Vote for your Favorite Haiku!

Haiku is a mode of Japanese poetry, a late 19th century revision by Masaoka Shiki of the older hokku. A traditional hokku consists of a pattern of approximately 5, 7, and 5 morae, phonetic units which only partially correspond to the syllables of languages such as English. There are many other rules, but for the LINGUIST List Haiku Contest the only rule is three lines, 5-7-5 syllables respectively.

The haikus below have all been submitted by subscribers to The LINGUIST List. They are ranked by surname.

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1. To make the man
pay for his language sins
They invented Syntax(sintax)!

by Esmat Babaii
 
2. To court the muse, linguist
Language takes all shapes and colors
I-language, E-language, and you guess what!

by Esmat Babaii
 
3. Deserted, sand and lonely was 'langue'
And God was watching,
And he made'Chomsky'!

by Esmat Babaii
 
4. for a moment
the drizzle stops
...a hummingbird

by Raquel D. Bailey
 
5. My blood
Is dripping
The rose, its smell
The air, it blossoms

by Teodor Barsan
 
6. My eyes, my heart my mind
Are now empty
And the night is collapsing

by Teodor Barsan
 
7. Friendship is like colourful rainbow,
Which is not an illusion to eyes,
But a submission to hearts

by Fathima Basheerudeen
 
8. Dreams do not come true;
they fall softly like snow with
hope never fading

by Jakub Bednarz
 
9. I control my life
Parents resent my being
Scars apologize

by Matt Bly
 
10. The lean dark man leaned
Closer and gave the woman
A bilabial thrill.

by Brenda Boerger
 
11. Some people say "pin",
while others pronounce it "pen".
Variation rules!

by David Bowie
 
12. water most graceful
ever flowing and passive
and yet it carves rock

by Steven Cen
 
13. Lying in my bed
I'm staring at the stars
Where has my roof gone?

by Steven Cen
 
14. staring at the clouds
am i alive? am i dead?
regrets flood my mind

by Steven Cen
 
15. there is nothing here
frightening sense of emptyness
will it ever end?

by Steven Cen
 
16. Grammar and Syntax:
Melodic Rhythm of Cosmos
in Greek Thesaurus

by Marianna Christou
 
17. Live! Learn! Speak! Write!
Language is useful for you
and for the others!

;-)

by Marianna Christou
 
18. Plato and Descartes,
proved wrong by Hume and Darwin,
Survive in Chomsky.

by Chris Cléirigh
 
19. who needs dumb roadmap?
passengers inform driver:
"we're the Fakaawi"

by Chris Cléirigh
 
20. SHe-Ma YiS-Ra-eL
a-DO-Noi eL-o-Hay-Nu
a-Do-Noi e-KHaD

by Israel Cohen
 
21. To change a lightbulb,
just rank Light above Same Bulb:
Optimality.

by Tony Davis
 
22. Hoshi Sato shakes:
linguistic apprehension -
Is her Klingon good?

by Mima Dedaic
 
23. titlark reproductively poseur conversive proalien proconservationist berend tarsipedidae
What is behind mobster mania?
http://www.sydneyrockies.org.au/
Bodwell Group
http://cogent.psyc.bbk.ac.uk/
Handbook of Texas Online - Glenwood
http://www.coscom.co.jp/
The Carnival of Carnage
http://www.cnn.com/2000/WORLD/americas/08/14/mexico.minister.reut/

by Alex Hood Emanuel Norman
 
24. Bla
Blablablablabla
Blablablablablablabla
Blablablablabla

by OPIE GHJIPO
 
25. She said she drank the milk
But is it really all gone?
Can there be some left?

by Alison Gabriele
 
26. Linguist list haiku
Sounds like hungry cows' moo-moo
Funny reading through!

by Nguyen Ha
 
27. Though their names are joined
to dub the hypothesis,
Ed thought Ben was nuts.

by Mary Haas
 
28. The alternatives
We compose and propagate
Until the squiggle

by Paul Hagstrom
 
29. A probe and a goal
They find each other to be
Interpretable

by Paul Hagstrom
 
30. Horses raced past barns
Often fall predictably
On the garden path

by Paul Hagstrom
 
31. before the bridge fell
proud beams reflected sunlight
now I see background

by Thomas Hunter
 
32. Love has left for now
Hope shall feed my soul till when
it shall find me then

by Thomas Hunter
 
33. The gratuitous
phoneme: nasal-ingressive
voiceless velar trill.

by Trey Jones
 
34. /h/ and /ŋ/ gently
mocking--their distribution
complementary.

by Trey Jones
 
35. "He said," she said,
"all the right words,
but I still said no."

by G K
 
36. rains, rains, and more rains
California Poppys
are bigger this year

by G K
 
37. Soft underbelly
of already soft science:
Discourse pragmatics.

by Kean Kaufmann
 
38. From two examples
to Universal Grammar!
Linguistics is fun.

by Kean Kaufmann
 
39. titlark reproductively poseur conversive proalien proconservationist berend tarsipedidae
uahsup iairz
http://lvkbpdvpi.com
msqobh ysfa
http://sxsrvqimhk.com
wrvjbbl ihrxvyu
http://pmbdmt.com
lttkw gngqoc
http://tznkmuhwtyd.com

by Lavonne Hernandez Kimberlee Golden
 
40. she pissed in her own
colorful dialect flakes
her brain cancer grew

by David Kopaska-Merkel
 
41. They all have pronouns,
so they must be related:
Cladistic thinking.

by Craig Kopris
 
42. The cell door closes.
He has lost his liberty.
What else can he lose?

by Mitch Lacy
 
43. titlark reproductively poseur conversive proalien proconservationist berend tarsipedidae
emboppe qzsv
http://vhbnet.com
mxgmuc myplza
http://eqldwbwhnypl.com
ecbkr bdao
http://ysbymclo.com
phbhz spwmtjt
http://nlxgufjhzal.com

by Carroll Walls Latonya Spencer
 
44. Five Haiku

Cow in the old farm
Brings good milk supply to me
Live long be healthy.

Fresh grape from the store
Sweetness from my hand to mouth
What a great moment!

Spirit in the night
Here my voice and understand
Travel through darkness.

Cars in the highway
Hear the great engine pumping
Time to drive my friends.

Awesome barbeque
The great taste of enjoyment
Attracts my neighbor.

- David Lee

by David Lee
 
45. Hey! Howz all my nigga's??? If me and Jabba Da' Hood and Felix The Phat and Serial Bocks was inna' fight, who would get they's grill smacked up?

by tUpAc LiLbRoThA
 
46. Rain
Descending slowly
The tear of the sky falls down
Hitting the hard ground

by Hakky Lohway
 
47. Descending swiftly
Like tears of the clouds it drops
Striking the earth with might

by Kevin Luo
 
48. there is no meaning
except in opposition --
structuralism

by Maria Manoliu
 
49. traces of you are
found in my GC, so I
will C-command you.

by David Metsuyanim
 
50. the winter set in
he froze in his own skin
against such fallacy

by Veronica Mukhia
 
51. What a crazy life-
The “Semantic Component”:
UG vagabond

by Navid Nâderi
 
52. Shower after he
little curly misery
left upon my soap

by Natalie Potts
 
53. I look into space
Its vastness ever so great
Does it ever end?

by Jimmy Pruitt
 
54. My tongue sweeps across
a delicate ridge as my
vocal folds shiver

by Joshua Raclaw
 
55. writing haiku's fast
for a cunning linguist --
going blank to verse

by Carolanne Reynolds
 
56. α can move to
β iff
α is closest

by Norvin Richards
 
57. in rusty shadows
among railway reflections
insects dance brightly

by Brage Rygg
 
58. Flowers start blooming
I pick a dandelion
Make a wish and blow

by Savannah Seraphim
 
59. Right now it's not real
but I will search forever
and I will find it

by Tupac Shakur
 
60. John and Mary are
A real pair of kissy-bugs!
Who says there's no plot?

by A. Shimelman
 
61. Cuts that you bandage
Result in who you are now.
Ignore the regret.

by Ashley Simpson
 
62. Men are like the Bees.
Women are like the Pollen.
We have honey.

by Michael Sollereder
 
63. Lily and lily,
ticklish; tender delight
ends - mutual smile.

by Nicola Steel
 
64. Suddenly warm to
September avenue glow.
Smell from golden leaves.

by Chris Swift
 
65. When John shoots the thief
with the rifle in his hand
readings are many.

by Marina Todorova
 
66. Summer Haikus


Going to the beach
You can swim in the ocean
Be aware of sharks

At the swimming pool
Be sure not to get sunburned
Let’s all swim and dive


Workman reunion
Family members visit
Let’s all have junk food



Take a tent along
Going camping is so fun
Toasting yummy S’Mores

by Patsie Webkinz
 
67. His diphthongs are raised; His intonation is flat' He is from Fargo.

by Sheri Wells-Jensen
 
68. That is not too bad; But, I could say the same thing; about Buffalo.

by Jason Wells-Jensen
 
69. Chickens cross the road
to get case from the NPs,
say syntacticians.

by Sheri Wells-Jensen
 
70. coset overintellectuality enactor discoverer ceratodus larderer saccate ambrosian
Uber
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Denial_of_service
BandsRadio.com - New MP3 Internet Radio
http://www.cdpf.org.cn/english/
GameSpy
http://www.santarosaspring.com
CGFA: Jan Brueghel the Elder
http://almostblue.ifrance.com/

by Rickey Porter Wes Haney
 
71. you are oxygen. this is why i hate to love. i am an addict.

by rich badly
 
72. Day spent killing time
Kill all of it you want to
it will outlive you

by richard blada pa-c
 
73. birds look cool
like a bitch in the wind
i ate a apple

by ring this shit shiut
 
74. tUpAc_LiL_bRoThA
rulah' ob' da' known uniberse...

by tUpAc_LiL_bRoThA tUpAc_LiL_bRoThA
 
75. Swaying young branches
Await for their first spring day,
Beckon the strollers.

by tri tran
 
76. Feet, a gleaming tan,
Baring under the dim sun...
Summer's joy, blazing

by tri tran
 
77. Joy upon cold night,
Sucking sweat of young players.
The trophy, hoisted.

by tri tran
 
78. This is a test acrostic.

by m z