Harlem Renaissance

American  

noun

1. a renewal and flourishing of Black literary and musical culture during the years after World War I in the Harlem section of New York City.

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Harlem Renaissance Cultural  

1. An African-American cultural movement of the 1920s and 1930s, centered in Harlem, that celebrated black traditions, the black voice, and black ways of life. Arna Bontemps, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, James Weldon Johnson, Jean Toomer, and Dorothy West were some of the writers associated with the movement.

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Example Sentences

What it says about America: The Harlem Renaissance wasn’t niche; it was American popular culture.

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 1, 2026

The Harlem Renaissance produced stars like Aaron Douglas, shown here not in his famous murals addressing freedom, but in small, angular block prints illustrating Eugene O’Neill’s play “The Emperor Jones,” about a black murderer.

From The Wall Street Journal • Jan. 17, 2026

I am reminded of the Harlem Renaissance era and the poetry that embodied our humanity and our strength.

From Salon • Jan. 21, 2025

Now, the branch would be home to a trove of rare items, from some of the earliest books by and about Black people to then-new works of the brewing Harlem Renaissance.

From New York Times • Jun. 19, 2024

It’s the Harlem Renaissance stuff that’s got us both going.

From "Bronx Masquerade" by Nikki Grimes