Poet and scholar Aaron Poochigian '16 is the 2025 winner of the Anahid Literary Prize, an annual prize given to an emerging Armenian-American writer to celebrate Armenian culture and talent. The award, which was established in 1988, grants $5,000 for excellence in poetry, fiction, or drama, and is granted by Columbia University’s Armenian Center. Past recipients include playwright and actor Eric Bagosian, and Associate Professor of Professional Practice Leslie Ayvazian.
Poochigian is a poet, writer, and classicist. He completed his PhD in classics at the University of Minnesota. He has received an NEA grant for translation, and his translation work has been published by Penguin Classics and W.W. Norton. His published work for Norton include translations of Aeschylus, Apollonius, and Aratus. His published works include American Divine (2021), Mr. Either/Or (20217) a thriller in verse, and the poetry collections Manhattanite (2017) and The Cosmic Purr (2012). Poochigian’s latest book, Four Walks in Central: A Poetic Guide to the Park, came out in September 2025, is a poetic consideration of Central Park told in the context of four different walks and seasons. His latest translation of Marcus Aurelius Meditations came out in January 2026. In addition to his translations, Poochigian’s work has also been featured in Best American Poetry, The Paris Review, and POETRY.
Poochigian’s work has a particular interest in the examination and contrasting of different American terrains, from the infrastructure of New York City to the wide plains of Ohio.
