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{{nihongo|'''''Shinken'''''|真剣||literally meaning "] ]"}} is a ] that has a forged and sharpened blade. The term ''shinken'' is often used in contrast with '']'' (wooden sword), '']'' (bamboo sword), and ] (unsharpened metal sword).


{{nihongo|'''Shinken'''|真剣||literally meaning "] ]"}} is a ] term used to describe a ] that is sharp and used for real cutting or combat, as opposed to those that are blunted for other types of practice. Today, they are primarily used for high level ] and/or ] (cutting) practice. Unlike an ] or mogito (an unsharpened sword for ''iaido'' practice), a shinken has a sharpened edge. "Gendaito" are hand-made shinken by one of approximately 250 swordsmiths active in Japan at the moment, members of the Japanese Swordsmith Association. These ]s are limited by Japanese law to producing no more than twenty-four swords a year each. This limit, along with highly specialized skills and the need for a great deal of manual labour, accounts for the high price that a Japanese-made shinken (Nihonto) can fetch - starting from about $6,000 (US) for the blade alone, and going many times higher for genuine antique (] or ] are two famous types) blades. Shinken are often used in ], ], and ] (forms of combative sword-drawing), as well as ] (test-cutting through targets). In these arts, shinken may be used alongside unsharpened ] (居合刀) or mogitō (模擬刀), training swords manufactured for swordsmanship practice. ''Gendaitō'' (現代刀; modern-made swords) are handmade shinken by one of approximately 250 swordsmiths active in Japan at the moment, members of the Japanese Swordsmith Association. These ]s are limited by Japanese law to producing no more than twenty-four swords a year each. This limit, along with highly specialized skills and the need for a great deal of manual labour, accounts for the high price that a Japanese-made shinken (Nihontō) can fetch—starting from about US$6,000 for the blade alone, and going many times higher for genuine antique (Mukansa or ] are two famous types) blades.


There is also a large worldwide market for "shinken" made outside of ]. Many collectors consider these to be somewhat worthless as collectibles (since they are not ]), but some martial artists continue to purchase and use them, because of their considerably lower price, ease of acquisition, and also to spare their valuable ] from what some view as abuse. The vast majority of these are made in China, but there are custom smiths all over the world manufacturing swords "in the Japanese style", some of which approach nihonto in quality. There is also a large worldwide market for "shinken" made outside Japan. Many collectors consider these to be somewhat worthless as collectibles (since they are not ]), but some martial artists continue to purchase and use them, because of their considerably lower price, ease of acquisition, and also to spare their valuable Nihontō from what some view as abuse. The vast majority of these are made in China, but there are custom smiths all over the world manufacturing swords in the Japanese style.

"Shinken" is also used in modern Japanese language to mean "to do something seriously."


==See also== ==See also==
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⚫ {{wiktionary|真剣}}
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==References==
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==External links== ==External links==
⚫ {{wiktionary|真剣}}
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Latest revision as of 18:37, 8 June 2024

For the network monitoring software, see Shinken (software).
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Shinken, a katana used in sword-related martial arts practice

Shinken (真剣, literally meaning "real sword") is a Japanese sword that has a forged and sharpened blade. The term shinken is often used in contrast with bokken (wooden sword), shinai (bamboo sword), and iaitō (unsharpened metal sword).

Shinken are often used in battōdō, iaidō, and iaijutsu (forms of combative sword-drawing), as well as tameshigiri (test-cutting through targets). In these arts, shinken may be used alongside unsharpened iaitō (居合刀) or mogitō (模擬刀), training swords manufactured for swordsmanship practice. Gendaitō (現代刀; modern-made swords) are handmade shinken by one of approximately 250 swordsmiths active in Japan at the moment, members of the Japanese Swordsmith Association. These swordsmiths are limited by Japanese law to producing no more than twenty-four swords a year each. This limit, along with highly specialized skills and the need for a great deal of manual labour, accounts for the high price that a Japanese-made shinken (Nihontō) can fetch—starting from about US$6,000 for the blade alone, and going many times higher for genuine antique (Mukansa or Ningen Kokuho are two famous types) blades.

There is also a large worldwide market for "shinken" made outside Japan. Many collectors consider these to be somewhat worthless as collectibles (since they are not Nihontō), but some martial artists continue to purchase and use them, because of their considerably lower price, ease of acquisition, and also to spare their valuable Nihontō from what some view as abuse. The vast majority of these are made in China, but there are custom smiths all over the world manufacturing swords in the Japanese style.

See also

References

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