Haiku can be traced back to the 17th Century in Japan. There is where it evolved from a style of poetry called renga and the longer form known as tanka. The name haiku was given its current name in the 19th century by a well-known Japanese writer, Masaoka Shiki.
There have been many great known masters of haiku and perhaps the most famous one was Matsuo Basho’s frog poem.
The old pond
A frog leaps in.
Sound of the water.
The most common format of this style of writing is the 5/7/5 syllable count rule.
In the book Haiku Moment: An Anthology of Contemporary North American Haiku, Bruce Ross states:
“Traditional Japanese poetry is based on combinations of lines of five and seven, a syllable-like pattern unit of a vowel or a consonant and vowel. Haiku uses a pattern of five-seven-five, originally arranged in vertical columns. A haiku in Japanese is extremely short so that it is recited in one breath.“
This style of writing can certainly give the reader a different perspective of a large world.
It teaches patience and respect for the natural world.
Masters of haiku to read:
Matsuo Basho
Yosa Buson
Kobayasshi Issa
Masaoka Shiki