Editing Bokken (section)

==History==
It is hard to determine precisely when the first ''bokken'' appeared due to secrecy in ancient martial arts training and loose record-keeping.  While various mock weapons were surely used during the earlier periods of Japanese history, usage of ''bokken'' in their modern form first emerged during the [[Muromachi Period]] (1336&ndash;1600) for the training of [[samurai]] warriors in the various [[Ryū (school)|ryū]] (schools of martial arts and swordsmanship) of the era.<ref name="lowry">{{cite book |last=Lowry |first=Dave |author-link=Dave Lowry (martial arts) |date=1986 |title=Bokken: Art of the Japanese Sword |publisher=Ohara Publications |page=21&ndash;27 |isbn=978-0-89750-104-0}}</ref>

If a steel [[katana]] is repeatedly used, it can easily become nicked and the edge flawed, potentially leading to a broken expensive sword.  ''Bokken'' are safer than fighting with real swords, and are considerably more durable. A wielder can make contact with other trainee's swords with little fear of damage.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Ratti|first1=Oscar|last2=Westbrook|first2=Adele|title=Secrets of the Samurai; A Survey of the Martial Arts of Feudal Japan|date=1991|publisher=C.E. Tuttle Co.|location=Rutland, Vt.|isbn=978-0-8048-1684-7|page=272|edition=1st pbk.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Z9lmmkvQOpoC&q=samurai+bokken&pg=PA272}}</ref>

While ''bokken'' are safer for sparring and practice than katana, they are still lethal weapons in the hands of trained users.  A famous legend to this effect involves [[Miyamoto Musashi]], a [[ronin]] known to fight fully armed foes with only one or two ''bokken''.  According to the story, he agreed to a duel with [[Sasaki Kojirō|Sasaki Kojiro]], in the early morning on [[Ganryūjima]], a tiny sandbar between Kyushu and Honshu.  Musashi overslept the morning of the duel, and made his way to the duel late. He carved a  ''bokken'' from an [[oar]] with his knife while traveling on a boat to the duel.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Wilson|first1=William Scott|title=The Lone Samurai: The Life of Miyamoto Musashi|date=2004|publisher=Kodansha International|location=Tokyo|isbn=9784770029423|page=19|edition=1st|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0p0C7Y8lkH8C&q=musashi+came+late+and+unkempt&pg=PA18}}</ref>  At the duel, Sasaki was armed with his large ''[[nodachi]]'', yet Musashi crushed Sasaki's skull with a single blow from his ''bokken'', killing him.  While many elements of the story are likely apocryphal, the potential danger of a ''bokken'' from the legend is real.<ref name="lowry" />

Before the Meiji era, ''bokken'' were very likely manufactured by woodworkers not specialized in ''bokken'' manufacture.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}  At the beginning of the 20th century, ''bokken'' manufacture started more formally, mainly in [[Miyakonojō]], a city on Kyushu Island.  The four remaining ''bokken'' workshops of Japan are located in Miyakonojō.{{citation needed|date=July 2020}}

Another notable spot where ''bokken'' were manufactured and sold as tourist souvenirs was [[Aizuwakamatsu]]. The resulting ''bokken'' were frequently inscribed with the markings of the ''[[Byakkotai]]'', a youth battalion that committed mass suicide nearby during the 1868 [[Battle of Aizu]].  During the late [[Shōwa (1926–1989)|Showa era]] in the 1970s and 1980s, these suicides were romanticized as a bold and heroic act, and ''bokken'' marked with their emblem sold well.<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://dailyportalz.jp/kiji/bokutou-omiyage-syugakuryokou|title=修学旅行でよく見た「お土産の木刀」を全国へ広めた会社は今|website=デイリーポータルZ|date=October 25, 2018|accessdate=May 5, 2020}}</ref>

The "standard ''bokken''", mostly used in [[kendo]], [[iaido]], and [[aikido]], was created by master Aramaki Yasuo, in collaboration with the All Japan Kendo Federation in the 1950s and was the first standardized ''bokken'' ever created.<ref>{{Citation|last=Seido - Budo Equipment & Practice in Japan|title=[Interview] Aramaki Yasuo - Bokken Manufacture 3rd Generation Craftsman (Part 1/2)|date=2017-10-05|url=https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvbS_4p7Jy8|access-date=2018-05-03}}</ref>