Hello. This is Frank Hubeny. The form today is the tanaga that comes from the Tagalog language in the Philippines. This form recently caught my eye in Bekkie Sanchez’s one stanza Tanaga #31018. Since we haven’t done this form, I thought it might be worth a try.
The tanaga form is part of an oral tradition going back to the early 16th century. It comes in stanzas of four lines with seven syllables per line. It often rhymes, even rhyming each line of a stanza on the same rhyme sound, but it can have variable rhyme patterns. It can also have more than one stanza.
Here’s an example of an English poem written by Jane Taylor and published in Rhymes for the Nursery in 1806. I suspect most of us know this as part of our English oral tradition. Taylor was likely not trying to write a tanaga, but the form of her poem matches the tanaga form.
Twinkle, twinkle little star
How I wonder what you are
Up above the world so high
Like a diamond in the sky.
So, the tanaga is not unfamiliar to English speakers although we might call it by a different name, perhaps some kind of “common meter”.
While looking for examples of tanaga what I found most characteristic about the form is that it has four lines per stanza with seven syllables per line. There is some flexibility. Because of this flexibility, I will leave the constraints open. For this challenge write something that you feel could be called a tanaga or a variation on the tanaga form. Use the tanaga as inspiration for how you construct your poem.
To participate, write a tanaga or variation on your blog. Copy the link to your post and paste it into the Mister Linky below. Read the tanagas others have linked and come chat with me, if you so choose, below. Also if you have a favorite, classic tanaga poem, I would be interested in reading it. The Mister Linky will be open for two days.
dVerse 
The pub is open!
Ha.. I wrote my first tanaga just a few weeks ago, and now again. I wrote mine with all the lines rhyming on the same rhyme… lots of fun, but hard not to be too “bouncy”… I think I prefer to use feminine rhymes with this form…
That is what I thought the tanaga rhyme pattern was, a mono-rhyme per stanza, until I saw alternate forms.
Thank you for hosting Frank and introducing this form ~ Of course I am familiar with this form ~ I have friends who write this form in our native language, and it strikes deep into my soul. I will be hitting the trail in a bit ~
I didn’t know your native language wasn’t English, Grace. I think I heard of this form in the past, but it wasn’t until recently that I became aware of it. It is like common meter so it is not very strange.
Thank you for hosting, Frank, and for an interesting prompt. I’ve posted my poem and will be back a little later to read and comment,
You kept the seven syllables per line. Very descriptive in only three stanzas.
Thank you, Frank.
Greetings all & thank you to Frank for manning the bar! I am linking up in a moment and am hopeful that I have not strayed too far afield in my use of the form.
Those three stanzas matched a tanaga as I understand the form at the moment especially with the seven-syllable lines throughout. Thanks for linking it, Jilly!
My immediate response is: 💙. I love that rhyme by Jane Taylor. And I see a challenge. The challenge is meter.
Yes, the meter is the challenge here. I start the first syllable of each line accented and then alternate unaccented followed by accented syllables in an iambic manner.
In Western tradition, that would make the poem trochaic, since the meter is not occupying the words. I have myself let anapaest be the approach, and in the end I have made a jump.
That should work as well.
That was fun! 💐 Once more!
I liked writing them these past two weeks.
Hey, Frank! Hi, y’all! Dropping off a Tanaga somebody ordered. I’ll be in and out of the pub to read, sip, and savor.
Nice tanaga, Charley! Thanks for linking it.
I actually got this up the first night of the prompt! It’s more fun to write a poem than it is to work. 🙂
I prefer writing a poem to working as well.
🙂
Late late late to the party. Thanks for introducing this form, Frank, and for hosting too. We leave bermudaful Bermuda one week from today….I shall miss this place, hence my post today. And, I just learned how to shoot panoramic photos 🙂
I miss oceans and mountains, but I like the Chicago plains as well. My phone shoots panoramic photos as well. They can be very pleasing. I keep forgetting to use that feature.
I cannot seem to be able to hold two thoughts in my mind at one time…either what I want to say, or how I want to say it. The waht seems more important right now. I wanted to write, but could not. Maybe one day?
I get days like that as well. Don’t worry. There are other opportunities and challenges.
Hi, I managed a tanaga. Thank you for hosting.
And it is a nice sounding tanaga praising spring. Thank you for linking with us!
I couldn’t resist writing to this one, Frank….as I squeak in the back door of the pub. Yikes! Thanks for sharing the tanaga. 🙂 I’m off to bed but will visit and comment tomorrow.
You improved that nursery rhyme. Very nice, Mish!
I’m so sorry I missed this, Frank! I would have loved to write another with dVerse. Thank you so much for using my poem as an example and mentioning it. You are so kind! I had to go out of town but I’ll be back next week on Tuesday and look forward to writing. Hugs!