Uchigatana: Difference between revisions
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#REDIRECT [[Katana]]{{R from translation|ja|en}} |
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{{short description|Type of Japanese sword}} |
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{{Italic title|reason=[[:Category:Japanese words and phrases]]}} |
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{{Infobox weapon |
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|name= {{Nihongo|Uchigatana|打刀}} |
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| image= Katana-bois-p1000654.jpg |
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| image_size = 300 |
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|caption= Uchigatana full exterior (upper section) |
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|origin= Japan |
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|type= [[Sword]] |
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<!-- Type selection --> |
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|is_bladed= yes |
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<!-- Production history --> |
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|production_date=[[Kamakura Period]] (1185–1333)<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=Mx7rAAAAMAAJ&q=uchigatana&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=G_sgTZD0HsO88ganpoDGBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAQ ''Lethal elegance: the art of samurai sword fittings'', Joe Earle, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MFA Publications, 2004 p.15]</ref> to present |
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<!-- General specifications --> |
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|weight= |
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|length= |
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|part_length= 60+ cm |
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}} |
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An {{nihongo|'''''uchigatana'''''|[[wiktionary:打刀|打刀]]}} is a type of [[Japanese sword]] worn by the [[samurai]] class of feudal Japan. The ''uchigatana'' was the descendant of the [[tachi]].{{citation needed|date=April 2013}} The official term for ''katana'' in Japan is ''uchigatana'' and the term ''katana'' often refers to single-edged swords from around the world.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20201015072822/https://www.touken-world.jp/tips/50824/ 日本刀と刀の違い] Nagoya Japanese Sword Museum Touken World</ref> |
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==History== |
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The production of swords in Japan is divided into specific time periods: |
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* Jokoto (ancient swords, until around 900 ) |
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* Koto (old swords from around 900–1596 ) |
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* Shinto (new swords 1596–1780 ) |
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* Shinshinto (new new swords 1781–1876 ) |
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* Gendaito (modern swords 1876–1945 )<ref>{{cite book|author=Clive Sinclaire |title=Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&pg=PA40|date=1 November 2004 |publisher=Lyons Press |isbn=978-1-59228-720-8 |pages=40–58}}</ref> |
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* Shinsakuto (newly made swords 1953–present)<ref>{{cite book|author=トム岸田 |title=靖国刀 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=z6oB6eFRjZkC&pg=PA42|date=24 September 2004 |publisher=Kodansha International |isbn=978-4-7700-2754-2 |page=42}}</ref> |
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From the [[Heian period|Heian]] to the [[Muromachi Period]], the primary battlefield sword was the [[tachi]]. Its long blade and sharp edge made it ideal for use on horseback. During the fifteenth century, the ''uchigatana'' came into use, and during the [[Muromachi Period]] (1336 to 1573) use of the ''uchigatana'' became widespread.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=zPyswmGDBFkC&pg=PA28&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=G_sgTZD0HsO88ganpoDGBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=5&ved=0CDcQ6AEwBA#v=onepage&q=uchigatana&f=true ''The connoisseur's book of Japanese swords'' Kōkan Nagayama, Kodansha International, 1998 p.28]</ref> |
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The word ''uchigatana'' can be found in literary works as early as the [[Kamakura Period]], with ''uchi'' meaning "striking" and ''gatana'' (''katana'') meaning "sword", so that ''uchigatana'' means "striking sword".<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&pg=PA81 ''Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior''], Author Clive Sinclaire, Publisher Globe Pequot, 2004, {{ISBN|978-1-59228-720-8}} P.81</ref> The ''uchigatana'' was originally used only by individuals of low status or rank, such as the ''[[ashigaru]]''.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&q=uchigatana#v=snippet&q=uchigatana&f=false ''Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior''], Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004 p.81</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=q5KBjpGSRgkC&pg=PA79 ''Samurai, warfare and the state in early medieval Japan''], [[Karl Friday]], Routledge, 2004 p.79</ref> |
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Most ''uchigatana'' made during the early [[Kamakura Period]] were not of the highest standard, and thus, were considered disposable,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=Mx7rAAAAMAAJ&q=uchigatana&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=G_sgTZD0HsO88ganpoDGBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=2&ved=0CCkQ6AEwAQ ''Lethal elegance: the art of samurai sword fittings'', Joe Earle, Museum of Fine Arts, Boston, MFA Publications, 2004 p.15]</ref> virtually no examples from these early times exist today. It was not until the [[Muromachi Period]], when [[samurai]] began to use ''uchigatana'' to supplement the longer ''tachi'', that ''uchigatana'' of higher quality were made. During the [[Momoyama period]], the ''tachi'' was almost totally abandoned and the custom of wearing a pair of long and short ''uchigatana'' together (called the ''[[daishō]]'') <ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=vFS2iT8QjqEC&pg=PA68&dq=daisho&hl=en&ei=B-ofTY68Moqr8AbxsqntDQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEEQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=daisho&f=false ''The Japanese sword'', Kanzan Satō, Kodansha International, 1983 p.68]</ref> became the dominant symbol of the samurai class. |
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==Description== |
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[[File:Samurai putting on a nodawa.png|thumb|A Japanese Edo period wood block print of a samurai wearing a ''tachi'', the cutting edge of the ''tachi'' is worn pointing down as opposed to the ''uchigatana'' or ''katana'' which would be worn cutting edge up.]] |
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The blade length of the ''uchigatana'' during the 16th century is said to have been from 60 cm to no more than 70 cm, with a stout ''sugata'', a steep ''saki-zori'', and it could be used as a one handed sword due to its thin ''kasane'' (thickness) and short tang [[Commons:Category:Nakago|(''nakago'')]] making it relatively light.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=zPyswmGDBFkC&pg=PA28&dq=uchi+gatana&hl=en&ei=tCUxTub1N-Pj0QHRmfnmCw&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=4&ved=0CDoQ6AEwAw#v=onepage&q=uchi%20gatana&f=true''The connoisseur's book of Japanese swords'', Kōkan Nagayama, Kodansha International, 1998 P.28]</ref> |
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As opposed to the ''[[tachi]]'', the ''uchigatana'' was worn edge-up in the belt,<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=vFS2iT8QjqEC&pg=PA61&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=9jzGTc_EI8SDtgf12KyxBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEkQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=uchigatana&f=true ''The Japanese sword'', Kanzan Satō, Kodansha International, 1983 p.61]</ref> this and usually being slightly smaller than the ''tachi'' was the main difference between the ''tachi'' and the ''uchigatana''.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=q5KBjpGSRgkC&pg=PA79&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=G_sgTZD0HsO88ganpoDGBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=true ''Samurai, warfare and the state in early medieval Japan'', Karl F. Friday, Routledge, 2004 p.79]</ref> Since the ''uchigatana'' is worn differently than the ''tachi'', the signature [[Commons:Category:Mei|(''mei'')]] carved into the tang of the ''uchigatana'' is also opposite to the ''tachi'' ''mei'', making the words still upright instead of upside down as when one wears the ''tachi'' in the manner of the ''uchigatana''.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=q5KBjpGSRgkC&pg=PA79&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=G_sgTZD0HsO88ganpoDGBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=true ''Samurai, warfare and the state in early medieval Japan'', Karl F. Friday, Routledge, 2004 p.79]</ref> |
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''Uchigatana'' had become popular for several reasons. Firstly, the ''uchigatana'' had proven more convenient to wear, and did not get in the way of using a polearm as much as a ''tachi''. The ''uchigatana''<nowiki />'s rapid acceptance had also owed to the frequency of battles fought on foot<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=IQ3FAZG94ZsC&pg=PA81&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=G_sgTZD0HsO88ganpoDGBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=9&ved=0CEwQ6AEwCA#v=onepage&q=uchigatana&f=true ''Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior'', Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004 p.81]</ref> as well as to a developing emphasis on soldiers' speed, indicating that battlefield combat had sharply intensified.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=q5KBjpGSRgkC&pg=PA79&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=G_sgTZD0HsO88ganpoDGBQ&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=3&ved=0CC4Q6AEwAg#v=onepage&q&f=true ''Samurai, warfare and the state in early medieval Japan'', Karl F. Friday, Routledge, 2004 p.79]</ref> Since the ''uchigatana'' was shorter than the ''tachi'', it could be used in more confined quarters, such as inside a building. Furthermore, tactics of the period had dictated unseating mounted soldiers by cutting off the mounts legs; hence, mounted combat had become seen as inherently disadvantageous.{{citation needed|date=January 2014}} |
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==Use== |
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Unlike the ''tachi'', with which the acts of drawing and striking with the sword were two separate actions, unsheathing the ''uchigatana'' and cutting the enemy down with it became one smooth, lightning-fast action.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=Ce5KaXj5fSEC&pg=PA20&dq=wakizashi&hl=en&ei=m84sTt_BOsbegQeswcD1Cg&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=28&ved=0CLwBEOgBMBs#v=onepage&q=wakizashi&f=true ''Katana: The Samurai Sword: 950-1877'', Stephen Turnbull, Osprey Publishing, 2010 P.22]</ref> This technique was developed in the arts of [[battojutsu]], [[iaijutsu]], and [[iaido]]. |
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The curvature of the ''uchigatana'' blade differs from the ''tachi'' in that the blade has curvature near the sword's point (''sakizori''), as opposed to curvature near the sword's hilt (''koshizori'') like the ''tachi''. Because the sword is being drawn from below, the act of unsheathing became the act of striking. For a soldier on horseback, the ''sakizori'' curve of the ''uchigatana'' was essential in such a blade, since it allows the sword to come out of its sheath [[Commons:Category:Saya|(''saya'')]] at the most convenient angle for executing an immediate cut.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=vFS2iT8QjqEC&pg=PA61&dq=uchigatana&hl=en&ei=9jzGTc_EI8SDtgf12KyxBA&sa=X&oi=book_result&ct=result&resnum=7&ved=0CEkQ6AEwBg#v=onepage&q=uchigatana&f=true ''The Japanese sword'', Kanzan Satō, Kodansha International, 1983 p.61]</ref> |
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== See also == |
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{{div col}} |
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* [[Japanese sword]] |
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* [[Tachi]] |
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* [[Ōdachi]] |
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* [[Wakizashi]] |
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* [[Tantō]] |
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* [[Daishō]] |
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* [[Katana]] |
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* [[Japanese sword mountings]] |
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{{Div col end}} |
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==References== |
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{{Reflist|30em}} |
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==External links== |
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{{commons category|Nihonto}} |
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* [http://www.militaria.co.za/nmb/ Nihonto message board forum] |
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* [https://web.archive.org/web/20120204081704/http://home.earthlink.net/~steinrl/nihonto.htm Richard Stein's Japanese sword guide] |
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{{Japanese (samurai) weapons, armour and equipment}} |
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{{Swords by region}} |
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{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}} |
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[[Category:Japanese sword types]] |
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[[Category:Samurai swords]] |
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[[Category:Japanese swords]] |
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[[Commons:Category:Nihonto]] |
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Latest revision as of 22:58, 14 January 2023
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