Spend all that time perfecting the art of Nodachi only for Musashi to come whack you with an oar…

Hey Matt, interesting discussion; I think this needs to be broken up a bit into the different time periods studied. Koto blades are of significantly different size distribution than those of the Edo forward, in part due to the restrictions of blade sizes. We end up with a significant bottleknecking of nagasa especially for uchigatana that you see during the Shinto and Shinshinto period in particular, that just was not there on earlier blades, but does show up when you look at swords that have suriage or o-suriage.

If you compare the sword sizes from Kamakura -> Sengoku  you tend to find a much larger size distribution (both shorter and longer) with overlap of European two handed sword length.

That is one of the most beautifully mounted and fitted tachi I have ever seen. It's absolutely gorgeous.

You need to look into the Kage Ryu school of swordsmanship: they use blades starting at ~36". There are some very long swords used in earlier times. In fact, the Shin Kage Ryu school started out using ~36" blades with the left hand holding the base of the blade wrapped in paper (?).

Hi Matt, great episode as always.
Just thought I’d add a little regarding anatomical size and Iaido.

I’m a U.K. male, 5’5” and Iaido practitioner. I had to be measured for my sword and, worn and drawn properly, I CANNOT USE a katana with a blade longer than 27”. This is because of the length of my arms relative to my body width.

The overriding philosophy of Iaido is the fast draw: if you’re first to bring your sword to bear then you’re most likely to win. In the west swords were worn very much to the side, which gives a longer pull. But contrary to most depictions in popular fiction, the katana is actually worn much further across the body, with the pommel on your centre-line, above your navel. The drawing motion consists of both the right hand drawing the sword forward AND the left hand drawing the saya backwards, creating a far shorter draw.

While this did take on great importance in the later age of duelling, it originated on the battlefield. As you said, the katana was a secondary weapon so if you lost your primary you were unarmed against an armed opponent until you could draw your secondary weapon. Speed was of the highest importance. We still see this philosophy today in modern armies practicing their stoppage drills - in close quarters combat the emphasis is not on clearing the stoppage but instead on transitioning swiftly from their assault rifle to their sidearm in order to keep putting rounds on target.

5:43 "I like short swords!  They're comfy and easy to wear!"

Besides Katanas being generally secondary weapons on a battlefield, there is also the civilian context.
The same characteristics that made them good for secondary use (easy to wear, quick to draw, useful at close distances) were also great properties for self defense in peace time or behind the lines. That includes scenarios like fights in constricted spaces, sudden escalations, and unarmoured opponents. All of that fits extremely well with the quickdraw as a technique, and a sword that's designed for a quick and lethal cut.

Decisiveness, speed, and surprise were generally highly valued in the Samurai culture, and the later form of katana basically bridged the gap between theory and praxis. You made a video on the experience of western sailors in Japan some years ago, which cited experiences that the Japanese fighters would rush right in to decide the fight in one cut, even at significant risk of injury to themselves. A shorter but heavier sword fits perfectly with that, compared to lighter but longer swords that enable more controlled fighting styles.

Actually the sword you're holding there are models of swords from the 15 to 1600's the uchigatana used during the height of the samurai era had both a longer tsuka (grip) and longer tō (blades) examples of these longer swords can be seen at the Tokyo museum of national history but you can also see examples in contemporary art.

Also remember the uchigatana and the tachi are two vastly different tools. The uchigatana was a two-handed sword similar to a longsword in both length and heft, do they tend to be on average just slightly heavier than a long sword. The tachi is a one-handed sword designed to be used from horseback, it had a more dramatic curve and a shorter handle and was hung from the hip with a cord and harness system that allowed it to swing freely and not interfere with riding and steering the horse.

The reason examples of swords of this length are rare in Japan, it's because during the 15 and 1600s the government of Japan, namely the shogunate, outlawed swords above a certain length. This meant that all new swords made had to conform to the new regulations but also all older swords had to be chopped and reground.

Because of this there are very few examples of true size samurai swords outside of art and museums.

Cheers Matt! Another informative discussion. You did a great job of hitting almost every “oh, but what about “point in my head as the video went along.
One point that I think is in there that you touched on indirectly is that, has side, arms, samurai carried these weapons off the battlefield both as a status symbol and a practical weapon.
So we come back to all the pieces you mentioned. A secondary weapon that can be worn high (useful in a society that tends to kneel regularly) with syllabi that emphasize quick draw for attack and defense, people of being used both in or outdoors, certainly favors a smaller sword size

Matt's shed has got enough weapons at this point to raise an army.

I'm glad you addressed the "it's because they're short" argument the way you did, because i was expecting to scroll to the comments and just see a wall of that answer xD

..I still do, of course, but less so than if you'd just ignored that point.

I just carry all my weapons in a magical bag of holding. LOL

With regards to long blades, if there is a defect in the blade, the blade is less likely to fail if it is short because a longer blade generates more speed and momentum. When striking a target, it generates more shock and stress than a short blade. And of course, the longer the blade, the greater the chance for more defects within the steel.

My wife and I practice kenjutsu. In our ryukan reach is considered a huge advantage so we're told to use the longest katana that we possibly can. Height is a factor but only because of drawing, you can draw longer blades with experience but you'll hit a point where certain iai cuts aren't realistic anymore. My wife is 5'4 and she has a pretty standard 28" blade. I'm well over 6' so I have a 34" blade and may get a bigger one at some point. That standard 27"-28" sounds in line for the upper ceiling of size you could wield for an average height back then.

Most comprehensive reasons give in a quick distilled manner. Best job I've ever seen on the subject.

Early on there was really long japanese swords but when warstrategy evolved and changed the swords was made shorter.
There are katanas that are 5 shaku (1 shaku= 30.3 cm) and one of the katanas i use for Iaido training is 3 shaku long.

reminds me of one video a couple years ago from Seki Sensei. The technique required to draw a katana consisting of multiple shaku (the measure used in blades if memory serves) is both difficult and can be impractical for the intended uses of Samurai at the time. And longer blades were often considered more a matter of showmanship rather than martial prowess.

Last time I was this early, Amakuni had just introduced curvature into his swords.

Sasaki kojirou is also a legend who use very long nodachi Monohoshizao (物干竿, literally mean hanging pole). So it's kinda inaccurate to think japanese sword is small at least in terms of length.

Some were long, most set to the length of the arm. Odachi were horse swords. When a sword was chipped it was shortened when redone. Some from the edo period were untouched and are quite long. On display in the Kyoto sward museum.

Sometimes the Katana was worn edge down with armor, if the chest piece of the armor got in the way of the scabbard.