HAIKU CONTEST

With the success of two preceding contests, the Embassy of Japan, in conjunction with the UST Haiku Group, is holding the third Haiku Contest with the theme “Pinoy Haiku: Mga Taludtod mula kay Inang Daigdig (Verses from Mother Earth).”

The contest is open to all Filipinos living in the Philippines or abroad. The message of the haiku must deal with the appreciation of the environment, respect towards nature, or any observation about the natural world. Contestants may submit a maximum of two entries in either Filipino or English. However, entries written in Filipino or Tagalog must have an English translation. The entry form may be downloaded from the Embassy of Japan website.

Deadline for submission of entries is on June 12, 2008. Entries may be submitted by mail to:

2008 Haiku Contest
Japan information and Cultural Center
Embassy of Japan, 2627 Roxas Boulevard
Pasay City, 1300

Or via fax: (632) 551-5784

Or through e-mail to: jicc-mnl@japanembassy.ph or jiccmanila@yahoo.com
Top three poems and ten honorable mentions will be awarded at the award ceremony, which will be held at the Embassy of Japan in July.

For more information, please contact the Japan information and Cultural Center, Embassy of Japan at (632) 551-5710 or visit the website: http://www.ph.emb-japan.go.jp to download the entry form.

Haiku is a form of poetry that developed in Japan from about 400 years ago. It is a short verse of 17 syllables, divided into units of five, seven, and five syllables. Pinoy haiku has 19 syllables divided into units of three lines having seven, five, and seven syllables each. This fixed-form with rhyming the first and the last lines is ideal for Filipino poetic tradition considering its similarity to tanaga and ambahan in versification.