furukawa Hideo (ひでお) is a masculine Japanese given name. Notable people with the name include: * Hideo Den (田英夫, 1923–2009), Japanese politician and news presenter * Hideo Fujimoto (藤本英雄, 1918–1997), Japanese baseball player * Hi ...

, ''Belka, Why Don't You Bark?'' (trans. Michael Emmerich,

, 2012) * 2005 (134th) -

Kōtarō Isaka is a Japanese author of mystery fiction, best known for his ''Hitman'' novel/manga series, including '' Maoh: Juvenile Remix'' (2007–2009), the first of which, ''3 Assassins'' (2004, Japanese; 2022, English), was adapted as a Japanese feature ...

, "The Precision of the Agent of Death" (original title: Shinigami no Seido) (trans. Beth Cary, ''Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine'', July 2006 / ''Passport to Crime'', Running Press, 2007) * 2011 (145th) -

Kazuaki Takano is a Japanese writer of crime fiction and thrillers. He is a member of the Mystery Writers of Japan. He worked for a time under the Japanese film director Kihachi Okamoto in his youth. After that he studied film at Los Angeles City College from ...

, ''Genocide of One'' (trans. Philip Gabriel, Mulholland Books, 2014)

Current members of the selection committee

(As of 2014) * Jirō Asada * Mariko Hayashi ( ja) * Keigo Higashino *

Shizuka Ijūin Tadaki Nishiyama (; 9 February 1950 – 24 November 2023), better known under the pen names Shizuka Ijūin () and Ayumi Date (), was a Japanese writer and lyricist. Life and career Born in Hōfu, Ijūin graduated in letters from Rikkyo Univ ...

( ja) * Natsuo Kirino * Kenzo Kitakata * Miyuki Miyabe * Masamitsu Miyagitani ( ja) *

Kaoru Takamura is a Japanese writer from Osaka. She has won numerous Japanese literary awards, including the Mystery Writers of Japan Award, the Japan Adventure Fiction Association Prize, the Naoki Prize, the Yomiuri Prize, and the Noma Literary Prize, and ...

( ja)

References

External links

J'Lit , Awards : Naoki Prize , Books from Japan
{{Authority control Japanese literary awards Awards established in 1935 Literary awards honouring young writers Fiction awards 1935 establishments in Japan