From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

A falchion (pronounced fal-shun) is a medieval single handed, one edged sword of European origin. Falchions are found in different forms from around the 11th century up to and including the 16th century. In some versions the falchion looks rather like the scramasax and later the sabre, and in some versions the form is irregular or machete like. While some propose that encounters with the Islamic shamshir inspired its creation, these "scimitars" of Persia were not developed until long after the falchion. More likely, it was developed from farmer's and butcher's knives in the manner of the larger messer.

The blade designs of falchions varied wildly across the continent and through the ages. They almost always included a single edge with a slight curve on the blade towards the point on the end; they also were affixed with a quillioned crossguard for the hilt in the manner of the contemporary long-swords. While one of the few surviving falchions is shaped very much like a large meat cleaver, or large bladed machete (the Conyers falchion), the majority of the depictions in art reflect a design similar to that of the grosse messer. A surviving example from England's 13th century was just under two pounds in weight. Of its 37.5 inches (95.25 cm) in length, 31.5 inches (80 cm) are the straight blade which bears a flare-clipped tip similar to the much later kilij of Turkey. This blade style may have been influenced by the Turko-Mongol sabers that had reached the borders of Europe by the 13th century.

Unlike the double-edged swords of Europe, few actual swords of this type have survived to the present day; less than a dozen specimens are currently known. It is presumed that these swords had a lower average quality and status than the longer, more expensive swords. It is also possible that falchions were used as tools when they were not pressed into service as weapons. Although it is commonly thought that falchions were primarily a peasant's weapon, some were very ornate and used by nobility. In particular, there is a very elaborately engraved and gold plated falchion from the 1560s. This weapon is engraved with the personal coat of arms of Cosimo de' Medici, Duke of Florence.

These swords were churned out in their hundreds by blacksmiths. They were generally made from iron with steel edges.

In video games, the holy sword which Marth uses in the Fire Emblem series to slay Medeus is dubbed the 'Falchion'. In the arcade game series Strider, the plasma sword which Strider Hiryu uses is named 'Falchion' according to the European manual for the Mega Drive version. In Final Fantasy VI for the Super Nintendo Entertainment System the character Cyan has a weapon he can equip called the Falchion.

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A scramseax (also scramsax, scramseaxe, scramaseax, scramasax, scramaseaxe and sometimes refered to as simply scram) was a type of Germanic (Anglo-Saxon, Scandinavian and Frankish) single-edged knife^[1]. Scramseax seem to have been used for warfare and as a tool ^[2]. They occur in a size range from 7.5cm to 75cm. The larger ones (langseax) were probably weapons, the smaller ones (hadseax) tools, intermediate sized ones serving a dual purpose^[2]. Wearing a scramseax may have been indicative of freemanship^[2]. The scramseax was worn in a horizontal sheath at the front of the belt^[3]. Scram refers to food and seax to a blade (so, "food knife")^[4]. There is some debate about the authenticity of the longer word scramseax^[2]. The Saxons may have derived their name from seax (the implement for which they were known) in much the same way that the Franks were named for their francisca^[4].

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Shamshir (شمشیر) is the Persian (Farsi-Iran) word for "sword" It has come to refer to a type of sabre with a curve that is considered radical for a sword: 15 to 30 degrees from tip to tip. Although the name has been associated by popular etymology with the city of Shamshir (which in turn means "curved like the tigers nail") the word has been used to mean "sword" since ancient times, as attested by the Pahlavi word šmšyl, and the Ancient Greek σαμψήρα (glossed as "foreign sword.")

The sword now called "shamshir" was popularized in Persia by the early 16th century, and had "relatives" in Turkey (the kilic), Mughal India (the talwar), and the ajoining Arabian world (the saif). These blades all were developed from the ubiquitous parent sword, the Turko-Mongol saber. Shamshir at times was called 'samsir'; this is usually taken to be the root of the word scimitar, though the OED considers this uncertain. Scimitar is now a more inclusive (though perhaps inaccurate) term.

The shamshir features a slim blade that has almost no taper until the very tip. Instead of being worn upright, it is worn horizontally, with the hilt and tip pointing up. It was normally used for slashing unarmored opponents either on foot or mounted; while the tip could be used for thrusting, the drastic curvature of blade made accuracy difficult. Like Japanese blades, there is no pommel and it is not quilloned, with a very small handguard. The blade was attached by a flat slab tang with rivets to the scale grip. A shamshir is a one-handled single-bladed sword.

It was similar in design to its contemporary, the Indian Talwar.

For history see Dao (sword)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

This article refers to the scimitar sword. For other uses, see Scimitar (disambiguation).

The term scimitar refers to a sword with a curved blade from western Asia (Middle East).

The name "scimitar" is quite prevalent when speaking of Arabian swords. In reality, however, there is no such "historic sword" called a scimitar. The word "scimitar" is a derivative from the Persian shamshir. This is indeed a deeply curved sword found in Middle Eastern history; however, "scimitar" has become a catch-all which often includes the Indian talwar and the archetypal Turkish kilij. Modern vendors sell scimitars which are in fact fantasy blades with no historical bearing. These often come from stylized artistic representation of Arab arms (paintings, and film); similarly the romanticized notion that these curved swords were used to combat the crusaders in the 11th to 13th centuries is inaccurate (swords of the time were mostly straight with a slightly curved tip).

Scimitars can be found in one or two handed variants, with blades typically ranging in length from 30 to 36 inches (76 to 92 centimetres), and the blades, while commonly depicted as being very wide (from cutting edge to the rear of the blade), seem most often to have been very thin.

It seems likely that scimitar-type weapons were developed from examples of swords brought by the conquering Macedonians under Alexander the Great, such as the kopis sword, itself derived from the ancient Egyptian khopesh sword. Further, it is possible that the falchion swords employed in the Middle Ages by Europeans were inspired by the scimitars of the Turks. Modern examples of similar blades are cavalry sabres and cutlasses of pirate fame.

Scimitars in fiction

In fiction, warriors of Middle Eastern cultures often use scimitars.

A notable example of a character who does not come from a Middle Eastern culture who uses scimitars is Drizzt Do'Urden, a drow who is the main character of several Forgotten Realms fantasy novels by R. A. Salvatore. Drizzt Do'Urden is a master of the use of scimitars; a pair of them, Twinkle and Icingdeath, are his preferred weapons.

Scimitar is also a fictional character in Tom Filsinger's Champions of the Galaxy wrestling game. Filsinger Games Scimitar is a knife thrower in a circus act who also wrestles part time for Vin Strutter's "The Greatest Show in the Galaxy".

In C. S. Lewis' The Chronicles of Narnia, the Calormen warriors and royalty fight with scimitars.

In the popular MMORPG RuneScape, the Scimitar is one amongst an array of available weapons, and is one of the most widely used. Warriors in the fictional desert town, Al Kharid use Scimitars.

In Journey to the West, the fiend Yellow Robe uses a giant scimitar.

The scimitar is also used in Raymond E. Feist's The Prince of the Blood by Prince Borric, the main character on the world of Midkemia.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The machete (International Phonetic Alphabet: /ma'ʃɛti:/) is a cleaver-like tool that looks like a very large knife. The blade is typically 50–60 cm (18–24 in) long, usually with a thin blade under 3mm thick. In the English language, an equivalent term is matchet.

Since the 1950s, most modern factory-made machetes are of very simple construction, consisting of a blade and full-length tang punched from a single piece of flat steel plate of uniform thickness (and thus lack a primary grind), and a simple grip of two plates of wood or plastic bolted or rivetted together around the tang. Finally, one side is ground down to an edge — although some are made so cheaply that the purchaser is expected to finish the sharpening. These machetes are usually provided with a simple cord loop as a sort of lanyard, and a canvas scabbard — although in some regions where machetes are commonly used tools, the users may make decorative leather scabbards for them.

The machete is normally used to cut through thick vegetation such as sugar cane or jungle undergrowth (the lack of a primary grind makes the machete much less effective on woody vegetation), but it can also be used as an offensive weapon. Machetes were the primary weapon used by the Interahamwe militias in the Rwandan Genocide, as well as the signature tool/weapon of the Haitian Tonton Macoute. The machete was also one of the most common weapons during the Cuban Independence War. Slaves freed by Carlos Manuel de Céspedes agreed to fight against Spain, where their only weapons were the tool they used to cut the sugar cane in the La De Majagua plantation.

Some tropical countries have a name for the blow of a machete; the Spanish machetazo is sometimes used in English. In Trinidad, to hit someone with the flat of the blade is termed planass.

The modern machete is very similar to some forms of the medieval falchion (a type of sword), differing mainly in the lack of a guard and a simpler hilt.

The Swahili panga is a variant used in East Africa, with a broader blade and a squared off tip. In the Philippines, the bolo is a very similar tool, but with the blade swelling just before the tip to make the knife even more tip-heavy for chopping. This was also used during the Philippine Revolution against the Spanish, and later a signature weapon of guerillas in the Philippine American War.

Other similar tools include the parang and the golok (from Malaysia and Indonesia); however, these tend to have shorter, thicker blades with a primary grind, and are more effective on woody vegetation. The Nepalese kukri is a curved blade which is often used for similar tasks.

The machete made its way into American popular culture, as it is one of the better-known weapons of choice used by killer Jason Voorhees in the Friday the 13th series of horror films and its Nintendo Entertainment System spin-off game.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The kilij (also spelled kilic) is a sword used by the Ottoman Empire starting around the late 15th century. These blades were a distinct variation on the Turko-Mongol sabers that had been used over all the lands touched by the empire of the Khans.

 

The oldest surviving examples sport a long blade with a gentle curve slightly more noticeable in the distal half. The width of the blade stays thin (with a slight taper) up until the last 30% of its length, at which point it flares deeper. This distinctive flaring tip is called a "yelman" which greatly adds to the cutting power of the sword. Swords of the next couple of centuries were mainly of the Persian shamshir variety; Persian blades (that did not have the yelman) were fitted with Ottoman hilts. These hilts normally had slightly larger upper guards, and sported a bobble of a end-grip compared to the parent shamshir. In the mid 18th century the kilij produced looked much more like the original design, though shorter, much more acutely curved, and sporting a deep blade with an even deeper yelman. In addition to the flared tip, these blades have a distinct "T-shaped" cross section to the back of the blade. This allows even greater strength and hence greater ability to cause grievous wounds when cleaving. The flared and 'cut away' profile of these thick blades gave it the archetypal 'Voyages of Sinbad' appearance. Some of these shorter Kilij are also referred to as "Pala (sword)" but there does not seem to be a clear cut distinction in naming.

Another interesting anecdote, is that this sword is the basis for the Mameluke Sword of the United States Marine Corps. As the Mamelukes were originally of Turkish descent, the Egyptians bore Turkish sabers for hundreds of years. During the Napoleonic Wars, the French conquest of Egypt brought these beautiful and functional swords to the attention of the Europeans. In 1831 the "Mamaluke" as the sword was now called even became a regulation pattern for British officers. The American's victory over the renegade fortress in Tripoli in 1805 led to the presentation of one of these enjeweled swords to the lead Marine officer. This has since been a Marine Corps tradition.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

Dao (Chinese: 刀; Hanyu Pinyin: dāo; Wade-Giles: tao¹) is a category of single-edge Chinese swords primarily used for slashing and chopping (sabers), often called broadswords in English because some varieties have wide blades. Dao is actually a generic word used to denote any member of a family of single-edged, broad-bladed cutting or slicing tools, but in common, everyday usage means knife. The weapon, also known as dan dao (single knife), is thereby thought to be an adaptation of the kitchen knives common to Chinese cuisine.

The same character, 刀, is also used in Japanese for a single edged sword, and one of its readings is katana.

Ancient history

From the original bronze swords of the Shang dynasty, to the steel swords of the Qin dynasty through the Qing dynasty, the swords of China had either single-edge curved or double-edge straight blades, and usually had a tip for thrusting. In China, dao is known as one of the four major weapons, along with the spear, saber, and the sword, and referred to as "The Courage of All Soldiers". Towards the end of the Han Dynasty, the single-edged dao became increasingly favored over the jian, since the dao was a much more effective cavalry weapon. The initial daos only had a slight curve. The Mongols invaded in the early 13th century in the process of conquering the largest land empire in history. The Yuan dynasty of the Mongols influenced China and other nations considerably, particularly in the tools and tactics of war. A favored weapon of the Mongol cavalry was the saber: this simple, one handed, curved blade had been used by the Turkic and Tungusic tribes of Central Asia since the 8th century at least. Its effectiveness for mounted warfare and dispersion across the entirety of the Mongol empire had lasting effects. It spawned descendants across the continents that in turn produced even more kinds of curved swords over the years. The Persian shamshir, the Indian tulwar, the Afghani pulwar, the Turkish kilij, the Arabian saif, the Mameluke "scimitar", and the European sabre (adopted via Hungary's Magyar horsemen) and cutlass are all progeny of this Mongol curved blade.

China, being firstly (and completely) conquered by the Mongols, spawned a variety of new blades over the centuries. As well, different regions of China had their distinctive styles. The two most notable breeds of saber are called the liuyedao ("willow leaf knife") and yanmaodao ("goose quill knife"); the liuyedao features an overall slight curve to the blade while the yanmaodao is straight-bladed for much of its length, curving only near the tip. Derivatives may also include the pole-arms kwan dao and huyadao which bore curved blades on the end of wooden hafts of varying lengths; in addition the neighboring Burmese dha and Siamese krabi bear strong resemblance to the Chinese sabers. Another blade influenced by the Manchus is the niuweidao (oxtail knife), a heavy bladed weapon with a characteristic flaring tip which is the archetypal "Chinese broadsword" of kung fu movies today. As the niuweidao was not invented until the early 1800s (the late Qing dynasty) and was not issued to troops, its appearance in movies and modern literature is often anachronistic, and it is also sometimes mislabeled as a willow-leaf saber.

The Chinese spear and dao (liuyedao and yanmaodao) were commonly issued to infantry due to the expense of and relatively greater amount of training required for the effective use of Chinese straight sword, or jian. Dao can often be seen depicted in period artwork worn by officers and infantry. Its popularity on the battlefield earned it the name "General of all Weapons".

Recent history

Some of the blades from the Qing dynasty lived on and even had descendants see military action in the 20th century. A direct derivative of the huyadao was used by some Chinese militia units against Japanese invaders in the Second Sino-Japanese War. These were used during planned ambushes on Japanese troops because the Chinese military and patriotic resistance groups often had more willing soldiers than firearms.

Most Chinese martial arts schools still train extensively with the dao, seeing it as a powerful conditioning tool and a versatile weapon, with self defense techniques transferable to similarly sized objects more commonly found in the modern world, such as baseball or cricket bats, for example.

One measure of the proper length of the sword should be from the hilt in your hand and the tip of the blade at the brow and in some schools, the height of shoulder. Alternatively, the length of the sword should be from the middle of the throat along the length of the outstretched arm. There are also significantly larger versions of dao used for training in some Baguazhang and Taijiquan schools.

References

• Graff, David A., Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300-900. ISBN 0415239540

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

The word saif is Arabic سيف and means "sword". As such it does not in and of itself denote anything more specific than "saber" or "back-sword" in its parent land. However, westerners have a tendency to categorize the various types of blades encountered abroad (and across history) by the local name for "sword". As such the post 16th century Arabian swords are normally referred to as "saif" among sword collecters.

These can be near completely indistinguishable from the shamshir (Persian word for "sword") of the adjoining lands. Generally these blades are single-handed swords, sporting a single heavily curved edge ending in a narrow tip. Many saif sport blades from Persia (or at least of Persian design), but a few bear a resemblance to Turkish Kilij. Some blades from the 18th century have only a very shallow curve, and look very like the 13th century Turko-Mongol saber which birthed the entire saber design. Like the other swords of the region, saifs can have a variety of hilts and fittings; some have an end "cap" (really just the bend in the handle creating the "pistol grip") which are more acutely angled back than those of Persia and Eurasia. Some even sport the squared off wooden handle style of the north African nimcha. The crossguard is usually two small straight quillions in the style of a shamshir, though some later examples may have a thin knuckle guard running down to the pommel.

The misnomer scimitar normally refers to either a saif or a shamshir.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia.

A talwar or tulwar is a type of sabre from Mughal India dating back to at least the 17th century. In what was called Hindustan this became by far the most popular choice of sword. In outline it bears a resemblance to the Persian shamshir and the Turkish kilic; however, the blade of a talwar is wider in the ricasso than a shamshir, and will taper less toward the point. It also has a less extreme curve in the 28-30 inch blade and often will sport one or more fullers. As a single-handed sword the talwar displays a metal hilt with short quillions for the upper guard, and a unique flat-disc pommel. The blade's tang is inserted to the single piece hollow hilt and affixed with adhesive. The blade seems to have been derived from earlier turko-mongol sabers with heavy influence from the Indian khanda. Due to its popularity in India the talwar was found in 19th century Afghanistan, Nepal, Mysore. In addition, it had relatives in the pedeung and the piso podang swords of Sumatra. Like the shamshir, the blades and hilts of the talwar were often very ornate and featured carvings or gilding.

The talwar is often confused with the similar looking hybrid sword pulwar of Afghanistan.

Other Meaning: "Talwar" is a rare last name from the Punjab region of Northern India that is translated to mean "sword." (Sanskrit taravāri).

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A Nimcha is a single-handed sword from northwestern Africa, esp. Morocco. These blades are usually from the late 18th century onwards and are notable for often using older blades. Many nimcha have European blades from as early as the 17th century, and from as far away as Germany. With this variety of possible blade designs nimcha are distinct with the hilts that sport forward pointing qillions, and wooden handles with squared off "hooked" pommels. The cross guard will often have a knuckle guard which starts beneath the quillions and runs to the bottom of the pommel; on the opposite side of the hilt this path is normally continued into a 3rd quillion. These swords bear strong resemblances to the neighboring Arab saif.