Joy Harjo Biography
Joy Harjo is an American poet, musician, and author who is also the first Native American United States Poet Laureate. She is from Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA.
Harjo took her paternal grandmother’s surname when she enrolled in the Muscogee (Creek) Nation.
In addition to writing books, Harjo has taught in numerous United States universities, has performed at poetry readings and music events, and releases five albums of her original music.
Joy Harjo Early Life
Harjo was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma. She was given the name Joy Foster. Her father is Allen W. Foster who was Muscogee Creek and her mother, Wynema Baker Foster, has mixed-race ancestry of Cherokee, French, and Irish.
Harjo is the oldest of four children. She enrolled as a member of the Muscogee (Creek) Nation, at the age of 19. After enrolling, she took her paternal grandmother’s last name “Harjo”.
Her parents divorced due to her father’s drinking and harsh behavior. He was both emotionally and physically abusive when drunk.
Her mother got married again to a man who disliked Indians and was equally abusive. Both of these harsh childhood relationships took a negative toll on Harjo.
When she was 16 years old, Harjo was kicked out of her family house by her stepfather. She moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico, and enrolled in the Institute of American Indian Arts.
Joy Harjo Education
She studied at the Institute of American Indian Arts, completed her undergraduate degree at the University of New Mexico in 1976. She earned an M.F.A. at the University of Iowa in its Creative Writing Program.
Joy Harjo Literature
Harjo has written numerous works in the genres of poetry, books, and plays. She uses oral tradition as a mechanism for portraying these issues, and believes that “written text is, for [her], fixed orality”.
She published her first volume in 1975, titled The Last Song, which consisted of nine of her poems.
In her poem titled “She Had Some Horses”, she uses many different forms of symbolism. The poem has four sections; they are each arranged to complement one another.
Julia Morse wrote, “Harjo’s poems ache with grit, grief, and nature. Her lines are curt and heavy but they construct delicate stories.”
In this poem, Harjo explains her growing years by using an animal very important in Native American culture. She uses symbolism to express her hardships and values.
Joy Harjo Music
Harjo has released five CDs, all of which won awards that feature both her original music and that of other Native American artists.
Her mother is a singer. She learned to play the alto saxophone and the flute later in life. Harjo also sings and acts, frequently touring with her music group known as the Arrow Dynamics.
In 2009, she won the Native American Music Award for best female artist. She has also received several other awards (see below) for her CDs.
Harjo began to play the saxophone at the age of 40. For her it fills the void she felt left by her singing voice.
Joy Harjo Age
Harjo was born on May 9, 1951, in Tulsa, Oklahoma, USA. She is 68 years old as of 2019.
Joy Harjo Husband
Harjo was married to Phil Wilmon. Phil and Harjo had met at the Institute of American Indian Arts.
She had moved to Santa Fe, New Mexico and enrolled at the institute after she was kicked out of her family house by her stepfather at the age of 16.
Harjo and Phil had a son together named Phil Dayn. They later divorced.
Joy Harjo Body Measurements
- Height: Not Available
- Weight: Not Available
- Shoe Size: Not Available
- Body Shape: Not Available
- Hair Colour: Black
- Eye Colour: Not Available
Joy Harjo Net Worth
Harjo’s exact net worth has not yet been revealed but the information will be updated as soon as it is available.
Joy Harjo United States Poet Laureate
On June 19, 2019, Harjo was named the United States Poet Laureate. She is the first Native American to be appointed.
Her appointment was announced Wednesday by Librarian of Congress Carla Hayden, who said that she helped tell an “American story” of traditions both lost and maintained, of “reckoning and myth-making.”
Harjo said; “I don’t have a defined project right now, but I want to bring the contribution of poetry of the tribal nations to the forefront and include it in the discussion of poetry.”
“This country is in need of deep healing. We’re in a transformational moment in national history and earth history, so whichever way we move is going to absolutely define us.”
Joy Harjo Remember
Remember is a poem by Harjo which was written in 1981. It read;
“Remember the sky that you were born under,
know each of the star’s stories.
Remember the moon, know who she is.
Remember the sun’s birth at dawn, that is the
strongest point of time. Remember sundown
and the giving away to night.
Remember your birth, how your mother struggled
to give you form and breath. You are evidence of
her life, and her mother’s, and hers.
Remember your father. He is your life, also.
Remember the earth whose skin you are:
red earth, black earth, yellow earth, white earth
brown earth, we are earth.
Remember the plants, trees, animal life who all have their
tribes, their families, their histories, too. Talk to them,
listen to them. They are alive poems.
Remember the wind. Remember her voice. She knows the
origin of this universe.
Remember you are all people and all people
are you.
Remember you are this universe and this
universe is you.
Remember all is in motion, is growing,
is you.
Remember language comes from this.
Remember the dance language is,
that life is.
Remember.”
Joy Harjo Poems
- I Give You Back.
- When the World As We Knew It Ended.
- The Last Song, Puerto Del Sol, 1975.
- What Moon Drove Me to This?, I. Reed Books, 1979
- Remember, Strawberry Press, 1981.
- She Had Some Horses, Thunder’s Mouth Press, 1983
- New Orleans, 1983.
- The Woman Hanging from the Thirteenth Floor Window, 1983.
- Secrets from the Center of the World, University of Arizona Press, 1989
- In Mad Love and War, Wesleyan University Press, 1990
- Fishing, Ox Head Press, 1992.
- The Woman Who Fell From the Sky, W. W. Norton & Company, 1994
- A Map to the Next World, W. W. Norton & Company, 2000
- How We Became Human New and Selected Poems: 1975–2001, W. W.
- Norton & Company, 2004
- Conflict Resolution for Holy Beings: Poems, W. W. Norton &
- Company, 2015, (shortlisted for the 2016
- Griffin Poetry Prize
Who is Joy Harjo?
Harjo is an American poet, musician, and author.
How old is Harjo?
Harjo is 68 years old as of 2019.
How tall is Harjo?
Not Available.
Is Harjo married?
She is divorced.
How much is Harjo’s worth?
Not Available.
How much does Harjo make?
Not Available.
Where does Harjo live?
Not Available.
Is Harjo dead or alive?
Harjo is still alive and in good health.
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