About HIA

The Haiku International Association (HIA) was established in 1989 with the support of ‘the Association of Haiku Poets’, ‘the Modern Haiku Association’, and ‘the Association of Japanese Classical Haiku’ and it serves as an entrance for domestic and international exchange in haiku.

For members, HIA provides a forum for international exchange through haiku competitions, symposiums, lectures, and the journal “HI”, and domestically, serves as a forum for exchange between the three associations.

Message

Haiku is a unique literary art born in Japan but since the 1970s it has been embraced by people the world over and has enjoyed remarkable international popularity. Now it is said that there are about two million people in 50 countries writing and enjoying haiku in their own languages as well as English.

The first Westerner to discover the charms of haiku was Lafcadio Hearn (Koizumi Yakumo) at the end of the nineteenth century. The publication, by Paul Louis Kuche, of a collection entitled “Haiku” in the early twentieth century started a haiku boom. Thus, haiku’s internationalization can be regarded as a natural development that has grown from a 100-year-old history outside of Japan.

The Haiku International Association (HIA) was established in December 1989 in order to respond to haiku’s worldwide popularity and to promote friendship and interactions with haiku lovers overseas. Since then, our association has been continuing its activities, concentrating on the introduction of haiku culture, exchanges with international societies and the publication of a magazine.

In today’s world, political, economic, and cultural walls are coming down everywhere. People around the world have joined hands in this. Now they must mutually remove certain walls in their hearts. I am convinced that the mutual understanding derived from the love that different peoples have for haiku will prove very helpful towards the attainment of this goal.

It is my heartfelt wish that the HIA will lead to increased exchanges and friendships between haiku lovers overseas and that it will provide a gateway to haiku for all people interest in haiku.