Newman Prize for Chinese Literature

The Newman Prize for Chinese Literature was established in 2008 by Peter Gries, director of the Institute for US-China Issues at the University of Oklahoma (OU). The Newman Prize is awarded every two years. The winner is selected based on literary merit; any living author writing in Chinese is eligible for a recommendation. The Prize honors Harold J. Newman and Ruth Newman, who enabled the establishment of the OU Institute for US-China Issues.

Nominations, ceremony, and voting Nominations for candidates and the selection of the winner are both handled by an international jury of what OU describes as "distinguished experts." The winner is awarded $10,000 and a plaque, and is invited to the University of Oklahoma to participate in an award ceremony and academic activities.

Voting takes place in successive rounds of “positive” elimination, in which jurors vote for all but one of the candidates at each stage. The Director of the OU Institute for US-China Issues counts the ballots to record each round of votes. The jury will continue voting until it narrows to one candidate, the winner. If there are ties for elimination in any but the final two rounds, the tied candidates will both be eliminated. Once three candidates remain, only one can be eliminated at a time.

Winners and nominees YearJudging panelAuthorWork1st2009Mo YanLife and Death Are Wearing Me Out (生死疲劳)Yan LiankeDream of Ding Village (丁庄梦)Jin YongThe Deer and the Cauldron (鹿鼎记)Wang AnyiThe Song of Everlasting Sorrow (长恨歌)Chu T’ien-hsinThe Old Capital (古都)Wang MengThe Transformer (活动变人形)Ning KenThe City of Masks (蒙面之城)2nd2011Han ShaogongA Dictionary of Maqiao (马桥词典)Yu HuaChronicle of a Blood Merchant (许三观卖血记)Li AngThe Lost Garden (迷園)Ge FeiPeach Blossom Beauty (人面桃花)Su TongThe Boat to Redemption (河岸)3rd2013 (Poetry Year)Yang MuDiaspsis Patelliformi (介殼蟲)Hsia YuYang LianZhai YongmingOuyang Jianghe4th2015Chu T’ien-wenFin-de-Siècle Splendor (世紀末的華麗)Yan LiankeLenin’s Kisses (受活)Yu HuaThe Seventh Day (第七天)Ge FeiPeach Blossom Beauty (人面桃花)Chang Kui-hsingThe Herd of Elephants (群象)5th2017Wang AnyiReality and Fiction (纪实与虚构)Yu HuaLeaving Home at Eighteen (十八岁出门远行)Jia PingwaRuined City (废都)Wu HeRemains of Life (餘生)Yan LiankeLenin's Kisses (受活) 6th2019 Xi Xi Yu Xiuhua Wang Xiaoni Xiao Kaiyu Zheng Xiaoqiong Bei Dao7th2021Yan LiankeWu HeSu TongXu XiaobinLung Yingtai 8th2023 Chang Kuei-hsing Dorothy Tse Zhou Kai Yu Hua Bi Feiyu 9th2025https://www.ou.edu/cis/research/institute-for-us-china-issues/us-china-cultural-issues/newman-prize-for-chinese-literature Ling Yü (Wang Meiqin )Daughters Zheng Xiaoqiong Yam Gong Ouyang Jianghe Bai Hua

Newman Prize for Chinese Literature

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