Fredy Chicangana is an indigenous poet who writes in both Spanish and Quechua. His indigenous name, Wiñay Mallki, means “rooted in time.” A member of the Yanakuna Mitmak Nation in Sur-Oriente del Cauca, Colombia, he received the National University of Colombia “Humanity & the Word” Prize in 1993.
In 2008, he received the Nosside de Poesía Global Multilingüe Prize in Italy. His poems have been published in various magazines and journals in Colombia and abroad. His poetry collections include Kentipay Llattantutamanta/El colibrí de la noche desnuda (2008) and Samay Pisccok pponccopi muschcoypa/Espiritu de pájaro en pozos del ensueño (2010). Chicangana is involved in several initiatives to preserve and promote Yanakuna identity and preserve spaces sacred to the Yanakuna.
