A sestain is a six line poem or repetitive unit of a poem of this format ( musaddas), comparable to quatrain ( Ruba'i in

Persian Persian may refer to: * People and things from Iran, historically called ''Persia'' in the English language ** Persians, the majority ethnic group in Iran, not to be conflated with the Iranic peoples ** Persian language, an Iranian language of the ...

and

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...

) which is a four line poem or a unit of a poem. There are many types of sestain with different

rhyme scheme A rhyme scheme is the pattern of rhymes at the end of each line of a poem or song. It is usually referred to by using letters to indicate which lines rhyme; lines designated with the same letter all rhyme with each other. An example of the ABAB r ...

s, for example AABBCC, ABABCC, AABCCB or AAABAB. The sestain is probably next in popularity to the quatrain in European literature. Usually there are three rhymes in the six-line strophe, but sometimes there are only two.

AABBCC

The AABBCC is the simplest rhyme-scheme of the sestain. It was very popular in Old Polish poetry.

ABABCC

The ABABCC rhyme-scheme is one of the most important forms in European poetry. It can be found in

Thomas Campion Thomas Campion (sometimes spelled Campian; 12 February 1567 – 1 March 1620) was an English composer, poet, and physician. He was born in London, educated at Cambridge, studied law in Gray's inn. He wrote over a hundred lute songs, masques ...

's and

Emma Lazarus Emma Lazarus (July 22, 1849 – November 19, 1887) was an American author of poetry, prose, and translations, as well as an activist for Jewish and Georgist causes. She is remembered for writing the sonnet " The New Colossus", which was inspire ...

's poetry.

Juliusz Słowacki Juliusz Słowacki (; french: Jules Slowacki; 4 September 1809 – 3 April 1849) was a Polish Romantic poet. He is considered one of the " Three Bards" of Polish literature — a major figure in the Polish Romantic period, and the father of m ...

wrote his poem A Voyage to the Holy Land from Naples with the famous The Tomb of Agamemnon in ABABCC stanzas.

ABCCBA

It was probably borrowed from the Italian sonnet rhymed sometimes ABBAABBA CDEEDC.

ABBAAB

ABABAB

AABCCB

This rhyme scheme was extremely popular in French poetry. It was used by

Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...

and

Charles Leconte de Lisle Charles Marie René Leconte de Lisle (; 22 October 1818 – 17 July 1894) was a French poet of the Parnassian movement. He is traditionally known by his surname only, Leconte de Lisle''. Biography Leconte de Lisle was born on the French overseas ...

. In English it is called the tail-rhyme stanza.

AAABAB

It is Burns's stanza.The Art of Versification by Joseph Berg Esenwein and Mary Eleanor Roberts. Revised Edition, The Home Correspondence School, Springfield 1920, p. 120-121.

ABCABC

References

Stanzaic form {{poetry-stub