American Haiku was the first periodical publication outside Japan devoted entirely to haiku and senryu and it was a landmark in the development of haiku in English. Under the general editorship of James Bull, Donald Eulert, and Clement Hoyt, and with contributions from many other leading poets, the pocket-sized magazine was launched in Platteville, Wisconsin, in late 1963 and published twice a year until May 1968. American Haiku featured many of the top American haiku poets, and the short essays and reviews set the standards for English-language haiku scholarship and criticism for years to come.

In each issue throughout its six-year run, American Haiku, the first periodical outside Japan devoted entirely to haiku and senryu, awarded prizes to a number of poems chosen by the editors from subscribers’ submissions. Beginning with a contest in late 1962, the American Haiku Awards were the first regular competition for English-language haiku.