Within the framework of the 9th Congress of the Spanish Language—hosted last March in Cadiz, Spain—the Instituto Cervantes unveiled its World Map of Translation (Mapa Mundial de la Traducción), a generator of knowledge based on the massive production of metadata of books published in Spanish and translated into different languages, including English, Mandarin Chinese, French, Arabian, Russian, German, Japanese, Portuguese, Italian and Swedish.  

A list of the most translated writers was taken from the Map, which contains around 300,000 records, including a special section about the most translated Spanish-speaking women writers.

As we highlighted in our article From La Mancha to Macondo: the most translated Spanish-speaking authors, only one woman is part of that list: Isabel Allende, who ranks third, following Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra and Gabriel García Márquez. 

 

 

 

 

The list is led by renowned Chilean writer Isabel Allende, whose literary works combine elements of magic realism and autobiographical strains. The House of the Spirits (1982), which launched her into international fame, is her most disseminated book. This novel, considered a classic of contemporary literature, combines elements of magic realism with family and political narrative that spans four generations. Other acclaimed works by Isabel Allende include Eva Luna, Paula, Daughter of Fortune, Portrait in Sepia, Ripper, and In the Midst of Winter. 

Her unique literary style and talent for creating memorable characters and emotional situations have turned her into one of the most influential voices in Spanish literature.

 

 

 

The second most translated female author is Spanish writer Isabel Sánchez Vergara, known for her series of children’s books, Little People, Big Dreams. This collection, designed to inspire children, tells about the lives of remarkable women who left their marks in history: Frida Kahlo, Amelia Earhart, Audrey Hepburn, and Marie Curie, among many others. The series is considered a material contribution to children’s literature since it promotes gender equality and highlights the importance of iconic women.

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St. Teresa de Jesús, also known as St. Teresa of Ávila, ranks third. She was an influential Spanish religious figure and writer of the sixteenth century.

Her most prominent book is The Book of Her Life, her spiritual autobiography, where she tells about her life, her mystical experiences, and her search for a more profound relationship with God. Another of her most disseminated books is The Way of Perfection, where she shares advice and thoughts about spiritual life and prayer. 

Fourth on the list is Laura Esquivel, a Mexican novelist and screenwriter known for her unique literary style that combines strains of magic realism with stories centered on food, human relationships, and passion. She is best known for her 1989 novel, Like Water for Chocolate. 

The novel was made into a film in 1994, becoming one of the most successful foreign films ever released in the United States. Laura Esquivel wrote the screenplay. Her versatility as a novelist and her talent to merge food, emotions, and magic in her works have made her an influential figure in Spanish-speaking contemporary literature.

The fifth most translated female writer is Alma Flor Ada, an author, poet, educator, and scholar of children's and young adult literature born in Camagüey, Cuba. Her work encompasses a wide array of genres, from poetry through narrative, and is characterized by a warm, sensitive, and accessible style. Her most acclaimed works include A Ray of Hope, My Name is María Isabel, Dancing Home and Love, and Amalia. Apart from her literary career, Alma Flor Ada is also famous as a researcher of bilingual and multicultural education, causing a significant impact on pedagogy and teacher training.

The list is completed by other women writers such as Ana Llimós Plomer, Almudena Grandes, Sor Juana Inés de la Cruz, Gioconda Belli, and Rosa Montero.

 

 

Much has been said about the Latin American boom, a literary movement that took place in Latin America in the 1960s and 1970s when the work of a group of relatively young Latin American novelists—all of them men—became widely disseminated in Europe and throughout the world, contributing unique features that sealed the identity of the literature of the region.

At present, it is women writers who are riding a rising wave of acclaim—sometimes called the “bang.”

Not only does this wave advocate for the emergence of new voices, but it also urges to revisit the works by classic women writers who were sidelined by their male contemporaries: Marvel Moreno, Maria Luisa Bombal, Elena Garro, and Rosario Castellanos, among others.

About the bang, the World’s Map of Translation records the four most-read women writers, including Argentine writers Samanta Schweblin and Mariana Enriquez, Mexican writer Guadalupe Netel, and Chilean writer Lina Meruane.