Yari

forged by Echizen Kanenori, 17th century, Edo period (left), forged by Tachibana no Terumasa, 1686, Edo period (middle), and forged by Kanabo Hyoeno jo Masasada, 16th century, Muromachi period (right)
Type	Spear
Place of origin	Japan
Production history
Produced	Nara period (710–794) for hoko, Muromachi period (1333–1568) for yari, since 1334
Specifications
Mass	1.27 kg (2.8 lb)
Length	1–6 m (3 ft 3 in – 19 ft 8 in)
Blade length	15–60 cm (5.9–23.6 in)
Blade type	multiple blade shapes
Hilt type	Wood, horn, lacquer
Scabbard/sheath	Lacquered wood

File:Yari-p1000604.jpg

Three (, , and ) mounted in , including one with an asymmetrical crossbar ()

is the term for a traditionally-made in the form of a spear, or more specifically, the straight-headed spear. The martial art of wielding the is called .

History

The forerunner of the is thought to be the , a lance derived from the qiang (Chinese spear). These are thought to be from the Nara period (710–794). Another polearm, the naginata (glaive), became important in the late Heian.

The term appeared for the first time in written sources in 1334, but this type of spear did not become popular until the late 15th century. The original warfare of the was not a thing for commoners; it was a ritualized combat usually between two warriors, who would challenge each other via mounted archery. In the late Heian, battles on foot began to increase, and , a bladed polearm, became a main weapon along with the yumi (Japanese longbow).

The attempted Mongol invasions of Japan in 1274 and 1281 provoked a shift in weaponry and in warfare. The Mongols employed Chinese and Korean footmen wielding long pikes and fought in tight formations. They moved in large units to stave off cavalry. Polearms were of much greater military use than swords due to their significantly longer reach, lighter weight per unit length (though overall a polearm would be hefty), and excellent piercing ability.

In the Nanboku-chō period, battles on foot by groups became the mainstream, and the appeared. However, were not yet the main weapon. However, after the decade-long Ōnin War (1467-77) in the Muromachi period, large-scale group battles started, employing (peasant foot troops), who fought on foot and in close quarters, and the yari, yumi, and, after 1543, the (Japanese matchlock) quickly became the most utilised weapons.

This shift made the and traditional (sabre) styles obsolete on the battlefield. These were often replaced with the tachi known as the (long-handled sword) and the short, lightweight .

File:槍 隅谷正峯, Yari forged by Masamine Sumitani 1.jpg

A reproduction of the Nihon-go, one of the Three Great Spears of Japan. Forged in 1967 by Living National Treasure Masamine Sumitani and engraved with a horimono by Sensyū Kokeguchi.

Around the latter half of the 16th century, wielding pikes () with a length of 4.5 to 6.5 m (15 to 21 ft) became the main forces in armies. They formed lines with soldiers bearing and short spears. Pikemen formed a two- or three-row line and were trained to move their pikes in unison under command.

Not only but also samurai fought on the battlefield, using the yari as one of their main weapons. For example, Honda Tadakatsu was famous as a master of one of the Three Great Spears of Japan, the . One of the Three Great Spears of Japan, the ) was treasured as a gift, and its ownership changed to Emperor Ōgimachi, then the Shoguns Ashikaga Yoshiaki, Oda Nobunaga, Toyotomi Hideyoshi, Fukushima Masanori, and so on, and has been handed down to the present day.

In the Edo period, the fell into disuse. Greater emphasis was placed on small-scale, close-quarters combat, so the convenience of swords led to their dominance, and polearms and archery lost their practical value. During the peaceful Edo, were still produced (sometimes by renowned swordsmiths), although they were primarily used as ceremonial or police weapons.

Description

File:Antique Japanese (samurai) omi yari.jpg

(large spear), Tokyo national museum

were characterized by a straight blade that could be anywhere from several centimeters to 3 feet (0.91 m) or more in length. The blades were made of the same steel () from which traditional Japanese swords and arrowheads were forged, and were very durable. Throughout history many variations of the straight blade were produced, often with protrusions on a central blade. blades often had an extremely long tang (; 中心); typically it would be longer than the sharpened portion of the blade. The tang protruded into a reinforced hollow portion of the handle ( or ) resulting in a very stiff shaft making it nearly impossible for the blade to fall or break off.

The shaft ( or ) came in many different lengths, widths, and shapes; made of hardwood and covered in lacquered bamboo strips, these came in oval, round, or polygonal cross section. These in turn were often wrapped in metal rings or wire (), and affixed with a metal pommel (; 石突) on the butt end. shafts were often decorated with inlays of metal or semiprecious materials such as brass pins, lacquer, or flakes of pearl. A sheath (; 鞘) was also part of a complete .

Variations of blades

File:Yari02.JPG

Straight (), detail view. Blade is about 1 (approx. 30 cm (12 in) in length).

Various types of points or blades existed. The most common blade was a straight, flat design that resembles a straight-bladed double edged dagger. This type of blade could cut as well as stab and was sharpened like a razor edge. Though is a catchall term, the simple () or straight spear is distinguished from the , which can have additional horizontal blades. can also be distinguished by the types of blade cross-section: the triangular sections were called and the diamond sections were called .

• have a point that resembles a narrow spike with a triangular cross-section. A therefore had no cutting edge, only a sharp point at the end. The was thus best suited for penetrating armor, even armor made of metal, which a standard yari was not as suited to. There are two types of : , blades with a triangular, equilateral cross section, and , with a triangular, isosceles-shaped cross section.
• , a blade with a diamond shaped cross section.
• were mounted to a shaft by means of a metal socket instead of a tang. The socket and blade are forged from a single piece.
• were one of the rarest types of , possessing only a single edge. This could be used to hack at foes and closely resembled a . are the only which use a .
• had a very broad, "spade-shaped" head. often had a pair of holes centred between the two ovoid halves.

File:Yari-p1000609.jpg

spearhead with metal collar; note the long tang, approximately equal to the blade-length

• , also called , looked something similar to a trident or ranseur, and brandishing two curved side blades pointing upward. It is occasionally referred to as in modern weaponry texts.
  • , a with one side blade pointing downward and one side blade pointing upward.
  • , a with the two side blades pointing downward.
  • , a with the two side blades resembling a pair of buffalo horns.
• gets its name from a peasant weapon or tool called (lit. "sickle" or "scythe").

File:片鎌槍, Katakama yari.jpg

spearhead owned by Kato Kiyomasa. Muromachi period, 16th century, Tokyo National Museum

• had a weapon design sporting a blade that was two-pronged. Instead of being constructed like a military fork, a straight blade (as in ) was intersected just below its midsection by a perpendicular blade. This blade was slightly shorter than the primary, had curved tips forming a parallelogram, and was offset so that only 1/6 of its length extended to the opposite side, forming a rough L-shape.
• barely looked like a spear at all. A polearm that had a crescent blade for a spearhead, which could slash and hook.
• was a key-shaped spear with a long blade with a side hook much like that found on a fauchard. It could be used to capture another weapon or even to dismount cavalry.
• possessed some of the most ornate designs for any spear. Running parallel to the long central blade were two crescent-shaped blades facing outward. They were attached in two locations by short cross bars, making the head look somewhat like a fleur-de-lis.
• , an old form of possibly from the Nara period (710–794), a guards spear with 6 ft (1.8 m) pole and 8 in (200 mm) blade either leaf-shaped or waved (like keris); a sickle-shaped horn projected on one or both sides at the joint of blade. The had a hollow socket like the later period for the pole to fit into rather than a long tang.
• , a broad described as being "leaf-shaped" or "bamboo leaf-shaped".
• (also known as ), a straight double edged blade.
• (), an extra long blade.

Variations of shafts

A shaft can range in length from 1–6 metres (3 ft 3 in – 19 ft 8 in), with some in excess of 6 metres.

• : 16.4 to 19.7 ft (5.0 to 6.0 m) long, a type of pike used by . It was especially used by Oda clan beginning from the reign of Oda Nobunaga; samurai tradition of the time held that the soldiers of the rural province of Owari were among the weakest in Japan. Kantō was a chaotic place; Kansai was home to the Shogunate, and the Uesugi, Takeda, Imagawa, and Hojo clans, as well as pirate raiders from Shikoku. Additionally, Kyushu was home of one of the most warmongering clans in Japan, the Shimazu clan. Because of this, Nobunaga armed his underperforming soldiers extra-long pikes in order for them to be more effective against armoured opponents and cavalry, and fighting in groups and formations.
• , a long spear used by and samurai.
• . The shaft goes through a hollow metal tube that allowed the spear to be twisted during thrusting. This style of is typified in the school .
• . A with a short simple shaft that was kept by the bedside for home protection.
• . A with a short shaft that was used by samurai and police to help capture criminals.

Gallery

• Script error: No such module "lang".
• Script error: No such module "lang".
• Script error: No such module "lang".
• Script error: No such module "lang".
• Script error: No such module "lang". or Script error: No such module "lang"., the reinforced upper part of the shaft
  or , the reinforced upper part of the shaft
• Ukiyo-e print of a samurai general holding a Script error: No such module "lang". in his right hand
  Ukiyo-e print of a samurai general holding a in his right hand

See also

• Japanese sword
• Three Great Spears of Japan
• Nunti Bo
• Naginata

External links

• Nihonto message board forum
• Richard Stein's Japanese sword guide