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{{Short description|Genre of classical Japanese poetry}}
{{About|modern Japanese poetry|}}
{{distinguish|Tankan (Japan)}}
{{More citations needed|date=September 2022}}
[[File:Hyakuninisshu 001.jpg|thumb|A poetry card from the card game version of the [[Ogura Hyakunin Isshu]], a compilation of tanka]]

{{Italic title|reason=[[:Category:Japanese words and phrases]]}}

{{nihongo|'''''Tanka'''''|短歌||"short poem"}} is a [[genre]] of classical [[Japanese poetry]] and one of the major genres of [[Japanese literature]].<ref>Ueda, Makoto.  ''Modern Japanese Tanka''. NY: Columbia University Press, 1996. p1. {{ISBN|978-0-231-10433-3}}</ref><ref name=":0">{{Cite book |title=The little treasury of one hundred people, one poem each |date=1982 |publisher=Princeton University Press |isbn=978-0-691-06514-4 |editor-last=Fujiwara |editor-first=Sadaie |series=The Lockert library of poetry in translation |location=Princeton, N.J |language=en, ja |editor-last2=Galt |editor-first2=Thomas Franklin}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book |last1=Turco |first1=Lewis |title=The new book of forms: a handbook of poetics |last2=Turco |first2=Lewis |date=1986 |publisher=University Press of New England |isbn=978-0-87451-380-6 |location=Hanover}}</ref>

==Etymology==
Originally, in the time of the influential poetry anthology {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Man'yōshū]]}} (latter half of the eighth century AD), the term ''tanka'' was used to distinguish "short poems" from the longer {{nihongo|''chōka''|長歌||"long poems"}}.<ref name=":1" /> In the ninth and tenth centuries, however, notably with the compilation of the ''[[Kokinshū]]'', the short poem became the dominant form of poetry in Japan, and the originally general word {{nihongo|[[waka (poetry)|''waka'']]|和歌||"Japanese poem"}} became the standard name for this form.<ref>Keene, Donald. ''A History of Japanese Literature: Volume 1''. NY: Columbia University Press, 1999. p98, 164. {{ISBN|978-0-231-11441-7}}</ref> Japanese poet and critic [[Masaoka Shiki]] revived the term ''tanka'' in the early twentieth century for his statement that ''waka should be renewed and modernized''.<ref>{{Cite book |title=Masaoka Shiki : his life and works |last=Beichman |first=Janine |date=2002 |publisher=Cheng & Tsui Co |isbn=0887273645 |edition=1st Cheng & Tsui rev. |location=Boston |oclc=49495177 |url-access=registration |url=https://archive.org/details/masaokashikihisl0000beic }}</ref> ''[[Haiku]]'' is also a term of his invention, used for his revision of standalone [[Hokku]], with the same idea.

==Form==
[[File:Last tanka poems by Miyazawa Kenji.jpg|thumb|Last tanka poems by Miyazawa Kenji wrote in September of 1933 before his death.

It reads: <poem>Within these ten square miles: is this in Hinuki alone?
The rice ripe and for three festival days
                                the whole sky clear

Because of an illness, crumbling,
                                        this life—
if I could give it for the [[dharma]]
                            how glad I would be
</poem>
]]
Tanka consist of five units (often treated as separate lines when romanized or translated) usually with the following pattern of ''[[On (Japanese prosody)|on]]'' (often treated as, roughly, the number of syllables per unit or line):
:5-7-5-7-7.<ref>Carter 1991, ''Translator's Note'', p.xiii</ref>

The 5-7-5 is called the {{nihongo|''kami-no-ku''|上の句||"upper phrase"}}, and the 7-7 is called the {{nihongo|''shimo-no-ku''|下の句||"lower phrase"}}. Sometimes the distinction between [[Waka (poetry)|Waka]] and Tanka are drawn on where the division is placed, either after the first [[couplet]] or after the first [[tercet]], but sources disagree.<ref name=":1" /><ref name=":0" /> Even in early classical compilations of these poems, such as the ''[[Ogura Hyakunin Isshu]]'', the form is often broken to suit the poet's preferences.<ref name=":0" />

==History==

===Modern===
During the Kojiki and Nihonshoki periods the tanka retained a well defined form, but the history of the mutations of the tanka itself forms an important chapter in [[haiku]] history,<ref>Yasuda, Kenneth ''The Japanese Haiku, the essential nature, history and possibilities in English'', Charles Tuttle Co., 1957. {{ISBN|0804810966}}</ref>
until the modern revival of tanka began with several poets who began to publish literary magazines, gathering their friends and disciples as contributors.

[[Yosano Tekkan]] and the poets that were associated with his ''[[Myōjō]]'' magazine were one example, but that magazine was fairly short-lived (Feb. 1900{{snd}} Nov. 1908). A young high school student, Otori You (later known as [[Akiko Yosano]]), and [[Ishikawa Takuboku]] contributed to ''Myōjō''. In 1980 the ''New York Times'' published a representative work:
{{verse transliteration-translation|lang=ja
|東海の
小島の磯の
白砂に
われ泣きぬれて
蟹とたわむる
|Tōkai no
kojima no iso no
shirasuna ni
ware naki nurete
kani to tawamuru
|In the Eastern Sea,
Of the beach of a small island,
On the white sand.
I, my face streaked with tears,
Am playing with a crab<ref name="stokes1980">Stokes, Henry Scott. [https://www.nytimes.com/1980/01/20/archives/in-japan-almost-everyone-seems-well-versed-once-infused-with.html?sq=Donald+Keene&scp=45&st=p  "In Japan, Almost Everyone Seems Well Versed; Once 'Infused With Melancholy',"] ''New York Times.'' January 20, 1980.</ref>
}}

[[Masaoka Shiki]]'s (1867–1902) poems and writing (as well as the work of his friends and disciples) have had a more lasting influence. The magazine ''[[Hototogisu (magazine)|Hototogisu]]'', which he founded, still publishes.

In the [[Meiji period]] (1868–1912), Shiki claimed the situation with waka should be rectified, and waka should be modernized in the same way as other things in the country. He praised the style of {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Man'yōshū]]}} as manly, as opposed to the style of ''[[Kokin Wakashū]]'', the model for waka for a thousand years, which he denigrated and called feminine.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Sfetcu |first=Nicolae |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2EmNAwAAQBAJ&dq=shiki+claimed+the+situation+with+waka+should+be+rectified%2C+and+waka+should+be+modernized&pg=PA178 |title=Poetry Kaleidoscope |date=2014-05-12 |publisher=Nicolae Sfetcu |language=en}}</ref> He praised [[Minamoto no Sanetomo]], the third ''[[shōgun]]'' of the [[Kamakura shogunate]], who was a disciple of [[Fujiwara no Teika]] and composed waka in a style much like that in the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Man'yōshū]]}}.

[[File:Ceremony of the Utakai Hajime around 1950.jpg|thumb|Ceremony of the Utakai Hajime, about 1950]]
Following Shiki's death, in the [[Taishō period]] (1912–26), [[Mokichi Saitō]] and his friends began publishing a magazine, ''[[Araragi (magazine)|Araragi]]'', which praised the {{Lang|ja-latn|[[Man'yōshū]]}}.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mulhern |first1=Chieko Imrie |title=Japanese Women Writers: A Bio-critical Sourcebook |date=1994 |publisher=Greenwood Press |isbn=9780313254864 |page=128 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q9eFckEQAMkC}}</ref> Using their magazine they spread their influence throughout the country. Their modernization aside, in the court the old traditions still prevailed. The court continues to hold many ''utakai'' (waka reading parties) both officially and privately.{{Citation needed|date=September 2012}} The utakai that the Emperor holds on the first of the year is called ''[[Utakai Hajime]]'' and it is an important event for waka poets; the Emperor himself releases a single tanka for the public's perusal.

After [[World War II]], waka began to be considered out-of-date, but since the late 1980s it has revived under the example of contemporary poets, such as [[Machi Tawara]]. With her 1987 bestselling collection ''Salad Anniversary'', the poet has been credited with revitalising the tanka for modern audiences.

Today there are many circles of tanka poets. Many newspapers have a weekly tanka column, and there are many professional and amateur tanka poets; [[Makoto Ōoka]]'s poetry column was published seven days a week for more than 20 years on the front page of ''[[Asahi Shimbun]].''<ref>[[William H. Honan|Honan, William H.]] [https://www.nytimes.com/2000/03/06/books/why-millions-in-japan-read-all-about-poetry.html?scp=26&sq=Donald+Keene&st=nyt  "Why Millions in Japan Read All About Poetry,"] ''New York Times.'' March 6, 2000.</ref> As a parting gesture, outgoing PM [[Jun'ichirō Koizumi]] wrote a tanka to thank his supporters.

The [[Japanese imperial family]] continue to write tanka for the [[Japanese New Year|New Year]].<ref>{{cite web | url=http://www.kunaicho.go.jp/e-culture/utakai-h24.html | title=Waka Poems by Their Majesties and Their Imperial Highnesses the Crown Prince and Princess, 2012 - the Imperial Household Agency }}</ref>

==Poetic culture==
In ancient times, it was a custom between two writers to exchange waka instead of letters in prose. In particular, it was common between lovers. Reflecting this custom, five of the twenty volumes of the Kokin Wakashū gathered waka for love. In the Heian period the lovers would exchange waka in the morning when lovers met at the woman's home. The exchanged waka were called ''Kinuginu'' (後朝), because it was thought the man wanted to stay with his lover and when the sun rose he had almost no time to put on his clothes on which he had lain instead of a mattress (it being the custom in those days). Works of this period, ''[[The Pillow Book]]'' and ''[[The Tale of Genji]]'' provide us with such examples in the life of aristocrats. [[Murasaki Shikibu]] uses 795 waka in her ''The Tale of Genji'' as waka her characters made in the story. Some of these are her own, although most are taken from existing sources. Shortly, making and reciting waka became a part of aristocratic culture. They recited a part of appropriate waka freely to imply something on an occasion.<ref name="Poetry Kaleidoscope">{{cite book |last1=Sfetcu |first1=Nicolae |title=Poetry Kaleidoscope |date=12 May 2014 |publisher=MultiMedia |isbn=9781312780200 |page=175 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2EmNAwAAQBAJ&q=in%20ancient%20times&pg=PA175 |access-date=30 April 2024}}</ref>

Much like with [[Japanese tea ceremony|tea]], there were a number of rituals and events surrounding the composition, presentation, and judgment of waka. There were two types of waka party that produced [[occasional poetry]]: ''Utakai'' and ''[[Uta-awase]]''. Utakai was a party in which all participants wrote a waka and recited them. Utakai derived from Shikai, Kanshi party and was held in occasion people gathered like seasonal party for the New Year, some celebrations for a newborn baby, a birthday, or a newly built house. ''Utaawase'' was a contest in two teams. Themes were determined and a chosen poet from each team wrote a waka for a given theme. The judge appointed a winner for each theme and gave points to the winning team. The team which received the largest sum was the winner. The first recorded Utaawase was held in around 885. At first, Utaawase was playful and mere entertainment, but as the poetic tradition deepened and grew, it turned into a serious aesthetic contest, with considerably more formality.<ref name="Poetry Kaleidoscope">{{cite book |last1=Sfetcu |first1=Nicolae |title=Poetry Kaleidoscope |date=12 May 2014 |publisher=MultiMedia |isbn=9781312780200 |page=175 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2EmNAwAAQBAJ&q=in%20ancient%20times&pg=PA175 |access-date=30 April 2024}}</ref>

==Poets==
*[[Ochiai Naobumi]] (1861–1903)
*[[Masaoka Shiki]] (1867–1902)
*[[Akiko Yosano|Yosano Akiko]] (1878–1942)<!--
*[[Hagiwara Sakutaro]]-->
*[[Takuboku Ishikawa|Ishikawa Takuboku]] (1886–1912)
*[[Mokichi Saitō|Saitō Mokichi]] (1882–1953)
*[[Itō Sachio]] (1864–1913)
*[[Kitahara Hakushū]] (1885–1942)
*[[Suiko Sugiura]] (1885–1960)
*[[Takashi Nagatsuka|Nagatsuka Takashi]] (1879–1915)
*[[Okamoto Kanoko]] (1889–1939)
*[[Bokusui Wakayama|Wakayama Bokusui]] (1885–1928)
*[[Shinobu Orikuchi|Orikuchi Shinobu]] (1887–1953) under the pseudonym Shaku Choku
*[[Jun Fujita]] (1888–1963)
*[[Kenji Miyazawa]] (1896-1933)
*[[Shūji Terayama|Terayama Shuji]] (1935–1983)
*[[Machi Tawara|Tawara Machi]] (born 1962)
*[[Yukio Mishima]] (1925–1970)
*[[Akiko Baba]] (born 1928)
*[[Fumiko Nakajō]] (1922–1954)
*[[Nakajima Utako]] (1844–1903)
*[[Chūya Nakahara]] (1907–1937)

==See also==
{{Portal|Poetry}}
*[[Honkadori]]
*[[Japanese language]]
*[[Japanese phonology]]
*[[List of Japanese language poets]]
*[[List of National Treasures of Japan (writings)]]
*[[Ryūka]]
*[[Gogyōshi]]
*[[Gogyōka]]

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
*Keene, Donald, ''Dawn to the West: Japanese Literature of the Modern Era - Poetry, Drama, Criticism (A History of Japanese Literature, Volume 4)'', Columbia University Press, 1999

===Modern anthologies===
*Nakano, Jiro, ''Outcry from the Inferno: Atomic Bomb Tanka Anthology'', Honolulu, Hawaii, [[Bamboo Ridge]] Press 1995 {{ISBN|0-910043-38-8}} [104 pp.&nbsp;103 tanka by 103 poets]
*Shiffert, Edith, and Yuki Sawa, editors and translators, ''Anthology of Modern Japanese Poetry'', Rutland, Vermont, Tuttle, 1972
*[[Makoto Ueda (poetry critic)|Ueda, Makoto]], ''Modern Japanese Tanka: An Anthology'', NY: Columbia University Press, 1996 {{ISBN|0-231-10432-4}} cloth {{ISBN|978-0-231-10433-3}} pbk  [257 pp.&nbsp;400 tanka by 20 poets]

===Modern translations===
*[[Ogura Hyakunin Isshu]]. ''100 Poems by 100 Poets''. Trans. [[Clay MacCauley]]. [http://jti.lib.virginia.edu/japanese/hyakunin/index.html Appendix]
*[[Akiko Baba|Baba, Akiko]]. ''Heavenly Maiden Tanka.'' Trans. Hatsue Kawamura and Jane Reichhold. Gualala CA:AHA Books, 1999
*[[Fumiko Nakajō|Nakajō, Fumiko]]. ''Breasts of Snow.'' Trans. Hatsue Kawamura and Jane Reichhold. Tokyo:The Japan Times Press, 2004
*Saito, Fumi. ''White Letter Poems.'' Trans. Hatsue Kawamura and Jane Reichhold. Gualala CA: AHA Books, 1998

{{Japanese poetry}}
{{Authority control}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tanka (Poetry)}}
[[Category:Japanese poetic forms]]
[[Category:Japanese literary terminology]]
[[Category:Waka (poetry)]]