Il Sirente
Corporate brand
UnclaimedItalian independent book publisher focused on international law, human rights, political nonfiction, contemporary Arabic writing, investigative works, and literature concerned with marginality.
Last updated August 25, 2026
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Overview
Il Sirente, also known as Editrice il Sirente, is an Italian independent publishing house founded in 1998. Its catalogue combines nonfiction, fiction, translated literature, comics, and works addressing contemporary political and social questions. The publisher is particularly associated with international law, human rights, political analysis, investigative reporting, and writing from or about communities situated at cultural, social, or geographic margins. A defining characteristic of Il Sirente is its effort to connect Italian readers with authors and subjects that are less consistently represented in the mainstream publishing market. Its nonfiction catalogue has included contributions relating to international law and public affairs, with authors such as Giovanni Conso, Piero Fassino, Flavia Lattanzi, Umberto Leanza, Antonio Marchesi, Danilo Zolo, and Paolo Benvenuti appearing among its published writers. The house has also maintained an international orientation through translations and foreign literature, including works by Canadian authors such as Hubert Aquin, François Barcelo, Norman Nawrocki, and Gaëtan Brulotte. The publisher’s fiction and literary programme has included works connected with marginality, identity, migration, political violence, and unconventional forms of social and human relationship. This orientation is expressed in the idea associated with the manifesto Pensieri dal carcere, also known as Quelques messages personnels, by Pierre Clémenti. Rather than treating literature and political publishing as separate domains, Il Sirente has used its catalogue to explore how questions of law, power, belonging, and exclusion appear in both nonfiction and imaginative writing. Several editorial series give the catalogue its structure. Diritto, launched in 1999, is devoted to essays on international law. Fuori, introduced in 2007, was designed as an open literary series with an unusual cyclical visual concept: the cover and page design invite the reader to enter and continue through the book in a circular manner. Altriarabi, launched in 2008, presents contemporary and independent voices from the Arab world. Inchieste, begun in 2009, focuses on reportage and investigative works. Nuovi percorsi, established in 2011, addresses current topics and has included books distributed under Creative Commons licences, with electronic editions made available online. Comunità alternative, also launched in 2011, was a ten-title series exploring postcolonial literature and relationships shaped by differences in sexual identity, ethnicity, and cultural or religious background. In 2015, Altriarabi was expanded through the Altriarabi Migrante sub-series. The project concentrated on second- and third-generation Arabic writers living in Europe and was connected with European cultural funding. It sought to support linguistic and cultural diversity, encourage the cross-border circulation of literature, and translate selected works into Italian. The project included authors from several European countries and addressed hybrid identity, migration, belonging, language, and the tensions between countries of origin and contemporary European life. Il Sirente’s Arab literature programme has included authors such as Khaled Al Khamissi, Nawal al-Sa‘dawi, Magdy El Shafee, and other writers published through the Altriarabi programme. The Inchieste series has included international current-affairs writing, including work by Steve LeVine. Recognition for the publisher and its books has included a 2014 Franco Cuomo International Award special prize, a Creative Europe Literature Translation project connected with Altriarabi Migrante, and Librinfestival recognition in 2016 and 2017. The available reference material does not identify a parent company, controlling owner, headquarters address, financial results, or named current executives.
History
Il Sirente was founded in Italy in 1998 as an independent publishing house. From its beginning, the company developed a catalogue that combined literary publishing with works on politics, human rights, and international law. This combination gave the publisher a profile distinct from a generalist commercial house: its books were organized around questions of power, justice, identity, cultural difference, and social exclusion, while still including fiction and experimental literary projects. The Diritto series, launched in 1999, established the publisher’s commitment to legal and political nonfiction. It was devoted to essays on international law and became a principal channel for authors working on legal institutions, public authority, human rights, and international relations. The wider catalogue also included Italian figures connected with law, politics, and political theory, including Giovanni Conso, Piero Fassino, Flavia Lattanzi, Umberto Leanza, Antonio Marchesi, Danilo Zolo, and Paolo Benvenuti. Il Sirente simultaneously built an international literary list. Its catalogue included Canadian writers such as Hubert Aquin, François Barcelo, Norman Nawrocki, and Gaëtan Brulotte. The publisher’s literary approach was also informed by themes of marginality and nonconformity. The reference material links this orientation to the manifesto Pensieri dal carcere, or Quelques messages personnels, by Pierre Clémenti, which helped articulate an interest in literary forms and subjects outside conventional cultural centres. In 2007 the publisher introduced Fuori, an open literary series with a distinctive circular graphic design. Its first issue appeared on November 3, 2007. The series treated the physical book as part of the reading experience: the front cover functioned as an entry point into the novel, while the visual design on the back suggested a return to the beginning. This editorial experiment reflected the publisher’s broader interest in alternative forms of expression. The Altriarabi series began in 2008, with its first issue published on September 13 of that year. It focused on contemporary, independent, and less widely represented voices from the Arab world. The programme expanded Il Sirente’s role as a translator and mediator of literature shaped by political change, social transformation, cultural hybridity, and contested identity. Authors associated with the programme include Khaled Al Khamissi, Nawal al-Sa‘dawi, and Magdy El Shafee. In 2009, Il Sirente added Inchieste, a series dedicated to investigative and current-affairs writing. The series extended the publisher’s nonfiction interests into reportage and international political analysis. In 2011, Nuovi percorsi was launched for books on topical subjects. It was notable for publishing some works under Creative Commons licences and making electronic versions available online, an approach that increased the accessibility and circulation of selected titles. Also in 2011, the publisher created Comunità alternative, a ten-title closed series devoted to postcolonial literature. Its books examined relationships and communities shaped by unconventional approaches to sexual identity, ethnicity, and cultural or religious diversity. The series continued Il Sirente’s interest in social structures outside dominant cultural norms and in literary representations of the margins. In 2015, Altriarabi Migrante was created as a sub-series of Altriarabi. It concentrated on Arabic writers of the second and third generations living in Europe. The project was selected for European co-funding and aimed to promote cultural and linguistic diversity, facilitate the transnational circulation of European literature, and make the selected works broadly accessible. The programme involved translating seven works by authors from European countries including France, the United Kingdom, Germany, and the Netherlands. Its themes included divided belonging, national identity, migration, hybrid language, and the negotiation between inherited origins and European experience. The publisher received a special Franco Cuomo International Award on December 4, 2014, for developing new cultural, social, and human forms of expression. The Altriarabi Migrante project later received Creative Europe Literature Translation recognition or support. Il Sirente’s books also received Librinfestival recognition: the publisher was named Best Publisher in 2016 in connection with Mohammed Dibo’s E se fossi morto?, and Sumia Sukkar’s Il ragazzo di Aleppo che ha dipinto la guerra was recognized as Best Book in 2017. The available public reference material does not provide reliable information about the company’s founders, ownership structure, headquarters, financial performance, or executive team. Its official website indicates an ongoing digital presence, but detailed current operating information should be verified directly with the publisher.
- 2017
Librinfestival Best Book recognition
[1]Sumia Sukkar’s Il ragazzo di Aleppo che ha dipinto la guerra, published by Il Sirente, receives Best Book recognition.
- 2016
Librinfestival Best Publisher recognition
[1]Il Sirente is recognized as Best Publisher in connection with Mohammed Dibo’s E se fossi morto?.
- 2015
Altriarabi Migrante is created
[1]The publisher creates a sub-series focused on European writers of Arab origin from the second and third generations, with European translation support.
- 2014
Franco Cuomo International Award special prize
[1]Il Sirente receives a special award for developing new cultural, social, and human forms of expression.
- 2011
Nuovi percorsi and Comunità alternative begin
[1]The publisher launches Nuovi percorsi for topical works, including selected Creative Commons and electronic publications, and Comunità alternative for postcolonial literature.
- 2009
Inchieste series is introduced
[1]Il Sirente adds a series dedicated to investigative reporting and current-affairs books.
- 2008
Altriarabi series launches
[1]The Altriarabi series begins on September 13 to present contemporary and independent voices from the Arab world.
- 2007
Fuori series launches
[1]The experimental literary series Fuori publishes its first issue on November 3, using a cyclical cover and book-design concept.
- 1999
Diritto series begins
[1]Il Sirente launches Diritto, a series devoted to essays on international law.
- 1998
Il Sirente is founded
[1]The Italian publishing house begins operations with a catalogue spanning socially engaged literature, political nonfiction, international law, and translated works.
Products and positioning
An independent Italian publisher positioned at the intersection of socially engaged literature, international law, political nonfiction, investigative publishing, and translated writing from underrepresented or culturally hybrid perspectives.
International law nonfiction · 1999
Diritto
A series devoted to essays and studies on international law. It represents one of Il Sirente’s earliest and clearest editorial commitments, covering legal and political questions connected with international institutions, rights, public authority, and global affairs.
Experimental literary fiction · 2007
Fuori
An open literary series introduced with an unconventional graphic and physical-book concept. Its cyclical cover design was intended to draw the reader directly into the work and connect the end of the book back to its beginning.
Translated Arabic literature · 2008
Altriarabi
A series presenting contemporary and independent voices from the Arab world. The programme includes fiction and graphic literature and emphasizes perspectives shaped by political change, cultural difference, social transformation, and contested identity.
Investigative nonfiction · 2009
Inchieste
A series dedicated to investigative reporting, current affairs, and international political subjects. It extends Il Sirente’s nonfiction programme beyond legal scholarship into journalistic and analytical accounts of contemporary events.
Topical nonfiction and digital publishing · 2011
Nuovi percorsi
A series for topical subjects that has included books released under Creative Commons licences and electronic editions distributed online. Its model reflects an interest in expanding access to current political and social writing.
Postcolonial literature · 2011
Comunità alternative
A closed ten-title series exploring postcolonial literature and forms of interpersonal relationship shaped by differences in sexual identity, ethnicity, and cultural or religious background.
European Arabic-diaspora literature · 2015
Altriarabi Migrante
A sub-series focused on second- and third-generation writers of Arab origin living in Europe. Its translated works examine migration, hybrid identity, belonging, language, and tensions between inherited cultural origins and European experience.
Brand decisions
2015
Expand Altriarabi through the Altriarabi Migrante projectStrategyBackground
Il Sirente sought to extend its Arab-world publishing programme toward writers of Arab origin who belonged to the second and third generations in Europe.
Action taken
The publisher created Altriarabi Migrante and pursued European support for translating selected works from several European countries into Italian.
Aftermath
The project promoted literary circulation, cultural and linguistic diversity, and wider access to writing about migration and hybrid identity.
Sources2 sources
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