Editing Kendo (section)

===Grades===
Technical achievement in kendo is measured by advancement in grade, rank or level. The {{nihongo||級|[[kyū]]}} and {{nihongo||段|[[Dan rank|dan]]}} grading system, created in 1883,<ref>{{cite book| author = Active Interest Media, Inc.| title = Black Belt| url = https://books.google.com/books?id=fdcDAAAAMBAJ&pg=PA64| year = 1991| publisher = Active Interest Media, Inc.| page = 64 }}</ref> is used to indicate one's proficiency in kendo. The ''dan'' levels are from {{nihongo|first-dan|初段|sho-dan}} to {{nihongo|tenth-dan|十段|jū-dan}}. There are usually six grades below first-dan, known as ''kyu''. The ''kyu'' numbering is in reverse order, with {{nihongo|first kyu|一級|ikkyū}} being the grade immediately below first dan, and {{nihongo|sixth kyu|六級|rokkyū}} being the lowest grade. There are no visible differences in dress between kendo grades; those below dan-level may dress the same as those above dan-level.<ref>{{cite book | title = Standard Rules for Dan/Kyu Examination | publisher = International Kendo Federation |date=December 2006 | location = Tokyo, Japan }}</ref>

In Japan, kyu ranks are generally held by children. The exam for 1st kyu (ikkyū) is often their first exam and grade. Adults generally will do their 1st dan (shodan) as their first exam.{{cn|date=April 2022}} In most other countries outside of Japan, kendoka go through every kyu rank before being eligible for dan ranks.

{{nihongo|Eighth-dan|八段|hachi-dan}} is the highest ''dan'' grade attainable through a test of physical kendo skills. In the AJKF, the grades of {{nihongo|ninth-dan|九段|kyū-dan}} and [[tenth dan|tenth ''dan'']] ({{nihongo|十段|jū-dan}}) are no longer awarded, but ninth-''dan'' ''kendōka'' are still active in Japanese kendo. [[International Kendo Federation]] (FIK) grading rules allow national kendo organisations to establish a special committee to consider awarding these grades. Only five now-deceased ''kendōka'' were ever admitted to the rank of 10th-''dan'' following the establishment in 1952 of the [[All Japan Kendo Federation]]. These five ''kendōka'', all of whom were students of [[Naitō Takaharu]] at the [[Budo Senmon Gakko]],<ref name="auto">Asahi Picture News, February 1958</ref> are:

*Ogawa Kinnosuke 小川 金之助 (1884–1962)- awarded 1957
*Moriji Mochida (aka Mochida Moriji) 持田 盛二 (1885–1974)- awarded 1957
*Nakano Sousuke 中野 宗助 (1885–1963)- awarded 1957
*Saimura Gorou 斎村 五郎 (1887–1969)- awarded 1957
*Ooasa Yuuji 大麻 勇次 (1887–1974)- awarded 1962

All examination candidates face a panel of examiners. A larger, more qualified panel is usually assembled to assess the higher ''dan'' grades. Kendo examinations typically consist of ''jitsugi'', a demonstration of the skill of the applicants, ''Nihon Kendo Kata,'' and a written exam. The eighth-''dan'' kendo exam is extremely difficult, with a reported pass rate of less than 1 percent.<ref name="kendo">{{cite web|url=http://www.kendo.or.jp|script-title=ja:全日本剣道連盟|title=Zen'nihon kendō renmei|publisher=kendo.or.jp|access-date=27 May 2014}}</ref>

{| class="wikitable" <!--translated (by a human) from the Japanese Wikipedia article-->
|+Requirements for ''dan'' grade examination within FIK affiliated organisations
!Grade!!Requirement!!Age requirement
|-
|1-''dan''||1-kyū||At least 13 years old
|-
|2-''dan''||At least 1 year of training after receiving 1-''dan''||
|-
|3-''dan''||At least 2 years of training after receiving 2-''dan''||
|-
|4-''dan''||At least 3 years of training after receiving 3-''dan''||
|-
|5-''dan''||At least 4 years of training after receiving 4-''dan''||
|-
|6-''dan''||At least 5 years of training after receiving 5-''dan''||
|-
|7-''dan''||At least 6 years of training after receiving 6-''dan''||
|-
|8-''dan''||At least 10 years of training after receiving 7-''dan''||At least 46 years old
|}