Marrakech – The Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO) has just kicked off its annual “Cities of Poems” contest, adding a lyrical twist to its “Capitals of Culture in the Islamic World” program.
This year, the spotlight will shine on three culturally rich cities: Marrakech, Benghazi in Libya, and Shusha in Azerbaijan.
“Cities of Poems” aims to rekindle and strengthen the timeless bond between poetry and place, a connection that has inspired countless poets to create unforgettable collections in the realm of Arabic and global poetry.
The competition also seeks to poetically and aesthetically document the history and geography of cities, honoring the symbols and civilizations that define the cultural capitals of the Islamic world.
With this initiative, ICESCO aims to enrich the poetic corpus within the Islamic world and contribute to the broader literary and poetic movement.
The participating poems will be evaluated by a specialized ICESCO committee of renowned poets who will select three winners for each city celebrated as a cultural capital in the Islamic world.
The first-place winner will receive $2,000, the second-place winner $1,500, and the third-place winner $1,000, along with a certificate of appreciation.
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ICESCO also announced that the award-winning and distinguished poems from the contest will be published in a special collection.
To enter the contest, poems must be written in Classical Arabic or Azerbaijani and adhere to poetic meter, whether free or rhymed. Azerbaijani poems should follow either declarative or prosodic meter.
Each contesting poem should draw inspiration from the values, aesthetics, history, geography, and unique spirit of the city it focuses on, ICESO said, adding that eligible poems must not exceed thirty verses or lines.
Participants of all ages are encouraged to submit their entries to the contest by December 31, 2024.
