noun
haikai (genre); haikai poetry
Collective term for haiku, haibun, haiga, senryū, and related forms. In modern usage, often refers to the broader poetic tradition stemming from Bashō and his school.
芭蕉は俳諧の巨匠として知られている。
Bashō is known as a master of haikai.
この句会では伝統的な俳諧を学ぶことができる。
At this poetry gathering, you can learn traditional haikai.
noun
haikai no renga; humorous renga
Historical abbreviation for 俳諧の連歌, a 16th-century style of linked verse characterized by humor, wit, and often vulgar themes. Distinct from the later refined haikai of Bashō.
See also: 俳諧の連歌
俳諧の連歌は、和歌の伝統をくずした滑稽な連歌だった。
Haikai no renga was a humorous linked verse that broke with waka tradition.
山崎宗鑑は俳諧の連歌の祖とされる。
Yamazaki Sōkan is considered the founder of haikai no renga.
noun
Poetic or literary use, often describing something as absurd or comical in a refined, waka-like context. Rare in modern everyday language.
その歌には俳諧の趣がある。
That poem has a haikai-like wit.
彼の振る舞いはまさに俳諧としか言いようがない。
His behavior can only be described as absurd.
俳句 is a specific 17-syllable poem, while 俳諧 is the broader genre that includes haiku and other forms.
連歌 is classical linked verse; 俳諧 (sense 2) is a humorous, often vulgar offshoot of renga.
川柳 is a type of humorous poem similar to haiku but without seasonal reference, often considered part of the 俳諧 tradition.
From Middle Chinese-derived elements 俳 (playful, actor) and 諧 (harmony, jest). The term originally referred to humorous or unconventional linked verse, later broadened to encompass the refined poetic tradition.