A is a Japanese multipurpose tool and weapon thought to be originally derived from the

masonry Masonry is the craft of building a structure with brick, stone, or similar material, including mortar plastering which are often laid in, bound, and pasted together by mortar (masonry), mortar. The term ''masonry'' can also refer to the buildin ...

trowel.

Design

A ''kunai'' normally had a leaf-shaped wrought blade in lengths ranging from and a handle with a ring on the pommel for attaching a rope. The attached rope allowed the ''kunais handle to be wrapped to function as a grip, or to be strapped to a stick as a makeshift

spear A spear is a polearm consisting of a shaft, usually of wood, with a pointed head. The head may be simply the sharpened end of the shaft itself, as is the case with Fire hardening, fire hardened spears, or it may be made of a more durable materia ...

; to be tied to the body for concealment; to be used as an anchor or piton, and sometimes to be used as the Chinese rope dart.

Variants

Varieties of ''kunai'' include short, long, narrow-bladed, saw-toothed, and wide-bladed. The two widely recognized kinds are the short ''kunai'' (小苦無 shō-''kunai'') and the big ''kunai'' (大苦無 ''dai-kunai''). In some cases, the ''kunai'' and the ''Nishikori'', a wide-bladed saw with a dagger-type handle, are difficult to distinguish.

Uses

Contrary to popular belief, ''kunai'' were not designed to be used primarily as throwing weapons. Instead, ''kunai'' were primarily tools used as weapons for stabbing and thrusting .

Utility

The ''kunai'' was originally used by peasants as a multi-purpose gardening tool and by workers of stone and

. The blade is made of soft iron and is left unsharpened because the edges are used to smash relatively soft materials such as plaster and wood, for digging holes, and for prying. Normally, only the tip is sharpened.

Weapon

Although a basic tool, the ''kunai'', in the hands of a

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

expert, could be used as a multi-functional weapon. Many

ninja A , or was a spy and infiltrator in pre-modern Japan. The functions of a ninja included siege and infiltration, ambush, reconnaissance, espionage, deception, and later bodyguarding.Kawakami, pp. 21–22 Antecedents may have existed as ear ...

weapons were adapted from farming tools, not unlike those used by Shaolin monks in China. Since ''kunai'' were cheaply produced farming tools of proper size and weight and could be easily sharpened, they were readily available to be converted into simple weapons for covert uses.

Ninjutsu

The ''kunai'' is commonly associated with the

, who in folklore used them to climb walls. As with

ninjutsu , and are terms for the techniques and skills used by spies and scouts in pre-modern Japan known as ninja. Some of these techniques are recorded in ninja scrolls, some which have been published and translated. The study of these scrolls have c ...

, the exaggeration persistent in ninja myths played a large role in creating the

popular culture Popular culture (also called pop culture or mass culture) is generally recognized by members of a society as a set of cultural practice, practices, beliefs, artistic output (also known as popular art

f. pop art F is the sixth letter of the Latin alphabet. F may also refer to: Science and technology Mathematics * F or f, the number 15 (number), 15 in hexadecimal and higher positional systems * ''p'F'q'', the hypergeometric function * F-distributi ...

or mass art, sometimes contraste ...

image of ''kunai''. In fictional depictions of ninjas, the ''kunai'' is commonly portrayed as a steel knife that is used for stabbing or particularly throwing, sometimes confused with the

shuriken A is a Japanese concealed weapon used by samurai or ninja or in martial arts as a hidden dagger or '' metsubushi'' to distract or misdirect. History The origins of the ''bo-shuriken'' in Japan are still unclear, despite continuing researc ...

References

Sources

External links

* {{Knives Gardening tools Japanese knives Japanese martial arts terminology Ninjutsu artefacts Mechanical hand tools Throwing weapons Weapons of Japan