This post is part of the Poetic Forms series.
The haiku is a well-known Japanese form of poetry. Haiku differ slightly between their origin in Japan and the Western world. While in Japan they are commonly written straight across in one line, in the West (and particularly when written in English,) a haiku commonly consists of three lines; the first of which is comprised of five syllables, the second of seven syllables, and the last of five syllables. This creates a poem with seventeen syllables in total. A haiku often does not rhyme, and most commonly focuses on themes of nature and reflection.
The haiku was first seen in the 13th century as the opening stanza of a renga, a much longer oral poem. In the 16th century, during the Edo period in Japan (1603-1867), the haiku began to take on a life of its own, separating from the renga and instead morphing into a more relaxed form called a haikai, which was popularized by reformist poets such as Matsuo Bashō, Yosa Buson, and Kobayashi Issa. Later, during the Meiji Period (1868–1912) the haikai became the hokku, which eventually became the haiku that we know today.
It was in the 19th century that Western poets began to find an interest in the art form, and it became popularized through Ezra Pound and poets of the Beat movement. Today there is still debate between what are viewed as the authentic Japanese haiku and their western siblings, such as the lack of consensus between the 17 syllables of the western haiku and the 17 “on” in Japanese haiku. An “on” refers to a unit of sound, which does not always coincide with the English use of a syllable, for example.
Regardless of these technicalities and the differences we see across the form, most haiku focus on nature or small reflections on everyday moments. Mentions of seasons, such as specific elements of nature to dictate the time of year in a piece, are still common to the form. While these are the general themes and guidelines of the traditional haiku, the form has seen many iterations. Despite that, it has remained concise, creating a thought-provoking challenge for writers. The haiku has kept poets engaged for many generations and likely will for many more to come.
Notable Examples
[The cry of the cicada] by Matsuo Bashō
The light of a candle by Yosa Buson
