South African poet, playwright, actor, and producer Siphokazi Jonas has won the 2025 Glenna Luschei Prize for African Poetry for her poetry collection, Weeping Becomes a River.
The prize, administered by the African Poetry Book Fund, awards $1,000 annually to a book of poetry by an African writer published in the previous year. Phillippa Yaa de Villiers judged this year’s prize.
In her words, Dr. Phillippa Yaa de Villiers said:
“Weeping Becomes a River is a work of intense sensory experience, of reverence for language, for spirit, and ultimately, for self. It is all of these things without solipsism or sentimentality. It is a deeply moving work that inspires curiosity and respect”.
Siphokazi Jonas is a multi-award-winning poet, playwright, actor, and producer based in Cape Town, South Africa. Her debut collection, Weeping Becomes a River, also awarded The 2024 Book Lounge Book of the Year, is the joint winner of the 2025 HSS Award for Best Poetry, and is listed among the 100 Notable African Books of 2024.
She holds an MA in English Literature and an undergraduate degree in Drama and English from the University of Cape Town. She has been a featured act at numerous festivals globally. Her awards include a South African Film and Television Award for Best Short Film, Western Cape Cultural Affairs Awards for Most Innovative Young Artist in 2022 and for Literary Excellence in 2025, and 100 Sunday World Unsung Heroes. Siphokazi was also awarded the 2025 University of Johannesburg Debut Prize for South African writing in English, and she was named the Toyota Stellenbosch Woordfees 2025 Festival Poet alongside Antjie Krog.
The Luschei Prize for African Poetry, which was initially funded by late literary philanthropist and poet Glenna Luschei, is the only pan-African book prize of its kind. The Glenna Luschei Prize promotes African poetry written in English or in translation by recognizing a significant book published each year by an African poet.
Congratulations, Siphokazi Jonas!
