WIRED Japanese Expert Historian Talks About Samurai

[@metatronyt]

Link to the original video kzbin.info/www/bejne/f3bTlWWJi9xjfJo Also if you like what I do and wish to support my work to help me make sure that I can continue to tell it how it is please consider checking out my patreon! Unboxings are Patreon exclusives! www.patreon.com/themetatron Join this channel to get access to more old school Metatron videos the algorithm wouldn't prioritize! kzbin.info/door/IjGKyrdT4Gja0VLO40RlOwjoin

[@jensbond93]

@@metatronyt at 24:00 you messed up the camera. Can you add subtitles?

[@brokeandtired]

Translated to American...Spear = M16, Sword = Pistol....you can carry a sword everyday, but when you war you use the Spear. The Sword like a Glock today is a sidearm.

[@augustozambrano]

I am not involved with any agenda. So, please take this seriously: I ask you to think very hard about the topic of race in Egypt and update your views to better represent the historical facts. The reason I ask you this, is that I believe this is the single most important topic you've discussed in your channel, and after further investigating it, I decided to invite you to offer your many viewers an updated top quality well researched video; and I think this topic deserves the absolute best you are capable of.

[@arielquelme]

I think you should put similar Criticism towards Thomas Lockley

[@augustozambrano]

@@arielquelme Acknowledging the truth won't cure cancer, if that's your point, but it won't hurt anyone either. Furthermore, I only heard of those black channels because of Metatron. I went there looking to have a laugh, thinking that they were woke idiots, and what I found out, I don't want to say it, but it shocked me. I will be VERY honest here: I am a racist. I do not hate or try to hurt anyone, but I accept facts regarding IQ studies. Likewise, I invite you to do the same and embrace the truth wether you like it or not. Do not create EXCUSES. Kidnapping history is EVIL and UGLY. Full period.

[@thomaspunt2646]

1:00 Correct me if I'm wrong, but the stigma behind tattoos in Japan is because tattoos are heavily connected with the Yakuza.

[@LordSleven]

That's what I was told too

[@somedude7938]

Yes, but the practice of tattooing repeat offenders predates the Yakuza (by a 1000 years, conservatively). So while you are of course correct, a more accurate (pedantic) way to put it is that tattoos are heavily connected with criminals in general, the Yakuza being the most prominent and visible of that category.

[@Scopatone]

That's the modern day stigma yes. The caveat is that obviously nobody thinks a foreigner is Yakuza or a Japanese person with a butterfly tattoo is Yakuza. When you're denied entry to places for having tattoos, majority of the time its a precaution to not make other customers uncomfortable and lose business. I got compliments on my tattoos from random people on the street, from young to elderly, every few days in the 2 years I lived there. It's mostly a business precaution.

[@TheMasterblah]

​@@Scopatone yeah, denying service to avoid making their customers uncomfortable is pretty common. At least in Okinawa we'd get refused service in some places because the local regulars didn't like us lol

[@onliwankannoli]

@@TheMasterblahI got kicked out of a bookstore in Tokyo (in Akihabara, of all places) basically for being a foreigner. The owner/manager came up to me and said “No English!” I thought at first he was just saying he didn’t have books in English, but then he got up in my face and said it a second time, making himself very clear. So I left.

[@Glegionar]

This is something that people keep missing when talking about a samurai. Samurai existed for something about 1000 years! How could you expect to give a general answer to questions about them without specifying which period we are talking about?

[@kenwarren9450]

I'm an old dude, and it's rare for me to see/read/hear about something totally new...but I had absolutely no idea that "Samurai swimming techniques" was a thing. Thank you! Nothing is more fun than learning something unexpected!

[@Riceball01]

They need to do the same with HEMA now.

[@kaltaron1284]

I learned this by pure accident in Tokushima IIRC. It wasn't a very widespread thing.

[@sanguinembwun6475]

@@Riceball01it was probably the same in Europe and everywhere else they wore armor! It would be a necessity to know how to swim in armor so that troops didn’t drown in costal battles and river crossings!

[@FoxToxic-l8e]

Huh. Anyone remember the movie "The Profesional"? Samurai: First the bow, then the spear, then the sword. The Profesional: First the sniper rifle, then the pistol, then the knife.

[@calibri1182]

Leon. Great film.

[@trenae77]

Define transformative work - we come for a video on Samurai; we leave with a lesson on Japanese culture and a deeper appreciation of both the original presenter and Metatron as well.

[@southcoastinventors6583]

I thought this video is just Metatron practicing his Japanese that and advertisement for pitch accent could do a collaboration with Dogen.

[@captaindanger13]

@@southcoastinventors6583 yo that would be epic if he did a collab with Dogen

[@PeteDeKiwi]

Yet another deep dive reaction that builds on the knowledge gained. Thank you. Looking forward to part 2.

[@whatisgoingonherebruh1]

Deep dive? Half the video this white guy is talking about whether the JAPANESE guy is speaking proper Japanese. And surprise surprise, he is 🤯

[@andyking957]

Urushi laquer still is widely used in Japan for different traditional laquer work widely, also for eating and tea bowls. It is not toxic at all, but the unhardened resin highly allergic for a number of people. But if you are not allergic to it, you still migth develop allergy but until then are in no danger at all. The hardened laquer is not dangerous. At least as important is the loss of artisans who can do a proper urushi laquer.

[@kohakuaiko]

It's still very popular in the fountain pen community. Namiki makes some beautiful urushi pens (that are far outside my price range).

[@tsukuneboy]

Japanese watch companies also use it

[@outboundflight4455]

Isn't Urushi lacquer also used on Nihonto? What lacquer is used today?

[@Frank_Costanzas_Lawyer]

It's just not the same without Metatron reminding us that he's spread his wings.

[@alexanderren1097]

I bet I know how that armor swimming thing started: A bunch of young Samuai sitting around a campfire next to a river or lake, bored because they’re not expecting any fighting any time soon, one of them says “Here hold my sake. Hey y’all watch this!” Either that or it was a dare or bet.

[@kwangsoo515]

Fits with human nature, the European tale of Beowulf included a swimming contest with the men wearing armor. If I remember correctly.

[@alexanderren1097]

@ Hah! I think you’re right. I forgot about that

[@Pedro_Colicigno]

A few minutes into it an officer comes by and sees them all wet and in armor and asks what they were doing: "Er, we were training, sir! Yeah, training how to... uhm... cross a river in battle to help... uhm... encircling, sir!". And then they had to show to the rest of the unit hahaha

[@alexanderren1097]

@@Pedro_Colicigno Officer: “Good work boys! I’m giving you a field promotion to training the rest of the army how to do this!”

[@Josqua-93]

Hey Metatron, would you be interested in making a Video about Nioh 2? I've seen you got a rather old and quite short one about the first game already and I'd be interested in seeing your review as well as commentary on the historical accuracy of the depicted events and characters and the accuracy in the depiction of mythological events and yokai in the game. Nioh 2 is already a few years old now as well (2020), so I'm not sure how well such a video would do, but I would definitely be interested in a more in depth experience than your video on the first Nioh game this time.

[@bestthingsinceslicedrice]

"Too much confidence is considered rude" As an Asian who immigrated here in America and came accross people that speak to the point they act like they know it all and shocked about the amount of arrogance displayed most of the time. When you mention the cultural aspect on that. It confirmed my sanity

[@outboundflight4455]

Japanese integrity and etiquette is the peak of human behavior. We should all follow its example.

[@maximusd26]

14:35 Hideyoshi, the monkey-faced sandal bearer, must have had one of history's greatest ascension to power

[@fattiger6957]

He also seemed to go more than a little crazy after he attained that power. I've heard speculation that he invaded Korea with the end goal of installing himself as Emperor of China. I can't speak for the voracity of that, but based on his action Hideoyoshi didn't seem like a very nice person (no worse than the other 2 great unifiers, though)

[@josecoronadonieto6911]

​@@fattiger6957 Loved his representation in Nioh 2, i still consider it one of the best games of all time

[@Zetact_]

​@@fattiger6957 There's a figure named "Mashiba Hisayoshi" who is obviously a thinly veiled version of Hideyoshi as an antagonistic force is present in many kabuki plays.

[@loneshinobi2682]

@@josecoronadonieto6911there’s even a great piece of dialogue in Nioh 1 when Anjin is being shared Nobunaga’s guardian spirit and Nobunaga explains to Anjin that his path is one that is now treaded by the monkey and the tanuki which is a reference of course to Hideyoshi and Ieyasu

[@outboundflight4455]

As well as Hitler, failed university art student turned leader of 1940s Germany.

[@shidoumezawa]

When you mentioned swiming in samurai armor, i thought of some sort of scrooge mcduck kind of thing, jumping into a pile of samurai armors 😂

[@1208muciek]

Superb show! I love Japanese and Japan... Despite the fact I know almost everything but still fun to watch!

[@songyani3992]

21：28 Just to make an addition, toyotomi hideyoshi was the person who banned peasants from wearing samurai swords and clothes. He did it despite or because of his own rising from peasant status.

[@outboundflight4455]

Exactly. He only wanted that honor for himself. It's also possible he didn't want to be associated with his peasant past once he assended.

[@songyani3992]

@@outboundflight4455 I would also think having obtained the top place in the social hierarchy he knew how easy it is to crumble because he himself was able to break the obstacles. If he can do it anyone can and I think he‘s afraid to lose all those power. “Protecting the establishment” I should say

[@outboundflight4455]

@songyani3992 I see, good point. He was gatekeeping his path to success.

[@andreavyas7480]

You are correct. That image is not a yari, but a naginata.

[@caan_69420]

one day metatron will remember the exact ratio between gunners and archers, but today is not that day

[@kaltaron1284]

Although as usual the answer is "It varied." So we'd have to look at specific examples.

[@lolnoobus]

After 1700 it was 1 bow per 3 guns, that what i thinked... but I failed to find gun range in Nissinkan, while it looks like they haved open archer field. What the fuck? While in other place it was 3 gun ranges and one archer field. It looks like guns and bows was a rare for a samurai.

[@kaltaron1284]

@@lolnoobus Are we talking the Nisshinkan in Aizu-Wakamatsu? That was established in 1801 and the schools mandate was "to prepare boys for future careers serving Aizu as samurai-administrators".

[@lolnoobus]

@kaltaron1284 May be Information about samurai in english are... they put this Nisshinkan right next to samurai military school (?) with gun training field in other part of the country without any explanation, damn it, and then, like "you see, the samurai was are warriors and their training was sooo diverse and they studied all of this". And I was like - Wha...! Something is wrong!

[@kaltaron1284]

@@lolnoobus Unfortunately I have quite some trouble understanding you.

[@batbite_]

24:00 *untranslated Japanese* - "nice"

[@seymourfields3613]

I'm seven minutes in and everything has either been, "Guy talks, Raph reiterates in English." Or I'm just sitting here thinking, "Those are definitely the noises and cadence of a language."

[@batbite_]

@seymourfields3613 24:00 gonna be... something then 🩷

[@mrkiky]

@@batbite_ He says "tsugi no go-shitsumon" which means "next question" and then proceeds to read the question which is "what period did samurai used katana the most and what was the main weapon before that?"

[@O_Nao-Conformista]

I watched this expert answers video and my immediate reaction was "Metatron must react to this"

[@whatisgoingonherebruh1]

Why is that? This white dude spends half the video om whether or not the JAPANESE dude is speaking proper Japanese lol. Nobody gives a fk if he lived in Japan for a few years or whether or not the japense guy is using a proper word. He should just talk about the fking video if hes gonna do 0-effort content like react videos

[@jensbond93]

24:00 any subtitles? Can't see the video...

[@eranshachar9954]

Metatron you know I like you but I want to give you some constructive feedback so please take it seriously- If you'd be so kind to let the experts talk first, finish what they have to say and then start talking. If there are points you want to talk about and afraid you would forget, you can write in down quickly in your phone or even a paper note whatever. Not that you are not interesting because you are, otherwise I wouldn't be here.

[@tomriddle3784]

I knew you were going to cover this when I watched it last night, haha

[@aegishjallmur8827]

23:59 it appears you've forgotten to switch to the video :p

[@LastGoatKnight]

Now this reminded me of something. I live with my family and thus I have access to toys that my siblings own technically. One such toy is a "ninja sword", a plastic replica of a Wakizashi (of my size, so an average height 20yo). For multiple times, as someone who never wielded a sword in their lives, it was so natural to unsheet the blade, cut with it and put it back that I didn't have to think at all. Which means that I either have an innate natural talent with the blade or the blade it was replicated from is such a good design. But then again, it's just a cheap analog for a real blade, which doesn't mean anything but still.

[@fattiger6957]

drawing and sheathing a curved blade is just easier than with a straight sword.

[@boraonline7036]

Metatron: "He is speaking about castles now, so I should call Shad..." Me: "NOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!""

[@Likexner]

Dread it, run from it, it will come all the same. MACHICOLATIOOOOOOOON-ZAH!!!

[@Eldiran1]

Even if it's not on the other channel, i like when you correct pitch or give so explanation about it. Also i didn't know about the tradition of swiming in armor, it's an interesting one.

[@lordvlygar2963]

28:30. I thought they had shields that were almost as tall as the person and it was attached to their back. It was removable and tapered at the bottom so it could be driven into soil. What am I thinking of then?

[@quicksimplebeauty]

your comment about Japanese people saying "I think" as a way of being humble and polite: now I understand when I listen to Hiroyuki Sanada interviews and he says "I think" after a declarative statement...💡🤯 makes sense now. :D thank you

[@johnrobinson3117]

HA the naginata! Apparently "Wired" was a bit "tired" that day. It's also worth pointing out "jujutsu" wasn't even in the lexicon for most of samurai history; it began with kogusoku - the concept of being "disarmed" in battle or being "underarmed" in a domestic setting and trying to win with shorter edged weapons.

[@amacadre]

Mononofu was also used commonly for warriors. Musha was still used in the context of martial arts, for musha shugyo, travelling across the country to train at several dojo. By the way, urushi is still used. It irritates the skin when not cured, but it is safe to eat from lacquered dishes. New armour made in the traditional way, and dishes, etc. are still made with urushi. There IS cashew lacquer which is less toxic and cures faster and more easily. Prof. Conlan reported data for wounds. There was a trend for arrow and sword wounds first (14th century) that evolved into arrows, spears, and guns.

[@TalesofDawnandDusk]

This video was so perfectly acceptable that there really isn't much to say about it that I have nothing much to say about it despite running in Japanese history circles. Well done video, I only wish I had more to say.

[@balintkovacs4089]

Let us not forget that for the samurai, learning these things was career AND lifestyle. For the modern practitioner, it is 'only' a career at most, but for the majority a hobby or exercise or skill learning. And the dividing factor is time: the warriors of historical ages could dedicate their entire day to the aspects of their profession - not only the physical of course - whereas people today are like "yeah I can manage a couple hours 1-2 times a week for a hobby or maybe a couple hours daily if I do it more seriously, but then I got job, kids, travel, etc to do". Ironically the more productive our world gets the less free time we allow ourselves.

[@nickwells20]

The swimming in armor is very impressive. Most people don't even realize that trying to swim fully clothed with jeans and shirt and boots or leather dress shoes is much more difficult than just a bathing suit. Especially when it comes to the footwear you are wearing. Your feet become cinder blocks and treading water becomes a brutal task very quickly lol.

[@AJ-HawksToxicFinger]

exactly. The rumor is the dungarees they issue in the US Navy have bell bottoms so you can easily remove them in the water- least that's what they told us in boot camp back in the day

[@sethprice241]

I learned that in the Boy Scouts back in the '80's. Also how to turn your blue jeans into a flotation device. Back when they actually taught you survival skills.

[@Regalia85]

Am I the only time traveller from 1855?

[@moristar]

Interesting point on politeness in not being too certain. Norwegian culture also has a lot of this. It is common to say "Jeg tror at" (I believe that) when you are saying something that is absolutely a fact. The language expects to be indirect and always leaving room for others to exit an awkward situation.

[@dante040]

The fact metatron was watching a gaming historian video just tickles me for some reason

[@vgb3693]

I think how jiujitsu is pronounced is also connected to how bartitsu uses itsu at the end, both have roots in juujutsu. maybe westerners at that time have trouble saying the utsu so became itsu for more simplicity based on how their tongue is used to. Jiujitsu has japanese same as bartitsu, jiujutsu is established by brazilians and bartitsu is by englishman.

[@Grosswick]

I had some lifeguard training when I was younger, and our trainer asked us once to bring extra set of clothes. He asked us to do our regular routine swimming schedule, or more like a warm-up if the full clothing. Oh boy. This was like swimming with another person on your back trying to pull you down under. This was meant to show us how stupid it is to jump into water in clothes, and also to show us that someone may make saving them harder when you try to pull them out, even if unintentional (they may panic or be scared of you, or don;t know how to swim at all). That said, seeing people jump into water in freaking suit of armor? This is more challenging than it may look like!

[@stanislavkolacny609]

I love Your short commentary in Japanesse during his talking.

[@johnhodgdon2434]

Spears are like the ultimate melee weapon, they are just op, you only abandon your spear if it's damaged or someone manages to get past the lethal part and you need a closer defense, bows are like the penultimate ranged weapon because very few people can dodge or deflect arrows.

[@augustleo8368]

This is a more appropriate video to ask my question. While you were living in Japan, Metatron, did you ever play the game Go; and what did you think of it? Also known as Igo, Baduk, and Weiquei.

[@fmas1978]

17:05 looking back at my forty six years on this rock I must admit, the "polite Japanese expressions' are The UItimate of Politeness of This World

[@RavenOConnor]

The Wired arc continues! :D

[@jmurray2018]

正しさとは、道理に従って行動の方向性を揺るがすことなく決定する人の力です。死ぬべき時が正しい時、打つべき時を打つ事が正しい

[@southcoastinventors6583]

I guess Metatron is not the only one practicing his Japanese

[@jmurray2018]

@ mom Japanese

[@NathanAdams-v4c]

I Bow to the long forgotten, the great Oda Nobunaga

[@mrkiky]

I mean, he's anything but forgotten. He's quite famous.

[@TheGhost-7002]

Metatron, since you are who likes to speak of historical truths and avoiding the spread of myths, misconceptions, and lies, PLEASE check out the Shogunate’s interview with Thomas Conlan (the one where they are discussing his role as a historical advisor for the game Warlord Awaji). He says A LOT of stuff that goes against what many, including yourself, have believed about the Samurai. There are a lot of misconceptions and historical myths that he clears up that you yourself have repeated (particularly regarding the Takeda). I found it a massive Eye opener and I am eager to see your POV on what he has to say.

[@Perceval777]

I've read most of Thomas Conlan's publications and have watched many interviews/lecture videos with him. He is correct about many things and has done great work in samurai history, but is also many times wrong. He is wrong about Medieval Japan being some kind of multicultural society (the Korean artisan migrants would have already been Japanese by that time), he is wrong about women samurai, and he does not understand how bows work (I don't mean to be rude, I just know because I practice archery and have real life experience, while he could not explain the difference between a short composite bow and the Japanese longbow during one lecture). In his 2003 book on warfare, he is wrong on many levels about the weapons and how they perform (he claimed you couldn't use naginata and nagamaki on horseback and that naginata and axes would break easily because they had a wooden shaft - statements that have aged really poorly). His take on the Takeda during the Shogunate's interview was probably more to provoke people and he probably meant the Takeda as a whole during all of their history, not Shingen specifically. Oda Nobunaga himself said in a letter that the only man he is afraid of is Takeda Shingen - why would Nobunaga say such a thing if the Takeda were weak? In addition, Tokugawa Ieyasu had to run for his life from them after their crushing victory (and he even soiled his pants - a true story). Also, Conlan is right that Takeda's lands were poor but that's exactly what made them more resilient, hardy and expansionist. The Takeda during Takeda Shingen specifically, were absolutely a very powerful clan. Karl Friday is a better historian when it comes to samurai history and warfare, and even Stephen Turnbull in his latest books has been a lot more right than wrong. If you go through the samurai history, martial arts and warfare pages and groups in Facebook, you'll see that many learned and educated people disagree with Conlan and question many of his statements.

[@amacadre]

​@@Perceval777what did you think about his paper on the limits of loyalty, and the one about the Ouchi plan to move the emperor to Yamaguchi ? I have only read him and Friday, and a bit Souyri. I dismissed what I read from Turnbull because he made several weird mistakes in his book on katana, and did not seem to use primary sources in his Osprey book on samurai.

[@Perceval777]

@@amacadre Was that the paper from 1999? I suppose you mean the one about how some samurai would turn up for a battle, give their document as proof they're taking part, and then leave right before the battle, and how many samurai were first and foremost loyal to their families, not their lords, so they switched sides often - I think that's some of Conlan's great work. Samurai being loyal to their family in order to insure its long-term survival in times of constant turmoil is quite understandable and human, if you ask me. I still haven't read his newest book - I think that's where he's written about the Ouchi and their plans about the imperial family. He just mentioned it briefly in the interview, it was the first time I heard it and was very interesting. Concerning Turnbull - yeah, he's made lots of mistakes, not just about the katana. But most of his newer books (from about 2020 onward) are much better researched and he does use many primary sources, his "Ninja: Unmasking the Myth" from 2018 and "Weapons of the Samurai" from 2021 are good examples. He still relies a bit too much on literary, fictional sources which exaggerate and dramatize, but still not bad overall. Also, Turnbull actually understands what's the difference between the short composite bow and the longbow, so he gets points from me for that as well, hahah.

[@amacadre]

@Perceval777 the paper by Conlan about loyalty was in 1997 in the book The origins of Japan's medieval world. The Ouchi story is from 2015. I enjoyed them both very much (although I don't have the background to check the sources) since they give a lot of nuance and humanity to the bushi world (as in not fanatically loyal and not all complete turncoats either). Thank you for the info on Turnbull, I will check his recent work. By Conlan, I recently read Samurai and the warrior culture of Japan 471-1877, and like you said, some of his interpretations were strange (he seems to find it strange that warriors had no issue using the "sneaky" bow, but despised the naginata).

[@bushy9780]

metatron really exhibiting his breadth of knowledge in this video. Learned a lot from this one.

[@DieGoetterdaemmerung]

Oddly enough the etymology of Knight in english is similar, coming from the german Knecht which describes a servant, in german though a knight was a Ritter which specifically referred to them being on horseback and a men at arms would be a Waffenknecht, a Weapon-servant, although a men at arms on horseback would still be a Waffenknecht regardless. It's just odd that Knecht/Knight became the word for a lower nobility social class in english while the same word was used for exclusively those who did not belong to said social class in german.

[@hound3000]

I really appreciate your opinions on this.

[@josecoronadonieto6911]

Metatron really writing in mayus block

[@kingcyberkawaii5981]

I wish you do a video on musashi miyamoto, keiji maeda, and tadakatsu Honda. Would love to see a video on those 3 maybe even kojiro musashi most famous duel

[@jakepistolero]

i guess the japanese watching samurai swimming might feel similar mexicans watching the traditional mesoamerican ball game, nice. good for them, keeping traditions alive

[@DeadDrunk1]

I always thought that Jiu Jitsu was the Portuguese way of saying Jujutsu, stemming from the time when there were alot of Portuguese missionaries and such in feudal Japan.

[@richardtreat7955]

I got yelled at buy a Armorer in Yokosuka Japan. I almost touched, the suit of Samurai armor on display in his shop. It was beautiful.

[@unisophia]

why did they use laquer on their armour instead of bluing it?

[@MrHalcyon89]

Possibly prettier? Same way many European armours were painted before victorian collectors 'restored' them.

[@mrkiky]

Maybe they didn't have the chemicals for bluing, and also bluing is not that corrosion resistant, especially on an island nation.

[@amacadre]

​@@mrkikythey had, artisans use several mixtures to form stable iron oxide to protect from rusting. These are used for iron tsuba and cast iron items like kettles. It's usually controlled rusting followed by baking on oil or lacquer.

[@amacadre]

Waterproof and more colours. It can also be used on leather.

[@mrkiky]

@@amacadre I can only imagine because lacquer would not be able to last on those items and maybe moisture was more manageable on a tsuba compared to on an entire armor.

[@saturnargentavis1901]

I was told in Japan Samurai were great warriors on horses but when off their horse and faced with a non samurai warrior they were at a huge disadvantage

[@edoardoprevelato6577]

If Shiroyama by Sabaton isn't quoted, we riot

[@nLocky]

Is it? Do we riot now?

[@chase5298]

sabaton fans are so cringe lol

[@edoardoprevelato6577]

@@chase5298 how so?

[@JackoBlades]

The dawn of destiny draws near, imperial force defied, facing 500 samurai

[@FENomadtrooper]

16:30 I'm learning Jp and wondered why he said "I think" thanks for clearing that up.

[@TheUnhappyTroll]

"It is a common misconception that Zanpatsu Datto Rei by all mean ordered the forcible hair cutting by forbidding topknots, but rather, it conveyed a freedom of hairstyle. People like Kenkichi SAKAKIBARA kept his topknot even after the edict was officially announced, but was not punished in any ways. "

[@chuiduma]

Great video except for the end where i had no idea what you were talking about lol. At least you eventually realized but missed out on a whole segment before that 🙃

[@shoecheto]

I love how you pronounce Latin and Japanese.

[@emmettturner9452]

So in the music video for Daft Punk - Infinity Repeating, the flooded walking samurai was accurate? Who knew.

[@ScottyAlmondjoy]

daiyo = innit

[@mrkiky]

"da ne" would be closer to "innit"

[@kohakuaiko]

だよ is more like "I'm telling you, man"

[@P.T.S.E.]

24:00 The video turns Souls-like for me, who is not understanding Japanese and trying to figure out what is being said from Metatron's reactions.

[@radianman]

Musha must be a cognate of the Korean word Musa, which means warrior.

[@kaltaron1284]

AFAIK the -jitsu thing comes from Brazil. I wonder where that swimming event was held, maybe someone can tell from the mon or the banners. IIRC I learned about this in Takamatsu. I thought the tsukaeru he used meant 使える to be used but could also be 仕える to serve, to work for. Japanese is fun. Kizoku 貴族 literally means noble/esteemed/precious family. Yeah, Toyotomi Hideyoshi rose up incredibly far. Then burnt the ladder behind him so to speak. And then his son got betrayed at least in part because of his low origin. IIRC Hideyoshi was most famous for his organizational talent. Do you remember the story of the three unifiers and the nightingale? That tsuba in the picture looks a bit bigger than modern ones. Interesting for another recent topic. I guess it's fair to say that when most people hear Samurai they will think of the way they at the end of the Edo Jidai or Bakumatsu. Those rules had been introduced by Toyotomi Hideyoshi and Tokugawa Iyeyasu and kept more or less unchanged for over 200 years. They were so rigih and ingrained into the people that when the Bakufu ultimately lost, some people were in shock. There was a short-lived phenomenon call Ee ja nai ka (ええじゃないか, lit. 'isn't it good' more like "does it matter?") . Another way to get swords and other weapons was of course the looting of battlefields. I disagree a bit that there were no wars but they were local upraisings and small compared to the chaos of the Sengoku Jidai. Great video. Both the original and the reaction.

[@tbunny6305]

I don't know what you mean, modern soldiers are not warriors? If they make it their careers they are and The United States Marine Corps is the best standing army in the world outside of special forces of which all of the best are in the US.

[@kohakuaiko]

It just sounds weird even though it is entirely true

[@tbunny6305]

@@kohakuaiko How is it true?

[@beetledjuice3062]

I think he meant that we don't usually call them "warriors". We call them soldiers/marines/military/armed forces/etc... Even though they would probably fit the description of a warrior most of the time.

[@tbunny6305]

@@beetledjuice3062 Anyone who has fought in war is a warrior .

[@beetledjuice3062]

@@tbunny6305 Then a lot of modern soldiers are not warriors. I'm not sure what your point is right now.

[@jeremymullens7167]

In the U.S. people in the military are called warriors.

[@boraonline7036]

The guy speaks japanes. So where is the problem? It's not that I really speak japanese. But I like the language, there are subtitles and you are pretty much a fluent speaker, for what I know! 😜

[@everdinestenger1548]

Didn't Japanes horsemen use silken capes to shield the from arrows? Because the capes were floating there was nothing for the arrow to pierce.

[@amacadre]

It's held at several points on the back so it inflates with the wind like a balloon, yes, to stop arrows.

[@everdinestenger1548]

@@amacadre You put it into words better than I did 👍

[@bcan664]

At 24:00 - can we get subtitles… not Japanese fluent 😅

[@boraonline7036]

So we can say: "Arigato gozaimasu, EXPERT-Sama!" No "I'm a muppet!"-sign to this gentleman!, All splendid facts with no political agendas! A great day fro history and science! Wonderful!

[@mrkiky]

It's true, I checked the Yasuke section where there was the biggest chance of that happening, but thankfully, this dude didn't even know about ubisoft's abomination and was surprised someone knew about Yasuke.

[@StephenYoung1379]

I grew up obsessed with Samurai, but the more I learn about the facts and historical reality of Samurai, the more I find it is just a modern pop culture, media overhyped, romanticized, and fantasized product.

[@StacyBaldwin-qv5cj]

My friend the Marine Corps doesn't have soldiers, they have Marines. The army has soldiers.

[@SkepticalCaveman]

Women used Naginata because it was easier for them to wield since they lacked the strength that the men had. Later, men stopped using Naginata, and it became an almost exclusive female weapon.

[@xXSamir44Xx]

I don't think the was a big weight difference between naginata and yari, so that first part doesn't make sense to me.

[@スカシレコクサモナカ]

A naginata is a weapon with a long handle and a curved single-edged blade. It allows you to distance yourself from the enemy and use centrifugal force to deliver a powerful slash even if the user's strength is weak. You can also tangle your opponent's weapon with the curved part. It is more difficult to handle than a spear, so it requires training.

[@SkepticalCaveman]

@@スカシレコクサモナカ exactly.

[@スカシレコクサモナカ]

The reason why men stopped using naginata was because wars became large-scale, and fighting began as a group rather than as an individual fight. Wielding weapons will injure allies.

[@arielquelme]

So Naginata is a noob weapon

[@kevinzanuar5492]

Please react to their Wild West Episode, it's genuinely one of the most fun episode they have.

[@KethusNadroev]

I'd like to see Raph react to Yasuke's Wikipedia page. Just press ctrl+f and type "samurai".

[@tindekappa9047]

My main issue with this show is they make it seem like it's their fans who asked them these questions but sometimes the tweets they respond to are like 10 years old. Meaning they make their guests respond to some 10 year old tweet about the Roman Empire from a guy with 2 followers.

[@The7thSid]

Great work as always, Metatron. I understand it's fairly common practice to refer to the members of a given nation's military as "soldiers" at large, but wanted to gently point out that U.S Marines in particular get prickly about being called "soldiers". No offense offered and none taken, of course, just a fun little cultural touch stone I thought I'd pass along.

[@mm-yt8sf]

judging from the armor on the table few people know that samurai were a little over a foot tall...but they were fierce! people kept petting them so they had to wear angry looking monster masks to deter that

[@スカシレコクサモナカ]

Judging by the matchlock gun on the table, I think the samurai was about 6 inches tall.

[@peteweller8891]

If this was a legit guy, he wouldn't be on WIRED

[@Ciprian-IonutPanait]

1:14 different than considering a tattoed person a low morality person and possibly a criminal?

[@python27au]

25:06 sorry dude, I don’t speak Japanese so i’m kinda lost without the subtitles.

[@jeffzeiler346]

Fascinating. I knew much of the lecture content, but none of the linguistic details and social minutiae. Thanks.

[@TheBakaslayer]

metatron have you watched much anime ? how about a list of good period anime? you like kenshin?

[@chichiboypumpi]

Just ask Shogo

[@Mel-he9dh]

That would be legendary

[@nny2055]

He's not the best. He's a Japanese guy who speaks English, but he doesn't really know much about anything.

[@LastGoatKnight]

​@@nny2055he knows just enough

[@nny2055]

@LastGoatKnight Yeah, he is just normal guy.

[@kaijuslayer3334]

@LastGoatKnight He tends to regurgitate the more stereotypical stuff about samurai and feudal Japan. Like emphasis on the sword and Bushido being a very hard set rule that dictated everything the samurai did. I guess his info isn’t bad looking at late Edo period, but what he says hardly applies well to the Sengoku or earlier periods. Especially in regard to him talking about Ninja.

[@Roland3ld]

Here's the usual full support for algorithm nonsense.

[@gagamba9198]

Samurai synchronised swimming.

[@angelhurtado55]

17:17 wonder how well does that work in court for a lawyer?

[@sasshiro]

Anyone in 1600?

[@arielquelme]

I think you should put similar Criticism towards Thomas Lockley

[@brQdfrQd]

They can try and explain why Chonmage hairstyle was a thing all they want. But I'm sure it was because some balding lord was mad and forced it upon the rest of the population. I would be calling people with a full head of hair barbaric as well if I was balding lol.

[@outboundflight4455]

Not exactly. The hairstyle was adopted to aid in cooling while they wore Kabuto.

[@nederth3364]

24:01 yeah, I understood everything ;)

[@markzuckergecko621]

My favorite thing about samurai is how the movement of their mouth never matches up with what they're saying. I've always wondered how they did that.

[@mrkiky]

Ancient technique to avoid lip reading. Little known fact, this is reproduced in every single anime ever.

[@davidfromkyushu6870]

Living in Japan, I've found that when someone says "maybe" they're making a hard factual statement. It took awhile to get used to, because my girlfriend (now wife) would do this when I asked her a question. "Maybe the shop is closed. Maybe the sign on the door says 5 PM. Maybe I have a picture of the sign."

[@mrkiky]

What kind of "maybe" do you mean? Or do you mean in English?

[@davidfromkyushu6870]

@@mrkiky In English; Metatron was talking about how even an expert will say "I think" when discussing something he knows for certain. This was my personal experience with that way of speaking with my girlfriend.

[@mrkiky]

@@davidfromkyushu6870 So you're talking specifically about "to omoimasu" ? Because I don't really get "maybe" vibes from that.

[@crbgo9854]

You should ask sensei la Dew about samurai

[@dragonofhatefulretribution9041]

Notice @ 17:55 the samurai’s eyes are clearly depicted as grey/blue? Robert Sepehr’s recent video about the Blue-Eyed Buddha shows the ancient paintings of “gods” in Thailand’s Buddhist temples which clearly depict all of them as having blue eyes.

[@VieShaphiel]

I don't think "clearly" is the word I'd use if I can't even decide it's grey or blue...

[@dragonofhatefulretribution9041]

@ I’ve got quite a decent-sized 4K TV and I’m sat right beside it & the eyes are either grey or blue, but one thing is clear; they’re definitely *not* brown.

[@FiliusFidelis]

32:28 If that spear is 2 meters long, it would make the man about 1 meter tall ;) Assume that's a pike man?

[@luelee6168]

The Chinese did call the Japanese Wō (倭) which literally translates to "dwarf" afterall. 😝

[@madbrosheo1514]

You might want to turn caps lock off lol