Kigo

Kigo (season word(s), from the Japanese 季語, kigo) are words or phrases that are generally associated with a particular season. They provided an economy of expression that is especially valuable in the very short Japanese poetry form known as hokku, (later revised as haiku), as well as the longer linked-verse form known as renga, to indicate the season in which the poem or stanza is set.

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Representation of and reference to the seasons has always been important in Japanese culture and poetry. The first anthology of Japanese poetry, the mid 8th century Man'yōshū, had several sections devoted to the seasons. By the time of the first imperial Japanese anthology, the Kokinshū, a century and a half later (AD 905 ) the season sections had become a much larger part of that anthology. Both of these anthologies also had sections for other categories, such as love poems and miscellaneous (zō) poems.

Japanese: When used as an adjective, Japanese refers to anything that originates from Japan. It may refer to more than one article:...

Season: A season is one of the major divisions of the year, generally based on yearly periodic changes in weather....

Japanese poetry: The best-known forms of Japanese poetry (outside Japan) are haiku and senryu. The classic traditional form is in fact waka. Much poetry in Japan was written in the Chinese language, so it is more accurate to speak of Japanese-language poetry. For example, in the Tale of Genji both kinds of poetry ar...