The Haiku Society of America is a non-profit organization composed of
haiku' , plural haiku, is a very short form of Japanese poetry typically characterised by three qualities:* The essence of haiku is "cutting"...
poetA poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
s,
editorEditing is the process of selecting and preparing written, visual, audible, and film media used to convey information through the processes of correction, condensation, organization, and other modifications performed with an intention of producing a correct, consistent, accurate, and complete...
s,
criticA critic is anyone who expresses a value judgement. Informally, criticism is a common aspect of all human expression and need not necessarily imply skilled or accurate expressions of judgement. Critical judgements, good or bad, may be positive , negative , or balanced...
s, publishers and enthusiasts that promotes the composition and appreciation of
haiku in EnglishHaiku in English is a development of the Japanese haiku poetic form in the English language.Contemporary haiku are written in many languages, but most poets outside of Japan are concentrated in the English-speaking countries....
. It was founded in 1968 and sponsors meetings, lectures, workshops, readings and contests. The HSA's 2011 membership was 690, of whom 66 reside outside the USA.
Activities
The Society's journal,
Frogpond, first published in 1977, includes the work of HSA members and others, as well as articles on haiku and book reviews. The Society also publishes a quarterly newsletter containing reports of HSA national meetings, held four times a year, and news of regional, national and international events.
History
The Haiku Society of America was founded in 1968 by Harold G. Henderson and Leroy Kanterman; 21 charter members attended its first meeting in
New York CityNew York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. Its stated goals were to:
- promote the creation and appreciation of haiku and related forms (haibun
Haibun is a literary composition that combines prose and haiku. The range of haibun is broad and includes, but is not limited to, the following forms of prose: autobiography, biography, diary, essay, history, prose poem, short story and travel literature....
, haiga' is a style of Japanese painting based on the aesthetics of haikai, from which haiku poetry derives, which often accompanied such poems in a single piece. Like the poetic forms it accompanied, haiga was based on simple, yet often profound, observations of the everyday world...
, renku, senryūis a Japanese form of short poetry similar to haiku in construction: three lines with 17 or fewer total morae . Senryū tend to be about human foibles while haiku tend to be about nature, and senryū are often cynical or darkly humorous while haiku are more serious...
, sequences and tanka) among its members and the public
- foster association, friendship, communication and mutual support among haiku poets in the United States and around the world