Athens, December 1 – The City of Athens is gearing up to host its inaugural International Literature Festival (Athens International Literature Festival – AILF) from March 27 to 29, 2026. The event, which promises to bring leading figures from the global literary scene to the Greek capital, will take place at Technopolis City of Athens with free admission for all attendees. The festival aims to firmly place Athens on the international literary map, as announced by Mayor Haris Doukas.
Athens Enters the Global Literary Map
The first public introduction to the festival, which aspires to become an annual institution, took place on Tuesday, November 25, at a press conference held at INNOVATHENS, Technopolis. Mayor of Athens, Haris Doukas, stated, “With the 1st Athens International Literature Festival, our city is dynamically entering the global literary map. Technopolis City of Athens was inspired to create a cultural institution that I am sure will leave its mark and become a point of reference in the coming years. In March 2026, we are preparing to welcome some of the most acclaimed names in world literature, leading authors who have received significant awards. Among us will be two of the most talked-about and groundbreaking writers on the international scene, David Szalay and Paul Lynch, as well as American novelist Nicole Krauss. We are laying the groundwork for Athens to become an annual meeting point for the international literary community.”
Kostis Papaioannou, President of Technopolis City of Athens, added, “Athens is acquiring a new, outward-looking and modern international institution, in tune with the pulse of cities that host major literary festivals. We aspire to create a festival centered on authors and their ideas, a meeting with the very idea of fiction. Technopolis will host a vibrant celebration of the written word, bringing together writers, readers, and culture lovers. We want to organize events where the public will meet beloved authors, discover new voices, and discuss with them. All this, with an eye on the challenges of our time, the great planetary issues of the 21st century, and their relationship with literary thought. At the same time, we want to utilize and strengthen the literary memory of the urban space, Athens as a city in literature.”
A Three-Day Celebration of Words and Ideas
Technopolis will become a meeting point for writers, journalists, and people of all ages from Greece and abroad who closely follow literature, art, history, social changes, and new ideas. They will have the opportunity to interact and approach major issues concerning contemporary international thought. A series of specially curated parallel actions will offer visitors the chance to actively participate and meet the creators in person.
What to Expect at the 1st Athens International Literature Festival
Under the artistic direction of writers and translators Christos Asteriou and Lefteris Kalospyros, and journalist and book critic Mikela Chartoulari, the 1st Athens International Literature Festival invites the public to experience literature through dialogue, interaction, and the exchange of ideas.
Discussions and speeches by leading international authors, as well as Greek representatives from the fields of books, journalism, and cinema, will shed light, among other things, on current issues concerning the curious Greek and international public, such as gender-based violence, racism, the rise of the far-right, immigration, the male and female gaze in literature, the relationship between literature and cinema, while a special tribute will be paid to Menis Koumandareas and the literary depiction of Athens from the ’60s to today.
In its first edition, AILF brings to Athens – among other important names – two much-discussed authors who were honored with the Booker Prize, David Szalay (Booker 2025), and Paul Lynch (Booker 2023), who has captivated the international literary scene. Also participating will be American Nicole Krauss, one of the most important novelists of our time, as well as former footballer, writer, and influential activist Lilian Thuram. From the field of international journalism, the festival hosts Merve Emre, university professor, essayist, literary critic, and regular contributor to the leading American magazine The New Yorker, and Thomas Meaney, director of the emblematic literary magazine Granta.
Beyond discussions and speeches, the program – to be announced in detail soon – includes workshops, seminars, exhibitions, book signings, screenings, musical events, and other activities that enrich the festival experience and encourage active public participation. A multifaceted, open experience where words, stories, and voices meet and compose something new – a true celebration of literature in the heart of Athens.
The 1st Athens International Literature Festival features Selva Almada, Caroline Emcke, Merve Emre, Nicole Krauss, Paul Lynch, Thomas Meaney, Kevin Barry, Mateo Nucci, Leïla Slimani, David Szalay, Lilian Thuram, Katharina Volckmer, and Theodoros Grigoriadis, Athos Dimoulas, Panagiotis Evangelidis, Kostas Kaltsas, Kostis Karpozilos, Tina Mandilara, Nikos Mantis, Panagiotis Menegos, Nikos Bakounakis, Sofia Nikolaidou, Nikos Panagiotopoulos, Kallia Papadakis, Kostis Papaioannou, Dimitris Plantzos, Danae Sioziou, Alexandra Tranta, Vicky Tselepidou, Maria Fakinou, Eliana Chourmouziadou, Christos Chrysopoulos.
The design and implementation of the 1st Athens International Literature Festival have been undertaken by Technopolis City of Athens, with the aim of establishing it as the annual meeting point for the city’s literary community and its readers, in an open, participatory, and accessible environment for all.
The 1st Athens International Literature Festival is held with the support of Technopolis’ Grand Sponsor, COSMOTE TELEKOM, AILF’s Travel Sponsor, Welcome Pickups, as well as with the cooperation of the Goethe-Institut Athen, the French Institute of Greece, and the Italian Cultural Institute of Athens.
Source: https://www.worldenergynews.gr/epikairothta/articles/577525/x-doykas-i-athina-eiserxetai-dynamika-ston-pagkosmio-logotexniko-xarti
