In fact, though Rhyme – Wikipedia is very coy and tentative about stating it, there is good evidence that European rhyme originates in Arabic rhyme, via the Andalus; Arabic has used rhyme extensively since the sixth century. There is occasional rhyme in Classical Greek and Latin, but that is an effect, not a structuring principle. The claim for Old Irish is apparently disputed. Rhyme arose independently in Chinese poetry (far earlier), but it did not have any impact on Europe.