Nigerian poet and essayist Rasaq Malik Gbọ́láhàn has been named among the finalists for the 2026 Montreal International Poetry Prize with his poem, Suitcase.
He is listed alongside Angela Gabrielle Fabunan, Amlanjyoti Goswami, Julia Guez, Richard W. Halperin, among others in the announcement for the 2026 prize.
The Montreal International Poetry Prize, organised by McGill University’s Department of English in Canada, is a biennial international competition that awards C$20,000 for a single original poem of 40 lines or fewer. Founded in 2010, the prize brings together poets from around the world and is judged anonymously, with the winning poem selected by an internationally recognised poet.
A Nigerian poet, performer, translator, essayist and emerging digital humanities scholar, Rasaq Malik Gbọ́láhàn is the founding Editor-in-Chief of Agbowó and co-founder of Àtẹ́lẹ́wọ́, the first digital journal dedicated to publishing literary works written in Yorùbá. His work has appeared or is forthcoming in publications including POETRY, Ploughshares, Kenyon Review, African American Review, Beloit, Colorado Review, Crab Orchard Review, LitHub, Michigan Quarterly Review, Minnesota Review, New Orleans Review, Prairie Schooner, Poet Lore, Rattle, Salt Hill, Spillway, Stand, Verse Daily, and elsewhere. He is also the author of The Origin of Wounds, his debut full-length poetry collection published by Anhinga Press. The collection won the 2024 Anhinga Prize for Poetry and was recently named a co-winner of the 2025 Julie Suk Award alongside Arah Ko’s Brine Orchid.
Congratulations, Rasaq Malik Gbolahan!
