Haiku has only one traditional Japanese form, but in the English-speaking world, there are other types like love, refrigerator, and chain haiku. English haiku has 17 syllables, while tanka has a 5-7-5-7-7 syllabic pattern. Kigo and kireji are necessary in traditional haiku, but fewer English haiku contain them. Haibun is a mixture of haiku poetry and prose, while refrigerator haiku is a poem written on a refrigerator magnet. Haiku chain is a series of connected poems.
Strictly speaking, there is only one type of haiku. This is the traditional Japanese form of the poem. In the West, especially in the English-speaking world, there are other types. There are also versions of love, refrigerator, and chain haiku in these areas.
An English haiku contains 17 syllables and is divided into three lines with a 5-7-5 syllable pattern. In English, the term haiku has also come to mean all Japanese poetic forms. Other related poetic forms include the renga, choka and tanka. Tankas are the simplest and most common form.
A tanka consists of a 5-7-5-7-7 syllabic pattern and can cover any topic. Choka are similar, but the alternating lines of five and seven syllables can be carried on as long as the poet wishes before ending up with two lines of seven. The renga is a collaborative poem that combines a large number of Japanese-style verses.
The traditional form must contain a seasonal word known as kigo and must also contain a juxtaposition known as kireji. For example, Basho’s poem about a frog: “An old pond / A frog jumps / Sound of water”. The pond is the kigo and the kireji or cut appears between the jumping frog and the sound of the water.
Fewer English haiku contain kigo and kireji. These are often more like a Japanese poem known as senryu, which also has a 5-7-5 formation. Senryu, in Japanese they are not haiku.
Haibun is a mixture of haiku poetry and prose. The piece can be on any subject, but usually includes many references to nature and emotion. There are no rules about how long it should be and how many poems are included. There are also no rules about how poems and prose are mixed and arranged.
A refrigerator haiku is a poem written on a refrigerator magnet. Such poems can be on any topic. They can also refer to poems written using magnetic words. It is also a generic term for a funny haiku like: “Haiku are easy, but sometimes they don’t make sense, refrigerator”.
A haiku chain is a series of connected poems. These are found on many writing website forums and are more of a source of entertainment than a serious art form. The last line of the first poem becomes the first line of the next poem and so on.
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