Why do science fiction’s Hugo Awards remain so heavily American and English-language?

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Portrait photoshoot at Worldcon 75, Helsinki, before the Hugo Awards – Marta, Marcin and Magdalena — Photo: Henry Söderlund / Wikimedia Commons (CC BY 4.0)

Unlike jury-based awards, the Hugos are voted on by members of the annual World Science Fiction Convention, or Worldcon. She found that the WorldCon community viewed internationalism as one of its most important contributions to science fiction.

The 2026 Hugo Awards were announced on August 30 at LAcon V in Anaheim, California. Two studies published this year examine the question through the nationalities and languages represented among Hugo nominees, and the way Worldcon itself has built its international identity.

But her analysis also suggests that the responsibility for creating WorldCon’s internationalism fell disproportionately on non-American fandoms, who were tasked with performing their own foreignness to provide WorldCon with international credentials.

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The 2026 Hugo Awards were announced on August 30 at LAcon V in Anaheim, California.
Unlike jury-based awards, the Hugos are voted on by members of the annual World Science Fiction Convention, or Worldcon.
Two studies published this year examine the question through the nationalities and languages represented among Hugo nominees, and the way Worldcon itself has built its international identity.
She found that the WorldCon community viewed internationalism as one of its most important contributions to science fiction.
But her analysis also suggests that the responsibility for creating WorldCon’s internationalism fell disproportionately on non-American fandoms, who were tasked with performing their own foreignness to provide…

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