The Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences has announced the recipients of the 2026 Canada Prizes, honouring five exceptional scholarly books that exemplify outstanding contributions to Canadian research in the humanities and social sciences. These awards highlight works that are inspiring, impactful, and transformative, reflecting the depth and diversity of scholarship produced by Canadian academics and their collaborators.

Recognizing Excellence in Canadian Scholarship

Established to champion high-quality book-length research, the Canada Prizes are administered by the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences with support from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council. Each prize carries a value of $4,000, and the 2026 selections emphasize a balanced representation across language, author experience, and thematic range. The awards underscore the vital role of sustained, in-depth scholarship in advancing knowledge about Canadian society, history, culture, and global connections.

Announced during the Federation’s 30th anniversary celebrations at the Big Thinking Summit, the prizes recognize books that emerged from the Federation’s Scholarly Book Awards program. This structure ensures rigorous peer evaluation while promoting equity, diversity, inclusion, and decolonization principles in academic publishing.

The 2026 Winners: A Diverse Array of Voices and Themes

The five winning titles span French and English scholarship, first-time and established authors, and topics ranging from Indigenous language resurgence to political theory and cultural history. Each book offers fresh insights that resonate within university classrooms, research seminars, and public discourse across Canada.

Marie-Ève Bradette’s Langue(s) en portage : Résurgence littéraire et langagière dans les écritures autochtones féminines explores how contemporary Indigenous women writers negotiate language, embodiment, and knowledge production. Published by Presses de l’Université de Montréal, the work examines literary strategies that reclaim and transform linguistic traditions, offering valuable perspectives for scholars in literary studies and Indigenous studies programs at institutions such as Université de Montréal and beyond.

Éléna Choquette’s Land and the Liberal Project: Canada’s Violent Expansion, issued by UBC Press, provides a critical examination of 19th-century Canadian nation-building. Drawing on extensive archival research, Choquette reveals how liberal ideals of improvement and constitutionalism masked processes of Indigenous land dispossession. Faculty in political science and history departments at universities like the Université du Québec en Outaouais and UBC will find this analysis essential for courses on Canadian political development and settler colonialism.

Deyohahá:ge:: Sharing the River of Life by Daniel Coleman, Bonnie Freeman, and Ki’en Debicki brings together voices from Six Nations and neighbouring communities. The book delves into historical and contemporary relationships along the Grand River, blending Indigenous knowledge systems with academic inquiry. This collaborative work enriches environmental humanities, Indigenous studies, and community-engaged research initiatives at Canadian universities.

Dominique Garand’s Anthologie du pamphlet et de la polémique au Québec de 1800 à 2000 offers a comprehensive collection and analysis of polemical writing in Quebec over two centuries. Published in French, it illuminates the role of public discourse in shaping intellectual and political life, serving as a key resource for Quebec studies and rhetoric scholars.

Marianne-Sarah Saulnier’s Les femmes cobra : La danse comme espace de transgression des normes de genre au Rajasthan examines dance as a site of gender norm transgression in Rajasthan. This unrestricted-category winner connects South Asian studies, gender studies, and performance studies, broadening the international scope of Canadian humanities research.

Contextualizing the Prizes Within Canadian Higher Education

Scholarly books remain central to the research ecosystem in Canadian universities and colleges. Unlike journal articles, monographs allow for sustained argumentation and nuanced exploration that often shapes entire fields. The Canada Prizes affirm this tradition at a time when academic publishing faces pressures from open-access mandates, funding constraints, and shifting evaluation metrics in tenure and promotion processes.

Many winners are affiliated with or supported by Canadian post-secondary institutions. Their success illustrates how university presses such as UBC Press and Presses de l’Université de Montréal continue to serve as vital outlets for rigorous, peer-reviewed work. These presses often collaborate closely with faculty researchers, providing editorial support that strengthens the overall quality of humanities and social sciences output.

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Implications for Teaching, Research, and Public Engagement

These prize-winning books are poised to influence curricula across Canadian higher education. Instructors in Indigenous studies, political science, history, and gender studies can integrate excerpts or full texts to foster critical discussions on decolonization, language revitalization, and the complexities of nation-building. Graduate students preparing theses or dissertations will benefit from the methodological models and archival approaches demonstrated in the works.

Beyond the classroom, the prizes encourage broader public engagement. University libraries and research centres frequently host author talks or reading groups around award-winning titles, bridging academic and community audiences. This aligns with growing expectations that humanities and social sciences research contribute to societal challenges, including reconciliation efforts and cultural understanding.

Perspectives from the Academic Community

Leaders within the Federation for the Humanities and Social Sciences emphasize that the prizes celebrate scholarship that connects past, present, and future. The selections reflect ongoing commitments to amplifying underrepresented voices, particularly those of Indigenous scholars and first-time authors. This approach responds to calls within Canadian academia for more inclusive recognition systems.

Faculty members and administrators note that such awards help counter narratives that undervalue book-based research in an era dominated by metrics favouring high-volume journal output. They provide tangible recognition that can support career advancement while inspiring emerging scholars to pursue ambitious, long-form projects.

Challenges and Opportunities in Scholarly Publishing

Canadian humanities and social sciences face familiar pressures: declining library budgets for monograph purchases, the rise of predatory publishing, and debates over open access versus traditional models. The Canada Prizes, supported by SSHRC, offer one mechanism to sustain excellence amid these shifts.

Opportunities arise through increased collaboration between universities, presses, and funding bodies. Initiatives that support translation between English and French, or that encourage co-authorship across disciplines and communities, mirror the inclusive spirit of the 2026 winners. Institutions are also exploring digital enhancements to books, such as companion websites or multimedia components, to extend reach without compromising scholarly depth.

Looking Ahead: The Future of the Canada Prizes and Scholarly Books

As the Federation marks its 30th anniversary, the restructured prizes signal a forward-looking vision for Canadian scholarship. Future cycles are expected to maintain emphasis on first-time authors, French-language works, and themes aligned with national priorities such as Indigenous knowledge, equity, and global interconnections.

University leaders and researchers anticipate that continued investment in monograph publishing will strengthen Canada’s position in international academic conversations. The 2026 winners demonstrate that Canadian scholarship remains vibrant, rigorous, and relevant to both domestic and global audiences.

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Engaging with the Awarded Works

Academics, students, and administrators are encouraged to explore these titles through university libraries, publisher websites, or direct purchase. Many institutions will likely feature the books in upcoming reading lists, seminars, and public lectures. Following the Federation on social media or subscribing to its newsletter provides updates on future announcements and related events at the Big Thinking Summit series.

By celebrating these five books, the 2026 Canada Prizes reinforce the enduring value of thoughtful, book-length inquiry in shaping Canada’s intellectual landscape and higher education mission.