Kenjutsu

Kenjutsu (剣術?) is the umbrella term for all traditional (koryū) schools of Japanese swordsmanship, in particular those that predate the Meiji Restoration and the modern styles of kendo and iaido that emerged from the traditional schools in the late 19th century. Kenjutsu, which originated with the samurai class of feudal Japan, means "the method, or technique, of the sword." This is opposed to kendo, which means "the way of the sword".

The exact activities and conventions undertaken when practicing kenjutsu vary from school to school, where the word school here refers to the practice, methods, ethics, and metaphysics of a given tradition, yet commonly include practice of battlefield techniques without opponent and techniques where two persons paired kata (featuring full contact strikes to the body in some styles and no body contact strikes permitted in others). Historically schools incorporated sparring under a variety of conditions, from using solid wooden bokutō to use of bamboo sword (shinai) and armor (bogu). In modern times sparring in Japanese swordsmanship is more strongly associated with Kendo.