A mora, called haku or on in Japanese, is the rhythmic unit that poetry counts. It is not the same as a syllable: しゃ is one mora and one syllable, but とう is two morae because the long vowel adds a beat. Haiku are counted in morae, not syllables.

How are small kana counted?

Small ゃ, ゅ, ょ (and their katakana forms) combine with the preceding full kana to form one mora, so きょ is a single mora. This is the yōon rule that keeps きょう at two morae rather than three.

Do ん, っ, and ー count?

Yes. The moraic nasal ん, the geminate っ (sokuon), and the long-vowel mark ー each count as one full mora on their own. This is why しんぶん is four morae and コーヒー is four morae.

Why does my haiku count differ from the English syllables?

English syllable counts often understate Japanese morae because long vowels and final ん add beats that English ignores. Counting morae is the authentic way to measure a Japanese 5-7-5, which is why translated haiku rarely keep the exact pattern.

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Japanese Mora Counter

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Count Japanese morae for haiku

Japanese poetry is measured in morae (haku), not English syllables. This counter applies the classical rules so you can verify a haiku’s 5-7-5 structure or a tanka’s 5-7-5-7-7, counting each line separately.

How it works

Each kana is one mora, with three adjustments:

き + ょ  →  きょ   (small kana merges → 1 mora)
ん        →  1 mora (moraic nasal)
っ        →  1 mora (sokuon / geminate)
ー        →  1 mora (long-vowel mark)

Full hiragana and katakana each contribute one mora.
Small ゃゅょ (and katakana ャュョ, plus small ぁぃぅぇぉ) merge with the preceding kana and add nothing.
ん, っ, and ー each stand as their own mora.
Punctuation, spaces, kanji, and Latin characters are ignored.

Example and notes

The classic ふるいけや is five morae; かわずとびこむ is seven. A word like きょう is two morae (きょ + う), and しんぶん is four. Because long vowels and final ん add beats that English syllables drop, an authentic Japanese haiku and its English translation rarely share the same count. Kanji are not counted — convert to kana first for an accurate total. Everything runs in your browser.