Poetryweek 2026 in Utrecht

Metamorphosis is the theme of Poetry Week 2026 in the Netherlands and Flanders. Metamorphosis is everywhere: in nature, in our bodies, in our thoughts and in our society. It is a transformation that challenges, surprises and inspires us. Poetry is the genre par excellence that captures, articulates and depicts these changes. It is a powerful means of understanding and expressing society. Students and staff from Utrecht will also be participating in Poetry Week 2026. Be inspired, experiment and celebrate the power of change!

On 29 January, Utrecht lecturers Hanneke van Eijken and Onno Kosters (among others) will recite poems about the city of Utrecht, from Amelisweerd to Zuilen.
On 6 February, Mia You and two of her students, who also write poetry, will take centre stage in a unique multidisciplinary concert featuring jazz, poetry and visual art about the city of Utrecht, called Urban Mosaic.
You can join various Dutch language and culture students on one of the street poetry walks on offer to discover some of the 200 street poems in the city of Utrecht, sometimes supplemented with a workshop on how to become a street poet yourself. For more information about the street poetry project, visit straatpoezie.nl.
Or take part in the Silent Poetry Lab, an initiative of poets Anne Broeksma and Hanneke van Eijken.

You can find more information about Poetry Week on the website of our partner, the Bibliotheek Utrecht (only in Dutch).

Has this inspired you, or are you a poet yourself?

In the 2026 poetry competition: Utrecht, your place, your words, we invite you to describe your surroundings as they are now, or as you imagine them to have been in the past or as they might be in the future. Write a poem or spoken word piece about a place – anywhere in the province of Utrecht – where you feel at home, would like to feel at home, or, conversely, do not feel at home. Read more about this poetry competition at Utrecht, your place, your words. 

Utrecht, UNESCO City of Literature

Since 2017, Utrecht has been the first Dutch city to be designated a UNESCO City of Literature due to its long and impressive history in the arts and its vibrant literary scene. The university has a long history of collaboration with the Utrecht literary world, not only within the Faculty of Humanities with all its languages, but also because many colleagues themselves publish literature such as novels and poetry. Poetry Week, organised by our partner Neude Public Library, is just one of the literary festivals in the city in which colleagues and students are closely involved.