Kireji in translations of such verses into this language, kireji may be represented by punctuation (typically by a dash or an ellipsis), an exclamatory particle (such as 'how...'), or simply left unmarked. The examples below are laid out as follows: Kireji Classical renga developed a tradition of 18 kireji, which were adopted by haikai, thence used for both renku and haiku, the most common of which are listed below: Hokku and haiku consist of 17 Japanese syllables, or on (a phonetic unit identical to the mora), in three metrical phrases of 5, 7, and 5 on respectively. A kireji is typically
Haiku the colloquialism of the language and is closest to natural conversational rhythm, necessary to carry the weight of the hokku A haiku traditionally contains a "kigo", a word or phrase that symbolizes or implies the season of the poem and which is drawn from a "saijiki", an extensive but prescriptive list of such words. Kigo are often in the form of metonyms and can be difficult for those who lack Japanese cultural references to spot. The Bashō examples below include "kawazu", "frog" implying spring, and "shigure", a rain shower in late autumn or early winter. Kigo are not always included