What is a Poet Laureate?

The most common question I've been asked since being appointed Poet Laureate is, "What is a Poet Laureate?" People of all occupations, education levels, classes, etc. have asked the same question; so I can deduce that ignorance about this position does not discriminate. Don't feel bad if you don't know "exactly" what a Poet Laureate is; no one (except for a poet) does. :)

It's sort of like the rock star poet problem. There are many poets who I would swoon over if they walked in the room, even more so than teenagers do over that vampire. However, the problem is that only poets know celebrity poets. For example, I was so excited about some of my new poet friends on facebook that I told my non-poet friends about it. When they asked who the poets were, I just responded, "Well, nevermind, you don't know them." For them to know one of my new poet friends, I would have had to say Emily Dickinson or Maya Angelou. So is the problem that poets are selfish and exclusive? Well, I doubt it. I think the problem is that people are not educated about poetry. So, they don't understand it, and then, essentially, don't care. And this brings me to the first job of the Poet Laureate. (Were you wondering when I was going to come full-circle?)

To me, the Poet Laureateship carries with it a great responsibility to poetry. A Poet Laureate is an advocate for the art and tries to promote poetry in whatever community he or she is appointed in. There are Poets Laureate of countries, such as England, where this all began, but there are also Poets Laureate of states and cities. Not every government has this appointed position; so, I feel grateful to Hanover for instituting this position years ago.

If you think about the etymology of the word, it comes from the word "laurel," a sign of victory, which means all Poets Laureate are winners. Just kidding! However, laurel was used as a mark of distinction. That base word can also be found in other words, such as "baccalaureate," the word for a bachelor's degree. In this case again, the "laurel" marks a distinction, the earning of a degree. So, the title "Poet Laureate" carries with it a distinction for your writing and commitment to advocating for poetry. More specifically, for Hanover, PA, it also carries with it the column in The Evening Sun and the opportunity to pen poems for community events.

For all you history folks, according to www.answers.com, this position was used in Medieval Europe as an award at universities, but later became a salaried position in government. "The salary has varied, but traditionally includes some alcohol." I read that Chaucer traded his distinction for wine.