Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. Please help improve this article by adding citations to reliable sources. This article needs additional citations for verification. The swordsmith's signature mei is placed on the nakago. To remove the tsuka one removes the mekugi. It is used to anchor the blade using a mekugi, a small bamboo pin that is inserted into another cavity in the handle tsuka and through the mekugi-ana, thus restricting the blade from slipping out.

Because American bladesmiths use this design extensively it is a common misconception that the design originated in America.ДЄ hole is punched through the tang nakago, called a mekugi-ana. Examples of such are shown in the book 'The Japanese Sword' by Kanzan Sato. Kissaki have a curved profile, and smooth three-dimensional curvature across their surface towards the edge - though they are bounded by a straight line called the yokote and have crisp definition at all their edges.ДЄlthough it is not commonly known, the 'chisel point' kissaki originated in Japan. The kissaki (point) is not a 'chisel-like' point, nor is the Western knife interpretation of a 'tanto point' found on true Japanese swords a straight, linearly-sloped point has the advantage of being easy to grind, but it bears only a superficial similarity to traditional Japanese kissaki. In addition, whether the front edge of the tip is more curved ( fukura-tsuku) or (relatively) straight ( fukura-kareru) is also important.

The sword also has an exact tip shape, which is considered an extremely important characteristic: the tip can be long ( ЕЌkissaki), medium ( chЕ«kissaki), short ( kokissaki), or even hooked backwards ( ikuri-ЕЌkissaki). The shinogi can be placed near the back of the blade for a longer, sharper, more fragile tip or a more moderate shinogi near the center of the blade. A flat or narrowing shinogi is called shinogi-hikushi, whereas a fat blade is called a shinogi-takushi. However, swords could narrow down to the shinogi, then narrow further to the blade, or even expand outward towards the shinogi then shrink to the blade (producing a trapezoidal shape). In the earlier picture, the examples were flat to the shinogi, then tapering to the blade. The most prominent part is the middle ridge, or shinogi. Diagram showing the parts of a nihontЕЌ blade in transliterated JapaneseEach blade has a unique profile, mostly dependent on the swordsmith and the construction method.

This section needs additional citations for verification. Due to importation of Western swords, the word nihontЕЌ was adopted in order to distinguish it from the Western sword (жґ‹е€Ђ, yЕЌtЕЌ ?). The word nihontЕЌ became more common in Japan in the late Tokugawa shogunate. The word katana was used in ancient Japan and is still used today, whereas the old usage of the word nihontЕЌ is found in the poem ж—Ґжњ¬е€ЂжЊ, the Song of NihontЕЌ, by the Song Dynasty poet Ouyang Xiu. Traditional Japanese long sword and various fittings.= Etymology= Many examples can be seen at an annual competition hosted by the All Japan Swordsmith Association, under the auspices of the NihontЕЌ Bunka ShinkЕЌ KyЕЌkai (Society for the promotion of Japanese Sword Culture). Modern, authentic nihontЕЌ are made by a few hundred swordsmiths. Japanese swords are still commonly seen today antique and modernly-forged swords can easily be found and purchased. Although they are pole-mounted weapons, the naginata and yari are considered part of the nihontЕЌ family due to the methods by which they are forged. Other types of Japanese swords include: tsurugi or ken, which is a double-edged sword ЕЌdachi, nodachi, tachi, which are older styles of a very long single-edged sword wakizashi, a medium sized sword and the tanto which is an even smaller knife sized sword. Photo from 1860sIn modern times the most commonly known type of Japanese sword is the Shinogi-Zukuri katana, which is a single-edged and usually curved long sword traditionally worn by samurai from the 15th century onwards.

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