Low temperature near-field scanning optical microscopy is used for spectroscopic studies of single, nanometer dimension, cleaved edge overgrown quantum wires. A direct experimental comparison between a two dimensional system and a single genuinely one dimensional quantum wire system, inaccessible to conventional far field optical spectroscopy, is enabled by the enhanced spatial resolution. We show that the photoluminescence of a single quantum wire is easily distinguished from that of the surrounding quantum well. Emission from localized centers is shown to dominate the photoluminescence from both wires and wells at low temperatures. A factor of 3 absorption enhancement for these wires compared to the wells is concluded from the photoluminescence excitation data.