A
dagger without a
guard, originating in
Japan. Also called a
kusungou, refering to the length of the
blade which was
originaIly—
Ku (nine)
sun,
go (five)
bu, 0-95 of a Japanese
foot, equal to about 10.8
English inches. Apparently this type of
knife was not carried by persons of
rank until the later
Tokugawan times; where it then became
popular and was used by
old men, men living in semi-
religious retirement, and by those
rewarded with titles.
In the early pat of the Tokugawan period, the end of the
scabbard was usually protected by a
ring of
buffalo horn which had a
shoulder on it that locked into a similar
ring on the hilt. Later, when this kind of knife became more
popular with the
higher classes, these pieces were often made of
metal decorated like the other fittings. The
decoration was
partly on each so that the two appeared as one when the
knife was
sheathed. The ring on the
hilt was sometimes called the
fuchi, and the one on the scabbard the
koi-guchi kanagu. Usually the two, collectively, were called the koi-guchi. Sometimes the koi-guchi was a special fitting with a
projecting flange, if it was attached to the hilt the flange fitted over a plain cap on the scabbard; if it was attached to the scabbard a plain cap on the hilt fitted into it.
These knives were used in committing
ceremonial suicide,
harakiri or
seppuku. When used for this
purpose they were fitted with
hilts and scabbards of plain
white wood.
Often, the aikuchi was carried by those whose
fighting days were
over, apparently as a
notice that while the
wearer was no longer seeking
trouble, he was still prepared to
defend himself. One of the old meanings of the name is "
a pleasant companion." Another
derivation, which appears to be more probable, is that the open end of the scabbard is called the
koi-guchi (literally carp mouth), and the opening in the end of the
hilt for the tang the
tsuka-guchi (hilt mouth), the knife is called
ai-kuchi (meet
mouth), the two not being separated by a guard as with other knives.