Bokutō
Japanese wooden sword used for training
木刀 · 목도
- Type
- exercise equipment, wooden sword
- Place of origin
- Japan
- Material
- wood
A bokken (木剣, bok(u), 'wood', and ken, '(double-edged) sword') or bokutō (木刀, boku, 'wood', and tō, '(single-edged) sword') is a Japanese wooden sword used for training in kenjutsu. It is usually the size and shape of a katana, but is sometimes shaped like other swords, such as the wakizashi and tantō. Some ornamental bokken are decorated with mother-of-pearl work and elaborate carvings. Sometimes, it is spelled "boken" in English.
Bokken are traditionally composed of red oak or white oak, although any hardwood can be used. In comparison, practice swords made of flexible, soft wood such as bamboo are referred to as shinai.
Martial arts that use it
External links
Facts from Wikidata Q215058 (CC0); quoted introduction from English Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0). Data retrieved 2026-10-22.
Data: Wikidata (CC0 1.0); Wikipedia (English) (CC BY-SA 4.0). Retrieved 2026-10-22.