Haiku in non-Japanese haiku or by modern writers of Japanese "free-form" haiku. The best-known Japanese haiku is Bashō's "old pond": This separates into "on" as: Translated: Another haiku by Bashō: This separates into "on" as: Translated: This haiku by Bashō illustrates that he was not always constrained to a 5-7-5 "on" pattern. It contains 18 "on" in the pattern 6-7-5 ("ō" or is treated as two "on".) This separates into "on" as: Translated: This haiku by Issa illustrates that 17 Japanese "on" do not always equate to 17 English syllables ("nan" counts as two "on" and "nonda" as three.) This separates
Haiku in English poets and scholars attempting to understand English-language haiku aesthetics and history include William J. Higginson's "Haiku Handbook" (McGraw-Hill, 1985) and Lee Gurga's "Haiku: A Poet's Guide" (Modern Haiku Press, 2003). Significant contributors to American haiku include Hackett, Virgilio, Charles B. Dickson (1915–1991), Elizabeth Searle Lamb (1917–2005), Raymond Roseliep (1917–1983), Robert Spiess (1921–2002), John Wills (1921–1993), Anita Virgil (b. 1931), and Peggy Willis Lyles (1939–2010). Other major figures still active in the American haiku community include Lee Gurga, Christopher Herold, Gary Hotham, Jim Kacian, Michael McClintock, Marlene Mountain, Marian Olson, Alan Pizzarelli, Alexis Rotella, John Stevenson, George Swede, vincent tripi, Michael