Place Names David Cobb

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The Value of Iconic Place Names in Western Haiku
by David Cobb

QUOTE
©　www.poetrysociety.org.nz

Because of the general tendency in the West to try to replicate the Japanese use of kigo (season words) our haiku are easily misinterpreted as 'a poetry of nature'.

This is to overlook the double significance of the season word: to spotlight a moment in the writer's existence on Earth, yes, but also to remind the reader that it happens during the eternal cycle of life, to be repeated each time that particular season comes around, albeit never in the same identical way.

So, as Thomas Hemstege argued in a useful article in Modern Haiku (Vol 35 No 1), it would be just as reasonable to refer to haiku as 'a poetry of time'.

But now I want to go a little further down that road. For us humans, time and place may sometimes seem inextricable. Partly because many places we see, and particularly like to see, have a history attached to them: a history that may well arouse emotions, such as sorrow, pride, regret, triumph, or a variety of other feelings. Just as cherry blossom is present in nature to evoke emotion, and Christmas is there in time to evoke emotion, the Pyramids are there for ever as a source of emotion in space/ place. Place names give off a poetry of their own.

Let's look now at Japanese practice. The power of place names to release feeling is well known to Japanese poets. Some names of places and festivals are even included in the traditional saijiki (almanac of season words.) Even more so in the almanac used by haijin of the modern or avant-garde school.

We can divide them into different types:

uta-makura - places that almost any educated person is likely to know something about and that are definitely iconic
hai-makura - places that are lifted into that aura by their mention in a well-known poem.

In English poetry we have an example in Adlestrop, where the poet Edward Thomas wrote:


Yes. I remember Adlestrop -
The name, because one afternoon
Of heat the express-train drew up there
Unwontedly.



Read the full poem here.

Place name haiku can be subdivided again into:

Places famous for their beauty
Places possibly not very beautiful to look at, but remembered because of some historical event, or legend or myth, attached to them, or because of a famous or heroic person who once lived there.

When Bashō started out on his celebrated journey along 'the Narrow Road to the Deep North', memorialised in the haibun (more accurately, nikki, or travelogue) known as Oku-no-hosomichi, he had a sort of cultural map in his head, with dozens of 'pillow places' where he intended to rest his head. So in that travelogue we can find examples of both uta-makura and hai-makura, though it has to be said his normal practice is to mention the place names in the prose, thus setting the context for a haiku that doesn't include a place name.

Matsushima is a place celebrated for a bay containing many beautiful islands. The sight of it rocked Bashō into writing

The cuckoo would need
the wings of a crane to span
the isles of Matsushima

An example of literary and historical reference is

Across the rough seas
stretching to Sado Island
the Milky Way

because the Japanese reader will be familiar with The Tale of Genji. Sado Island is where exiles were sent, including Prince Genji, 'the Shining One', as punishment for an illicit affair with a lady of the Imperial Court. (Incidentally, this haiku is an example that reminds us, if our aim is to create literature, the 'unvarnished truth', meticulous veracity, is far from a requirement of haibun. Researchers have calculated that, looking out from the vantage point where Bashō actually stood, and at the time when he stood there, it would have been impossible for him to observe the phenomenon he records. We can nevertheless accept the poetic 'truthlikeness'.)

I am tempted to think Bashō's mind was infused with feelings similar to those of spectators at a Japanese Noh play. Typically, in dramas of this genre the main character is a man or woman who suffered some unkind fate long ago. He or she appears in the first act, in a way that might remind us Westerners rather of the Ghost in Hamlet. His/her sorry tale is told to a wanderer, this time reminding us perhaps of the man in The Ancient Mariner, who 'stoppeth one in three', constantly telling and retelling his story to anyone who will listen to him.

The wanderer is invited to say a prayer for the unhappy spirit, so that it may have rest; and a Japanese audience finds itself drawn into this prayer by the actors, so that they experience a sort of 'communal catharsis'. They have a feeling of inheriting some of the guilt of their ancestors which it is their responsibility to expiate.

The interest in place names continues to this day, so we find the 'grand old man', of contemporary Japanese haiku, Kaneko Tohta, referring to Hiroshima:

Round the A-bomb Dome
buckling in the heat
a marathon

Now let us turn to the situation in the West with regard to the mention of place names in haiku.

I trawled through three major anthologies of British haiku and found almost none.

One explanation for this may be the idea that you sometimes hear, that it should be possible for as wide a readership as possible to make sense of the experience the poet describes. So a common noun like 'river' or 'mountain' might be preferred to a proper noun like 'Thames' or 'Rockies'.

There may be occasions when that is true. But I want to suggest that there are other times when something important, something truly poetic, is lost if we avoid the proper noun. Some place names actually are poetry. Let me try to give you an example.

I was on holiday once in Scotland and my little daughter, perhaps 8 or 9 years old, was with me. We visited a battlefield where the traditional life of the Highland clans was more or less snuffed out. I could have written:


my daughter searches
for four-leaf clovers
on the battlefield


But what I actually wrote was:


my daughter searches
for four-leaf clovers
on Culloden Moor

Not only because the history of 'Culloden Moor' penetrates the British heart deeper than many another battlefield, but also because of the gloomy, falling sound produced by those two words: Culloden Moor has a dying cadence.

Here is another example. This time I'll give you only the first two lines and then pause while you try to think of a place name that, coming in the final line, might turn a rather inauspicious beginning into something far more poetically powerful:

a man with a torch
goes looking for a name -

No, it isn't a tourist who has put up for the night at a guest house, been out to the local pub, and now has a problem finding his way back to his bed.

a man with a torch
goes looking for a name -
the Menin Gate


I hope you will agree with me, the name 'Menin Gate' has iconic power and poetic force for which there's no substitute. (My Australasian readers might well think of Gallipoli.)

Now, I don't wish editors of haiku magazines to be swamped with 'place name haiku' for the next six months, until another fad takes over. But you might just ponder whether 'river' is always the best word to use.

On the other hand, remember - there will be occasions when the generic term, e.g. river, is more effective than the place name, e.g. Rhine. As with so many other things, it is ultimately a matter for 'poetic discretion'.


Editor's note:
This article has recently appeared in Fropgpond, although there has been one minor change, and appears here with the kind permission of the author.

David Cobb made a teaching research trip to Japan in 1977 and, with the encouragement of a local high school teacher, began to learn how to write haiku. In 1989 he helped establish the British Haiku Society, serving as secretary (1990-97) and president (1997-2002). He started the BHS newsletter and its magazine, Blithe Spirit.

His haiku and haibun have received numerous international awards, as have his collections of his work. His most recent awards are the Oi-Ocha Prize (for a single haiku) in 2010 and a Haiku Society of America Merit Book Award in 2007.

Spitting Pips, a collection of David's haibun, was published in 2009. For more information see his website.


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. Utamakura, place names used in Poetry .

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Southern California Season Words

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Southern California Season Words

QUOTE
courtesy of the SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA HAIKU STUDY GROUP
©　http://socal-kigolist.blogspot.com/


Wednesday, March 10, 2010
Spring

.
The Season

crisp morning
Daylight Savings Time
early spring
end of spring
gray May
rainy season
spring
spring morning
spring rain
spring storm
spring wind
warmer days

Sky and Heavens

changing skies
Dog Star
flower moon
Leo
morning mist
Orion
pink moon
Sirius
snow moon
spring constellations
spring sky
vernal equinox
Ursa Major
Virgo
warm spring breeze
worm moon

Mountains, Fields and Ocean

snow-capped mountains
first greening
snowmelt
snow run-off
remaining snow
spring fields
green hills
wildflower fields
spring mud
trail work
spring sea
spring tides
fresh grass
thickened Bermuda grass



Flowers and Plants

buds on bare branches
pear blossoms (early Spring)
evergreen pear
tulip tree
Japanese magnolia
sugar bush blooms
planting summer bulbs
daffodil shoots
first wildflowers
wild mushrooms
cherry blossom
apricot blossom
camellias
jonquils
Dutch iris
spring wildflowers
ceanothus / California lilac
California poppy
jade plant blossom
teddy bear cholla
ocotillo blossoms



Birds and Animals

nesting birds
great egret
osprey
peregrine falcon
hawks
mourning dove
sparrows
crows (all year?)
wren
barn swallow
wrentit
American robin
raven
green heron
scrub jay
song sparrow
terns
American coot
grebes
black phoebe
wood duck
California towhee
Western gulls
white-throated swift
woodpeckers
California quail
nuthatch
turkey vulture
wren song
breeding plumage
returning swallows
baby rabbits
gray squirrel litters
ground squirrel litters
baby island foxes
baby opossums
coyote pups
deer fawn
harbor seal pups
lizards
dogs/horses shedding
rattlesnakes
palm rats (newborns squealing)
cutworms
new snails
lady bugs


Human Affairs

umbrellas
Valentine's Day
Groundhog Day
President's Day
Chinese New year
Mardi Gras
Lent
Ash Wednesday
spring cleaning
spring cleaning
college acceptance/rejection letters
Spring break
city elections
St. Patrick's Day, green beer, shamrocks
St. Joseph's Day
Purim
Chinese lantern festival
shorts
spring dresses
planting vegetables
Easter
Festival of Books
National Poetry Month
baseball season starts
vacation plans
Mother's Day
Renaissance Faire
Memorial Day
Cinco de Mayo
midseason baseball
French Open
sandals
wedding invitations
allergy season
kites
baby strollers
IRS refunds
tax returns

...




Summer

.
The Season

summer
heat stroke
early summer
too hot to go outside
June gloom
slow day
climbing temperatures
100 degrees
first heat wave
intense heat
crisp morning
long days
lengthening days
summer days
cool, coolness
dog days
longer shadows



Sky and heavens

strawberry moon
summer breeze, cooling breeze
morning fog, summer fog
summer sky
cummer constellations
summer solstice
dog star
milky way
river of stars
tanabana
morning fog
sturgeon moon
Perseids
Pleiades
billowing clouds
scorching sun
sudden shower



Mountains, Fields and Ocean

dry grass
dry fields
yellow fields
smog, smog-hidden mountains
dried-up creeks
kelp forest
dry waterfall
summer sea
crowded beach
deep tree-shade
summer lake, summer mountains
jellyfish



Flowers and Plants

late jacaranda
dancing ladies
rose hips
magnolia
tomatoes
cherries
berries
melons
late poppies
herbs
crepe myrtle
peppers
zucchini
cucumber
vegetables
sunflowers
grapes
strawberry
roses
hibiscus
orchids
zinnias
hollyhocks
honeysuckle
evening primrose
coffeeberry
bush mallow
monkey flower
star jasmine
century plant stalks
hydrangea
plums, apricots, peaches
geraniums
clover blossoms
lavender
summer herbs, basil, parsley, sage
daisies
Birds and Animals
blue damselfly
louder birds
baby koi
mockingbirds
blue jays
hummingbirds
ducklings
fledglings
great blue heron
bats
molting seals
baby raccoons
raccoons weaning
seagulls
butterflies
young gulls
brown pelicans
wasps
tree frogs
orange lizards
egrets
ants
caterpillar
house fly
snail
sea otter
giant green anemone
insects
moth
spider
surfbirds
cormorant
blue whales
mosquito



Human Affairs

air conditioning, fans
weddings
graduation
Father's Day
summer Shakespeare
outdoor concert
new swimming suit
eind of school
summer vacation
Fourth of July
fireworks
Hollywood Bowl
beach outings
beach house
wind surfing, kite surfing
sunscreen
back-to-school sales
high school reunions
Hiroshima Day
leaving for college
high electric bill
power outage, brown out
wind chimes
marshmallow roast
sunglasses
sunburn
summer fair, summer carnival
summer camp
water skis
picnic
boating
camping
swimming pool
strawberry stand

...




Autumn

.
The Season

autumn
autumn air
autumn day
autumn dusk
autumn rain
beginnning of autumn, late autumn
colder nights, cooler nights
first rain
Indian summer
morning fog
Standard Time
summer's end



Sky and Heavens

Andromeda
autumn light
autumn sky
autumn wind
autumnal equinox
autumn star (Fomalhaut)
Cassiopeia
dark after work
early dark
great square of Pegasus
harvest moon
hunter's moon
Leonids (Nove 17-19)
moon (in all its phases)
Orionids (Oct 21 & 22)
Pisces
Saturn at first light
shortening days, shorter days
Spiral Galaxy
warm winds (early)
wind in dry leaves



Mountains, Fields and Ocean

autumn sea
brush fires, wild fires
California sagebrush / cowboy cologne
dead grass
dry fields, brown fields
dry giant rye
dry grass
dry stream beds
dry waterfalls
falling leaves
harvest, harvesting



Flowers and Plants

apples
aster
changing leaves
chrysanthemum
corn stubble
coyote melon / coyote gourd / stinky gourd
cranberries
first fallen leaves
gingko trees
gourds
grass seed
green oak apples (wasp galls)
green toyon berries
Hong Kong orchid tree (blooming)
Indian corn
leaf litter
maple leaves
Mexican elderberry (dying back)
milkweed (seed pods split, silky fibers)
morning glories
nuts
pearly everlasting
pumpkins
red leaves
ripening persimmons
root vegetables
silk floss tree (blooming)
soap root fibers
squash
sugar bush berries
sycamore leaves



Birds and Animals

Canada goose
crickets
dragonflies
grasshoppers
gray whale migration (starts end of Nov)
horned grebe
migrating birds
monarch butterfly migration
red-throated loon, common loon
squirrels gathering
white-crowned sparrow
white pelican



Human Affairs

All Soul's Day, Halloween
back-to-school (book covers, new teachers, school supplies, school clothes)
basketball season (start of)
Christmas catalogs
college midterms
country fair
El Dia de los Muertos
Election Day (Nov)
football
Labor Day
pumpkin pie
Thanksgiving
turkey dinner
Veterans' Day
waterfowl game season

....



Winter

.
The Season

beginning of winter
chilly night
first frost
first storm
fog
freezing
New year
rainy season
shortest day
tule fog
winter
winter solstice
winter wind



Sky and Heavens

Ares
clear night
cold nights
early sunset
Geminids (Dec 13-14)
longer shadows
long nights
low sun
Orion
Quadrantids (Jan 3-4)
Venus / evening star
winter moon
winter sky



Mountains, Fields and Ocean

barren fields
fallen leaves
first snow
highest high tide
lowest low tide
rye grass
snow cap, snow-capped mountains
winter grass
winter sea, winter shore



Flowers and Plants

azaleas
bare branches
bare root (roses, fruit trees)
bare trees
buds
camellia buds
Christmas begonia
Christmas cactus (kalanchoe)
currents
early camellias, winter camellias
gooseberries
Japanese magnolia
kumquat
liquid amber (only a few leaves left)
manzanita blossoms
oranges, Mandarin oranges
pecans dropping
poinsettia
splat persimmons
spring bulbs (must plant before Dec 25)
sugar bush blooms
tangerines
toyon berries (red, sometimes yellow)
tulip tree
winter chrysanthemum



Birds and Animals

American coots
Anna's hummingbird (peak nesting)
black-vented shearwaters leaving
cats mating
coyote breeding
cry of the deer
deer lose antlers
grey bobcat
hibernation
overwintering monarch butterflies
owl
raccoon breeding
red-tailed hawk
ruby-crowned kinglet
squirrels digging
throngs of birds
waterfowl
whales calving
whale migration peak
winter coats, heavy coats
winter sparrow
wood ducks



Human Affairs

bean soup
boots
Christmas (bells, candles, cards, carols, decorations, gifts, ribbon, stockings, trees, tree lots, wreaths, etc.)
Christmas bonus
Epiphany (Three Kings Day)
fireplace
flu, influenza, flu shots, cough
gloves, mittens
Hanukkah
hot apple cider
hot chocolate
ice skating
Kwanzaa
Martin Luther King, Jr. Day
New Year's Day
pruning
Rose Bowl
Rose Parade
Santa, store Santas
scarf, muffler
See's candy
shopping, shopping malls
skis, skiing
Superbowl
tamales
winter coat, overcoat
winter travel
...

http://socal-kigolist.blogspot.com/


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North American Kigo List

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