Hikita Kage-ryu Kenjutsu
疋田陰流A branch of the Shinkage-ryu sword school, named after Hikita Bungoro, a pupil of Kamiizumi. We have not found a living lineage in the sources.
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About Hikita Kage-ryu Kenjutsu
Hikita Kage-ryu is a sword school, a branch of Shinkage-ryu. The Daijisen dictionary says it was founded in the early Edo period by Hikita Bungoro, a pupil of the Shinkage-ryu founder Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Nobutsuna, and that it came to be called by this name only after Bungoro's death. The Nipponica encyclopedia and the Jinmei daijiten dictionary call the school Hikita Shinkage-ryu and name Hikita as its founder. Sources differ on the details of Hikita. Nipponica and Jinmei daijiten say he was born probably in 1537 and died in 1605, and according to Jinmei daijiten he came from Kozuke province, while Daijisen gives him as a native of Kaga province. Nipponica calls him a leading pupil of Kamiizumi. The Japanese Wikipedia also mentions a tradition that he was Kamiizumi's nephew, and says that the name Hikita Kage-ryu may also refer to a school founded by another swordsman. According to the Japanese Wikipedia, besides the sword the school also included the spear and naginata, and one of its lines was handed down in the Kumamoto domain. Neither the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai nor the Nihon Kobudo Shinkokai lists it, and we have not found a living lineage in the sources. The Japanese Wikipedia says that the Kumamoto line of the Wada family is still handed down today.
History
The Daijisen dictionary says that Hikita Kage-ryu was founded in the early Edo period as a branch of Shinkage-ryu by Hikita Bungoro from Kaga province, a pupil of the Shinkage-ryu founder Kamiizumi Ise-no-kami Nobutsuna, and that the school came to be called by this name only after Bungoro's death. The Nipponica encyclopedia describes him as an early modern swordsman, a leading pupil of Kamiizumi and the founder of Hikita Shinkage-ryu, who was born probably in 1537 and died in 1605. The Jinmei daijiten dictionary gives the same years, with a question mark for the birth year as well, and Kozuke province as his place of origin. The Japanese Wikipedia says the name Hikita Kage-ryu has two meanings. It can refer to the branch of Shinkage-ryu led by Hikita, or to a school founded by another swordsman. According to Wikipedia, Hikita himself did not name the school and its name was given by his pupils, and according to one tradition he was Kamiizumi's nephew and briefly served the Hosokawa family. According to Wikipedia, one of his pupils carried a line to the Kumamoto domain when the Hosokawa family moved.
How it differs
The Japanese Wikipedia says that Hikita Kage-ryu included the spear and naginata as well as the sword, and that one of its branches was known precisely for them. According to the same source, in the Kumamoto domain the line derived from the Yagyu family was called Yagyu-ryu, while Hikita's line bore the name Shinkage-ryu. The Nipponica encyclopedia and the Jinmei daijiten dictionary call the school Hikita Shinkage-ryu, the Daijisen dictionary Hikita Kage-ryu.
Today
Neither the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai nor the Nihon Kobudo Shinkokai lists the school, and the koryu.com guide does not mention it either. We have not found a living lineage or organization of the school in the sources. The Japanese Wikipedia says the Kumamoto line of the Wada family, which soon adopted modern kendo in the Meiji period, is still handed down. According to Wikipedia, the spear line in Tottori died out, and only part of its naginata art survives.
Did you know
The Japanese Wikipedia cites the compilation Honcho bugei shoden from 1714, according to which two of Hikita's pupils stood out and the school was by then called Hikita Kage-ryu. The Nipponica encyclopedia says that Hikita died in 1605 in Osaka.
Frequently asked questions
Who was Hikita Bungoro?
According to the Nipponica encyclopedia, a swordsman who was born probably in 1537 and died in 1605, a leading pupil of Kamiizumi Nobutsuna and the founder of Hikita Shinkage-ryu.
What is the relationship between Hikita Kage-ryu and Shinkage-ryu?
The Daijisen dictionary gives it as a branch of Shinkage-ryu founded by Kamiizumi's pupil Hikita Bungoro. According to Daijisen, it came to be called Hikita Kage-ryu only after his death.
Is Hikita Kage-ryu still practised today?
We have not found a living lineage in the sources, and neither the Nihon Kobudo Kyokai nor the Nihon Kobudo Shinkokai lists the school. The Japanese Wikipedia says that the Kumamoto line of the Wada family is handed down.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.