Japan Original English: Military and martial arts terminology

Aikido

合気道, a "blending" art similar to judo

Banzai

万歳 "ten thousand years"; a blessing for Emperors and in modern usage a word of congratulation (see the unrelated word "bonsai" above)

Bokken

木剣, a wooden sword used as a training weapon

Budo

武道, Japanese martial arts (lit. "martial way")

Bushido

武士道, "way of the warrior"

Dan

段, a Japanese mark of level, used in several cultural activities of Japanese origin; in budo arts the dan rank distinguishes which level of black belt one has; dan is also used in go, shogi, ikebana, chanoyu, and other arts

Dojo

道場, a training hall for the martial arts

Hara-kiri

腹切り, ritual suicide (see also seppuku)

Honcho

(from 班長, hancho, team leader or class chairperson)

Judo

柔道, a martial art, a sport and a philosophy developed from jujutsu (see below), lit. "soft way"

Jujutsu

柔術 listen (help·info), a variety of close combat fighting systems (see article), lit. "soft skill"

Kamikaze

神風 listen (help·info), refers to Japanese World War II suicide pilots in English; in Japanese, refers to strong winds that twice scuppered Mongol attempts to invade the archipelago in the 13th century

Karate

空手 listen (help·info), lit. "empty hand": a Japanese weaponless martial art which emphasises striking techniques (i.e. punching and kicking)

Kata

型, detailed patterns of defense-and-attack movements used by many traditional martial arts

Katana

刀, the Japanese longsword (or Japanese swords in general)

Kendo

剣道, the martial art of Japanese swordsmanship, lit. "sword-way"

Kuzushi

崩し, in Judo, a method of unbalancing one's opponent

Ninja

忍者, a stealthy warrior and assassin, lit. "shinobi practitioner" or people who practice ninjutsu (sometimes transliterated as ninjitsu 忍術).

Nunchaku

ヌンチャク listen (help·info), a martial arts weapon consisting of two sticks connected at their ends with a short chain or thong

Randori

乱取り, in martial arts, free-style practice or sparring, often specifically multiple-attacker freestyle, lit. "messy striking"

Ronin

浪人, a name given to masterless samurai during the feudal period of Japan, lit. "wave man" i.e. as if tossed about on a stormy sea

Sai

釵, a dagger, with two long, unsharpened projections attached to the handle

Samurai

侍, a common term for a warrior in pre-industrial Japan (see also bushi, above)

Seppuku

切腹, ritual suicide by disembowelment (lit. "cutting the abdomen"; see also harakiri, above)

Sumo

相撲, a form of wrestling

Wakizashi

脇差, a traditional Japanese sword, similar to but shorter than a katana, together with which it was often worn

Yumi

弓, a bow