Kama-yari
鎌槍 · kama-yari
Literally: sickle spear
Also known as: kamayari
A Japanese spear with one or two side blades at right angles to the shaft, used to catch an opponent or their weapon or to pull a rider from a horse.
Quick Facts
JapanAbout the weapon
The kama-yari is essentially a Japanese yari spear with one or more blades at right angles to the shaft; the name literally means "sickle spear." According to Ratti and Westbrook (1991), it was developed by the Buddhist priest Kakuzenbō Hōin In'ei, who wanted to improve the naginata used by Buddhist monks in combat. Pieces with one horizontal blade projecting to the side are called kata kama-yari, and with two opposite blades jūmonji yari; ever larger versions were called ō-kama-yari. The edge of the side blades measured 6 to 8 inches (about 15–20 cm). A 16th-century specimen at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York, acquired in 1928 from the Fletcher Fund, is made of steel, wood and lacquer and measures 220.3 cm overall. The side blade was large enough to catch an opponent's head, neck or jaw, his limbs, or his weapon. The kama-yari was often used to hook riders and pull them off their horses.
Related weapons
- Variant of: Yari