Types of Japanese Swords: Katana, Wakizashi, Tanto, Odachi, Tachi and More

Say Japanese sword and most people picture one thing, the katana. It is the most famous of them, but it was one of a family that changed over a thousand years as armour, tactics and the law changed around it. This guide runs through every type, how they are told apart, and which belongs in a collection first. If you want to compare the three the samurai actually wore, our katana, wakizashi and tanto guide does that in detail.

How Japanese swords are classified

By blade length, measured from the tip to the notch where blade meets guard, in shaku, a unit of about 30.3 cm. Over two shaku (about 23.6 inches) is a long sword, daito. Between one and two shaku is a short sword, shoto. Under one shaku is a tanto. Everything below sits in one of those three bands; the names beyond that describe how the sword was mounted and worn, and when.

Chokuto

The straight, single-edged sword of early Japan, before roughly 900 AD, made on Chinese and Korean patterns. It has no curve and no differential hardening, and it is the ancestor of everything that follows. Surviving examples are temple and tomb pieces.

Tachi

The first curved Japanese sword, developed through the Heian period as fighting from horseback demanded a blade that could cut on the draw. The tachi is longer and more deeply curved than a katana, and the giveaway is how it was worn: slung edge down from the belt on cords, the opposite of the katana. Many tachi were later shortened and remounted as katana, which is why so few survive in their original form.

Katana

The sword of the samurai from the 15th century onward. A curved, single-edged blade over two shaku, usually 27 to 29 inches, with the whole sword around 40 inches, worn edge up through the sash so the draw and the first cut are one motion. Differentially hardened, with a visible hamon line where the hard edge meets the softer spine. The katana collection is the largest group of Japanese swords we make.

Wakizashi

The short sword, one to two shaku, worn beside the katana as the daisho pair. The wakizashi stayed on when the katana came off indoors, and commoners who were forbidden the katana could carry one, which made it the most widely owned sword in Edo Japan. See wakizashi.

Tanto

The knife, under one shaku, usually with little or no curve and a thick cross-section. Carried by samurai from the Heian period on, given as gifts, and carried by women of samurai families as the kaiken. The angular American tanto point on modern knives is a Western reinterpretation; a traditional tanto has a conventional tip. See tanto knives.

Odachi and nodachi

The oversized field sword, too long to wear through the belt and carried across the back or by an attendant. Blades ran past 90 cm and whole swords past 50 inches. The two names are used almost interchangeably; where a distinction is drawn, odachi means the very largest temple-scale blades and nodachi the shorter field swords. See odachi.

Uchigatana and kodachi

Two names you will meet in museum labels. The uchigatana is the early form of the katana, the first sword worn edge up, from the 15th century. The kodachi is a short tachi, under two shaku, worn edge down in the old manner; it is the tachi's equivalent of a wakizashi.

Ninjato

The straight-bladed short sword with a square guard associated with the shinobi. It is a 20th century design with no authenticated period example; documented shinobi carried ordinary swords. It is still a genuine type in the modern sense, and a different object from a katana. See ninjato and our ninjato article.

Naginata and yari

Not swords, but they belong on the list because they used the same steel and the same smiths. The naginata is a curved single-edged blade on a long shaft, the weapon of the warrior monks and of samurai women. The yari is the straight spear that armed the ranks and, in the Sengoku period, decided more battles than the sword did. See naginata.

Telling them apart at a glance

Length first: over 40 inches overall and it is a katana, tachi or larger; 24 to 32 and it is a wakizashi; under about 16 and it is a tanto. Then how it is worn: edge up through the sash is a katana, edge down on cords is a tachi. Then the blade: straight is a chokuto or ninjato, curved is everything else. Anything past 50 inches is an odachi.

Which to collect first

The katana, for the same reason it is the famous one: it is the complete expression of the Japanese sword and the piece a stand is built for. A wakizashi second, to complete the daisho. After that, taste decides: the odachi for scale, the tanto for detail, the naginata for a shape nothing else has. Every type is gathered on the Japanese swords collection, and our katana buying guide covers steel and construction before you order.

Frequently asked questions

What are the main types of Japanese sword?
Chokuto, tachi, katana, wakizashi, tanto and odachi, in roughly that historical order, plus the ninjato as a modern addition and the naginata and yari as the polearms of the same tradition.

What is the difference between a tachi and a katana?
A tachi is older, longer and more curved, and was worn edge down on cords. A katana is worn edge up through the sash. Many tachi were later cut down into katana.

What is a daisho?
The matched pair of katana and wakizashi that marked samurai rank in the Edo period.

Is a ninjato a real Japanese sword?
It is a real modern type, but there is no historical evidence for it. The straight ninja sword is a 20th century design.

About the author
Owen Juarbal is Director of Marketing and head writer at Battling Blades. He has been with the company since 2021 and writes or reviews every guide the team publishes. Read more about Battling Blades.