Ozola was born to an Estonian-Latvian family, and works as a kindergarten teacher and freelance translator and writer. She has studied pedagogy and literature at Liepaja University and attended courses by Contra, Guntars Godinš and Maima Grīnberga on translating Estonian literature into Latvian. Ozola’s work focuses on children’s literature and she has translated and published nineteen books so far.
Foreign Minister Reinsalu said that the presentation of the Estonian and Latvian Language Promotion Award was an important tradition that showed the strong connection between our countries and states. “I am very happy that this year, we can recognise Ozola in particular, as she has dedicated herself to translating children’s books and important literary works cherished by Estonians, bringing our languages and cultures closer together. Thanks to Ozola, Latvians can read books by Edgar Valter, Ilmar Tomusk, Mika Keränen, Kristiina Ehin and many other Estonian authors. Her translations are also notable for their precision and rich use of language,” Reinsalu said.
The aim of the Languages Award is to enhance knowledge of the Latvian and Estonian languages and to recognise the achievements of Latvian and Estonian translators, linguists, teachers and managers of language learning projects in the promotion of the Latvian and Estonian languages. The monetary value of the Award is €3 000 and the Award Fund receives equal contributions from the ministries of foreign affairs of Latvia and Estonia. The jury of the prize included representatives from the foreign ministries of both countries as well as language and literature experts.
The award was issued for the 13th time this year. Previous winners are Maima Grīnberga (2009, 2012), Guntars Godinš (2010, 2013, 2018), Kalev Kalkun (2011), Margus Konnula alias Contra (2014), Valts Ernštreits (2015), Livia Viitol (2016), Rūta Karma (2017), Ilze Tālberga (2019) and Lembit Vaba (2021).
Additional information:
Communication Department
