A sestina is a type of six stanza poem that follows a specific pattern of end words. It is composed of six stanzas of six lines each, and an envoi of three lines. The end words of the first stanza are repeated in a different order in each of the following stanzas, and the same six words appear as the last words of lines in the envoi. This poetic form originated in Provence during the Middle Ages and was popularized by Italian poet Francesco Petrarch.