Tanka

Tanka is a traditional form of Japanese poetry. It consists of five lines with a 5-7-5-7-7 morae pattern, totaling 31 morae. As the principal short form of waka, tanka developed in the Heian period and became the standard vehicle for personal expression in courtly literature. The name means “short poem” to distinguish it from longer waka forms such as chōka.

Form and technique: A typical tanka presents an image or scene in lines 1–3 and offers reflection or a shift in mood in lines 4–5. Classical tanka often includes a seasonal word (kigo) and, in some examples, a cutting word (kireji) to create a pause or turn. The style favors concise imagery and emotional contrast, relying on suggestion and juxtaposition rather than explicit statement.

Historical context and legacy: The Kokin Wakashū, completed around 920, helped establish tanka’s conventions and popularized its use in aristocratic circles. Heian-period poets such as Izumi Shikibu, Ono no Komachi, and Akazome Emon contributed many enduring examples. Over the centuries, the form evolved within medieval and later Japanese poetry, influencing related genres and remaining a staple of the waka tradition. In modern times, tanka is still widely practiced in Japan and abroad. It appears in magazines, anthologies, and educational settings, with poets writing both traditional tankas that adhere to the 5-7-5-7-7 pattern and contemporary variants that experiment with form and theme. Translations render the sequence as a five-line poem, though exact mora counts are often approximated.