One of the many social requirements of Japan was to instantly recognize, appreciate and recite Japanese and Chinese poetry. Short forms of poetry grew in popularity over long forms of poetry. Lifestyles carried over into art and every poem had to have a specific form which was the 5-7-5 triplet followed by a couplet of seven syllables. Haiku has developed over a very long period of time and Japanese poets have altered haiku poetry repeatedly to form the type of poem we know today.
|
https://www.tofugu.com/japan/japanese-poetry-crash-course/
In the 7th century, Japanese narrative poetry included short lyrical poems called "uta," or songs, and the most popular of these forms was known as waka. Waka became the most recognized poetic form of the period. Officials and court nobility gained recognition as word specialists for their ability to write waka. The influence continued to spread into the 9th century were waka was refined into a very specific form called tanka.
Tanka became popular from word games which consisted of two or more writers that would compose alternating sequences until long string-poems would emerge. Some renga, also known as chained verses, were all bound by complicated rules to ensure the elegant court and poetry diction. The word games changed in the 15th and 16th centuries and renga became known as haikai which is also known as haiku. Haikai consisted of a beginning triplet called a hokku which was considered the most important part of the poem.
Tanka became popular from word games which consisted of two or more writers that would compose alternating sequences until long string-poems would emerge. Some renga, also known as chained verses, were all bound by complicated rules to ensure the elegant court and poetry diction. The word games changed in the 15th and 16th centuries and renga became known as haikai which is also known as haiku. Haikai consisted of a beginning triplet called a hokku which was considered the most important part of the poem.
https://universitarianweb.com/2014/05/22/lost-in-translation-considering-the-possibility-of-haiku-translation-into-english/
Basho transformed the hokku into an independent poem and his work focused around the concept of karumi (a feeling of lightness) so much that he abandoned the traditional syllabic limitations to achieve it. A contemporary school of haiku called Tenro is popular all over Japan. It includes two thousand members all over the country who meet at designated temples to write as many one hundred haiku a day. The goal is to attempt to enter objects and share the delicate life and feelings. Haiku has originated from many different types of poetry and concepts.