poet laureate

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

• noun A poet appointed for life by a British monarch as a member of the royal household and expected to write poems celebrating occasions of national importance and honoring the royal family.
• noun A poet appointed to a similar honorary position or honored for artistic excellence.
• noun A poet acclaimed as the most excellent or most representative of a locality or group.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

• noun A poet officially appointed by a government, often expected to compose poems for state occasions and other government events
• noun obsolete One who received an honorable degree in grammar, including poetry and rhetoric, at the English universities; -- so called as being presented with a wreath of laurel
• noun UK Formerly, an officer of the king's household, whose business was to compose an ode annually for the king's birthday, and other suitable occasions; now, a poet officially distinguished by such honorary title, the office being a sinecure. It is said this title was first given in the time of Edward IV

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

• noun the poet officially appointed to the royal household in Great Britain
• noun a poet who is unofficially regarded as holding an honorary position in a particular group or region