samurai
Feudal Japan's soldier
A samurai was a member of the warrior class in feudal Japan, serving a lord and following a strict code of honor called bushido.
The word now evokes disciplined martial skill and loyalty: He approached his work with samurai focus.
In modern usage, samurai often modifies nouns to suggest Japanese warrior tradition: samurai sword, samurai armor.
The plural is also samurai.
Japanese feudal landowner
- vassalLand-holding sworn subordinate
- castleFortified medieval residence
- domainArea of control
- fiefGranted feudal estate
lordship · Tokugawa · peasant · taxation · rice · aristocracy · nobility · hierarchy
High regard, moral dignity
- loyaltyFaithful commitment to another
- dutyRequired moral task
- courageFortitude facing danger
- rectitudeMoral straightness
benevolence · respect · integrity · self-discipline · righteousness · valor · fortitude · compassion
Feudal drifter-warrior
- ninjaJapanese espionage agent
- wakizashiJapanese auxiliary blade
- armorProtective combat covering
- battlefieldCombat engagement area
duel · warfare · archery · horseback · tactics · siege · campaign · raid
daimyo
Japanese feudal landowner
fief · lordship · Tokugawa · peasant · taxation · rice · aristocracy · nobility · hierarchy · clan
honor
High regard, moral dignity
rectitude · benevolence · respect · integrity · self-discipline · righteousness · valor · fortitude · compassion · sincerity
ronin
Feudal drifter-warrior
battlefield · duel · warfare · archery · horseback · tactics · siege · campaign · raid · skirmish
seppuku
Ritualized Japanese self-disembowelment
defeat · tanto · honor · afterlife · memorial · revenge · vendetta · forty-seven · martyrdom · execution
kenjutsu
Japanese martial blade art
sensei · kata · training · discipline · mastery · technique · stance · strike
- East AsiaChina, Japan, South Korea, North Korea, Korea
- East Asian Culturechopsticks, yin and yang, tea ceremony, origami, qi
- JapanTokyo, Kyoto, Osaka, Mount Fuji, Hokkaido
- Japanese culturekabuki, sumo, origami, tea ceremony, geisha
- Japanese wordsanime, bento, bonsai, futon, geisha
- action genresmartial arts, kung fu, spy, western, war films
- samurai swordJapanese warrior's curved blade
- samurai armorJapanese warrior's protective suit
- samurai codeFeudal warrior ethics
- samurai cultureFeudal Japanese warrior tradition
- samurai spiritFeudal Japanese warrior ethos
- samurai filmJapanese swordsman movie genre