Adedayo Agarau is a Nigerian poet, editor, and educator. Born in 1994, he attended Bodma International School Ibadan (1996-2003), Ibadan Boys High School (2004-2007), and Scores College, Ibadan (2007-2009). He holds an N.D. and H.N.D. in Human Nutrition and Dietetics from The Federal Polytechnic, Ede (2015) and The Rufus Giwa Polytechnic, Owo (2019), respectively.

Agarau received his M.F.A. in Poetry from the University of Iowa in 2023 and is currently a Wallace Stegner Fellow at Stanford University (2023-2025). His debut collection, The Year of Blood, is forthcoming from Fordham University Press (Fall 2025). His writing is represented by Salma Begum at The Greyhound Literary Agency.

His work has appeared in publications including Poetry Foundation, Iowa Review, Transition, and World Literature Today. Agarau is the author of five chapbooks, including The Origin of Name, selected for the New-Generation African Poets series by Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani (Akashic Books, 2020), The Arrival of Rain (Vegetarian Alcoholic Press, 2020), and Memento: An Anthology of Contemporary Nigerian Poetry (Animal Heart Press, 2020).

Agarau has been recognized as a finalist for the Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship, the Montreal Prize, and the Narrative Magazine Annual Poetry Contest. He is a Cave Canem Fellow and was selected to participate in the Watermill Residency in New York.

Agarau has participated in numerous literary festivals, including the Lagos International Poetry Festival, where he served as a panelist discussing “Silk Routes for African Verse: A Creative Economy” (2023). He has also been featured at the Benue Books and Arts Festival (2022), and has presented at the Abuja International Poetry Festival (2024). 

His poems have been featured in exhibitions at the Wellcome Collections of Medicine in London and the Paris Photo Exhibition. Currently, Agarau serves as Poetry Book Reviews Editor at The Rumpus and as Editor-in-Chief of Agbowo Magazine. He has taught at Stanford University, the University of Iowa, and various programs in Nigeria.

Agarau is actively involved in developing literary communities in Nigeria. He is a member of The UnSerious Collective Fellowship, an initiative supporting emerging Nigerian writers. Additionally, he is a founding editor of Poetry Sango-Ota, which organizes poetry workshops and mentoring opportunities for young Nigerian poets. 

Agarau is fluent in English, Pidgin, and Yoruba. His work often explores themes of migration, cultural memory, and postcolonial identity.

SELECTED AWARDS, FELLOWSHIPS AND HONORS

2024

The 2024 Best Spiritual Literature Awards

2024

16th Annual Poetry Contest, Narrative Magazine

Finalist

2024

Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship

Finalist

2024

The Montreal Prize

Finalist

2024

16th Annual Poetry Contest, Narrative Magazine

Finalist

2024

Wales Poetry Prize

Third Place

2024

Poetic Justice Institute Editor's Prize

Winner

2024

Alpine International Prize for Poetry

Shortlist

2023

Ledbury Poetry Prize

Runner up

2023

Wallace Stegner Fellowship

2023

Deena Davidson Friedman Scholarship

2023

John C. Shupe Scholarship

2023

Summer scholarship from The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

2023

Cave Canem Fellow

2023

Watermill Residency, New York

2023

Frontier Open Poetry Prize,

Finalist

2022

Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series

Finalist

2022

Brunel International African Poetry Prize

Shortlist

2022

Robert Hayden Scholarship Fellow, Stockton University

2022

The Stanley Award for International Research, University of Iowa

2021

New Generation African Poets Selected by Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani,

2021

Palette Poetry Prize

Longlist

2020

Palette Poetry Prize

Longlist

2020

Sundress Best of the Net Poetry Prize

Finalist

2020

The 99 Most Influential Nigerians in Art

YNaija

2020

Frontier Poetry Industry Prize

3rd Place

2020

Sehvage Poetry Prize

Runner Up

2018

Babishai Niwe Poetry Prize

Shortlist

2016

Eriata Oribhabor Food Poetry Prize

Winner

2015

Eriata Oribhabor Poetry Prize

Runner Up

2015

Tony Tokunbo Fernández Poetry Prize

2024

The 2024 Best Spiritual Literature Awards

2024

16th Annual Poetry Contest, Narrative Magazine

Finalist

2024

Ruth Lilly and Dorothy Sargent Rosenberg Poetry Fellowship

Finalist

2024

The Montreal Prize

Finalist

2024

16th Annual Poetry Contest, Narrative Magazine

Finalist

2024

Wales Poetry Prize

Third Place

2024

Poetic Justice Institute Editor's Prize

Winner

2024

Alpine International Prize for Poetry

Shortlist

2023

Ledbury Poetry Prize

Runner up

2023

Wallace Stegner Fellowship

2023

Deena Davidson Friedman Scholarship

2023

John C. Shupe Scholarship

2023

Summer scholarship from The College of Liberal Arts and Sciences

2023

Cave Canem Fellow

2023

Watermill Residency, New York

2023

Frontier Open Poetry Prize,

Finalist

2022

Black Lawrence Immigrant Writing Series

Finalist

2022

Brunel International African Poetry Prize

Shortlist

2022

Robert Hayden Scholarship Fellow, Stockton University

2022

The Stanley Award for International Research, University of Iowa

2021

New Generation African Poets Selected by Kwame Dawes and Chris Abani,

2021

Palette Poetry Prize

Longlist

2020

Palette Poetry Prize

Longlist

2020

Sundress Best of the Net Poetry Prize

Finalist

2020

The 99 Most Influential Nigerians in Art

YNaija

2020

Frontier Poetry Industry Prize

3rd Place

2020

Sehvage Poetry Prize

Runner Up

2018

Babishai Niwe Poetry Prize

Shortlist

2016

Eriata Oribhabor Food Poetry Prize

Winner

2015

Eriata Oribhabor Poetry Prize

Runner Up

2015

Tony Tokunbo Fernández Poetry Prize