Wiktor Cezary Bukato (25 February 1949–26 July 2021) was a

Polish Polish may refer to: * Anything from or related to Poland, a country in Europe * Polish language * Poles Poles,, ; singular masculine: ''Polak'', singular feminine: ''Polka'' or Polish people, are a West Slavic nation and ethnic group, w ...

translator and publisher, specializing in

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and d ...

. He was also a

fandom A fandom is a subculture composed of fans characterized by a feeling of empathy and camaraderie with others who share a common interest. Fans typically are interested in even minor details of the objects of their fandom and spend a significant ...

activist, and an accredited translator of

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England ** English national ide ...

and

Russian Russian(s) refers to anything related to Russia, including: *Russians (, ''russkiye''), an ethnic group of the East Slavic peoples, primarily living in Russia and neighboring countries *Rossiyane (), Russian language term for all citizens and peo ...

Education and career

Wiktor was a graduate of the College of Foreign Languages at the Institute of Applied Linguistics of the

University of Warsaw The University of Warsaw ( pl, Uniwersytet Warszawski, la, Universitas Varsoviensis) is a public university in Warsaw, Poland. Established in 1816, it is the largest institution of higher learning in the country offering 37 different fields o ...

. In the mid 1970s he was an English teacher at XVII High School Andrzej Frycz Modrzewski in Warsaw; whilst also an employee of the English-language editorial office of

Polskie Radio Polskie Radio Spółka Akcyjna (PR S.A.; English: Polish Radio) is Poland's national public-service radio broadcasting organization owned by the State Treasury of Poland. History Polskie Radio was founded on 18 August 1925 and began making ...

. From the late 1970s, he was an activist of the National Polish Fans of Fantasy and Science Fiction Club (''Ogólnopolski Klub Miłośników Fantastyki i Science Fiction'') and then the SFan Fantasy Club. In 1982 he became a collaborator of the publishing house Wydawnictwo Iskry, where he created the ''Zeszytową Iskier'' series. From 1983-1990 he was an editor in Wydawnictwie Alfa, the creator of ''Biblioteki Fantastyki''. Wiktor then became the head of the

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officia ...

branch of the publishing house Phantom Press (1991-1992), and then editor-in-chief of the publishing house Alkazar (1992-1995). He was the chairman of the

European Science Fiction Society The European Science Fiction Society is an international organisation of professionals and fans who are committed to promoting science fiction in Europe and European science fiction worldwide. The organisation was founded at the first Eurocon (Eu ...

and the coordinator of

Eurocon Eurocon is an annual science fiction convention held in Europe. The organising committee of each Eurocon is selected by vote of the participants of the previous event. The procedure is coordinated by the European Science Fiction Society. The first ...

1991 in

Kraków Kraków (), or Cracow, is the second-largest and one of the oldest cities in Poland. Situated on the Vistula River in Lesser Poland Voivodeship, the city dates back to the seventh century. Kraków was the official capital of Poland until 1596 ...

. Until 1990 he was also a member of the

Science Fiction Writers of America The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, doing business as Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, commonly known as SFWA ( or ) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. Whil ...

Prizes and awards

*Three-time winner of

Śląkfa Śląkfa is the oldest of Polish science fiction and fantasy award, although less known than the Janusz A. Zajdel Award. It is awarded by the Silesian Fantasy Club (), the oldest of still-active Polish fandom A fandom is a subculture comp ...

in the Publisher of the Year category for the years 1985, 1986 and 1988 *Award of the European Science Fiction Association for the best publisher, (1990) *The 'Karel' award (for the best translator) awarded in 1987 by World SF

References

1949 births 2021 deaths University of Warsaw alumni Polish translators Place of birth missing {{Poland-bio-stub