A GALAXY AT Z

We report the discovery of Ly alpha emission from a galaxy at z = 5.34 , the first object at z > 5 with a spectroscopically confirmed redshif t. The faint continuum emission [m(AB)(8000 Angstrom) approximate to 2 7], the relatively small rest-frame equivalent width of the emission l ine (W(Ly alpha)(rest)approximate to 95 Angstrom), and the limits on t he N v/Ly alpha ratio suggest that this is a star-forming galaxy and n ot an active galactic nucleus. The star formation rates implied by the W continuum emission and the Ly alpha emission are (in the absence of dust extinction) fairly modest (similar to 6 h(50)(-2)M.yr(-1) for q( 0) = 0.5). The continuum luminosity is similar to that of sub-L-1500 star-forming galaxies at z similar to 3, and the width of the Ly alpha line yields an upper limit to the mass of less than 2.6 x 10(10) M.. The strong emission line detected in this low-luminosity galaxy provid es hope for the discovery of higher luminosity primeval galaxies at re dshifts z > 5.