Why are katanas so popular?

Status
Not open for further replies.
shaw11b

shaw11b

Joined
May 26, 2010
Messages
518
So I stumble into this sub forum every now and again, what is the such love for Katanas? Not bashing them at all, I have owned a few myself. But to the readers, what makes the Katana such a popular sword over a historical European Sword? Again, not bashing a katana, just curious why so many people prefer them to European swords.
 
Prejudice. To quote John Clements
"Knightly blades could be excellent swords, but are often denigrated merely as crude hunks of iron while samurai swords are venerated and exalted sometimes to the point of absurdity by collectors and enthusiasts (something the Japanese themselves do not discourage). Bad films and poorly trained martial artists reinforce this myth. The bottom line is that Medieval swords were indeed well-made, light, agile fighting weapons equally capable of delivering dismembering cuts or cleaving deep into body cavities. They were far from the clumsy, heavy things they're often portrayed as in popular media and far, far more than a mere "club with edges." Interestingly, the weight of katanas compared to longswords is very close with each on average being less than 4 pounds.
Those who think the Medieval sword and shield was and is just a "wham-bam, whack-whack" fight are as greatly misinformed as those who imagine the katana was handled in some mysterious and secret manner and can cut through anything as if it were a light-saber. Those who presume the use of Medieval long-sword merely involved a brutish hacking are also under a tremendous delusion. It is a mystery how such beliefs can be held independently of those who today assiduously study and train in the subject as a true martial art, and spend years in practice with the actual weapons. Perhaps this ignorance is due to watching too many movies or the influence of fantasy-historical societies with their costumed role-playing."
http://www.thearma.org/essays/knightvs.htm#.VGGcnjSUfSu
 
I think when allied soldiers brought the captured katanas back after serving in ww2 the interest was sparked.
 
Yeah but a Luger isn't some ancient weapon which can be romanticized.
If Germans would have fought WW2 with some two handed swords, they might have become popular in America as well. Instead all we got now is American bikers wearing old German army helmets.
I know I know, by my logic they should all be wearing more ancient Samurai helmets instead.
:-D
 
Were WW2 katanas more for chopping up civilians & pows than for fighting?
Now I'm more interested in an ancestral basket hilt (with targe & dirk) as shown by Mad Jack Churchill.
captain-mad-jack-churchill-1.jpg
 
To be honest if polled amongst the general public of the world, the Luger would be more familiar than any specific katana flash card of a deck of swords.

Thread starters most often only promote sterotyping of any sword type. Is it possible that someone sees more katana threads because they look for them? To be honest, I see more modern themes than any others here at BF. Some may be Japanese inspired and listed as such but I have a hard time putting them in the production katana/wakizashi/tanto bracket. It also goes somewhat in cycles. Certainly there is a lot less youthful vigor of the latest batch of Japanophile newcomers than there were during the Kill Bill and Last Samurai years. I had to be amused at the slight trickle of interest after the Hollywood version of the 47 Ronin. It is true of some boards that katana may still rule the roost but I hardly see that here. Even some of those much less so than they used to be.

Cheers

GC
 
I lean towards rapiers myself, although my eye can be turned by ANY well-made sword, antique or modern. I think much of the "katana-love" was inspired by the ninja-craze of the 80's, and as Horseclover mentioned, it's also been inspired by Hollywood. I don't think it's necessarily a bad thing,I'm sure many of us here were enchanted by a flashing piece of steel as a child. I know i was, the old Errol Flynn movies that ran on Sundays, way back when HBO was included with your 13 channels of Cable TV, and MTV played music videos. ;)
 
I personally blame the widespread proliferation of firearms in Europe and the decline in the practice of traditional European martial arts with why everyone loves katanas. The Japanese never really gave up/lost/set aside their martial traditions when firearms became widely available and thus they are more readily apparent and present in the public eye and consciousness. If guns had not been a thing I would probably be nerding over a broadsword inside of my katanas.
 
I personally blame the widespread proliferation of firearms in Europe and the decline in the practice of traditional European martial arts
Click to expand...
That would hardly be the case, as study and practice historic European martial arts has been blossoming somewhat exponentially over the past three decades. Again, somewhat a matter of perception and focus. There are many more HEMA groups in Europe than one can easily count but I can agree much of the public is oblivious of them. Not so, or true across all internet bladed discussion boards. More specifically this forum.

Going back to the original post "why the love?", there are fewer than 25% of the threads on the first page of this subforum that are katana oriented. "just curious why so many people prefer them to European swords." If that were the case, most of the discussion here would be based on that favor.

Cheers

GC
 
Azraelsblade said:
I personally blame the widespread proliferation of firearms in Europe and the decline in the practice of traditional European martial arts with why everyone loves katanas. The Japanese never really gave up/lost/set aside their martial traditions when firearms became widely available and thus they are more readily apparent and present in the public eye and consciousness. If guns had not been a thing I would probably be nerding over a broadsword inside of my katanas.
Click to expand...

That makes a lot of sense. I grew up in the eastern and SE martial arts most of my life and you are right the sword culture in the east really never died out like it did in Europe. I am now getting into HEMA and historical fencing through my local SCA and I really enjoy it. I hope the HEMA movement starts to pick up here in the USA.
 
With a renewed interest in the Western blade arts we are seeing the popularity of these blades grow every day

The advantage of a lineage that the eastern blade arts have enjoyed have kept a martial culture very interested in them

Add that in the East swords are venerated to an almost religious stature and it really is quite obvious why the Katana has such a following

I love all blade arts but the Japamese sword is where my passion is and for me high art
 
I had limited if any interest in Japanese style blades until I started studying Muso Jikiden Eishin Ryu Iaiheiho over 14 years ago.

At that point I was hooked, and started wearing swords in class training, and cutting with them.

While the European Sword Arts were lost for generations, and have only really recently become popular very much thanks due to the late, great Hank Reinhardt and John Clements influence....Japanese Sword Arts have unbroken lineage and practice for about 400 years.

There is myth and romance attached to the katana, and it is a beautiful implement to do what it does.

Also, the way it is constructed lends itself to interest from a variety of different areas....things like the hilt(Tsuba) can be found collected and appreciated around the world. They became miniature works of art once the sword became more symbol than tool of death.

Best Regards,

STeven Garsson
 
The Katana is a rare and almost perfect mix between slashing and stabbing ability, reach, weight and portability. It is strong and heavy enough to defeat armor, can pierce anything, is still relatively fast, doesn't weigh thirty pounds.
There's also a lot of romance about the way they were made, the warrior cast that was exclusively entitled to carry them, their history which is so closely intertwined with that of medieval Japan.
Also, they're just so outrageously beautiful. ;) I've held a lot of swords, but Katana's and Wakizashi's have some magic about them. :cool:
 
Good post.^
When I held my first traditional katana, it felt as if it was alive.
rolf
 
The primary difference between the European and Japanese sword is that in Europe the Armorer's won the arms race over the sword, while in Japan that never really happens. We never really see full plate armor in Japan. The sword as a primary military weapon has been in decline in Europe since the 14th century, while in Japan the sword remains an important weapon through the 19th century.

n2s
 
gadunz said:
Were WW2 katanas more for chopping up civilians & pows than for fighting?
Click to expand...

The vast majority of katanas carried by Imperial Japanese officers in WW2 were mass-produced pieces and of much lower quality than a truly good one. Also, contrary to popular belief in the West, the majority of the soldiers and officers were NOT descended from the samurai class and carrying out the traditions of their 'samurai' forefathers.

In Taiwan, I had a Chinese martial arts teacher who was very pro-Chinese, but told me that the Chinese Miao Dao was designed as a result of Chinese forces armed with Chinese broadswords losing skirmishes with Japanese pirates, who were often ronin (masterless samurai) and who raided China's coastal areas centuries ago. They found that the Japanese method, much simpler and direct, using a 2-handed grip, and their aggressive and fearless attacks, gave the Japanese pirates a big advantage, even against greater numbers. He told me that the Chinese created their own sword based on the katana to deal with that problem. He said that the assertion many Chinese made that the Japanese copied the Miao Dao to create the katana was B.S. I don't know if his information was right or not (I haven't googled it or anything), but that's what he told me.

I'm descended from samurai on my mother's side, and once an older cousin brought out a valuable sword that had been in the family for generations, and was powdering the blade. Unfortunately, I was a kid and wasn't overly interested, but I was impressed with how perfect it looked. Of course, his rule was, 'you can look, but don't touch'.

Jim
 
Last edited:
Status
Not open for further replies.
Back
Top