History
Tanka has a long history, first recorded in the early 8th century in the Kojiki and Man'yōshū. Under influence from other genres such as kanshi, Chinese poetry, novels and stories such as Tale of Genji and even Western poetry, it has developed gradually, broadening its repertoire of expression and topics.
In literary historian Donald Keene's books, he uses four large categories:
- Early and Heian Literature (Kojiki to past The Tale of Genji to 1185)
- The Middle Ages ('chūsei' from 1185, including the Kamakura and Muromachi periods)
- Pre-Modern Era (1600–1867, then subdivided into 1600–1770 and 1770–1867)
- Modern Era (post 1867, divided into Meiji (1868–1912), Taishō (1912–1926) and Shōwa (from 1927)).
Read more about this topic: Tanka
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—Gertrude Stein (1874–1946)
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—Ishmael Reed (b. 1938)