Prize winners at the award ceremony of the 17th Special Book Award of China. Photo: Li Yuche/GT

The 17th Special Book Award of China, the country's top publication prize honoring foreign translators, writers, and publishers, revealed its 15 winners for the year in Beijing on Tuesday.

These honors were awarded to six translators from countries including Germany, Egypt, and South Korea. Additionally, four publishers and five authors from countries such as France and Japan were recognized. These experts have made outstanding achievements in introducing China's socio-cultural dynamics to the world through books.

Sonia Jeanne Bressler, an award-winning French publisher, has long been interested in China's ethnic minority cultures. She has published books like Discover Xizang and The End of Fake News Uyghur, aimed at revealing the true images of these two Chinese autonomous regions to counter false statements and distorted Western media reports.

Bressler, who has traveled to Xinjiang and Xizang multiple times, told the Global Times that she was able to experience China's "unity and diversity" through her investigations.

"With my books, I just want to offer a different way for the world to look into real Chinese culture," Bressler told the Global Times.

Abdel Aziz Hamdy Abdelaziz Ahmed Elnaggar, an Egyptian prize-winner and translator of books like The History of the Development of Chinese Thought, told the Global Times that he has published more than 40 books about China over the past 35 years.

Elnaggar noted that Chinese culture and language are "new and intriguing" to the Arab world and emphasized that "young generation's communication through the system of education" can enhance future exchanges between the two cultures.

He also revealed that Egyptian authors have established a national translation center to promote the Chinese language.

Similar cultural exchanges are being promoted in Spain, led by figures like award-winning author Jose Luis Gentella Gomez. He has supported the founding of the Belt and Road Initiative Research and Development Center, which facilitates Spain's collaboration with China, boosted by China's proposed Belt and Road Initiative (BRI).

"Including the BRI, China has made several important initiatives in fields like global development, security, and civilization exchanges," Gomez noted, adding that these initiatives are of significant global value.

The award is organized by the National Press and Publication Administration of China. It was first established in 2005 and has been held annually since then. The event serves as a major prelude to the 2024 Beijing International Book Fair (BIBF), which will open on Wednesday. The event is China's largest international book fair.