Shiki, Masaoka

Masaoka Shiki (1867-1902) wrote over 20,000 haiku, 3,000 tanka, 900 kanshi and numerous literary essays until his death. He began to write poetry when he was still a student. In the First Sino-Japanese War, he worked as a correspondent in Lüshun from April 1895. During the drive home, he coughed up blood and had to be treated. In January 1897 he founded the magazine Hototogisu. He reformed both haiku and tanka and gave them their current names. Along with Basho, Issa and Buson, Shiki is one of the most influential figures in Japanese poetry.