Japanese sword terminology
Original Poster: bamboo
Forum: Martial Arts Weapons
Posted On: 19-08-2004, 14:17
Orginal Post: bamboo: I don't remember my sources when I compliled this, but thought it may be helpful to those interested in japanese sword arts. :)
AIKUCHI - a tanto with no tsuba (guard)
ARA-NIE - coarse or large nie
ASHI - legs (streaks of nioi pointing down toward the edge)
ATOBORI - horimono added at a later date
ATO MEI - signature added at a later date
AYASUGI - large wavey hada (grain)
BO-HI - large or wide groove
BOKKEN - wooden sword for practicing sword kata
BO-UTSURI - faint utsuri
BOSHI - temper line in kissaki
CHIKEI - dark lines that appear in the ji
CHISA KATANA - short katana
CHOJI - clove shaped hamon
CHOJI-MIDARE - irregular choji hamon (temper line)
CHOKUTO - prehistoric straight swords
CHU - medium
CHU-KISSAKI - medium sized point (kissaki)
CHU-SUGUHA straight, medium width temper line
DAISHO - a matched pair of long and short swords
DAITO - long sword (over 24 inches)
FUCHI - collar on hilt
FUCHI-KASHIRA - set of hilt collar (fuchi) and buttcap (kashira)
FUKURA - curve of the ha or edge in the kissaki (point)
FUKURIN - rim cover of a tsuba
FUNAGATA - ship bottom shaped nakago
FUNBARI / FUMBARI - much taper of the blade from the machi to the kissaki
FURISODE - shape of sword tang that resembling the sleeve of a kimono
GAKU-MEI - original signature inlaid in a cut-off (o-suriage) tang
GOMABASHI - parallel grooves
GUNOME - undulating hamon
GUNOME-MIDARE - irregularly undulating hamon
GUNTO - army or military sword mountings
GYAKU - angled back, reversed
HA - cutting edge
HABAKI - blade collar
HABUCHI - the line of the hamon
HADA - grain in steel, pattern of folding the steel
HAGIRE -edge cracks in the hamon (fatal flaw)
HAKIKAKE -broom swept portions in the boshi
HAKO BA - box shaped hamon
HAKO-MIDARE - uneven box shaped hamon
HAKO-MUNE - square shaped blade back
HAMACHI - notch at the beginning of the cutting edge
HAMIDASHI - tanto or dagger with a small guard (tsuba)
HAMON - temper pattern along blade edge
HANDACHI - tachi mountings used on a katana or wakizashi
HI - grooves in the blade
HIRA-MUNE - flat blade backridge
HIRA-TSUKURI / HIRA-ZUKURI - blade without a shinogi (flat blade)
HIRO-SUGUHA - wide, straight temper line (hamon)
HITATSURA - full tempered hamon
HITSU / HITSU-ANA - holes in the tsuba for the kozuka or kogai
HO - kozuka blade HONAMI - family of sword appraissers
ICHIMAI BOSHI - point area (kissaki) that is fully tempered
INAZUMA - lightning (a type of activity in the hamon)
ITAME - wood grained hada
ITO - silk or cotton hilt wrapping
ITOMAKI NO TACHI - tachi with top of saya wrapped with ito
JI - sword surface between the shinogi and the hamon
JI-GANE - surface steel
JI-HADA - surface pattern of the hada
JINDACHI - tachi
KAEN - flame shaped boshi
KAERI - turnback (refers to the boshi at the mune)
KAI GUNTO - naval sword
KAKU-MUNE - square back ridge
KAO - carved monogram of swordsmith on tang (nakago)
KASANE - thickness of blade
KASHIRA - sword pommel or buttcap
KATAKIRI - sword with one side flat (no shinogi)
KATANA - sword worn in the obi, cutting edge up
KATANA-MEI - signature side that faces out when worn edge up
KAWAGANE - skin or surface steel
KENGYO - triangular or pointed nakago-jiri
KESHO YASURIME - decorative file marks on nakago
KINKO - soft metal sword fittings (not iron)
KINSUJI - whitish line along hamon
KIRI HA - flat sword with both sides beveled to the edge
KIRI KOMI - sword cut or nick on the blade from another sword
KISSAKI - point of blade
KITAE - forging
KOBUSE - blade constructed with hard steel around a soft core
KO-CHOJI - small choji hamon
KODACHI - small tachi
KODOGU - all the sword fittings except the tsuba
KOGAI - hair pick accessory
KOIGUCHI - the mouth of the scabbard or its fitting
KOJIRI - end of the scabbard
KOKUHO - national treasure class sword
KO-MARU - small round boshi
KO-MIDARE - small irregular hamon
KO-MOKUME - small wood grain hada
KO-NIE - small or fine nie
KO-NIE DEKI - composed of small nie
KOSHIATE - leather suspensors (hangers) for a sword
KOSHIRAE - sword mountings or fittings
KOSHI-ZORI - curve of the blade is near the hilt
KUBIKIRI - small tanto for cutting the neck or removing heads
KURIJIRI - rounded nakago jiri
KURIKATA - scabbard (saya) fitting for attaching the sageo
KWAIKEN - short knife carried by women
MACHI - notches at the start of the ha and mune
MACHI-OKURI - blade shortened by moving up the ha-machi and mune-machi
MARU - round
MARU-DOME - round groove ending
MARU-MUNE - round mune
MASAME - straight grain (hada)
MEI - swordsmith's signature
MEKUGI - sword peg
MEKUGI-ANA - hole for mekugi
MENUKI - hilt ornaments
MIDARE - irregular, uneven temperline (hamon)
MIDARE-KOMI - uneven pattern in boshi
MIHABA - width of sword blade at the machi
MITOKOROMONO - matching set of kozuka, kogai and menuki
MITSU KADO - point where yokote, shinogi and ko-shinogi meet
MITSU-MUNE - three-sided mune
MIZUKAGE - hazy line in ji commonly due to re-tempering
MONOUCHI - main cutting portion of blade (first six inches from kissaki)
MOROHA - double-edged sword
MOTO-HABA - blade width near habaki
MOTO-KASANE - blade thickness
MUJI - no visible grain
MUMEI - no signature (unsigned blade)
MUNE - back ridge of sword blade
MUNEMACHI - notch at start of mune
MUNEYAKI - regions of temper along the mune
MU-SORI - no curvature
NAGASA - blade length (from tip of kissaki to munemachi)
NAKAGO - sword tang
NANAKO - raised dimpling (fish roe)
NIE-DEKI - hamon done in nie
NIOI-GIRE - break in hamon
NODACHI - large tachi worn by high officials
NOTARE - wave like hamon
NOTARE-MIDARE - irregular wave like hamon
NUNOME - overlay metal-work
O-CHOJI - large choji hamon
O-DACHI - very long sword (over 30 inches)
O-KISSAKI - large kissaki
O-MIDARE - large irregular hamon
OMOTE - signature side of the nakago
O-NIE - large nie
O-NOTARE - large wave patterned hamon
ORIGAMI - appraisal certificate
ORIKAESHI MEI - folded signature
OROSHIGANE - specially processed steel for making swords
O-SEPPA - large seppa (usually on tachi)
URIAGE - a shortened tang with the signature removed
SAGEO - cord used for tying the saya to the obi
SAGURI - catch-hook on saya
SAIHA/SAIJIN - retempered sword
SAKA - slanted
SAKI - tip or point
SAKI-HABA - blade width at yokote
SAKI ZORI - curvature in the top third of the blade
SAME' - rayskin used for tsuka (handle) covering
SAMURAI - Japanese warrior or the warrior class
SANBONSUGI - "three cedars" (hamon with repeating three peaks)
SAN-MAI - three-piece sword construction
SAYA - sword scabbard
SAYAGAKI - attribution on a plain wood scabbard
SAYAGUCHI - mouth of the scabbard (koi-guchi)
SAYASHI - scabbard maker
SEKI-GANE - soft metal plugs in the tsuka hitsu-ana
SEPPA - washers or spacers
SHIKOMI-ZUE - sword cane
SHINAE - ripples in steel due to bending of blade
SHINGANE - soft core steel
SHINOGI - ridgeline of the blade
SHINOGI-JI - sword flat between the mune and shinogi
SHINOGI-ZUKURI - sword with shinogi
SHIRASAYA - plain wood storage scabbard
SHITODOME - small collars in the kurikata and/or kashira
SHOBU ZUKURI - blade where shinogi goes to the tip of the kissaki (no yokote)
SHOTO - short sword (between 12 and 24 inches)
SHOWATO - sword made during the Showa Era (usually refers to low quality blades)
SORI - curvature
SUGATA - shape of sword blade
SUGUHA - straight temper line
SUNAGASHI - activity in hamon like brushed sand
SURIAGE - shortened tang
TACHI - long sword worn with cutting-edge down
TAMAHAGANE - raw steel for making swords
TANTO - dagger or knife with blade less than 12 inches
TO - sword
TOGI - sword polish or polisher
TORAN - high wave like hamon
TORII-ZORI - sword curve in the middle of the blade
TSUBA - sword guard
TSUCHI - small hammer/awl for removing mekugi
TSUKA - sword handle
TSUKA-GUCHI - mouth of handle
TSURUGI - double edged, straight sword
UCHIKO - fine powder used to clean sword blades
UCHIZORI - curved inward
WAKIZASHI - short sword (blade between 12 and 24 inches)
YAKI DASHI - straight temperline near the hamachi
YAKIBA - hardened, tempered sword edge
YAKIDASHI - hamon beginning just above the ha-machi
YAKIHABA - width of yakiba
YAKI-IRE - fast quenching of sword (tempering)
YASURIME - file marks on nakago
YOKOTE - line between ji and kissaki
YOROIDOSHI - armor piercing tanto
ZOGAN - inlay
4 BASIC POSTURES
1. chudan-- center position
2. jodan--overhead position
3. hasso--weapon raised, right hand even with cheek bone
4. wake-- hands below waist, tip of weapon pointed towards the rear
Post: setsu nin to:
Wow thats realy nice list bamboo!
Maybe you could put all that terminology into one place on the forum. Maybe to talk with Matt to make something like dictionari of Japanese martial arts terms.>
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