Haiku is a kind of Japanese poetry. It was given this name the late 19th century by Masaoka Shiki by a combination of the older hokku (??, hokku?) and the haikai (or verses) in haikai no renga. Haiku, when known as hokku were the opening verses of a linked verse form, haikai no renga. In Japanese, hokku and haiku are traditionally printed in one vertical line (though in handwritten form they may be in any reasonable number of lines). In English, haiku are written as three lines, with a syllable count of five, seven, and five on in the first, second, and third line.