Struga Poetry Evenings
Encyclopedia
Struga Poetry Evenings (SVE) is an international poetry
festival held annually in Struga
, Republic of Macedonia
. During the several decades of its existence, the Festival has awarded its most prestigious award, the Golden Wreath, to some of the most notable international poets, including: Mahmoud Darwish
, W. H. Auden
, Joseph Brodsky
, Allen Ginsberg
, Bulat Okudzhava
, Pablo Neruda
, Eugenio Montale
, Léopold Sédar Senghor
, Artur Lundkvist
, Hans Magnus Enzensberger
, Nichita Stănescu
, Ted Hughes
, Makoto Ooka
, Miroslav Krleža
, Yehuda Amichai
, Seamus Heaney
and domestic authors such as Blaže Koneski
.
The festival began in 1962 in Struga
, then People's Republic of Macedonia with Macedonian poets only, while in 1963 it expanded its list of participants with poets from all around the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
. The Miladinov Brothers
Award was established for a best poetry book published between two consecutive festivals. By 1966 the event turned into an international cultural festival. The Golden Wreath international award was established in the same year and its first recipient was Robert Rozhdestvensky
. Two years later, in a close cooperation with UNESCO
, the Festival established another international award called The Bridges of Struga, for a best debut poetry book by a young author. During its long successful existence, the festival has hosted about 4,000 poets, translators, essayists and literary critics from about 95 countries of the world.
The festival has awarded some of the world's most eminent literary figures, including several Nobel Prize for Literature winners such as Joseph Brodsky
, Eugenio Montale
, Pablo Neruda
and Seamus Heaney
, the first African member of the French Academy Léopold Sédar Senghor
who was also a President of Senegal, the official royal Poet Laureate
Ted Hughes
, W. H. Auden
who is regarded by many as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century, and many others.
A point of interest is that the festival often awarded foreign poets who were considered dissident
s in their countries, including for example the Russia
n exiled poet Joseph Brodsky, the Chile
an poet Pablo Neruda, the American beatnik
Allen Ginsberg
, the Soviet bard
Bulat Okudzhava
and many others.
In memory of the laureates, the Park of Poetry featuring memorial boards dedicated to each of them was established near the Struga Cultural Center.
and in Skopje
(an office director, an executive and a technical secretary) and is organized by a Festival Board, which consists of knowledgeable professionals in the field of poetry (poets, literary critics, translators, and professors in comparative literature
and culture).
Other events include workshops, round-table discussions on various social topics and their influence on poetry, etc.
Another event in the so called Caravan of Poetry, which consists of poetry performances around the country. Usually, after the end of the Festival, the Festival also organizes poetry reading in the national capital, Skopje
.
.
Poetry
Poetry is a form of literary art in which language is used for its aesthetic and evocative qualities in addition to, or in lieu of, its apparent meaning...
festival held annually in Struga
Struga
Struga is a town and popular tourist destination situated in the south-western region of the Republic of Macedonia, lying on the shore of Lake Ohrid. The town of Struga is the seat of Struga Municipality.-Etymology:...
, Republic of Macedonia
Republic of Macedonia
Macedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
. During the several decades of its existence, the Festival has awarded its most prestigious award, the Golden Wreath, to some of the most notable international poets, including: Mahmoud Darwish
Mahmoud Darwish
Mahmoud Darwish was a Palestinian poet and author who won numerous awards for his literary output and was regarded as the Palestinian national poet...
, W. H. Auden
W. H. Auden
Wystan Hugh Auden , who published as W. H. Auden, was an Anglo-American poet,The first definition of "Anglo-American" in the OED is: "Of, belonging to, or involving both England and America." See also the definition "English in origin or birth, American by settlement or citizenship" in See also...
, Joseph Brodsky
Joseph Brodsky
Iosif Aleksandrovich Brodsky , was a Russian poet and essayist.In 1964, 23-year-old Brodsky was arrested and charged with the crime of "social parasitism" He was expelled from the Soviet Union in 1972 and settled in America with the help of W. H. Auden and other supporters...
, Allen Ginsberg
Allen Ginsberg
Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
, Bulat Okudzhava
Bulat Okudzhava
Bulat Shalvovich Okudzhava was a Soviet and Russian poet, writer, musician, novelist, and singer-songwriter. He was one of the founders of the Russian genre called "author song"...
, Pablo Neruda
Pablo Neruda
Pablo Neruda was the pen name and, later, legal name of the Chilean poet, diplomat and politician Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. He chose his pen name after Czech poet Jan Neruda....
, Eugenio Montale
Eugenio Montale
Eugenio Montale was an Italian poet, prose writer, editor and translator, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1975.- Early years :...
, Léopold Sédar Senghor
Léopold Sédar Senghor
Léopold Sédar Senghor was a Senegalese poet, politician, and cultural theorist who for two decades served as the first president of Senegal . Senghor was the first African elected as a member of the Académie française. Before independence, he founded the political party called the Senegalese...
, Artur Lundkvist
Artur Lundkvist
Artur Lundkvist was a Swedish writer, poet and literary critic. He was a member of the Swedish Academy from 1968....
, Hans Magnus Enzensberger
Hans Magnus Enzensberger
Hans Magnus Enzensberger , is a German author, poet, translator, and editor. He has also written under the pseudonym Andreas Thalmayr. He lives in Munich.- Life :...
, Nichita Stănescu
Nichita Stanescu
Nichita Stănescu was a Romanian poet and essayist. He is the most acclaimed contemporary Romanian language poet, loved by the public and generally held in esteem by literary critics.-Biography:...
, Ted Hughes
Ted Hughes
Edward James Hughes OM , more commonly known as Ted Hughes, was an English poet and children's writer. Critics routinely rank him as one of the best poets of his generation. Hughes was British Poet Laureate from 1984 until his death.Hughes was married to American poet Sylvia Plath, from 1956 until...
, Makoto Ooka
Makoto Ooka
is a Japanese poet and literary critic.Ooka's poetry column was published without a break seven days a week for more than 20 years on the front page of Asahi Shimbun, which is Japan's leading national newspaper.-Notes:...
, Miroslav Krleža
Miroslav Krleža
Miroslav Krleža was a leading Croatian and Yugoslav writer and the dominant figure in cultural life of both Yugoslav states, the Kingdom and the Republic . He has often been proclaimed the greatest Croatian writer of the 20th century.-Biography:Miroslav Krleža was born in Zagreb, modern-day...
, Yehuda Amichai
Yehuda Amichai
Yehuda Amichai was an Israeli poet. Amichai is considered by many, both in Israel and internationally, as Israel's greatest modern poet. He was also one of the first to write in colloquial Hebrew....
, Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...
and domestic authors such as Blaže Koneski
Blaže Koneski
Blaže Koneski was one of the most distinguished Macedonian poets, writers, literary translators, and linguistic scholars...
.
History
Struga
Struga is a town and popular tourist destination situated in the south-western region of the Republic of Macedonia, lying on the shore of Lake Ohrid. The town of Struga is the seat of Struga Municipality.-Etymology:...
, then People's Republic of Macedonia with Macedonian poets only, while in 1963 it expanded its list of participants with poets from all around the former Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia
The Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia was the Yugoslav state that existed from the abolition of the Yugoslav monarchy until it was dissolved in 1992 amid the Yugoslav Wars. It was a socialist state and a federation made up of six socialist republics: Bosnia and Herzegovina, Croatia,...
. The Miladinov Brothers
Miladinov Brothers
The Miladinov Brothers , Dimitar Miladinov and Konstantin Miladinov , were Bulgarian poets and folklorists from Macedonia, authors of an important collection of folk songs, Bulgarian Folk Songs...
Award was established for a best poetry book published between two consecutive festivals. By 1966 the event turned into an international cultural festival. The Golden Wreath international award was established in the same year and its first recipient was Robert Rozhdestvensky
Robert Rozhdestvensky
Robert Ivanovich Rozhdestvensky was a Soviet poet who in the broke with the Social Realism in 1950s–1960s and, along with such poets as Andrey Voznesensky, Yevgeny Yevtushenko, and Bella Akhmadulina, pioneered a newer, fresher, and freer poetry in the Soviet Union.-Life:Robert Rozhdestvensky...
. Two years later, in a close cooperation with UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
, the Festival established another international award called The Bridges of Struga, for a best debut poetry book by a young author. During its long successful existence, the festival has hosted about 4,000 poets, translators, essayists and literary critics from about 95 countries of the world.
The festival has awarded some of the world's most eminent literary figures, including several Nobel Prize for Literature winners such as Joseph Brodsky
Joseph Brodsky
Iosif Aleksandrovich Brodsky , was a Russian poet and essayist.In 1964, 23-year-old Brodsky was arrested and charged with the crime of "social parasitism" He was expelled from the Soviet Union in 1972 and settled in America with the help of W. H. Auden and other supporters...
, Eugenio Montale
Eugenio Montale
Eugenio Montale was an Italian poet, prose writer, editor and translator, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1975.- Early years :...
, Pablo Neruda
Pablo Neruda
Pablo Neruda was the pen name and, later, legal name of the Chilean poet, diplomat and politician Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. He chose his pen name after Czech poet Jan Neruda....
and Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney
Seamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...
, the first African member of the French Academy Léopold Sédar Senghor
Léopold Sédar Senghor
Léopold Sédar Senghor was a Senegalese poet, politician, and cultural theorist who for two decades served as the first president of Senegal . Senghor was the first African elected as a member of the Académie française. Before independence, he founded the political party called the Senegalese...
who was also a President of Senegal, the official royal Poet Laureate
Poet Laureate
A poet laureate is a poet officially appointed by a government and is often expected to compose poems for state occasions and other government events...
Ted Hughes
Ted Hughes
Edward James Hughes OM , more commonly known as Ted Hughes, was an English poet and children's writer. Critics routinely rank him as one of the best poets of his generation. Hughes was British Poet Laureate from 1984 until his death.Hughes was married to American poet Sylvia Plath, from 1956 until...
, W. H. Auden
W. H. Auden
Wystan Hugh Auden , who published as W. H. Auden, was an Anglo-American poet,The first definition of "Anglo-American" in the OED is: "Of, belonging to, or involving both England and America." See also the definition "English in origin or birth, American by settlement or citizenship" in See also...
who is regarded by many as one of the greatest writers of the 20th century, and many others.
A point of interest is that the festival often awarded foreign poets who were considered dissident
Dissident
A dissident, broadly defined, is a person who actively challenges an established doctrine, policy, or institution. When dissidents unite for a common cause they often effect a dissident movement....
s in their countries, including for example the Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
n exiled poet Joseph Brodsky, the Chile
Chile
Chile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
an poet Pablo Neruda, the American beatnik
Beat generation
The Beat Generation refers to a group of American post-WWII writers who came to prominence in the 1950s, as well as the cultural phenomena that they both documented and inspired...
Allen Ginsberg
Allen Ginsberg
Irwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
, the Soviet bard
Bard (Soviet Union)
The term bard came to be used in the Soviet Union in the early 1960s, and continues to be used in Russia today, to refer to singer-songwriters who wrote songs outside the Soviet establishment, similarly to beatnik folk singers of the United States...
Bulat Okudzhava
Bulat Okudzhava
Bulat Shalvovich Okudzhava was a Soviet and Russian poet, writer, musician, novelist, and singer-songwriter. He was one of the founders of the Russian genre called "author song"...
and many others.
In memory of the laureates, the Park of Poetry featuring memorial boards dedicated to each of them was established near the Struga Cultural Center.
Organization
The festival has offices in StrugaStruga
Struga is a town and popular tourist destination situated in the south-western region of the Republic of Macedonia, lying on the shore of Lake Ohrid. The town of Struga is the seat of Struga Municipality.-Etymology:...
and in Skopje
Skopje
Skopje is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre...
(an office director, an executive and a technical secretary) and is organized by a Festival Board, which consists of knowledgeable professionals in the field of poetry (poets, literary critics, translators, and professors in comparative literature
Comparative literature
Comparative literature is an academic field dealing with the literature of two or more different linguistic, cultural or national groups...
and culture).
Events
The festival consists of several events held at different locations:- Opening ceremony on the plateau in front of the Cultural Centre in StrugaStrugaStruga is a town and popular tourist destination situated in the south-western region of the Republic of Macedonia, lying on the shore of Lake Ohrid. The town of Struga is the seat of Struga Municipality.-Etymology:...
including a traditional reading of Tga za jugTaga za JugTaga za Yug is the name of a famous poem of Bulgarian poet Konstantin Miladinov . In the Republic of Macedonia it is viewed as one of the most important Macedonian literary works under the name...
(Macedonian languageMacedonian languageMacedonian is a South Slavic language spoken as a first language by approximately 2–3 million people principally in the region of Macedonia but also in the Macedonian diaspora...
: Т’га за југ, A Longing for The South) the famous nostalgic lyrical poem written by the Struga-born poet Konstantin Miladinov during his life in Imperial Russia. - Meridijani (Меридијани, Meridians) a poetry reading by various international poets in the Cultural Centre following the opening ceremony.
- Portret na Laureatot (Портрет на Лауреатот,Portrait of the Lauerate) an event devoted to the year's main award recipient traditionally held in the church of St. SofiaChurch of St. Sophia, OhridThe Church of St. Sophia is located in the city of Ohrid, Republic of Macedonia. The church is one of the most important monuments of Macedonia, housing architecture and art from the Middle Ages. It was built during the First Bulgarian Empire, after the official conversion to Christianity...
in the nearby city of OhridOhridOhrid is a city on the eastern shore of Lake Ohrid in the Republic of Macedonia. It has about 42,000 inhabitants, making it the seventh largest city in the country. The city is the seat of Ohrid Municipality. Ohrid is notable for having once had 365 churches, one for each day of the year and has...
usually accompanied by classical musicClassical musicClassical music is the art music produced in, or rooted in, the traditions of Western liturgical and secular music, encompassing a broad period from roughly the 11th century to present times...
, operaOperaOpera is an art form in which singers and musicians perform a dramatic work combining text and musical score, usually in a theatrical setting. Opera incorporates many of the elements of spoken theatre, such as acting, scenery, and costumes and sometimes includes dance...
or domestic or foreign ethnic music performance. - Noći bez interpukcija (Ноќи без интерпукција, Nights without Punctuation) multimediaMultimediaMultimedia is media and content that uses a combination of different content forms. The term can be used as a noun or as an adjective describing a medium as having multiple content forms. The term is used in contrast to media which use only rudimentary computer display such as text-only, or...
artistic events featuring experimental forms of poetic presentations, which can also include other arts like music and video artVideo artVideo art is a type of art which relies on moving pictures and comprises video and/or audio data. . Video art came into existence during the 1960s and 1970s, is still widely practiced and has given rise to the widespread use of video installations...
. - Daily poetry picnic at Sveti NaumSveti NaumThe Monastery of Saint Naum is an Eastern Orthodox monastery in the Republic of Macedonia, named after the medieval Saint Naum who founded it. It is situated along Lake Ohrid, south of the city of Ohrid....
springs near the Ohrid Lake including Ethnic Macedonian music and dances. - Mostovi (Мостови, Bridges) the closing ceremony held at the Bridge of Poetry on the river Drim in Struga including poetry readings and the awarding ceremony.
Other events include workshops, round-table discussions on various social topics and their influence on poetry, etc.
Another event in the so called Caravan of Poetry, which consists of poetry performances around the country. Usually, after the end of the Festival, the Festival also organizes poetry reading in the national capital, Skopje
Skopje
Skopje is the capital and largest city of the Republic of Macedonia with about a third of the total population. It is the country's political, cultural, economic, and academic centre...
.
Awards
- Zlaten Venec na Poezijata (Златен Венец на Поезијата, Golden Wreath of Poetry), the main international award given to a world renowned living poet for life achievement in the field of poetry. The recipient's name is publicized usually several months in advance.
- Brakja Miladinovci (Браќа Миладиновци, Miladinov Brothers Award) for a best book published between two festivals.
- The Bridges of Struga, for a best debuting author.
- Iselenička gramota, for poets from the Macedonian diasporaDiasporaA diaspora is "the movement, migration, or scattering of people away from an established or ancestral homeland" or "people dispersed by whatever cause to more than one location", or "people settled far from their ancestral homelands".The word has come to refer to historical mass-dispersions of...
.
Golden Wreath laureates
- 1966 Robert RozhdestvenskyRobert RozhdestvenskyRobert Ivanovich Rozhdestvensky was a Soviet poet who in the broke with the Social Realism in 1950s–1960s and, along with such poets as Andrey Voznesensky, Yevgeny Yevtushenko, and Bella Akhmadulina, pioneered a newer, fresher, and freer poetry in the Soviet Union.-Life:Robert Rozhdestvensky...
(USSR) - 1967 Bulat OkudzhavaBulat OkudzhavaBulat Shalvovich Okudzhava was a Soviet and Russian poet, writer, musician, novelist, and singer-songwriter. He was one of the founders of the Russian genre called "author song"...
(USSR) - 1968 László NagyLászló Nagy (poet)László Nagy was a Hungarian poet.-Life:On 20 August 1952, he married Margaret . In 1953, their son Andrew was born....
(HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
) - 1969 Mak DizdarMak DizdarMehmedalija "Mak" Dizdar was one of the greatest Bosnian and Yugoslav poets of the second half of the 20th century.-Biography:...
(SR Bosnia and Herzegovina, SFR Yugoslavia) - 1970 Miodrag PavlovićMiodrag PavlovicMiodrag Pavlović was born on 28 November 1928 in Novi Sad, Kingdom of Serbs, Croats and Slovenes. He graduated from the University of Belgrade with a degree in medicine in 1954. He studied foreign languages and has written his first volume of poetry, 87 Poems...
(SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia) - 1971 W. H. AudenW. H. AudenWystan Hugh Auden , who published as W. H. Auden, was an Anglo-American poet,The first definition of "Anglo-American" in the OED is: "Of, belonging to, or involving both England and America." See also the definition "English in origin or birth, American by settlement or citizenship" in See also...
(USA) - 1972 Pablo NerudaPablo NerudaPablo Neruda was the pen name and, later, legal name of the Chilean poet, diplomat and politician Neftalí Ricardo Reyes Basoalto. He chose his pen name after Czech poet Jan Neruda....
(ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
) - 1973 Eugenio MontaleEugenio MontaleEugenio Montale was an Italian poet, prose writer, editor and translator, winner of the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1975.- Early years :...
(ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
) - 1974 Fazıl Hüsnü DağlarcaFazil Hüsnü DaglarcaFazıl Hüsnü Dağlarca was one the most prolific Turkish poets of the republican Turkey with more than 60 collections of his poems published as of 2007, laureate of the Struga Poetry Evenings Golden Wreath Award .-Biography:His purist use of the Turkish language brought a new dimension to...
(TurkeyTurkeyTurkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
) - 1975 Léopold Sédar SenghorLéopold Sédar SenghorLéopold Sédar Senghor was a Senegalese poet, politician, and cultural theorist who for two decades served as the first president of Senegal . Senghor was the first African elected as a member of the Académie française. Before independence, he founded the political party called the Senegalese...
(SenegalSenegalSenegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north...
) - 1976 Eugène GuillevicEugène GuillevicEugène Guillevic was one of the better known French poets of the second half of the 20th century. Professionally, he went under just the single name "Guillevic".-Life:...
(FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) - 1977 Artur LundkvistArtur LundkvistArtur Lundkvist was a Swedish writer, poet and literary critic. He was a member of the Swedish Academy from 1968....
(SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
) - 1978 Rafael AlbertiRafael AlbertiRafael Alberti Merello was a Spanish poet, a member of the Generation of '27....
(SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) - 1979 Miroslav KrležaMiroslav KrležaMiroslav Krleža was a leading Croatian and Yugoslav writer and the dominant figure in cultural life of both Yugoslav states, the Kingdom and the Republic . He has often been proclaimed the greatest Croatian writer of the 20th century.-Biography:Miroslav Krleža was born in Zagreb, modern-day...
(SR Croatia, SFR Yugoslavia) - 1980 Hans Magnus EnzensbergerHans Magnus EnzensbergerHans Magnus Enzensberger , is a German author, poet, translator, and editor. He has also written under the pseudonym Andreas Thalmayr. He lives in Munich.- Life :...
(West GermanyWest GermanyWest Germany is the common English, but not official, name for the Federal Republic of Germany or FRG in the period between its creation in May 1949 to German reunification on 3 October 1990....
) - 1981 Blaže KoneskiBlaže KoneskiBlaže Koneski was one of the most distinguished Macedonian poets, writers, literary translators, and linguistic scholars...
(SR Macedonia, SFR Yugoslavia) - 1982 Nichita StănescuNichita StanescuNichita Stănescu was a Romanian poet and essayist. He is the most acclaimed contemporary Romanian language poet, loved by the public and generally held in esteem by literary critics.-Biography:...
(RomaniaRomaniaRomania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
) - 1983 Sachchidananda Hirananda Vatsyayan Agyey (IndiaIndiaIndia , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
) - 1984 Andrey VoznesenskyAndrey VoznesenskyAndrei Andreyevich Voznesensky was a Soviet and Russian poet and writer who had been referred to by Robert Lowell as "one of the greatest living poets in any language." He was one of the "Children of the '60s," a new wave of iconic Russian intellectuals led by the Khrushchev Thaw.Voznesensky was...
(USSR) - 1985 Yiannis RitsosYiannis RitsosYiannis Ritsos was a Greek poet and left-wing activist and an active member of the Greek Resistance during World War II.-Early life:...
(GreeceGreeceGreece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
) - 1986 Allen GinsbergAllen GinsbergIrwin Allen Ginsberg was an American poet and one of the leading figures of the Beat Generation in the 1950s. He vigorously opposed militarism, materialism and sexual repression...
(USA) - 1987 Tadeusz RóżewiczTadeusz RózewiczTadeusz Różewicz is a Polish poet and writer.Różewicz belongs to the first generation born and educated after Poland regained its independence in 1918. His youthful poems were published in 1938...
(PolandPolandPoland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
) - 1988 Desanka MaksimovićDesanka MaksimovicDesanka Maksimović was a Serbian poet, professor of literature, and a member of Serbian Academy of Sciences and Arts.-Biography:...
(SR Serbia, SFR Yugoslavia) - 1989 Thomas W. ShapcottThomas W. ShapcottThomas William Shapcott AO is an Australian poet, novelist, playwright, editor, librettist, short story writer and teacher.- Biography :...
(AustraliaAustraliaAustralia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area...
) - 1990 Justo Jorge PadrónJusto Jorge PadrónJusto Jorge Padrón is a Spanish poet, essayist, and translator. His work has been described as confirming "[t]he strength of modern Canarian poetry"...
(SpainSpainSpain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
) - 1991 Joseph BrodskyJoseph BrodskyIosif Aleksandrovich Brodsky , was a Russian poet and essayist.In 1964, 23-year-old Brodsky was arrested and charged with the crime of "social parasitism" He was expelled from the Soviet Union in 1972 and settled in America with the help of W. H. Auden and other supporters...
(USA) - 1992 Ferenc JuhászFerenc Juhász (poet)Ferenc Juhász is a Hungarian poet and Golden Wreath laureate .Ferenc Juhász published his first poem in 1946. He studied at the University of Budapest Faculty of Letters between 1947 and 1949...
(HungaryHungaryHungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
) - 1993 Gennadiy AygiGennadiy AygiGennadiy Nikolaevich Aygi was a Chuvash poet and a translator. His poetry is written both in Chuvash and in Russian.He was born in the village of Shaimurzino , Chuvashia and started writing poetry in the Chuvash language in 1958....
(Chuvash Republic, Russian Federation) - 1994 Ted HughesTed HughesEdward James Hughes OM , more commonly known as Ted Hughes, was an English poet and children's writer. Critics routinely rank him as one of the best poets of his generation. Hughes was British Poet Laureate from 1984 until his death.Hughes was married to American poet Sylvia Plath, from 1956 until...
(United KingdomUnited KingdomThe United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
) - 1995 Yehuda AmichaiYehuda AmichaiYehuda Amichai was an Israeli poet. Amichai is considered by many, both in Israel and internationally, as Israel's greatest modern poet. He was also one of the first to write in colloquial Hebrew....
(IsraelIsraelThe State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
) - 1996 Makoto OokaMakoto Ookais a Japanese poet and literary critic.Ooka's poetry column was published without a break seven days a week for more than 20 years on the front page of Asahi Shimbun, which is Japan's leading national newspaper.-Notes:...
(JapanJapanJapan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
) - 1997 Adunis (SyriaSyriaSyria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
) - 1998 Lu Yuan (ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
) - 1999 Yves BonnefoyYves BonnefoyYves Bonnefoy is a French poet and essayist. Bonnefoy was born in Tours, Indre-et-Loire, the son of a railroad worker and a teacher....
(FranceFranceThe French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
) - 2000 Edoardo SanguinetiEdoardo SanguinetiEdoardo Sanguineti was an Italian writer who was born in Genoa.-Biography:During the 1960s he was a leader of the neo avant-garde Gruppo 63 movement, founded in 1963 at Solunto....
(ItalyItalyItaly , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
) - 2001 Seamus HeaneySeamus HeaneySeamus Heaney is an Irish poet, writer and lecturer. He lives in Dublin. Heaney has received the Nobel Prize in Literature , the Golden Wreath of Poetry , T. S. Eliot Prize and two Whitbread prizes...
(Northern IrelandNorthern IrelandNorthern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west...
) - 2002 Slavko Mihalić (CroatiaCroatiaCroatia , officially the Republic of Croatia , is a unitary democratic parliamentary republic in Europe at the crossroads of the Mitteleuropa, the Balkans, and the Mediterranean. Its capital and largest city is Zagreb. The country is divided into 20 counties and the city of Zagreb. Croatia covers ...
) - 2003 Tomas TranströmerTomas TranströmerTomas Gösta Tranströmer is a Swedish writer, poet and translator, whose poetry has been translated into over 60 languages. Tranströmer is acclaimed as one of the most important Scandinavian writers since the Second World War...
(SwedenSwedenSweden , officially the Kingdom of Sweden , is a Nordic country on the Scandinavian Peninsula in Northern Europe. Sweden borders with Norway and Finland and is connected to Denmark by a bridge-tunnel across the Öresund....
) - 2004 Vasco Graça MouraVasco Graça MouraVasco Navarro da Graça Moura, OSE is a Portuguese lawyer, writer, translator and politician, son of Francisco José da Graça Moura and wife Maria Teresa Amado da Cunha Seixas Navarro de Castro, of Northern Portugal bourgeoisie.He was a Member of the European Parliament for the Social Democratic...
(PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
) - 2005 William S. MerwinW. S. MerwinWilliam Stanley Merwin is an American poet, credited with over 30 books of poetry, translation and prose. During the 1960s anti-war movement, Merwin's unique craft was thematically characterized by indirect, unpunctuated narration. In the 1980s and 1990s, Merwin's writing influence derived from...
(USA) - 2006 Nancy MorejónNancy MorejónNancy Morejón is one of Cuba's major authors and poets. She has gained recognition for work whose themes are centered on women and the Afro-Cuban experience.-Life history:...
(CubaCubaThe Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city...
) - 2007 Mahmoud DarwishMahmoud DarwishMahmoud Darwish was a Palestinian poet and author who won numerous awards for his literary output and was regarded as the Palestinian national poet...
(PalestinePalestinePalestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
) - 2008 Fatos ArapiFatos ArapiFatos Arapi is an Albanian poet, short story writer, translator and journalist, laureate of the Struga Poetry Evenings Golden Wreath Award for 2008.-Biography:...
(AlbaniaAlbaniaAlbania , officially known as the Republic of Albania , is a country in Southeastern Europe, in the Balkans region. It is bordered by Montenegro to the northwest, Kosovo to the northeast, the Republic of Macedonia to the east and Greece to the south and southeast. It has a coast on the Adriatic Sea...
) - 2009 Tomaž ŠalamunTomaz SalamunTomaž Šalamun is a Slovenian poet. He was born in 1941 in Zagreb, Croatia, and raised in Koper, Slovenia. He has published 39 collections of poetry in his native Slovenian language. Šalamun spent two years at the University of Iowa Writer's Workshop in the 1970s and has lived for periods of time in...
(SloveniaSloveniaSlovenia , officially the Republic of Slovenia , is a country in Central and Southeastern Europe touching the Alps and bordering the Mediterranean. Slovenia borders Italy to the west, Croatia to the south and east, Hungary to the northeast, and Austria to the north, and also has a small portion of...
) - 2010 Lyubomir Levchev (BulgariaBulgariaBulgaria , officially the Republic of Bulgaria , is a parliamentary democracy within a unitary constitutional republic in Southeast Europe. The country borders Romania to the north, Serbia and Macedonia to the west, Greece and Turkey to the south, as well as the Black Sea to the east...
) - 2011 Mateja MatevskiMateja MatevskiMateja Matevski is a renowned Macedonian poet, literary and theatre critic, essayist, and translator.-Career:Mateja Matevski graduated from the Faculty of Philology in Skopje...
(MacedoniaRepublic of MacedoniaMacedonia , officially the Republic of Macedonia , is a country located in the central Balkan peninsula in Southeast Europe. It is one of the successor states of the former Yugoslavia, from which it declared independence in 1991...
)
Publications
The Struga Poetry Evenings organization is also involved in book publishingPublishing
Publishing is the process of production and dissemination of literature or information—the activity of making information available to the general public...
.
Poetry anthologies
- 1971 Contemporary Italian Poetry
- 1972 Contemporary Soviet Poetry
- 1972 Anthology of Romanian Poetry
- 1973 Contemporary Polish Poetry
- 1974 Contemporary Chilean Poetry
- 1976 Finnish Poetry
- 1977 Contemporary Algerian Poetry
- 1978 Contemporary Palestinian Poetry
- 1978 German Poetry of the 20th Century
- 1979 Modern American Poetry
- 1980 New Hungarian Poetry;
- 1980 Contemporary Indian Poetry
- 1981 Contemporary Greek Poetry
- 1982 Austrian Poetry of the 20 th Century
- 1983 Contemporary Venezuelan Poetry;
- 1983 Contemporary Poetry of Czechoslovakia
- 1984 Contemporary Egyptian Poetry
- 1985 New Chinese Poetry
- 1987 Contemporary Australian Poetry
- 1988 Contemporary Swedish Poetry
- 1989 Contemporary Belgian Poetry
- 1990 Contemporary British Poetry
- 1991 Contemporary Swiss Poetry
- 1992 Contemporary Poetry of Luxembourg
- 1993 Contemporary Italian Poetry
- 1994 Contemporary German Poetry
- 1995 Contemporary Danish Poetry
- 1996 Contemporary Albanian Poetry
- 1997 Contemporary Korean Poetry
- 1998 Spanish Poetry of the 20 th Century
- 1999 Contemporary Bulgarian Poetry
- 2000 Contemporary Russian Poetry
- 2001 Contemporary Portuguese Poetry
- 2002 Contemporary Tunisian Poetry
- 2003 Contemporary Indian Poetry written in English
- 2004 Contemporary Dutch Poetry
- 2005 Contemporary Israeli Poetry
- 2006 Contemporary Caribbean Poetry
External links
- Struga Poetry Evenings website
- World poetry comes to Struga — Southeast European TimesSoutheast European TimesSoutheast European Times is a United States European Command-sponsored news website dedicated to coverage of Southeast Europe and Turkey. The countries covered include Albania, Bosnia-Herzegovina, Bulgaria, Croatia, Greece, Macedonia, Montenegro, Romania, Serbia, and TurkeyThe primary address of...
- World Poetry Day — UNESCOUNESCOThe United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
official portal - Celebration of World Poetry Day — UNESCO official portal
- Struga Poetry Evenings Festival — UNESCO official website
- Exploring Macedonia National Tourism Portal