Japanese swords

traditionally made sword from Japan

An is a type of Japanese sword worn by the samurai class of feudal Japan. The uchigatana was the descendant of the tachi. The official term for katana in Japan is uchigatana and the term katana often refers to single-edged swords from around the world.

thumb|Tameshigiri using a goza target on a stand (2006) Ren Kuroda demonstrates Shofu at the Mugairyu Meishi-ha dojo in Tokyo, Japan is the Japanese art of target test cutting. The kanji literally means "test cut". This practice was popularized in the Edo period (17th century) for testing the quality of Japanese swords. It continues to the present day, but has evolved into a martial art which focuses on demonstrating the practitioner's skill with a sword.

thumb| is a type of steel made in the Japanese tradition. The word means 'precious', and the word means 'steel'. is used to make Japanese swords, daggers, knives, and other kinds of tools.

the seizure of swords and a variety of other weapons from civilians in Japanese history

visible effect on Japanese blades

, also known as , is a warrior god in Japanese mythology. Also known under the epithet Katori Daimyōjin () after his shrine in northern Chiba Prefecture (historical Shimōsa Province), Katori Jingū, he is often revered alongside Takemikazuchi (the god of Kashima Shrine), with whom he is closely associated (his brother). He is the general of Amaterasu and regarded as a legendary ancestor of the Mononobe clan, and like Takemikazuchi is one of the tutelary deities of the Fujiwara clan.

military museum in Japan

housings and associated fittings that hold the blade of a Japanese sword

thumb|280px|Wakizashi forged by Koyama Sōbei Munetsugu with a horimono engraved on the blade by Shōji Zenbei Nobutatsu. A [[vajra is engraved to pray for the protection of the offspring. Edo period]] right|thumb|100px|Antique Japanese wakizashi sword blade showing the horimono, of a chrysanthemum Horimono (, , literally carving, engraving), also known as chōkoku (, "sculpture"), are the engraved images in the blade of a nihonto () Japanese sword, which may include katana or tantō blades. The artist is called a chōkokushi (), or a horimonoshi (, "engraver").

Ame-no-Ohabari (, Old Japanese Ame-nö-Opobari) is a legendary Japanese sword. that roughly translates to "Heaven-Point-Blade-Extended". It is primarily found in the mythology of Izumo Province. It is a Totsuka-no-Tsurugi "Sword of Length of Ten Fists", which seems to be distinguished by its length and being a tsurugi (straight, double-bladed sword). thumb|A tsurugi (sword)|tsurugi from 1654. It was made as an offering to [[Susanoo-no-Mikoto, the main kami of Yasaka Shrine.]]