The authors investigate the effect of the rare earth ion, Y on the structure, absorption and Raman spectroscopy of ZnWO4 ceramics. In the XRD patterns of Ce doped ZnWO4, some foreign peaks were found and an anormalous change in cell parameter appeared around x = 0.15. This indicates that the Ce ion has an effect on the structure of ZnWO4 and suggests a solubility limit of Ce in ZnWO4 ceramics. In addition, the authors also calculated the Raman active modes by using group theory and the authors received 18 modes in Raman active and 16 modes in IR active. The absorption measurement indicates the band gap of ZnWO4 decreases with increasing Y content. The reasons for the above changes are discussed in this presentation.