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Sumiyuki Shigaki

しがき すみゆき

Sumiyuki Shigaki

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1934-03-14 （Taipei, Taiwan (then under Japanese rule)）
Nationality
Japan
Languages
Japanese
Residence History
Taipei (birthplace) → Saito, Miyazaki Prefecture (residence)

Career

Occupations
tanka poet, teacher, high school principal
Active Years
1954-
Memberships
Modern Tanka Poets Association
Influenced By
Fumi Saito

Education

Miyazaki University
Faculty of Education
Country: Japan

Awards

Shika Bungakukan Award
2022
Work: Torigofuru
Organization: Japan Modern Poetry & Tanka Museum
Result: winner

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

Seisou: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection

1987 tanka collection

Mokusui Hyakka

1989 essays / tanka-related

Yuko: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection

1999 tanka collection

Sanga: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection

2002 tanka collection

Complete Tanka Collection of Sumiyuki Shigaki

2004 complete tanka collection

Torigofuru: Tanka Collection

2021 tanka collection

A tanka collection reflecting daily life and nature from a late-life perspective. Winner of the 2022 Shika Bungakukan Award.

agingeveryday lifenature

Bibliography

  • Seisou: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection (Sunagoya Shobo, 1987)
  • Mokusui Hyakka (Honda Kikaku, 1989)
  • Uta to Umi: Essay Collection (Honda Kikaku, 1994)
  • Yuko: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection (Nagarami Shobo, 1999)
  • Sanga: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection (Ganshokan, 2002)
  • Complete Tanka Collection of Sumiyuki Shigaki (Seijisha, 2004)
  • Aoi no Seiki: Tanka Collection (Seijisha, 2005)
  • Hyuga: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection (Kadokawa, 2008)
  • Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection (Modern Tanka Library, Sunagoya Shobo, 2008)
  • Tori: Tanka Collection (Seijisha, 2011)
  • Nichigetsu-shu: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection (Seijisha, 2014)
  • Ogon no Warabi: Sumiyuki Shigaki Tanka Collection (Seijisha, 2018)
  • Torigofuru: Tanka Collection (Hon'ami Shoten, 2021)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Concise, lyrical expression rooted in modern tanka traditionA keen observational approach to everyday detail
Recurring Motifs
sealandscapes (mountains and rivers)agingeveryday life

Legacy

Born in Taiwan before the war and later settled in Miyazaki, Sumiyuki Shigaki balanced a career in education (teacher and principal) with long-term creative activity in modern tanka. His work, noted for regional sensibility and attention to everyday detail, was recognized with the Shika Bungakukan Award.

Academic Societies

  • Modern Tanka Poets Association

Archives

  • National Diet Library holdings / authority data

Trivia

  • Born in Taipei in 1934; after the war he moved to Saito in Miyazaki Prefecture, his mother's hometown.
  • Launched a personal magazine 'Marukibune' in his twenties and began composing tanka.
  • After graduating from Miyazaki University Faculty of Education, he worked as a teacher and high-school principal in public schools.
  • Won the 37th Shika Bungakukan Award in 2022 for the tanka collection 'Torigofuru'.