Urco Editora

Urco Editora is a Galician publishing house founded in 2007 and based in Santiago de Compostela. It was created to fill a long-standing gap in the Galician literary system: the systematic, specialised publication of fantasy, science fiction and horror. Before Urco, these genres appeared only sporadically in Galician translation, scattered across different publishers and collections and usually classified under 'classics' or 'young adult literature'. Urco was therefore a pioneer in bringing these three genres to the Galician-reading public in a sustained way. The publisher's catalogue is organised around several collections. The Tradución (Translation) line was originally divided into Urco Gótica, Urco Fantasía and Urco Ciencia Ficción, but this taxonomy was merged in 2016 under a single umbrella. Urco Gótica covers translated Gothic and horror literature, with authors such as Edgar Allan Poe, William Hope Hodgson, Sheridan Le Fanu and Bram Stoker, and includes an ambitious project to publish the complete narrative of H. P. Lovecraft in Galician. Urco Fantasía is devoted to translated fantasy, including the 'Biblioteca Conan' of Robert E. Howard and pioneering epic fantasy by William Morris. Urco Ciencia Ficción houses translated science fiction and speculative fiction. The house also publishes original Galician-language works, notably in the Alcaián collection, and has expanded into essay, children's and young adult literature, and board games. Over time the company has broadened its scope beyond translated genre fiction. The Alcaián collection features original Galician narrative, including titles such as 'Luces sobre a ría' by Roberto A. Rodrigues, 'No frío gules da noite' by Xulio Pardo de Neyra and 'A batida' by Miguel Domínguez. Urco also runs the Urco Xuvenil line for young readers, with titles such as 'Ardora' by Beatriz Maceda Abeleira and 'O bestiario científico de Anxos Nogueirosa' by Antonio Manuel Fraga. Distribution has been handled through Distribuidora Pragma and later the Consorcio Editorial Galego. Leadership has evolved in stages. Tomás González and Rodrigo Vizcaíno were the main figures in the first period, while David Cortizo Conde and Andrea Jamardo became the visible heads in a later stage, during which children's and young adult literature gained greater weight relative to the translated literature that characterised the early years. Since 2015 the publisher has organised the Premio Antón Risco de literatura fantástica, an award for fantasy literature that reinforces its role as a hub for the genre in Galicia. Urco Editora remains an active, independent, privately held publisher whose output is primarily in the Galician language.

Urco Editora was founded in 2007 as a Galician publishing company based in Santiago de Compostela. Its founding purpose was to address a historical gap in the Galician literary system: the absence of a systematic, specialised publisher for fantasy, science fiction and horror. Until then, these genres had only a fragmented presence in Galician translation, scattered across various publishers and collections and usually catalogued under 'classics' or 'young adult literature'. Urco became a pioneer in bringing these three genres to the Galician public in a sustained and specialised manner. In its early years the company focused on translated genre literature. Its translation collection was originally divided into three sub-collections: Urco Gótica, Urco Fantasía and Urco Ciencia Ficción. Urco Gótica published translated Gothic and horror works, including authors such as Edgar Allan Poe, William Hope Hodgson, Sheridan Le Fanu and Bram Stoker, and launched an ambitious project to publish the complete narrative of H. P. Lovecraft in Galician. Urco Fantasía was dedicated to translated fantasy, featuring the 'Biblioteca Conan' of Robert E. Howard and pioneering epic fantasy by William Morris. Urco Ciencia Ficción housed translated science fiction and speculative fiction. In 2016 this three-part taxonomy was eliminated and all translated works were brought together under a single 'Tradución' umbrella. During the first stage, Tomás González and Rodrigo Vizcaíno were the main people responsible for the company. Distribution of Urco's books was initially handled through Distribuidora Pragma and later through the Consorcio Editorial Galego. The publisher also released titles such as 'Unha viaxe á Lúa' by George Tucker and 'O castelo de Otranto' by Horace Walpole, among others. In a later stage, David Cortizo Conde and Andrea Jamardo became the visible heads of the company. During this period, greater weight was given to children's and young adult literature relative to the translated literature that had characterised the first years of editorial production. The catalogue expanded to include original Galician-language narrative, notably in the Alcaián collection, with titles such as 'Luces sobre a ría' by Roberto A. Rodrigues, 'No frío gules da noite' by Xulio Pardo de Neyra and 'A batida' by Miguel Domínguez. The Urco Xuvenil line published works for younger readers, including 'Ardora' by Beatriz Maceda Abeleira and 'O bestiario científico de Anxos Nogueirosa' by Antonio Manuel Fraga. The house also moved into essay and board games. Since 2015, Urco Editora has organised the Premio Antón Risco de literatura fantástica, an award for fantasy literature that has reinforced its role as a central institution for the genre in Galicia. The company remains an active, independent, privately held publisher whose output is primarily in the Galician language, and it continues to publish new titles across its collections.

• 2016

  The three translation sub-collections (Urco Gótica, Urco Fantasía, Urco Ciencia Ficción) are merged under a single 'Tradución' umbrella.

• 2015

  The publisher begins organising the Premio Antón Risco de literatura fantástica.

• 2007

  Urco Editora founded in Santiago de Compostela as a Galician publisher specialising in fantasy, science fiction and horror.

Independent Galician-language publisher specialising in fantasy, science fiction and horror, pioneering the systematic publication of these genres in Galicia and later expanding into children's/YA, essay and board games.

• Biblioteca Conan

• Complete narrative of H. P. Lovecraft in Galician

• Luces sobre a ría

• No frío gules da noite

• A batida

• Ardora

• O bestiario científico de Anxos Nogueirosa

• Unha viaxe á Lúa

• O castelo de Otranto

1. 1Urco Editora – Fantasía, Ciencia Ficción e Terror… en galego.urcoeditora.com
2. 2Sobre nós – Urco Editoraurcoeditora.com
3. 3Luces sobre a ría – Urco Editoraurcoeditora.com
4. 4Urco Editora – Wikipedia (Galician)gl.wikipedia.org
5. 5Urco Editora – Wikidatawikidata.org