Editing Samurai (section)

===Asuka and Nara periods===
[[File:Helmet MET DT305558.jpg|thumb|upright=.9|A [[Kofun period]] helmet, gilt copper, 5th century, [[Ise Province]]]]
As part of the [[Taihō Code]] of 702, and the later [[Yōrō Code]],<ref name="HOJ GS">''A History of Japan'', Vol. 3 and 4, George Samson, Tuttle Publishing, 2000.</ref> the population was required to report regularly for the census, a precursor for national conscription. With an understanding of how the population was distributed, [[Emperor Monmu]] introduced a law whereby 1 in 3–4 adult males were drafted into the state military. These soldiers were required to supply their own weapons, and in return were exempted from duties and taxes.<ref name="HW">William Wayne Farris, ''Heavenly Warriors – The Evolution of Japan's Military, 500–1300'', [[Harvard University Press]], 1995. {{ISBN|0-674-38704-X}}</ref>

The Taihō Code classified most Imperial bureaucrats into 12 ranks, each divided into two sub-ranks, 1st rank being the highest adviser to the emperor. Those of 6th rank and below were referred to as "samurai" and dealt with day-to-day affairs and were initially civilian public servants, in keeping with the original derivation of this word from {{transliteration|ja|saburau}}, a verb meaning 'to serve'.<ref name="SMK5">''[[Shin Meikai kokugo jiten|Shin Meikai Kokugo Jiten]]'', fifth edition, 1997</ref>