1 May 1999 — Andrew Motion becomes Poet Laureate of the United Kingdom for 10 years1 July 1999 — Scotland's Parliament opens with the singing of Robert Burns' "A Man's a Man For A'That", instead of "God Save The Queen"4 October 1999 — In the United States, New Jersey Governor Christine Todd Whitman signs into law Assembly Bill No. 2714 (P.L. 1999, c. 228) sent to her from the state legislature and creates the New Jersey William Carlos Williams Citation of Merit—effectively, Poet Laureate of New Jersey. Whitman subsequently selected poet Gerald Stern (b. 1925), then a resident of Lambertville, New Jersey as the first appointed to the post in the following April.The Robert Fitzgerald Prosody Award is established at the Fifth Annual West Chester University Poetry Conference. The award is given to scholars who have made a lasting contribution to the art and science of versification. Derek Attridge is the first winnerCarl Rakosi's 99th birthday celebrated at the Kelly Writers House with a live audiocastA new grave slab is installed at the Greyfriars Kirkyard in Edinburgh over the final resting place of William Topaz McGonagall (1825–1904), comically renowned as the worst poet in the English language; the slab is inscribed:William McGonagallPoet and Tragedian"I am your gracious Majestyever faithful to Thee,William McGonagall, the Poor Poet,That lives in Dundee."
Listed by nation where the work was first published and again by the poet's native land, if different; substantially revised works listed separately:
Robert Adamson, Black Water: Approaching ZukofskyJennifer Maiden, Mines, Paper Bark, ISBN 90-5704-046-8Les Murray:Fredy Neptune, verse novel, winner of the 2005 Premio Mondello (in Italy)New Selected Poems, Duffy & SnellgroveConscious and Verbal, Carcanet, Duffy & SnellgroveKen Babstock, Mean, his first book of poetry, winner of the Atlantic Poetry Prize and the Milton Acorn People's Poet Award (Canada)Afua Cooper, editor, Utterances and Incantations: Women, Poetry and Dub, Toronto: Sister Vision Press (scholarship)Jeffery Donaldson, Waterglass, McGill-Queen's University PressGeorge Elliott Clarke, Gold Indigoes. Durham: Carolina Wren, ISBN 0-932112-40-4Susan Holbrook, misledTim Lilburn, To the River, winner of the Saskatchewan Book Award for Book of the YearA. F. Moritz, Rest on the Flight into EgyptAndy Quan and Jim Wong-Chu, editors, Swallowing Clouds: An Anthology of Chinese-Canadian Poetry, Vancouver, British Columbia: Arsenal Pulp PressRukmini Bhaya Nair, The Ayodhya Cantos ( Poetry in English ), New Delhi: PenguinC. P. Surendran, Posthumous Poems ( Poetry in English ), New Delhi: Penguin (Viking); not posthumously publishedSudeep Sen:Bodytext: Dramatic Monologues in Motion, London Borough of Harrow: Harrow Arts and Leisure ServiceRetracing American Contours, Columbia: University of South CarolinaEunice de Souza, editor, Talking Poems: Conversations with Poets, New Delhi: Oxford University Press, ISBN 0-19-564782-3E.V. Ramakrishnan, editor, The Tree of Tongues: An Anthology of Modern Indian Poetry, Arundhathi Subramaniam called the volume "a landmark book of translations of modern Indian poetry"; Shimla: Indian Institute of Advanced Study, ISBN 81-85952-70-1Ireland
Ciaran Carson, The Ballad of HMS Belfast, Oldcastle: The Gallery Press, ISBN 978-1-85235-246-2Vona Groarke, Other People's Houses, Oldcastle: The Gallery Press,Joan McBreen, editor, The White Page an bhileog bh'an: Twentieth-Century Irish Women Poets Cliffs of Moher, County Clare: SalmonThomas McCarthy, Mr Dineen's Careful Parade: New and Selected Poems, Anvil Press, London, Irish poet published in the United KingdomMedbh McGuckian and Eiléan Ní Chuilleanáin, translators, The Water Horse: Poems in Irish Nuala Ní Dhomhnaill, Oldcastle: The Gallery PressNew Zealand
Alistair Campbell, Gallipoli & Other Poems, Wellington: Wai-te-ata PressJanet Charman, Rapunzel Rapunzel, Auckland: Auckland University PressLeigh Robert Davis, Te Tangi a te Matuhi, Auckland: Jack BooksMichele Leggott, As far as I can see, Auckland: Auckland University PressRobin Hyde, The book of Nadath, introduction and notes by Michele Leggott; Auckland: Auckland University Press, posthumousBill Manhire, What to Call Your ChildSarah Quigley, Raewyn Alexander and Anna Jackson, AUP New Poets 1: Sarah Quigley, Raewyn Alexander and Anna Jackson, Auckland: Auckland University PressMark Bryant, editor, Literary Hymns: An Anthology, London: Hodder & StoughtonGerry Cambridge, Nothing But Heather!, Luath Press ISBN 0-946487-49-9Julia Donaldson. The Gruffalo, children's story in verseCarol Ann Duffy:Meeting Midnight, Faber and Faber (children's poetry)The World's Wife, Anvil Press PoetrySeamus Heaney:The Light of the Leaves, Bonnefant PressTranslator: Beowulf, Faber & FaberTranslator: Diary of One Who Vanished, a song cycle by Leoš Janáček of poems by Ozef Kalda, Faber & FaberJohn Heath-Stubbs, The Sound of LightTed Hughes, translator:Aeschylus: The OresteiaAlcestisKathleen Jamie, JizzenAndrew Johnston (poet), The Open Window, Arc Publications, a New Zealand poet living in Paris, FranceDerek Mahon, Collected Poems, Gallery PressDon Paterson, The EyesTom Paulin, The Wind DogPeter Reading, ApophthegmaticPeter Redgrove, Selected PoemsMary Jo Salter, A Kiss in Space, KnopfMarina Tsvetayeva, The Selected Poems of Marina Tsvetayeva, translated by Elaine Feinstein, fifth edition, with new poems and a new introduction, Oxford University Press/CarcanetHugo Williams, Billy's Rain, Faber and FaberRichard Caddel and Peter Quartermain, editors, Other: British and Irish Poetry since 1970, an anthology of poetry outside The Movement (essentially the mainstream) of English and Irish poetry (Wesleyan University Press)Carol Ann Duffy, editor, Time's Tidings: Greeting the 21st Century, Anvil Press PoetryElaine Feinstein, editor, After Pushkin, "versions by contemporary poets", published by the Folio Society and CarcanetIona Opie, editor, Here Comes Mother Goose, a collection of nursery rhymesMichael Schmidt, The Harvill Book of Twentieth-Century Poetry in EnglishAdam Schwartzman, editor, Ten South African poets, Manchester: CarcanetJohn Ashbery, Girls on the Run, a book-length poem inspired by the work of artist Henry DargerJoseph Brodsky: Discovery, New York: Farrar, Straus & Giroux Russian-AmericanJared Carter, Les Barricades Mysterieuses, Cleveland State University Poetry Center.Robert Dassanowsky, Telegrams from the Metropole. Selected Poems 1980-1998 ISBN 978-3-901993-02-2Rita Dove, On the Bus with Rosa Parks (Norton); a New York Times "notable book of the year"Beth Gylys, Bodies that Hum (Silverfish Review Press); winner of the Gerald Cable Book AwardGeoffrey Hill, The Triumph of Love (Houghton Mifflin); a New York Times "notable book of the year"John Hollander, Figurehead and Other PoemsFanny Howe, ForgedWilliam Logan, Night BattleGlyn Maxwell, The Breakage, (Houghton Mifflin); a New York Times "notable book of the year"W. S. Merwin, The River Sound: Poems, New York: Knopf; a New York Times "notable book of the year"Eugenio Montale, Collected Poems: 1920-1954 (Farrar, Straus & Giroux); a New York Times "notable book of the year"; translated from ItalianMary Oliver, Winter Hours: Prose, Prose Poems, and PoemsMichael Palmer, The Danish Notebook (Avec Books); memoir/poetic essay. ISBN 9781880713181George Quasha (with Chie Hasegawa), Ainu Dreams (Station Hill Press)Carl Rakosi, The Old Poet's TaleKenneth Rexroth, Swords That Shall Not Strike: Poems of Protest and Rebellion (Glad Day; posthumous)Charles Simic, Jackstraws: Poems (Harcourt Brace); a New York Times "notable book of the year"A. E. Stallings, Archaic SmileMark Strand, Chicken, Shadow, Moon & More, by a Canadian native long living in and published in the United StatesEleanor Ross Taylor, Late LeisureMelvin B. Tolson, Harlem Gallery: And Other Poems (University Press of Virginia); a New York Times "notable book of the year"Rosmarie Waldrop, Reluctant Gravities (New Directions)Jesse Lee Kercheval, World as DictionaryCriticism, scholarship and biography in the United States
M. H. Abrams, A Glossary of Literary Terms (first published in 1958), goes into its seventh edition, Fort Worth, Texas: Harcourt BraceCharles Bernstein, A Poetics (Cambridge: Harvard University Press)Molly Peacock, How to Read a Poem ... and Start a Poetry Circle, New York: Riverhead BooksRiohard Caddel and Peter Quartermain, editors, Other: British and Irish Poetry since 1970 Wesleyan University PressEd Dorn and Gordon Brotherston, editors (and Brotherston, translator), Sun Unwound: Original Texts from Occupied America, North Atlantic Books anthologyTanure Ojaide and Tijan M. Sallah, editors, The New African Poetry: An Anthology, Boulder, Colorado: Lynne Reinner PublishersA. L. Soens, editor, I, the Song : Classical Poetry of Native North America, Salt Lake City: University of Utah PressPoems from these 75 poets are in The Best American Poetry 1999, edited by David Lehman, guest editor, Robert Bly:
Listed by nation where the work was first published and again by the poet's native land, if different; substantially revised works listed separately:
Yves Bonnefoy, La Pluie d'été, FranceClaude Esteban, Janvier, février, mars. Pages, Farrago; FranceMadeleine Gagnon, Rêve de pierre, Montréal, VLB; CanadaMichel Houellebecq, Renaissance, poèmes, Flammarion; FranceGyörgy Petri, Amíg lehetIn each section, listed in alphabetical order by first name:
Joy Goswami Suryo-Pora Chhai, Kolkata: Ananda Publishers, ISBN 81-7215-773-8Mallika Sengupta, Kathamanabi, Kolkata: Ananda PublishersNirendranath Chakravarti, Onno Gopal, Kolkata: Ananda PublishersUdaya Narayana Singh, Anukriti, New Delhi: Sahitya AkademiNOBBOIER KOBITA, An anthology of poetry 1990s Bangladesh, edited by Mahbub Kabir, Loak Prokashana, Shahbag, Dhaka.K. Satchidanandan, Theranjedutha Kavithakal, selected poems; Malayalam-languageP. P. Ramachandran, Kanekkane, winner of the Kerala Sahitya Akademi Award for poetry: Kottayam: DC BooksVeerankutty, Jalabhoopadam ("Mapping the Waters"), Kozhikode: PapillonDilip Chitre, Ekoon Kavita – 3, Mumbai: Popular PrakashanMalika Amar Sheikh:Deharutu, Mumbai: Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar PrabodhiniMahanagar, Mumbai: Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar PrabodhiniBasudev Sunani, Mahula Bana, Nuapada: Eeshan-Ankit PrakashaniBharat Majhi, Agadhu Duari, Varsapallavi, KendraparaRajendra Kishore Panda, Ishakhela, Cuttack: Cuttack Students' StoreAjmer Rode, Leela, considered by critics "a landmark volume in modern Punjabi poetry", according to Arundhathi Subramaniam; London, Vancouver: The Rainbird Press, ISBN 0-9690504-9-6Amarjit Chandan, Guthli, Kitab Tirinjan, Lahore; Punjabi-languageChandrakanta Murasingh; Kokborok-language:Lok Chethuwang Lok, Krishnanagar: Akshar PublicationsPindi Watawi Pin, Agartala: Hachukni Khorang PublisherJiban Narah, Suwaranir San, Guwahati, Assam: Jyoti-Prakashan; Assamese-languageMamta Sagar, Nadiya Neerina Teva, Bangalore: Ila Prakashana, Kannada-languageK. Siva Reddy, Telugu-language:Varsham, Varsham, Hyderabad: Jhari Poetry CircleJaitrayatra, Hyderabad: Sivareddy MithruluThangjam Ibopishak Singh, Mayadesh ("The Land of Maya"), Imphal: Writer’s Forum; Meitei language poet and academicVaidehi, pen name of Janaki Srinivasa Murthy, Parijatha, Bangalore: Christ College Kannada Sangha, Kannada-languagePoland
Zbigniew Herbert, Podwójny oddech. Prawdziwa historia nieskończonej miłości. Wiersze dotąd niepublikowane, Gdynia: Małgorzata Marchlewska Wydawnictwo (posthumous)Tymoteusz Karpowicz, Słoje zadrzewne ("Tree Rings"), the work stirred "a literary sensation" in Poland, according to critic Tomasz Tabako Wrocław: Wydawnictwo DolnośląskieEwa Lipska, 1999, Kraków: Wydawnictwo literackieTadeusz Różewicz, Matka odchodzi ("Mother Departs"), Wrocław: Wydawnictwo DolnośląskieTomasz Różycki, Anima, Zielona Sowa, KrakówJarosław Marek Rymkiewicz, Znak niejasny, baśń półżywa ("The Unclear sign, a Half-living Legend"), Warsaw: Państwowy Instytut WydawniczyPiotr Sommer, Piosenka pasterskaJan Twardowski, Miłość miłości szuka, t. 1-2, Warsaw: PIW, Księgarnia i Drukarnia Świętego WojciechaEugeniusz Tkaczyszyn-Dycki, Kamień pełen pokarmu. Księga wierszy z lat 1987-1999Adam Zagajewski, Pragnienie, Kraków: a5Dejan Stojanović, Sunce sebe gleda (The Sun Watches Itself), Književna reč, Beograd, 1999Matilde Camus:Clamor del pensamiento ("Clamour of thought")Cancionero multicolor ("Multicolour collection of verses")La estrellita Giroldina ("Giroldina the star")Christoph Buchwald, general editor, and Raoul Schrott, guest editor, Jahrbuch der Lyrik 1999/2000 ("Poetry Yearbook 1999/2000"), publisher: Beck; anthologyLo Fu (poet), also spelled "Luo Fu", Silent Falls the Snow, Chinese (Taiwan)Aharon Shabtai, Politiqa (Hebrew: "Politics")Maria Luisa Spaziani, Italy:Un fresco castagnetoLa radice del mareMarie Šťastná, Jarním pokrytcům ("To Spring Hypocrites"), Czech RepublicYu Jian, Yi mei chuanguo tiankong de dingzi ChinaAwards and honors
Nobel prize: Günter GrassC. J. Dennis Prize for Poetry: Gig Ryan, Pure and AppliedDinny O'Hearn Poetry Prize: The Impossible, and other Poems by R. A. SimpsonKenneth Slessor Prize for Poetry: Lee Cataldi, Race Against TimeMiles Franklin Award: Murray Bail, EucalyptusGerald Lampert AwardArchibald Lampman AwardAtlantic Poetry PrizeSee 1999 Governor General's Awards for a complete list of winners and finalists for those awards.Pat Lowther AwardPrix Alain-GrandboisShaunt Basmajian Chapbook AwardNew Zealand
Prime Minister's Awards for Literary Achievement:Montana New Zealand Book Awards (no poetry winner this year) First-book award for poetry: Kate Camp, Unfamiliar Legends of the Stars, Victoria University PressCholmondeley Award: Vicki Feaver, Geoffrey Hill, Elma Mitchell, Sheenagh PughEric Gregory Award: Ross Cogan, Matthew Hollis, Helen Ivory, Andrew Pidoux, Owen Sheers, Dan WykeForward Poetry Prize Best Collection: Jo Shapcott, My Life Asleep (Oxford University Press)Forward Poetry Prize Best First Collection: Nick Drake, The Man in the White Suit (Bloodaxe)Poet Laureate of Great Britain: Andrew Motion appointedSamuel Johnson Prize: Antony Beevor, StalingradT. S. Eliot Prize (United Kingdom and Ireland): Hugo Williams, Billy's RainWhitbread Best Book Award: Seamus Heaney, BeowulfAgnes Lynch Starrett Poetry Prize: Daisy Fried, She Didn't Mean To Do ItAiken Taylor Award for Modern American Poetry: George GarrettArthur Rense Prize awarded to James McMichael by the American Academy of Arts and LettersBernard F. Connors Prize for Poetry: J.D. McClatchy, "Tattoos"Bollingen Prize: Robert CreeleyFrost Medal: Barbara GuestNational Book Award for poetry: Ai, Vice: New & Selected PoemsSpecial Bicentential Consultants in Poetry to the Library of Congress: Rita Dove, Louise Glück, and W.S. Merwin appointedPulitzer Prize for Poetry: Mark Strand, Blizzard of OneRobert Fitzgerald Prosody Award: Derek AttridgeRuth Lilly Poetry Prize: Maxine KuminWallace Stevens Award: Jackson Mac LowWhiting Awards: Michael Haskell, Terrance Hayes, Martha ZweigWilliam Carlos Williams Award: B.H. Fairchild, The Art of the Lathe (Working Classics), Judge: Garrett HongoFellowship of the Academy of American Poets: Gwendolyn BrooksBirth years link to the corresponding "[year] in poetry" article:
January 13 – John Frederick Nims, United StatesFebruary 22 – William Bronk, 81, United StatesMay 10 – Shel Silverstein, 68, children's poetAugust 15 – Patricia Beer, 79, British poet and criticSeptember 8 – Moondog, 83, street poet (aka Louis T. Hardin)October 9 – João Cabral de Melo Neto, 79, Brazilian poet and diplomatDecember 10 – Edward Dorn, 70, American poet associated with the Black Mountain poetsdate not known:December – Ida Affleck Graves, 97Felipe Alfau (born 1902), Spanish-American poet, translator and authorSufia Kamal (born 1911), Bengali poet, writer, organizer, feminist and activist 