kaiken
Illustration — Japanese kaiken-style tantō A 懐剣 is a long, single or (very rarely) double-edged Japanese knife usually without ornamental fittings housed in a plain but lacquered mount.
Also recorded as futokoro-gatana
kaiken
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Illustration — Japanese kaiken-style tantō A 懐剣 is a long, single or (very rarely) double-edged Japanese knife usually without ornamental fittings housed in a plain but lacquered mount.
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wikidata · Q2497844
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Uses
Uses
The kaiken was once carried by men and women of the samurai class in Japan. It was useful for self-defense in indoor spaces where the long-bladed katana and intermediate-length wakizashi were inconvenient. Women carried them in their kimono either in a pocket-like space (futokoro) or in the sleeve pouch (tamoto) for self-defense and for ritual suicide by slashing the veins in the left side of the neck. When a samurai woman married, she was expected to carry a kaiken with her when she moved in with her husband. The kaiken was also carried concealed in its shirasaya by the lower classes who were not permitted to wear swords, in particular by criminals in the Edo period. In modern Japan, a kaiken is worn as a traditional accessory for the (referee) in sumo matches for the highest ranks. However, a real blade is not used. No one legally wears or carries a kaiken today in Japan, as this is a violation of the Gun and Sword Law. They can be legally transported, however, provided they are carried together with their registration certificate.
Orthography
Orthography
Due to pronunciation changes over time, the blade's name has shifted from kwaiken to kaiken. The kaiken is also referred to as a futokoro-gatana or a.
Notes from the source article
Cited by Wikipedia
Notes from the source article
These works are cited by the source article, in its own numbering. They are recorded as its citations, not as sources VALÉORINE has verified.
- 1.Stone, George Cameron. Glossary of the Construction, Decoration and Use of Arms and Armor in All Countries and in All Times. Dover Publications. 405–. 1999. 978-0-486-40726-5.
- 2.Sinclaire, Clive. Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior. Globe Pequot Press. 88–. 1 November 2004. 978-1-59228-720-8.
- 3.Tarassuk, Leonis. The Complete encyclopedia of arms & weapons: the most comprehensive reference work ever published on arms and armour from prehistoric times to the present. Simon & Schuster. 306. 1982.
- 4.Arai, Hakuseki. The Sword Book in "Honchō Gunkikō". C. E. Tuttle. 42. 1913.
- 5.Mol, Serge. Classical Weaponry of Japan: Special Weapons and Tactics of the Martial Arts. Kodansha International. 27–. 2003. 978-4-7700-2941-6.
- 6.Cannon, Garland Hampton. The Japanese Contributions to the English Language: An Historical Dictionary. Otto Harrassowitz Verlag. 65–. 1996. 978-3-447-03764-8.
References
Citations
References
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