Ace This Quiz and Learn the Way of the Samurai

The Meiji Restoration (beginning in 1868) marked the modernization of Japan, and the end of classes such as the samurai. The year 1870 saw the institutionalization of a Japanese military academy, and wearing samurai swords was banned in 1876. Many young leaders of the Meiji Restoration were ex-samurai who realized that Japan needed to reform as the world around it evolved.

The dragonfly was a common emblem in samurai culture, and was known in Japanese as "kachimushi" (which translates to "victorious insect"). Dragonflies would commonly appear on the crest affixed to the front of samurai helmets, known as the maedate. These insects were respected for never wavering from their path while hunting, which drew comparisons to the samurai.

Bushidō wasn’t just a few rules — it was an entire way of life. Loosely similar to a medieval knight’s Code of Chivalry, Bushidō addressed how a samurai was supposed to behave, fight, and see the world in general. Bushidō differed among samurai clans and evolved throughout Japanese history.

Ronin, which means “drifter” or “wanderer,” are depicted romantically in samurai films like “Lone Wolf and Cub,” but in reality, ronin were often rebellious. A famous incident in the early 18th century involved a group of 47 ronin who set out to avenge the death of their former master, and on December 14, 1702, they succeeded. The story of those 47 ronin remains a popular Japanese legend.

If the shogun was the head of feudal Japan, daimyo were the limbs. Known as vassals of the shogun, these daimyo (meaning “great land owners”) controlled land and therefore political power. But with this power came friction and, eventually, war among the various daimyo, who turned to samurai to protect both their land and their lives.

While samurai are generally depicted as male, the onna-bugeisha were a group of female warriors trained in the exact same style of combat. Onna-bugeisha carried a naginata — a shorter and lighter version of traditional samurai weaponry — and they would often fight alongside their male counterparts. The group ended their reign in the mid-19th century shortly after the Battle of Aizu.

Kendo, which literally means “the way of the sword,” can trace its lineage back to samurai. During Japan’s Warring States period (roughly 475 BCE to 221 BCE), many schools taught various sword-fighting styles known as “kenjutsu.” The rise of protective equipment and the introduction of bamboo swords eventually led to the transformation of “kenjutsu” to “kendo” in the 20th century.

Darth Vader was an intimidating sight when he first appeared onscreen in 1977. But while the space opera was set “in a galaxy far, far away,” the inspiration behind Vader’s iconic look was much closer to home. “Star Wars” director George Lucas and concept designer Ralph McQuarrie based Vader’s helmet on the samurai “kabuto” and the famous black armor of warlord Date Masamune.

The katana, meaning “a curved sword with a one-sided blade,” came to prominence in the 15th century. The katana could be used one-handed or two-handed, and was often paired with a wakizashi, a smaller blade. The two blades together, often worn on the left side of a samurai’s belt, were called a daishō, which literally means “big little.”

The samurai were a class of warriors that formed in 12th-century Japan. At first, the word represented only the most aristocratic among the warriors, but “samurai” soon became a more broad term. Samurai were usually hired for protection in what could be a dangerous feudal world, and served as an integral part of Japanese society until the Meiji Restoration in 1868.