Editing Daishō (section)

==History==
[[File:青漆銀流水文半太刀大小, "Daisho" Style "Handachi" Sword Mounting, Silver stream design on green lacquer ground.jpg|thumb|300px|''Daishō'' style ''handachi'' "half ''tachi''" sword mounting, silver stream design on green lacquer ground. 16th–17th century, Azuchi Momoyama－Edo period. Tokyo National Museum.]]

The concept of the ''daisho'' originated with the pairing of a short sword with whatever long sword was being worn during a particular time period. The ''[[tachi]]'' would be paired with a ''tantō'', and later the ''katana'' would be paired with another shorter katana called a ''chiisagatana''. With the advent of the ''katana'', the ''wakizashi'' eventually was chosen by samurai as the short sword over the ''tantō''. Kanzan Satō, in his book titled ''The Japanese Sword'', notes that there did not seem to be any particular need for the ''wakizashi'' and suggests that the ''wakizashi'' may have become more popular than the ''tantō'' as the ''wakizashi'' was more suited for indoor fighting.  He mentions the custom of leaving the ''katana'' at the door of a castle or palace when entering while continuing to wear the ''wakizashi'' inside.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=vFS2iT8QjqEC&dq=daisho&pg=PA68 ''The Japanese sword'', Kanzan Satō, Kodansha International, 1983 P.68]</ref>

[[File:Daisho Uesugi clan 2.jpg|thumb|300px|''Daishō'' for formal attire with black scabbard, hilt winding thread and white ray skin hilt, which were regulated by the Tokugawa Shogunate. ''Daishō'' owned by [[Uesugi clan]]. Late Edo period.]]

''Daishō'' may have become popular around the end of the [[Muromachi period]] (1336 to 1573)<ref name=":0" /> as several early examples date from the late 16th century.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=vFS2iT8QjqEC&dq=daisho&pg=PA68 ''The Japanese sword'', Kanzan Satō, Kodansha International, 1983 p.68 & p.84]</ref>  An edict in 1629 defining the duties of a samurai required that ''daishō'' be worn when on official duty.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=vh_rAAAAMAAJ&q=daisho+edict ''Cutting Edge: Japanese Swords in the British Museum'', Victor Harris, Tuttle Pub., 2005 p.26]</ref> Wearing ''daishō'' was limited to the ''samurai'' class in 1683, and became a symbol of their rank<ref>[https://books.google.co.jp/books/about/%E5%88%80%E3%81%AE%E6%98%8E%E6%B2%BB%E7%B6%AD%E6%96%B0.html?id=nr-luQEACAAJ&source=kp_book_description&redir_esc=y''刀の明治維新: 「帯刀」は武士の特権か?'', 尾脇秀和,2018]</ref> Samurai could wear decorative swords in daily life, but the Tokugawa shogunate regulated the appearance of swords for formal attire such as when samurai came to a castle. The daisho for formal attire was limited to the scabbard in solid black, the hilt winding thread and the hilt wrapped with white ray skin.<ref name ="en20p46">Kazuhiko Inada (2020), ''Encyclopedia of the Japanese Swords''. p46. {{ISBN|978-4651200408}}</ref>

According to most traditional ''[[kenjutsu]]'' schools, only one sword of the ''daisho'' would have been used in combat. However, in the first half of the 17th century, the famous swordsman [[Miyamoto Musashi]] promoted the use of a one-handed grip, which allowed both swords to be used simultaneously. This technique, called ''[[Kenjutsu#Nitōjutsu|nitōken]]'', is a main element of the ''[[Niten Ichi-ryū]]'' style of swordsmanship that Musashi founded.<ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=ZzIXkFec0e8C&pg=PA22 Serge Mol, 2003, ''Classical Weaponry of Japan: Special Weapons and Tactics of the Martial Arts''] Kodansha International Ltd, {{ISBN|4-7700-2941-1}} (pp. 22–23)</ref>

During the [[Meiji (era)|Meiji period]] an edict was passed in 1871 abolishing the requirement that ''daishō'' be worn by samurai, and in 1876 wearing swords in public by most of Japan's population was banned; thus ended the use of the ''daishō'' as the symbol of the samurai.  The samurai class was abolished soon after the sword ban.<ref>''Samurai: The Weapons and Spirit of the Japanese Warrior'', Clive Sinclaire, Globe Pequot, 2004 p.58</ref><ref>[https://books.google.com/books?id=pXlZoSjXb2QC&pg=PA418 New directions in the study of Meiji Japan], Helen Hardacre, Adam L. Kern, BRILL, 1997 p.418</ref><ref>''Katana: The Samurai Sword: 950–1877'', Stephen Turnbull, Osprey Publishing, 2010 P.28</ref>
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