A brief history on the Japanese sword

During the Chinese Tang Dynasty (618-690 A.D., 705-907 A.D.), although China and Japan shared brief enmity in the battles of Korea, the two empires were in otherwise good standing with one another, and benefited from frequent cultural exchange. One such benefit Japan would employ extensively was the Chinese art of metal-folding "smithery," its origins of which can be traced as far back as 350 B.C., though invariably refined up through the years of the Tang Dynasty. Throughout Chinese history, words and other various edged weapons were sorted into two categories: jian (劍), which were straight-blade, double-edged swords that excelled in versatility; and dao (刀), which were single-edged, curved-blade swords that were purposed for slashing and impact strength. When Chinese "sword-smithing" styles and techniques made their way to Japan, many of the Chinese smiths' styles were emulated; traditional Chinese jian styles were reiterated as Japanese tsurugi (剣) and ken (剣), and also as the spear/pole-arm yari (槍), while Chinese dao variations were refined into the more prevalent Japanese sword styles: tachi (太刀), katana (刀), wakizashi (脇差), and tanto (短刀) as swords; naginata (長刀) as a spear/pole-arm.

Now, aside from the obvious effectiveness of the sword as a combat weapon, the cultural significance of the sword in anime/manga/Japanese-produced video-game - whether a traditional Japanese sword or otherwise - is often cultural; the sword is a representation of the soul of the user - it is his/her very fighting spirit. As such, within the realm of Bushido, dating as far back as 712 A.D., under the rule of Emperor Mommu, and ending in 1880 A.D., during the Meiji Restoration period, Japan saw the installed rule of the samurai class, which were sworn to uphold both very explicit legal and moral codes regarding sword etiquette, such as calling for a samurai to be armed at all times, even in times of peace or formal events, or requiring samurai to clean and maintain their swords on a daily basis, and get this: due to the moral code of samurai regarding their preventing damage to their sheaths, or saya (鞘), of which death of the offender was deemed an acceptable punishment, samurai, wearing their swords on the left so as to be drawn with their right hand, would ritually walk on the left side of streets to avoid damage; during the modernization - and undoubtedly the Westernization - of Japan, when the automobile made its international debut, and paved roads were to be defined as either left-side or right-side, Japan, drawing from that particular samurai tradition, assented to a left-side road schematic. Moreover, the sword was the primary weapon of the Japanese warrior in combat, up until 1872 A.D., wherein they became a secondary weapon, as the gunpowder-based rifle began making its way into Japanese ports. Accordingly, whenever an anime/manga/Japanese-produced video-game features a traditional-warrior role, it is more often than not a sword wielder of some degree. All things considered, it is no surprise as to how or why the sword's importance has integrated itself into Japanese culture.

And yes, many swords appearing in these forms of Japanese-influenced media closely resemble these conventional styles - the Kill Bill movies immediately come to mind - but also do anime/manga series Samurai Champloo, Jubei-Chan, Blood +, Rurouni Kenshin, One Piece, Ninja Scroll, and Afro Samurai to name a few, as well as the Way of the Samurai, Bushido Blade, Battle Arena Toshinden, Samurai Shodown, Ninja Gaiden, the Soul Calibur and the pre-VII Final Fantasy video-game series, for the most part, all feature swords styles steeped in tradition. But as the world has come to find out, as much as Japan is known for upholding its traditions, the nation is equally analogous to, well, let's say innovation. But what seem to be more popular nowadays in Japanese and Japanese-influenced media than orthodox sword styles are examples of more contemporary sword styles ranging from marginally updated to downright outlandish can be viewed in a wide array of media: anime/manga series Bleach, Naruto, Storm Riders, Inuyasha, Samurai 7, Berserk, and a great many Gundam series, and any amount of video-games, like Star Gladiator, Guilty Gear, BlazBlue, No More Heroes, Strider, Kingdom Hearts, surprisingly Halo and the Metal Gear Solid series, the more recent Final Fantasy titles, with the exceptions of IX and XI, and the list goes on.

But why are swords so popular, as opposed to other weapons? Simply put, because they look cool, they're varied, they're very customizable, and they can cut through stuff - and really fast, at that. Additionally, due to the lore attributed to many of these blades, often owned and wielded by famous warriors, outlaws, military commanders, or generals, they are sought after as treasures - either personal or national - either because of the swords' exclusive rarity and/or extremely high-quality forging value. What also adds to their high demand are the legends that allegedly grant the wielder special abilities or powers, invisibility, life-stealing, or outright superiority over other blades - the stuff legends are made of, in other words. Aside from the stuff of legend - strictly from a design aspect - what other weapon, other than firearms, can be redone so many times yet remain distinctive? Let's face it, it's a cool weapon - although maybe not as able to carry the same coolness factor as a scythe or nunchaku, it is sleek, sharp, and dangerous. During the Allied occupation of Japan post-World War II, Gen. Douglas MacArthur confiscated millions of Japanese swords and decreed a ban on their forging until one Dr. Junji Honma personally appealed to him and challenged him to distinguish between which swords of his collection were used purely as weapons and which ones were made for aesthetic and ornamental usage, effectively causing General MacArthur to repeal the ban. But let's stray from Eastern influence for a while; swords have also made quite an impact in Western pop-culture as well - we needn't look further than the light-sabers of Star Wars fame- but even if George Lucas didn't bless us with that brainchild of his, there's still be King Arthur, Highlander, Thundercats, He-Man, Conan the Barbarian, Peter Pan, Zorro, Wu-Tang Clan and countless others brandishing swords of some sort that have yet come to mind. If you think about it, what nation in existence hasn't either invented, refined, or utilized some form of sword? Knights, pirates, ninja, samurai, gladiators, Vikings, fencers, soldiers, raiders, and martial artists of the world's cultures and nations all live and die by the sword.

If one could propose another weapon that fulfills so much of a history, warrior code, versatility in battle, variability in style and design, cultural impact, aesthetic significance, may it be mightier than the gun, but not as mighty as the pen.

-P. Strudwick