A medieval Japanese sword often used by the samurai. The blade is slightly curved and extremely sharp. Having a curved blade is an advantage because it was found that a curved blade was easier to pull out of a scabbard than a straight one. A katana's scabbard was called a Saya and the guard was called a tsuba.
Wakizashi
A medieval Japanese sword,shorter than the katana. Most were about 68 centimetres long. It was used instead of the katana when a samurai went indoors. A samurai would wear the wakizashi from morning to night. At night they sleep with it under their pillows.
Knives
The Tanto was a Japanese knife with a very similar blade to the katana and the wakazashi, althought much smaller. Some Japanese women used it for self-defence, although it was mainly used by samurai. Ninjas liked using the tanto because it is light and easily concealed. Another type of medieval Japanese knife were the shurikan, small daggers which could be star-shaped or needle-shaped. They could not penetrate armour so were usually thrown at unarmoured enemies. They were often smeared with poison to ensure a swift kill.
History
The early Japanese swords were all straight with two edges. They were probably used one-handed. In the sixth century, the swords were changed to a curved blade, because it is easier to pull out of a scabbard and made a better angle for cutting, especially from horseback. They were usually about four feet long.
Katana
A medieval Japanese sword often used by the samurai. The blade is slightly curved and extremely sharp. Having a curved blade is an advantage because it was found that a curved blade was easier to pull out of a scabbard than a straight one. A katana's scabbard was called a Saya and the guard was called a tsuba.Wakizashi
A medieval Japanese sword,shorter than the katana. Most were about 68 centimetres long. It was used instead of the katana when a samurai went indoors. A samurai would wear the wakizashi from morning to night. At night they sleep with it under their pillows.Knives
The Tanto was a Japanese knife with a very similar blade to the katana and the wakazashi, althought much smaller. Some Japanese women used it for self-defence, although it was mainly used by samurai. Ninjas liked using the tanto because it is light and easily concealed. Another type of medieval Japanese knife were the shurikan, small daggers which could be star-shaped or needle-shaped. They could not penetrate armour so were usually thrown at unarmoured enemies. They were often smeared with poison to ensure a swift kill.History
The early Japanese swords were all straight with two edges. They were probably used one-handed. In the sixth century, the swords were changed to a curved blade, because it is easier to pull out of a scabbard and made a better angle for cutting, especially from horseback. They were usually about four feet long.Bibliography
www.librarythinkquest.org , www.sfusd.k12.ca.us/schwww/sch618/japan/War/War_warfare_weapons.html