Niyi Osundare

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Niyi Osundare
Osundare niyi 12.jpg
Born (1947-03-12) 12 March 1947 (age 78)
Ikere-Ekiti, Nigeria
Occupation
  • Poet
  • playwright
  • literary critic
  • linguist
NationalityNigerian
Alma materAmoye Grammar School, Christ's School, University of Ibadan, University of Leeds, York University
GenrePoetry, plays, literary criticism
Years active1981–present
Notable worksSongs of the Marketplace (1983), The Eye of the Earth (1986), Waiting Laughters (1990), Green: Sighs of Our Ailing Planet (2022)
Notable awards Association of Nigerian Authors Poetry Prize 1986, 1989, & 1994, Commonwealth Poetry Prize 1986, NOMA Award 1991, Tchicaya U Tam'si Prize for African Poetry 2008, Nigerian National Order of Merit 2014

Niyi Osundare is a Nigerian poet, dramatist, linguist, and literary critic. Born on 12 March 1947, in Ikere-Ekiti, [1] Nigeria, his poetry is influenced by the oral tradition of his Yoruba culture, which he hybridizes with other poetic traditions of the world, including African-American, Latin American, Asian, and European.

Contents

Family and education

Osundare gained degrees in English at the University of Ibadan (BA), the University of Leeds (MA), and York University, Canada (PhD, 1979). Previously professor (from 1989) and Head of English (1993–97) at the University of Ibadan, he became professor of English at the University of New Orleans in 1997. Osundare has a wife, Kemi, and three children.[ citation needed ]

Career

In 1997, he accepted a teaching and research post at the University of New Orleans. In 2005 Osundare was caught in Hurricane Katrina, and he and his wife were stuck in their attic for 26 hours. Their neighbour, who at the time was driving by in his boat, heard their shouts for help. They were rescued and bounced around from rescue shelters until they ended up in Rindge, New Hampshire, where Osundare could get a teaching job as a professor at Franklin Pierce College and things settled down. [2]

Publications

Documentary

In 2016, Osundare, along with his lifelong friend, the Sierra Leonean poet Syl Cheney-Coker, was the subject of a documentary called The Poets, by director Chivas DeVinck. [5] The film follows Osundare and Cheney-Coker on a road-trip through Sierra Leone and Nigeria as they discuss their friendship and how their life experiences have shaped their art.

References

  1. "Niyi Osundare becomes first African Cover Poet for World Poetry magazine". Premium Times. Nigeria. 20 January 2022. Retrieved 19 March 2022.
  2. Ibrahim, Abubakar Adam (28 November 2015). "How I survived Hurricane Katrina - Niyi Osundare". Daily Trust. Retrieved 4 October 2019.
  3. "African Writing Online; Niyi Osundare;". www.african-writing.com. Retrieved 26 May 2020.
  4. Murua, James (6 April 2017). "Throwback Thursday: The Noma Award for Publishing in Africa". Writing Africa. Retrieved 12 May 2024.
  5. The Poets documentary at Icarus Films.

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