Free Verse · Life

The Negro Speaks of Rivers

by Langston Hughes · 1921

I've known rivers:

I've known rivers ancient as the world and older than the flow of human blood in human veins.

My soul has grown deep like the rivers.

I bathed in the Euphrates when dawns were young.

I built my hut near the Congo and it lulled me to sleep.

I looked upon the Nile and raised the pyramids above it.

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“The Negro Speaks of Rivers” by Langston Hughes — quilloak.com/poems/the-negro-speaks-of-rivers

Quick facts

Poem: The Negro Speaks of Rivers
Poet: Langston Hughes
Published: 1921
Length: 6 lines
Form: Free Verse
Themes: Life, Strength, Inspirational

Craft notes

How this poem works

Measured from the text on this page, not copied from a summary. Counts are approximate: syllables and rhymes come from the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary, which models General American English, so dialect, older pronunciation, and performance can all change what you hear.

Shape: 6 lines · 3 stanzas of 1–3 lines
End rhyme: No regular perfect end rhyme. The poem may still be using slant rhyme, assonance, or internal echo, which this check does not score.

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Text, source & rights

A traceable edition

Full-text display is based on the cited edition and a United States term-expiry review.

Author record: Langston Hughes1902–1967
Source record: WikisourceThe Negro Speaks of Rivers by langston-hughes, Wikisource transcription
Display decision: Full text · United States · reviewed 2026-07-18
Publication record: The Crisis, 1921
Text fingerprint: SHA-256 c04ee9a592457a97…
Editorial handling: Whitespace and stanza breaks normalized for web display; no material wording change recorded.

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Free Verse Life Strength Inspirational

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