Catalan literature will be the guest of honor at the 2027 edition of Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torinoone of the most relevant literary events in Europe. The announcement was made this afternoon at the fair, as part of a press conference attended by the president of the Salone, Silvio Viale, and the director of the Ramon Llull Institute, Anna Guitart.
This designation places Catalan literature at the center of an event that, since its creation in 1988, has become the main publishing showcase in Italy and one of the most prominent on the continent.
In relation to this announcement, the president of the Generalitat, Salvador Illa, has expressed that “it’s news that makes me very happy”, and he added that this means “the internationalization of Catalan culture, the recognition of generations of writers and editors, the work done and an opportunity to introduce ourselves to the world“. “Catalan culture is going through a good time“, he concluded.
For her part, the Minister of Culture, Sònia Hernández Almodóvar, attended the media in the Department of Culture to assess this announcement: “Today we share immense joy for this recognition, and we face this challenge with enthusiasm and responsibility“. “For Catalan literature to be a guest of honor means to be the protagonist of a space with maximum visibility at an international level. We are facing a new success in the international projection of Catalan literature and culture“, and added that “it is a cause of collective pride for our country“.
The counselor explained that the presence of Catalan literature in the Italian market is increasingly relevant, and that after Spanish and French, Italian is the market that translates Catalan literature the most. In the last five years, more than 180 translations have been published there.
In this sense, Hernández Almodóvar has highlighted that “today is a good opportunity to re-evaluate the publishing sector as a pillar of our country, both from a cultural and economic point of view”, and congratulated and thanked all the people and institutions that are part of this shared success.
In the last edition, the Salon had more than 230,000 visitors and about 1,000 exhibitors, and programmed more than 2,500 activities, which consolidate it as a global platform for cultural projection.
At the press conference, Silvio Viale, president of the entity that organizes this fair (Associazione Torino, La Città del Libro), stated that “we enthusiastically welcome the selection of Catalan literature as a guest of the Turin International Book Fair 2027. In recent years, the presence of Catalan literature in Italy has grown significantly, thanks to the work of editors, translators and cultural institutions. Together with the Ramon Llull Institute, we will develop a program that not only highlights literature, but the richness of Catalan culture as a whole. We believe that 2027 will be an important opportunity for European cultural dialogue and to generate new collaborations, translations and readers“.
For her part, Anna Guitart, director of the Ramon Llull Institute, has expressed that “the Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torino 2027 must be an important moment to give even more visibility to our authors, to reach new readers and consolidate this interest over time. We want it to also be an opportunity to promote new translations and further strengthen the international presence of Catalan literature.”
Being guest of honor implies an outstanding and transversal presence. In the case of Catalan literature, it translates into a stand of about 150 square meters with a continuous program of activities, the participation of 20 authors from various genres—fiction, non-fiction, poetry, theater, comics and children’s and youth literature—and the invitation of six professionals from the publishing sector to the renowned fellowship program organized by the Salone.
The project will be carried out with the involvement of the main Catalan and Balearic institutions and associations in the book world.
In addition, the Catalan and Balearic presence will extend beyond the fairgrounds, with cultural activities in the city of Turin that will contribute to spreading Catalan culture in a broad sense, including artistic creation and the language.
The invitation to Turin represents a strategic opportunity to promote new translations, strengthen international alliances and expand the visibility of authors. It will also make it possible to show the richness and diversity of the Catalan literary system in a highly prestigious setting, following the line of other recent guests of honor such as Greece (2026), the Netherlands (2025) or the German language (2024).
Catalonia was already invited to this fair in 2002, which had the participation of twenty authors.
The 2027 edition of the Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torino will take place from May 13 to 17.
The Salone Internazionale del Libro di Torino is a project of the Associazione Torino, La Città del Librothe Fondazione Circolo dei Lettori and the Fondazione per la Cultura Torino.
