Nigerian writer, playwright, and poet Wole Soyinka (1934) was honored by universities, literary organizations, government agencies, and special interest groups. His honors include the 1986 Nobel Prize in Literature for his "wide cultural perspective and poetic overtones fashioning the drama of existence" and the Special Prize category of the Europe Theatre Prize in 2017 for his consistency "as a proponent of an ideal bridge between Europe and Africa in a deeply delicate period for the present and the future of our continent".
In 1986, Soyinka was confered the Commander of the Order of the Federal Republic (CFR), a national honour of Nigeria, by Ibrahim Babangida. President Muhammadu Buhari renamed a train station at Abeokuta after Soyinka. President Bola Tinubu renamed National Art Theatre in 2024 and the Arterial Road N20, which runs from the Northern Parkway to the Outer Northern Expressway in Abuja, after Soyinka.