Bessie Head Literature Awards is a Botswana literary award

Culture of Botswana

Besides referring to the language of the dominant people groups in Botswana, Setswana is the adjective used to describe the rich cultural traditions of the Batswana - whether construed as members of the Setswana ethnic groups or of all citizens of Botswana....

 founded in 2007. It is sponsored by Pentagon Publishers and administered by the Bessie Head Heritage Trust. The Trust was established in June 2007 to promote the life and work of Bessie Head

Bessie Head

Bessie Emery Head is usually considered Botswana's most influential writer.-Biography:Bessie Emery Head was born in Pietermaritzburg, South Africa, the child of a wealthy white South African woman and a black servant when interracial relationships were illegal in South Africa...

. The goal of the award is to help preserve Bessie Head's legacy in Botswana

Botswana

Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966...

, and to encourage the development of Botswana literature in various genres in English.

Awards are given for best novel, short story, poetry and children's story. The poetry and children's story awards are bi-annual, the novel and short story awards are annual.

External links

• Bessie Head Literature Awards, official page.
• Previous winners