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Kika Hotta

ほった きか

Hotta Kika

Pen Names: Kika Hotta（Pen name used in publications, translations and creative work）

Profile

Gender
Female
Born
1975-12-21 （Bunkyo, Tokyo, Japan）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese, English
Residence History
Tokyo, Japan → Hiroshima Prefecture, Japan → United States (spent part of childhood)

Career

Occupations
haiku poet, tanka poet, poet, translator, critic
Active Years
2000-
Affiliations
Japan Writers' Association, Modern Haiku Association, Modern Tanka Poets' Association, Japan Tanka Club
Memberships
Japan Writers' Association, Modern Haiku Association, Modern Tanka Poets' Association, Japan Tanka Club

Education

Brown University
Country: United States
Received part of education in English; studied in the U.S.
Graduate School, University of Tokyo
Country: Japan
Graduate study completed (specifics not public)

Awards

Shiba Fukio Haiku Newcomer Award (3rd) — Saito Shinji Encouragement Prize
2010
Organization: Shiba Fukio Haiku Newcomer Award Committee
Result: winner
Ishikawa Takuboku Prize (Tanka Category)
2009
Work: Wakaran (Wakuran)
Category: 短歌
Organization: Ishikawa Takuboku Prize Committee
Result: winner
72nd Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists (Minister of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology)
2022
Work: Afternoon of Humanity
Organization: Agency for Cultural Affairs (Japan)
Result: winner
77th Modern Haiku Association Prize
2022
Work: Afternoon of Humanity
Organization: Modern Haiku Association
Result: winner
Koshi no Kuni Poetry Prize (3rd)
2023
Work: Afternoon of Humanity
Organization: Koshi no Kuni Poetry Prize Committee
Result: winner
Japan Tanka Club Tokyo Block Excellence in Anthology Award
2016
Work: Wakaran (Wakuran)
Organization: Japan Tanka Club
Result: winner
Kusamakura International Haiku Contest — Foreign Language Grand Prize
Category: 外国語部門
Organization: Kusamakura International Haiku Contest Organizers
Result: winner
Ryukoku University Youth Haiku Award — Best (English category)
Category: 英語俳句
Organization: Ryukoku University
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Wakaran (Wakuran)

2015 tanka

A collection of tanka poems exploring poetic experimentation and personal memory.

memorypersonal historylanguage boundaries

Arabia: 99 Haiku

2016 haiku collection

A Japanese-English-Arabic trilingual haiku collection aimed at cross-cultural exchange.

border-crossingcross-cultural exchangetranslation between languages

Seibou (Star Visage)

2021 haiku collection

A haiku collection that includes perspectives on cosmology and existence.

cosmosexistenceseasonality

Afternoon of Humanity

2021 haiku collection

A haiku collection reflecting contemporary human scenes and zeitgeist. Recipient of the 72nd Art Encouragement Prize for New Artists.

modernityhuman conditiontime

Bibliography

  • Wakaran (Wakuran)
  • Arabia: 99 Haiku
  • Seibou (Star Visage)
  • Afternoon of Humanity
  • Haiku Meets Tanka
  • Italia (translated by Kika Hotta — Ryū Okai)
  • Perpetual Peace Poems from Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Okinawa (English translations by Kika Hotta)

Translations by Author

  • Ryū Okai — Italia (English translation by Kika Hotta)
  • Perpetual Peace Poems from Hiroshima, Nagasaki, and Okinawa (haiku translations into English)

Translations of Works

  • Works translated into English
  • Translated into French, Chinese, Lithuanian, Montenegrin, Romanian, Hungarian, Vietnamese, Arabic, etc.

Style & Themes

Literary Style
modern haiku stylepractical dialogue with English-language haikuexperimental and syncretic expression
Recurring Motifs
border-crossing and travelmemory and personal historyintersection of cosmos and quotidianmistranslation/misalignment between languages

Health

  • Disorders of sex development (mild)
    公表年以降（2017年に性別不合を公表）
    Influenced public statements regarding gender identity and led to disclosure and advocacy as someone with lived experience.

Legacy

A poet active across modern haiku and tanka who advances cross-border literary practice through translation and readings in English-speaking contexts. With multiple awards and international invitations, regarded as a representative voice in multilingual contemporary short-form poetry.

Academic Societies

  • Modern Haiku Association
  • Modern Tanka Poets' Association
  • Japan Writers' Association

Archives

  • National Diet Library (catalog records)
  • VIAF authority record

In Popular Culture

  • Award commemorative talk video by the Modern Haiku Association (YouTube)
  • Featured in art-documentary program 'Poet: The Future of Haiku'

Trivia

  • Has familial ties to literary figures on the paternal side (e.g., Nomura Chiharu).
  • Composed poetry in English since junior high and spent part of education in the United States.
  • Publicly disclosed gender incongruence on Twitter in 2017.
  • Works have been translated into many languages.