List of Canadian poets

This is a list of Canadian poets. Years link to corresponding "[year] in poetry" articles.

A

 * Mark Abley (born 1955), poet, journalist, editor, and non-fiction writer.
 * Milton Acorn (1923–1986), poet, writer, and playwright
 * José Acquelin (born 1956)
 * Gil Adamson, novelist, poet, and short-story writer
 * Randell Adjei
 * Marie-Célie Agnant (born 1953), Haitian native living in Canada since 1970; novelist, poet and writer of children's books
 * Neil Aitken (born 1974), poet, editor, and translator
 * Kateri Akiwenzie-Damm (born 1965), Anishinaabe writer and poet from the Chippewas of Nawash First Nation, founder (in 1993) of Kegedonce Press, specializing in indigenous writers
 * Donald Alarie (born 1945), writer, poet, and teacher
 * Edna Alford, editor, author, and poet who co-founded the magazine Dandelion
 * Sandra Alland (born 1973), Scottish-Canadian writer, multimedia artist, bookseller, small press publisher, and activist
 * Donna Allard, editor and poet
 * Lillian Allen (born 1951), dub poet
 * Anne-Marie Alonzo (1951–2005), playwright, poet, novelist, critic, and publisher, born in Egypt and moved to Canada at the age of 12
 * George Amabile (born 1936)
 * Madhur Anand (born 1971), poet and scientist
 * Marguerite Andersen (1924–2022), German-born, primarily francophone writer, academic and editor
 * Patrick Anderson (1915–1979), English-born Canadian poet and academic
 * Rod Anderson (1935), poet, musician, and accountant
 * Michael Andre (born 1946), poet, critic, and editor living in the United States
 * Jeannette Armstrong (born 1948), Syilx Okanagan author, educator, artist, and activist
 * Tammy Armstrong
 * David Arnason (born 1940), author and poet
 * Joanne Arnott (born 1960), Métis poet, essayist, and activist writer
 * Margaret Atwood (born 1939), poet, novelist, literary critic, feminist, and activist
 * Charlotte Aubin
 * Martine Audet (born 1961)
 * Oana Avasilichioaei, poet and translator
 * Margaret Avison (1918–2007)

B

 * Ken Babstock (born 1970)
 * Elizabeth Bachinsky
 * Alfred Bailey (1905–1997), poet, anthropologist, ethno-historian, and academic administrator
 * Jacob Bailey (1731–1808), Church of England clergyman and poet born in the United States (colony of New Hampshire), immigrated to Nova Scotia, Canada in 1779
 * Marie Annharte Baker (born 1942) is an Anishnabe poet and author
 * Chris Banks (born 1970)
 * Kaushalya Bannerji, Indian-born poet
 * Frances Bannerman (1855–1944), painter and poet
 * Simina Banu
 * Joelle Barron
 * John Barton (born 1957)
 * Gary Barwin (born 1964), author, composer, children's writer, and poet
 * Jalal Barzanji (born 1953), Kurdish poet and writer living in Canada since 1998
 * Shaunt Basmajian (1950–1990), poet and author
 * Angèle Bassolé-Ouédraogo (born 1967)), Ivoirian born poet and journalist
 * Bill Bauer (1932–2010), American-born, living in Canada since 1965, husband of Nancy Bauer
 * Nancy Bauer (born 1934), American-born, living in Canada since 1965, wife of Bill Bauer
 * Doug Beardsley (born 1941), poet and academic
 * Nérée Beauchemin (1850–1931), francophone poet and physician
 * Derek Beaulieu (born 1973), poet, publisher, and anthologist.
 * Joseph-Isidore Bédard (1806–1833), poet, lawyer, and politician
 * Ven Begamudré (born 1956), Indian-born poet, short-story writer, novelist, and academic
 * Henry Beissel (born 1929), poet, author, writer, and editor
 * Billy-Ray Belcourt
 * Ken Belford (born 1946)
 * Lesley Belleau
 * Marlène Belley (born 1963),
 * John Bemrose, arts journalist, novelist, poet, and playwright
 * Gwen Benaway
 * Roxanna Bennett
 * Robbie Benoit (died 2007), poet and writer
 * Jovette Bernier (1900–1981), Quebec poet, novelist, and journalist
 * Jean-Philippe Bergeron (born 1978), francophone writer and poet
 * Craven Langstroth Betts (1853–1941), author and poet
 * Navtej Bharati, Indian-born poet and writer in Punjabi and English, publisher of Third Eye Press
 * Bertrand Bickersteth
 * Robert Billings (1949–1986), poet and editor
 * Earle Birney (1904–1995)
 * Bill Bissett (born 1939)
 * Cassandra Blanchard
 * Mark Blagrave (born 1956), writer, short-story writer, playwright, poet, and academic
 * Robin Blaser (1925–2009), author and poet
 * Laurie Block (born 1949), poet and educator
 * E. D. Blodgett (1935–2018), poet, literary critic, and translator
 * Ali Blythe, poet and editor
 * Selina Boan
 * Robert Boates (born 1954)
 * Christian Bök, (born Christian Book 1966), poet and author
 * Dennis E. Bolen, (born 1953), novelist, journalist and poet
 * Stephanie Bolster (born 1969), poet and academic
 * Shane Book
 * Roo Borson pen name of Ruth Elizabeth Borson (born 1952), American native living in Canada
 * Hédi Bouraoui (born 1932), Tunisian-born Canadian poet, novelist, and academic
 * Arthur Bourinot (1893–1969), poet and lawyer
 * George Bowering (born 1935), novelist, poet, historian, and biographer
 * Marilyn Bowering (1949), poet, novelist, and playwright
 * Tim Bowling (born 1964), poet and novelist
 * Alex Boyd (born 1969), poet, fiction writer, critic, essayist, and editor
 * Frances Boyle
 * D. M. Bradford
 * Kate Braid (born 1947), poet and teacher
 * Lawrence Ytzhak Braithwaite (1963–2008), novelist, spoken word artist, dub poet, essayist, digital drummer, and short-story writer
 * Shannon Bramer (born 1973), poet and teacher
 * Dionne Brand (born 1953), poet, novelist, and non-fiction writer born and raised in Trinidad and Tobago before moving to Canada
 * Di Brandt née "Diana Ruth Janzen" (born 1952), poet and literary critic
 * Jacques Brault (1933–2022), French Canadian poet and translator
 * Diana Brebner (1956–2001)
 * Brian Brett (born 1950), poet and novelist
 * Elizabeth Brewster (1922–2012), poet and academic
 * Robert Bringhurst (born 1946), poet, typographer, and author
 * Eve Brodlique (1867–1949), poet, author, journalist
 * David Bromige (1933–2009), Canadian poet living in the United States since 1962
 * Nicole Brossard (born 1943), francophone poet and novelist
 * Audrey Alexandra Brown (1904–1998)
 * Ronnie R. Brown (born 1946), United States-born living in Canada for most of her adult life
 * Colin Browne
 * Charles Tory Bruce (1906–1971), poet, journalist and fiction writer
 * Julie Bruck
 * Suzanne Buffam
 * April Bulmer (born 1963)
 * Murdoch Burnett (1953–2015), poet, performance artist, editor, and community activist
 * Mick Burrs (1940–2021)
 * Aaron Bushkowsky (born 1957)
 * Arthur de Bussières (1877–1913)

C

 * Charmaine Cadeau
 * Alison Calder (born 1969), poet and academic
 * Frank Oliver Call (1878–1956)
 * Barry Callaghan (born 1937), author, poet, and son of the author Morley Callaghan
 * Jason Camlot (born 1967), poet, scholar, and songwriter
 * Anne Cameron (born 1938), novelist, poet, screenwriter, and short-story writer
 * George Frederick Cameron (1854–1885), poet, lawyer, and journalist
 * Wilfred Campbell (1858–1918), poet and Anglican clergyman
 * Natalee Caple (born 1970), novelist and poet
 * Paul Cargnello (born 1979), Montreal poet, lyricist
 * Bliss Carman (1861–1929), poet and critic
 * Anne Carson (born 1950), poet, essayist, translator, and academic
 * Kate Cayley, poet, writer, and theatre director
 * Weyman Chan (born 1963), poet
 * Catherine Chandler (born 1950), poet, translator, and academic
 * William Chapman (1850–1917), poet, journalist, and bureaucrat
 * Jean Charbonneau (1875–1960), francophone poet who was the primary founder of the Montreal Literary School
 * Herménégilde Chiasson (born 1946), Acadian poet, playwright, journalist, academic, and the Lieutenant-Governor of New Brunswick
 * Robert Choquette (1905–1991), novelist, poet, and briefly (1968–1970) a diplomat
 * Lesley Choyce (born 1951), novelist, writer, children's book writer, poet, and academic who founded Pottersfield Press and hosts the television program "Choyce Words" and "Off the Page"; born in the United States and immigrated to Canada in 1979
 * Margaret Christakos (born 1962), poet and university writing teacher
 * Evie Christie (born 1979), poet
 * Jillian Christmas, poet
 * Chuan Sha, Chinese-born Canadian poet and author
 * Dave Clark, musician (Rheostatics) and poet
 * George Elliott Clarke (born 1960), poet and playwright.
 * Wayne Clifford (born 1944)
 * Fred Cogswell (1917–2004)
 * Leonard Cohen (1934–2016), singer-songwriter, musician, poet, and novelist
 * Matt Cohen, (1942–1999), writer and poet
 * Victor Coleman
 * Don Coles (1928–2017), poet, author, and academic
 * Stephen Collis, poet and academic
 * John Robert Colombo (born 1936), poet, anthologist, editor, essayist, and humorist
 * Daria Colonna
 * Anne Compton (born 1947), poet, critic, and anthologist
 * Wayde Compton (born 1972), poet, writer, turntable-based "sound poetry" performer, academic who co-founded Commodore Books, the first black-oriented press in Western Canada
 * Jan Conn (born 1952), Canadian-born geneticist and poet living in the United States
 * Karen Connelly (born 1969), writer and poet
 * Kevin Connolly (born 1962), poet, writer, and critic
 * Dennis Cooley (born 1944), poet and academic
 * Afua Cooper (born 1957), Jamaican-born historian and dub poet
 * Judith Copithorne (born 1939), concrete and visual poet
 * Paulo da Costa, Canadian-Portuguese author, editor, and translator
 * Sonia Cotten (born 1974), poet
 * Maya Cousineau Mollen
 * Dani Couture (born 1978), poet, essayist, critic, and journalist
 * Thomas Cowherd (1817–1907), tinsmith and poet
 * Isabella Valancy Crawford (1850–1887), poet, novelist, and short-story writer
 * Octave Crémazie (1827–1879), francophone poet who has been called "the father of French-Canadian poetry" for his patriotic verse
 * Lynn Crosbie (born 1963), poet and novelist
 * Lorna Crozier (born 1948), writes under the name Lorna Uher
 * Michael Crummey (born 1965), poet and writer
 * Julie Crysler, journalist and poet
 * Nancy Jo Cullen, poet and short story writer
 * Jen Currin, United States-born poet
 * Kayla Czaga (born 1989), poet

D

 * Cyril Dabydeen (born 1945), native Guyana poet and writer living in Canada
 * Kalli Dakos (born 1950), children's poet and teacher
 * Michel Dallaire (1957–2017), novelist and poet
 * Mary Dalton, poet and academic
 * Joseph A. Dandurand, Native American poet, playwright, and archaeologist
 * Jean-Paul Daoust (born 1946), poet
 * Beverley Daurio (born 1953)
 * Frank Davey (born 1940), poet and academic
 * Lynn Davies (born 1954), poet
 * Nicholas Flood Davin (1840–1901), lawyer, journalist, politician, and poet
 * Tanya Davis, spoken-word poet and musician
 * Tom Dawe (born 1940), writer, poet, children's book author, and artist
 * Adriana de Barros (born 1976), Portuguese native who moved to Canada at age 3; illustrator, web designer, and poet
 * Sadiqa de Meijer (born 1966)
 * James Deahl (born 1945), moved to Canada from the United States in 1970 and a citizen of both countries; poet, academic, and publisher of Unfinished Monument Press; founding member of the Canadian Poetry Association
 * Kris Demeanor, poet, musician and actor
 * Shawna Dempsey and Lorri Millan, performance art duo who have collaborated on performances, films, videos, publications, and public art projects since 1989
 * Barry Dempster (born 1952), poet and novelist
 * Joe Denham, poet and fiction writer
 * Adebe DeRango-Adem
 * Michelle Desbarats, poet
 * Anne-Marie Desmeules, poet
 * Christopher Dewdney (born 1951), poet, writer, artist, creative-writing teacher, and writer-in-residence at various universities
 * Ann Diamond (born 1951), an award-winning Montreal poet, novelist, and short-story writer
 * Pier Giorgio Di Cicco (1949–2019), Italian-born, Canadian poet and priest
 * Mary di Michele (born 1949), Italian-born, Canadian poet, author, and creative-writing teacher
 * Adam Dickinson, poet
 * Robert Dickson (1944–2007), poet, translator, and academic
 * Kildare Dobbs (1923–2013), Indian-born teacher, poet, editor, short-story writer, and travel writer who moved to Canada in 1950
 * Jeramy Dodds (born 1974), poet
 * Don Domanski (born 1950)
 * Magie Dominic (born 1944), poet and artist
 * Jeffery Donaldson, poet and critic
 * David Donnell (1939–2020), poet and writer
 * Candas Dorsey (born 1952), poet and science fiction novelist
 * Clive Doucet (born 1946), writer, poet, and politician
 * Gordon Downie (1964–2017), songwriter, poet, and musician
 * Orville Lloyd Douglas (born 1976), poet and writer
 * Stan Dragland (born 1942), novelist, poet and literary critic
 * William Henry Drummond (1854–1907), Irish-born Canadian poet
 * Louis Dudek (1918–2001), poet, literary critic and publisher
 * Marilyn Dumont (born 1955), poet and educator
 * Klara du Plessis, poet

E

 * Evelyn Eaton (1902–1983), novelist, short-story writer, poet, and academic
 * Vic Elias (1948–2006), American-born, living in Canada from 1979, poet and academic
 * David Elliott (1923–1999), poet and academic
 * Rebecca Elson (1960–1999), Canadian-American astronomer, academic writer, and poet
 * Crispin Elsted
 * Karen Enns
 * Reuben Epp (1920–2009) teacher, school administrator, writer and poet in Plautdietsch (Mennonite Low German)
 * Michael Estok (1939–1989)

F

 * Margaret Fairley (1885–1968), English-born Canadian writer, educator and political activist
 * Brian Fawcett (1944–2022), poet, novelist, nonfiction author and writer
 * Charles Fenerty (c. 1821–1892), poet, journalist, and inventor. Published two poems in book format in 1855 and 1866, and wrote over 32 poems (mostly published in local newspapers).
 * Ferron, born Debby Foisy (1952), folk singer, songwriter and poet
 * George Fetherling, wrote as "Doug Feathering" or "Douglas Fetherling" until 1999 when he began using his middle name (born 1949), American-born poet, novelist, journalist and essayist who moved to Canada at age 18 and became a Canadian citizen
 * Connie Fife
 * Robert Finch (1900–1995), poet and academic whose area of expertise was French poetry
 * Joan Finnigan (1925–2007), writer, poet, teacher and newspaper reporter
 * Jon Paul Fiorentino, poet, novelist, short-story writer, academic and editor of Matrix magazine
 * Judith Fitzgerald (born 1952), poet and journalist
 * Polly Fleck
 * Robert Ford (1915–1998), poet, translator and diplomat
 * Raymond Fraser (born 1941), novelist, poet, biographer, essayist and editor
 * Louis-Honoré Fréchette (1839–1908), French Canadian poet, politician, playwright and short-story writer
 * Pauline Fréchette (1889–1943), French Canadian poet, dramatist, journalist, and Catholic nun
 * Patrick Friesen (born 1946), poet and university-level creative writing teacher
 * Mark Frutkin (born 1948), American-born novelist and poet who moved to Canada in 1970 as a Vietnam War draft resister

G

 * Rhonda Ganz
 * Keith Garebian (born 1943) critic, biographer, and poet; born in Bombay, India, and immigrated to Canada in 1961
 * François-Xavier Garneau (1809–1866), French Canadian notary, poet, civil servant, and historian
 * Hector de Saint-Denys Garneau (1912–1943), first modernist French Canadian poet
 * Bill Gaston (born 1953), novelist, playwright, short-story writer, and poet
 * Antoine Gérin-Lajoie (1824–1882), French Canadian poet and novelist
 * Marty Gervais (born 1946), poet, photographer, professor, journalist, and publisher of Black Moss Press
 * Chantal Gibson
 * Elsa Gidlow
 * Angus Morrison Gidney (1803–1882), educator, poet, and journalist
 * Gerry Gilbert
 * Charles Ignace Adélard Gill (1871–1918), painter and poet
 * John Glassco (1909–1981), poet, memoirist, and novelist
 * Jacques Godbout (born 1933), novelist, essayist, children's writer, journalist, filmmaker, and poet
 * Gérald Godin (1938–1994), French Canadian poet and politician
 * Oliver Goldsmith (1794–1861)
 * Leona Gom (born 1946), novelist and poet
 * Katherine L. Gordon
 * Spencer Gordon, Toronto-based writer
 * Phyllis Gotlieb (1926–2009), science fiction novelist and poet
 * Nora Gould
 * Susan Goyette (born 1964), poet and novelist
 * Neile Graham (born 1958), poet and academic
 * Alain Grandbois (1900–1975), French Canadian poet
 * Hannah Green
 * Richard Greene
 * Leslie Greentree, poet, short-story writer, and freelance writer
 * Ralph Gustafson (1909–1995), poet and academic
 * Genni Gunn (born 1949), novelist, poet, and translator
 * Kristjana Gunnars, Icelandic-Canadian poet and novelist
 * Stephen Guppy

H

 * Paul Haines (1933–2003), poet and jazz lyricist, born in the United States and later a Canadian resident
 * Helen Hajnoczky (born 1985), visual poet
 * Phil Hall (born 1953), poet, academic, and publisher of broadsides and chapbooks under the Flat Singles Press imprint since 1976
 * Jane Eaton Hamilton (born 1954), short-story writer, poet, and photographer
 * Jennica Harper
 * Claire Harris (1937–2018)
 * Michael Harris
 * Richard Harrison
 * Paul Hartal (born 1936), painter and poet, born in Hungary
 * Jill Hartman (born 1974 in poetry), poet and editor
 * Diana Hartog
 * Elisabeth Harvor (née Deichman) (born 1936), novelist and poet
 * Robert Hayman (1575–1629), poet, colonist and Proprietary Governor of Bristol's Hope colony in Newfoundland
 * Charles Heavysege (1816–1876)
 * Anne Hébert (1916–2000), French-Canadian novelist and poet
 * Wilfrid Heighington (1897–1945), soldier, writer, poet, lawyer, and politician
 * Steven Heighton (1961–2022), novelist and poet
 * David Helwig (1938–2018), poet, novelist, and essayist; father of Maggie Helwig
 * Maggie Helwig (born 1961), poet, novelist, peace and human rights activist; daughter of David Helwig
 * Anna Minerva Henderson (1887–1987), poet and civil servant
 * Brian Henderson (born 1948), poet, academic, and editor
 * Jason Heroux (born 1971), third poet laureate of Kingston, Ontario, born in Montreal
 * Benjamin Hertwig
 * Robert Hilles (born 1951), poet and novelist
 * Robert Hogg (1942–2022)
 * Susan Holbrook
 * Clive Holden
 * Norah M. Holland (1876–1925), poet, playwright, journalist, editor
 * Nancy Holmes
 * Cornelia Hoogland (born 1952), poet and academic
 * Hilda Mary Hooke (1898–1978), poet and playwright
 * Leah Horlick
 * Sean Horlor (born 1981) poet, former speechwriter, freelance writing consultant
 * Karen Houle
 * Liz Howard
 * Harry Howith (1934–2014)
 * Ray Hsu, poet and academic
 * David Huebert
 * Annie Campbell Huestis, poet (1878-1960)
 * Helen Humphreys (born 1961), poet and novelist
 * Al Hunter poet, author, tribal leader, and activist
 * Aislinn Hunter (born 1969), poet and author
 * Bruce Hunter (born 1952), teacher, poet, fiction writer, and lifewriter
 * Catherine Hunter (born 1957), poet, novelist, editor, academic, and critic
 * Chris Hutchinson (born 1972)
 * Douglas Smith Huyghue (1816–1891), Canadian and Australian poet, fiction writer, essayist, and artist
 * Maureen Hynes (born 1948), poet

I

 * Susan Ioannou (born 1944)
 * Doyali Islam
 * Frances Itani (born 1942), novelist, short-story writer, poet, and essayist

J

 * Suzanne Jacob (born 1943), novelist, poet, playwright, singer-songwriter, and critic
 * Edna Jaques (1891-1978), poet
 * Jemeni (born 1976), actress, writer and activist
 * E. A. Jenns (1860-1930), poet
 * Paulette Jiles (born 1943), American-born poet and novelist who moved to Canada in 1969
 * Rita Joe (1932–2007), Mi'kmaq-Canadian poet and songwriter, called the "poet laureate of the Mi'kmaq people"
 * E. Pauline Johnson, also known as "Tekahionwake" (1861–1913)
 * Jim Johnstone
 * D. G. Jones (1929–2016), poet, translator, and educator
 * El Jones, poet and activist
 * Julie Joosten
 * Clifton Joseph
 * Eve Joseph (born 1953), poet and author

K

 * Surjeet Kalsey, poet, dramatist, short-story writer, and translator who writes in both Punjabi and English
 * Smaro Kamboureli, poet and academic
 * Donna Kane
 * Adeena Karasick, poet and academic
 * Rupi Kaur, poet and illustrator
 * Lionel Kearns, poet and teacher
 * Diane Keating
 * Kaie Kellough
 * M. T. Kelly (born 1946), novelist, poet, and playwright.
 * Penn Kemp, novelist, playwright, poet and sound poet
 * Leo Kennedy (1907–2000), modernist poet, published in the 1930s
 * Robert Kirkland Kernighan (1854–1926), poet, journalist, and farmer
 * Roy Kiyooka (1926–1994), photographer, poet, and artist
 * Barbara Klar
 * Johann Peter Klassen (1868–1947), Russian Mennonite poet and writer who immigrated to Canada in 1923 and wrote primarily in German
 * Sarah Klassen (born 1932), poet and fiction writer
 * A. M. Klein (1909–1972), poet, journalist, novelist, and short-story writer
 * Raymond Knister (1899–1932), novelist, short-story writer, poet, critic, and journalist
 * Joy Kogawa (born 1935), poet and novelist
 * Jules Arita Koostachin
 * Maka Kotto (born 1961), Cameroon-born francophone Canadian, provincial level politician, former Canadian House of Commons member who published a book of poetry in 2002
 * Shane Koyczan (born 1976), spoken word poet
 * Robert Kroetsch (1927–2011), novelist, poet, non-fiction writer, and academic
 * Aaron Kreuter
 * Janice Kulyk Keefer (born 1952), novelist, poet, and academic

L

 * Kama La Mackerel
 * Sonnet L'Abbé, poet and critic
 * Pierre Labrie (born 1972), French Canadian poet
 * Edward A. Lacey
 * Ben Ladouceur
 * Chloé LaDuchesse
 * Dany Laferrière (born 1953), Haitian-born francophone novelist, journalist, and poet who moved to Canada in 1976
 * Annie Lafleur
 * Catherine Lalonde (born 1974), French Canadian poet and journalist
 * Archibald Lampman (1861–1899)
 * Tim Lander (born 1938)
 * Patrick Lane (1939–2019)
 * M. Travis Lane (born 1934), American-born Canadian poet who moved to Canada in 1960
 * Rina Lasnier (1915–1997), French Canadian poet and playwright
 * Evelyn Lau (born 1971), poet and novelist
 * Edythe Morahan de Lauzon
 * Irving Layton (1912–2006)
 * Georgette LeBlanc
 * Gérald Leblanc (1947–2005), French Canadian poet, playwright, novelist, essayist, and writer
 * Félix Leclerc (1914–1988), songwriter, musician, poet, novelist, actor, radio announcer, radio scriptwriter, and writer
 * Dennis Lee (born 1939), poet, writer and children's fiction author
 * John B. Lee (born 1951), author, poet, and academic
 * Lily Alice Lefevre (1854–1938)
 * Sylvia Legris (born 1960)
 * John Lent (1948–2006), poet and novelist
 * Douglas LePan (1914–1998), diplomat, poet, novelist, and academic
 * Alex Leslie
 * Lilian Leveridge (1879–1953), poet, short story writer, and non-fiction writer
 * Katherine Leyton
 * Tess Liem
 * Tim Lilburn (born 1950), poet and essayist
 * Charles Lillard (born 1944–1997), poet and historian
 * Dorothy Livesay (1909–1996)
 * Billie Livingston (born 1965), novelist and poet
 * Douglas Lochhead (1922–2011), poet, librarian, and academic
 * Jennifer LoveGrove
 * Pat Lowther (1935–1975)
 * Laura Lush
 * Richard Lush (born 1934)
 * Michael Lynch

M

 * Rozena Maart (born 1962), poet, short-story writer, novelist, playwright, academic, and psychotherapist; South African living in Canada
 * Annick MacAskill
 * Kathy Mac
 * Karen Mac Cormack (born 1956), experimental poet born in Zambia, who holds dual British/Canadian citizenship, she has moved from Toronto to Buffalo, New York, with her husband, poet Steve McCaffery
 * Elizabeth Roberts MacDonald (1864–1922), poet, children's literature, short story writer and essayist
 * Hugh MacDonald (born 1945), poet, children's writer and editor
 * Wilson MacDonald (1880–1967)
 * Gwendolyn MacEwen (1941–1987), novelist and poet
 * Walter Scott MacFarlane (1896–1979), poet and soldier
 * Tom MacInnes (1867–1951), poet and writer
 * Andrea MacPherson, poet and novelist
 * Jay Macpherson (13 June 1931–21 March 2012), poet and academic (a woman)*
 * Keith Maillard (born 28 February 1942), author and poet
 * Charles Mair (1838/1840–1927), poet and political activist
 * Robert Majzels (born 1950), novelist, poet, playwright, and translator
 * Alice Major, contemporary poet
 * Kim Maltman (born 1951), poet and physicist (a man)
 * Donato Mancini
 * Eli Mandel (1922–1992), poet, essayist, and academic
 * Ahdri Zhina Mandiela (born 1953), Jamaican-born dub poet, theatre producer, and artistic director; Jamaican native living in Canada
 * David Manicom (born 1960), diplomat, poet, and novelist
 * Lee Maracle (born 1950), Native American poet and author
 * Blaine Marchand
 * Nicole Markotic, poet and novelist
 * Daphne Marlatt, née Buckle (born 1942)
 * Tom Marshall (1938–1993), Canadian poet and novelist
 * Émile Martel
 * Garth Martens
 * Camille Martin (born 1956), poet and collage artist
 * Sid Marty (born 1944), poet, author, and musician
 * Robin Mathews (born 1931), poet and professor, known for his political activism in support of Canadian independence from U.S. domination
 * Seymour Mayne (born 1944), poet and literary translator
 * Micheline Maylor (born 1970), poet and academic
 * Chandra Mayor (born 1973), poet and novelist
 * Robert McBride (1811/1812–1895), Irish-born Canadian poet
 * Steven McCabe, contemporary artist and poet
 * Steve McCaffery (born 1947), poet and academic born in England and moved to Toronto in 1968; husband of poet Karen MacCormack
 * Julia McCarthy
 * Susan McCaslin (born 1947), poet and academic
 * Alma Frances McCollum (1879–1906), poet and composer
 * Kathleen McCracken
 * John McCrae (1872–1918), poet, physician, author, artist, and soldier during World War I, and a surgeon during the battle of Ypres; best known for writing the famous war memorial poem In Flanders Fields.
 * Roy McDonald (1937–ca. 2018), poet and busker (street performer)
 * David McFadden (born 11 October 1940), poet, fiction writer, and travel writer
 * Robin McGrath
 * Wendy McGrath, poet and novelist
 * David McGimpsey, poet, humorist, and academic
 * Nadine McInnis (born 1956), poet, short-story writer and essayist
 * James McIntyre (1828–1906), called The Cheese Poet
 * Don McKay (born 1942) poet editor and educator
 * Barry McKinnon (born 1944)
 * Brendan McLeod (born 1979), poet novelist, member of The Fugitives.
 * Emily Julian McManus (1865–1918), poet, author, and educator
 * Susan McMaster (born 1950), poet literary editor and spoken word performer
 * Amber McMillan, poet and writer
 * Eugene McNamara (1930–2016), poet, author and teacher
 * Steve McOrmond (born 1957), poet and academic
 * Mary Melfi (born 1951), Italian-born poet novelist, and playwright who immigrated to Canada as a young child
 * Joshua Mensch
 * Iman Mersal (born 1966), Egyptian-born Egyptian/Canadian poet and professor of Arabic literature
 * Bruce Meyer (born 1957), poet and academic
 * Shayne Michael
 * Anne Michaels (born 1958), poet and novelist
 * Pauline Michel, novelist, poet, playwright, songwriter and screenwriter
 * Marianne Micros
 * Roy Miki (born 1942), poet and academic
 * Phebe Florence Miller (1889–1979), poet and diarist
 * Kenneth G. Mills (1923–2004)
 * Roswell George Mills
 * Gaston Miron (1928–1996), French Canadian poet writer and editor
 * Lucy Maud Montgomery (1874–1942), primarily an author, but also a poet from Prince Edward Island
 * Marion E. Moodie (1867–1958), nurse, botanist, and poet
 * Susanna Moodie (1803–1885), British-born Canadian author and poet
 * Jacob McArthur Mooney (born 1983)
 * Shani Mootoo
 * Pamela Mordecai (born 1942), Jamaican writer, teacher, scholar, and poet living in Canada since 1994
 * Pierre Morency (born 1942), French Canadian writer, poet, and playwright
 * Dwayne Morgan spoken word artist, motivational speaker, event organizer, and poet
 * Jeffrey Morgan, primarily a writer, but with poetry published in Rolling Stone and Bakka Magazine
 * Kim Morrissey (born 1955), poet and playwright
 * Colin Morton (born 1948)
 * A. F. Moritz (born 1947), poet and academic
 * Garry Thomas Morse
 * Daniel David Moses (born 1952), Native American Canadian poet and playwright
 * Erín Moure (born 1955)
 * Jane Munro (born 1943)
 * Sachiko Murakami
 * William Murdoch (1823–1887), Scottish-Canadian poet, writer and gasworks manager who immigrated to Canada in 1854
 * George Murray, poet and associate editor at Maisonneuve Magazine, contributing editor at several literary magazines
 * Susan Musgrave (born 1951), poet and children's writer

N

 * Akhtar Naraghi
 * André Narbonne
 * Roger Nash (born 1942), English-born philosopher, poet, and academic
 * Lyle Neff (born 1969), poet, journalist, essayist, and literary critic
 * Lorri Neilsen Glenn, poet, ethnographer, essayist, and academic
 * Émile Nelligan (1879–1941), francophone poet from Quebec
 * Holly Nelson (2005–2006), writer, poet, activist, journalist, leader of the Green Party of Manitoba
 * Pierre Nepveu (born 1946), French Canadian poet, novelist, and essayist
 * W. H. New (born 1938), poet, editor, and literary critic
 * bpNichol (1944–1988), born Barrie Phillip Nichol, who often went by his lower-case initials and last name, with no spaces, poet and writer
 * Cecily Nicholson
 * Emilia Nielsen
 * John Newlove (1938–2003)
 * Alden Nowlan (1933–1983), poet, novelist, playwright, and journalist

O

 * Patrick O'Connell (1944–2005)
 * Alexandra Oliver
 * Tolu Oloruntoba
 * Sheree-Lee Olson, novelist, poet, and journalist
 * Michael Ondaatje (born 1943), Sri Lankan novelist and poet with Canadian citizenship
 * Heather O'Neill, novelist, poet, short-story writer, screenwriter, and journalist
 * Gabriel Osson
 * Fernand Ouellette (born 1930)
 * Madeleine Ouellette-Michalska (born 1930), French-Canadian writer, novelist, essayist, and poet
 * Richard Outram (1930–2005), poet and writer; co-founder with his wife, Barbara Howard, of The Gauntlet Press
 * Catherine Owen, poet and musician

P

 * Susan Paddon
 * P. K. Page (1916–2010)
 * Corrado Paina (born 1954), Italian poet living in Canada since 1987, editorial director of the quarterly magazine ItalyCanada Trade
 * Arleen Paré
 * Fawn Parker
 * Lisa Pasold
 * John Pass (born 1947), English-born Canadian poet and academic who has lived in Canada since 1953; married to poet and novelist Theresa Kishkan
 * Philip Kevin Paul
 * Amy Parkinson (1855–1938), English-born Canadian poet
 * Neil Peart (1952–2020), musician, songwriter, producer, author, and drummer of the Canadian Rock band Rush
 * Soraya Peerbaye
 * W. T. Pfefferle, poet, writer, and academic
 * Anthony Phelps
 * M. NourbeSe Philip (born 1947), poet, novelist, playwright, essayist, and short-story writer
 * Ben Phillips (born 1947), poet, teacher, and publisher
 * Alison Pick, poet and novelist
 * Leah Lakshmi Piepzna-Samarasinha (born 1975), American-born poet, spoken-word poet, writer, educator, and social activist living in Canada
 * Jean-Guy Pilon (1930–2021), French Canadian poet
 * Sarah Pinder
 * George Pirie (1799–1870), newspaper publisher and poet
 * Alycia Pirmohamed
 * Al Pittman (1940–2001), poet and playwright
 * Michel Pleau
 * Emily Pohl-Weary, novelist, poet, and magazine editor
 * Craig Poile
 * Laurent Poliquin (born 1975), French Canadian poet and academic
 * Sandy Pool
 * Joël Pourbaix
 * B. W. Powe (born 1955), author, poet, and academic
 * Claire Pratt (1921–1995), artist, poet, and editor; daughter of writer and editor Viola Whitney and E. J. Pratt, a poet and academic
 * E. J. Pratt (1882–1964), poet and academic
 * Frank Prewett (1893–1962), poet and broadcaster, who spent most of his life in the United Kingdom; a war poet of World War I
 * Robert Priest (born 1951), poet and children's author
 * Stefan Psenak (born 1969), French Canadian poet, playwright, and novelist
 * Al Purdy (1918–2000), writer, editor, and poet

Q

 * Andy Quan (born 1969), author who moved to Australia
 * Marion Quednau
 * Joseph Quesnel (1746–1809), French Canadian composer, poet, and playwright
 * Sina Queyras, poet and academic

R

 * Kenneth Radu
 * Gurcharan Rampuri poet of Punjabi descent who writes in the Punjabi language
 * Theodore Harding Rand (1835–1900), educator and poet
 * Ian Iqbal Rashid (born 1971), Canadian/British Muslim poet, screenwriter, and filmmaker of Indian descent; has lived primarily in London
 * Angela Rawlings (a.k.a. a.rawlings)
 * James Reaney (1926–2008), poet, playwright, and literary critic
 * Michael Redhill (born 1966), American-born Canadian poet, playwright, and novelist
 * Beatrice Redpath (1886–1937), poet and short story writer
 * D. C. Reid (born 1952), poet, novelist, and short-story writer
 * Jamie Reid (1941–2015)
 * Shane Rhodes
 * Robin Richardson
 * Lisa Richter (born c. 1977), poet, winner of the 2020 (U.S.) National Jewish Book Award for poetry
 * Emily Riddle
 * Charles G.D. Roberts (1860–1943), poet and prose writer; called the "Father of Canadian Poetry" for his influence on other poets
 * Lisa Robertson (born 1961), poet, essayist, and writer
 * Matt Robinson (born 1974)
 * Shima Aisha Robinson aka Dwennimmen, Edmonton's Poet Laureate
 * Ajmer Rode, poet, playwright, and writer in Punjabi and English
 * Gordon Rodgers (born 1952), poet, novelist, and clinical psychologist
 * Carmen Rodríguez (born 1948), Chilean-Canadian author, poet, educator, political social activist, co-founder of Aquelarre Magazine; exiled from Chile after the 1973 coup; writes in both Spanish and English and translates her own work
 * Janet Rogers First Nations poet
 * Linda Rogers (born 1944), poet and children's writer
 * Joe Rosenblatt (1933–2019), Governor General's Award-winning experimentalist
 * Laisha Rosnau (born 1972), novelist and poet
 * Bruce Ross, poet, author, academic, and past president of the Haiku Society of America
 * Stuart Ross (born 1959), writer, poet, editor, and creative-writing instructor
 * W.W.E. Ross (born 1894), imagist poet of the 1920s and 1930s, has been called "Canada's first modern poet"
 * Annie Rothwell (1837–1927), writer of paeans to colonial forces during the North-West Rebellion and other imperial wars, she was known among contemporary critics mainly as a war poet.
 * Nancy-Gay Rotstein
 * Stephen Rowe (born 1980)
 * André Roy

S

 * Lake Sagaris (born 1956), journalist, poet, and translator living in Chile
 * Rodney Saint-Éloi
 * Denis St-Jules (1950-2024)
 * Trish Salah, academic, writer, and poet whose first volume of poetry appeared in 2002
 * Rebecca Salazar
 * Peter Sanger (born 1943), poet and prose writer, critic, editor, and academic born in England, immigrated to Canada in 1953
 * Charles Sangster (1822–1893)
 * Robyn Sarah (born 1949)
 * Félix-Antoine Savard (1896–1982), priest, academic, poet, novelist, and folklorist
 * Jacob Scheier, poet whose first collection of verses won the 2008 Governor General's Award for English poetry, editor, son of Libby Scheier, lives in New York City
 * Libby Scheier (1946–2000), United States-born poet and short-story writer who moved to Canada in 1975, mother of Jacob Scheier
 * Andreas Schroeder (born 1946), German-born poet, novelist, and nonfiction writer
 * Stephen Scobie (born 1943), poet, critic, and academic
 * Gregory Scofield (born 1966)
 * Duncan Campbell Scott (1862–1947), poet and writer
 * F. R. Scott, also known as Frank Scott (1899–1985), poet, intellectual and constitutional expert
 * Jordan Scott
 * Peter Dale Scott (born 1929), poet and academic
 * Olive Senior (born 1941), Jamaican poet and short-story writer living in Canada
 * Robert W. Service (1874–1958), poet and writer
 * Kathy Shaidle (born 1964), author, columnist, and poet
 * Francis Sherman (1871–1926)
 * Joseph Sherman (1945–2006), poet and visual arts editor
 * Carol Shields (1935–2003), American-born Canadian novelist, short-story writer, poet, playwright, and writer
 * Trish Shields, poet and novelist
 * Ann Shin
 * Sandy Shreve, poet, newspaper reporter, and office worker
 * Goran Simic (born 1952), Bosnian-born poet, playwright, and short-story writer living in Canada since 1995
 * Melanie Siebert
 * Bren Simmers
 * Anne Simpson (born 1956), poet and novelist
 * jaye simpson
 * Bardia Sinaee
 * Sue Sinclair
 * George Sipos
 * Sonja Skarstedt (born 1960), poet, short-story writer, playwright, painter, and illustrator who founded and edited the now-defunct literary magazine Zymergy (1987–1991), and founded Empyreal Press in 1990
 * Robin Skelton, sometimes wrote under the pseudonym "Georges Zuk", a purported French surrealist (born 1925–1997), British-born Canadian academic, writer, poet, translator, and anthologist who immigrated to Canada in 1963; a founder and editor of The Mahalat Review
 * Daniel Sloate (1931–2009), translator, poet, playwright, and academic
 * Carolyn Smart (born 1952), English-born poet, author and academic
 * Elizabeth Smart (1913–1986), poet and novelist whose book, By Grand Central Station I Sat Down and Wept, detailed her romance with English poet George Barker
 * A. J. M. Smith (1902–1980), poet and academic
 * Clara Kathleen Smith (1911–2004), poet and educator
 * Douglas Burnet Smith (born 1949)
 * John Smith (born 1927–2018), poet and academic
 * Michael V. Smith novelist, poet and filmmaker
 * Ron Smith (born 1943), poet, author, editor, playwright, and former academic; founder and co-publisher of Oolichan Books in 1984; influential in the founding of Theytus Books in 1971
 * Steven Ross Smith (born 1945), poet, arts journalist, Poet Laureate of Banff, previous Director Literary Arts, Banff Centre
 * Karen Solie (born 1966)
 * David Solway (born 1941), poet, educational theorist, travel writer, and literary critic
 * Madeline Sonik (born 1960), novelist, short-story writer, children's-book author, editor, and poet
 * Carolyn Marie Souaid (born 1959), poet and editor, living in Montreal, co-founder of Poetry Quebec magazine
 * Raymond Souster (1921–2012), Toronto poet
 * Esta Spalding (born 1966), American-born Canadian author, screenwriter, and poet
 * Heather Spears (1934–2021), poet, novelist, and artist living in Denmark since 1962
 * Birk Sproxton (1943–2007), poet and novelist
 * Harold Standish (1919–1972), poet and novelist
 * George Stanley, American-born poet and academic associated with the San Francisco Renaissance in his early years, moved to Canada in the 1970s; associated with New Star Books and the Capilano Review
 * Carmine Starnino, essayist, educator, and editor
 * Jason Stefanik
 * John Steffler (born 1947), poet and novelist
 * Ian Stephens (died 1996), journalist, musician, and poet associated with the spoken word movement
 * Ricardo Sternberg (born 1948), poet born in Brazil, educated in the United States
 * Richard Stevenson
 * Shannon Stewart
 * W. Gregory Stewart (born 1950), poet, science fiction author, short-story writer who works at a public utility and lives in Los Angeles, California
 * John Stiles, poet living in London, United Kingdom
 * Anne Stone, poet, writer, and performance artist
 * Betsy Struthers (born 1951), poet and novelist
 * Andrew Suknaski (1942–2012), Saskatchewan poet
 * Alan Sullivan (1868–1947), poet, short-story writer, railroad surveyor, and mining engineer
 * Rosemary Sullivan (born 1947), poet, biographer, academic, and anthologist
 * Moez Surani (born 1979), poet
 * John Sutherland (1919–1956), poet, literary critic, and magazine editor who founded and edited First Statement in 1942 and its successor publication, Northern Review in 1945
 * Robert Swanson (1905–1994)
 * Robert Sward (1933–2022), American and Canadian poet and novelist
 * George Swede (born 1940), Latvian-born Canadian children's writer and poet who writes Haiku in English
 * Todd Swift (born 1966), poet, editor, and academic living in the United Kingdom
 * Anne Szumigalski (1922–1999)

T

 * Proma Tagore
 * Bruce Taylor (born 1960)
 * Heather Taylor (born 1977), poet, playwright, and teacher living in England since 2002
 * Ruth Taylor (1961–2006), poet, editor, and academic
 * John Terpstra, poet and carpenter
 * Souvankham Thammavongsa, poet and short story writer
 * Sharon Thesen (born 1946), poet and academic
 * Serge Patrice Thibodeau (born 1959)
 * Kai Cheng Thom
 * Edward William Thomson (1849–1924), journalist, writer, and poet
 * John Thompson (1938–1976)
 * Russell Thornton, poet
 * Matthew Tierney (born 1970)
 * Jose Tlatelpas (born 1953), Mexican native and Canadian resident; Native cultures poet, publisher, and political activist
 * Mohamud Siad Togane (born 1943), Somali native and Canadian resident; poet, academic, and political activist
 * Lola Lemire Tostevin (born 1937), poet, novelist, and writer
 * Michaël Trahan (born 1984), poet
 * Kim Trainor, Vancouver poet
 * Rhea Tregebov (born 1953), poet and children's writer
 * Raymond D. Tremblay, poet, writer, social services agency official
 * Roland Michel Tremblay (born 1972), French-Canadian author, poet, scriptwriter, development producer, and science-fiction consultant who moved to London, England in 1995
 * Tony Tremblay (born 1968), French-Canadian poet, writer, spoken word artist, journalist, and radio personality
 * Peter Trower (1930–2017), poet and novelist
 * Mark Truscott (born 1970), born in the United States
 * Élise Turcotte (born 26 June 1957), French-Canadian writer and poet
 * Arielle Twist
 * John Tyndall
 * Daniel Scott Tysdal (born 1978)

U

 * Marie Uguay (1955–1981), French-Canadian poet
 * Priscila Uppal (born 1974), poet and novelist
 * David UU (David W. Harris) (1948–1994), visual poet

V

 * Léonise Valois (1868–1936), first French Canadian woman to publish a collection of poetry
 * Peter van Toorn (born 1944)
 * R. M. Vaughan (1965–2020), poet, novelist, and playwright
 * Paul Vermeersch (born 1973)
 * Katherena Vermette
 * Gilles Vigneault (born 1928), Quebec poet, publisher, and singer-songwriter; Quebec nationalist and sovereigntist
 * Pamelia Sarah Vining (1826–1897)
 * Garth Von Buchholz (also G.A. Buchholz), British Columbia poet, dark fiction author, playwright, journalist, and arts critic
 * Prvoslav Vujčić (born 1960)

W

 * Miriam Waddington (née Dworkin 1917–2004), poet, short-story writer, and translator
 * Michael Wade (1944–2004)
 * Fred Wah (born 1939), poet, novelist, and scholar
 * Bronwen Wallace (1945–1989), poet and short-story writer
 * Tom Walmsley (born 1948), playwright, novelist, poet, and screenwriter
 * Agnes Walsh (born 1950), actor, poet, playwright, and storyteller
 * David Waltner-Toews (born 1948), epidemiologist, essayist, poet, fiction writer, veterinarian, and a specialist in the epidemiology of food and waterborne diseases, zoonoses, and ecosystem health
 * Terry Watada author, writer, and poet
 * Alison Watt (born 1957), writer, poet, and painter
 * Tom Wayman (born 1945), poet and academic
 * Phyllis Webb (1927–2021), poet and radio broadcaster
 * John Weier (born 1949)
 * Matthew James Weigel
 * Robert Stanley Weir (1856–1926), judge and poet most famous for writing the English lyrics to O Canada, the national anthem of Canada
 * Zachariah Wells (born 1976), poet, critic, essayist, and editor
 * Darren Wershler-Henry (born 1966), experimental poet, non-fiction writer, and cultural critic
 * David Wevill (born 1935)
 * Dawud Wharnsby (born 1972), singer-songwriter, poet, performer, educator, and television personality
 * Michael Whelan (born 1858–1937) teacher, bookkeeper, and poet
 * Joshua Whitehead
 * Bruce Whiteman (born 1952), poet, writer, scholar, and essayist
 * Isabella Whiteford (1835–1905), poet who also write under the name Caed Mille Failtha
 * Zoe Whittall (born 1976), poet and novelist
 * Anne Wilkinson (1910–1961), poet, writer, and essayist
 * Alan R. Wilson
 * Anne Elizabeth Wilson (1901–1946) poet, writer, editor
 * Sheri-D Wilson, poet and playwright
 * Rob Winger, poet and academic
 * Theresa Wolfwood, political activist and poet
 * George Woodcock (1912–1995), poet, essayist, critic, biographer, and historian; the founder (in 1959) of the journal Canadian Literature
 * Lance Woolaver (born 1948), author, poet, playwright, and director

Y

 * Isa Hasan al-Yasiri (1942), Iraqi-Canadian poet
 * J. Michael Yates (1938–2019), poet and dramatist
 * Leo Yerxa
 * Jean Yoon (born 1962), actor, poet, and playwright
 * D'bi Young, born in Jamaica, moved to Canada in 1993; dub poet, actor, and playwright
 * Ian Young
 * Josée Yvon

Z

 * Robert Zend (1929–1985), Hungarian-Canadian poet, fiction writer, and multi-media artist
 * David Zieroth
 * Rachel Zolf, poet and editor
 * Daniel Zomparelli
 * Carolyn Zonailo (born 1947), poet and publisher
 * Jan Zwicky (born 1955), philosopher, poet, essayist, and violinist