Elif Shafak awarded President's Medal as British Academy reopens

The British Academy, the UK’s national centre for the humanities and social sciences, has awarded its President’s Medal to the novelist Elif Shafak, as it prepares to reopen to the public this weekend following a two-year £10 million redevelopment.  

The President’s Medal is the Academy’s most prestigious honour. Each year a winner is selected by the Academy’s President for work to champion the humanities and social sciences to engage mainstream audiences. 

British-Turkish novelist Shafak has published 20 books, 13 of which are novels, and her books have been translated into 57 languages. She holds a PhD in political science, and she has taught at universities in Turkey, the US and the UK, including St Anne’s College, Oxford University, where she is an honorary fellow. She is also a fellow and a vice president of the Royal Society of Literature. 

Elif Shafak said: "I am truly delighted and deeply honoured to receive the British Academy’s President’s Medal. As a storyteller and a novelist, I am not only interested in stories past and present, but also in silences. Literature is a natural bridge-builder; it connects hearts and minds, cultures and continents."

She added: "I am interested in novels of ideas that draw upon multiple disciplines of learning and thinking. I am equally interested in bringing together written and oral cultures. Fiction opens up a much needed and nuanced space for even the most sensitive and complex issues of our times. It encourages empathy, connectivity and understanding, especially in these fractured times. I am very grateful to the British Academy for this recognition." 

Previous President’s Medal winners include historian Professor David Olusoga, primatologist Jane Goodall, Wikipedia founder Jimmy Wales and, last year, "The Rest Is History" podcast.  

Professor Julia Black, President of the British Academy, said: "Elif’s fiction has an intellectual force, and her impressive list of writing, speaking and academic achievements have promoted greater awareness of historical and contemporary injustices. Her work demonstrates how valuable the humanities are in giving us the ability to gain and express insights into people, societies, cultures across time and place.  It brings me great joy to award this year’s President’s Medal to her as we welcome people back into our newly transformed home, where we will be connecting a curious public with the very best of our subjects as never before in our history."  

The announcement comes as the Academy prepares to re-open its doors to the public following a two-year, £10 million redevelopment. Architects Wright & Wright led the complete remodel of the lower floors of the Academy’s historic London headquarters: a Grade-1 listed townhouse located a stone’s throw from The Mall and the Royal Academy, its sister academy for science. The redesign focused on accessibility and has increased the building’s events space by 50%, with a new entrance, lifts, wider doors and new and more accessible washrooms.