中國刀劍

中國的刀劍類武器在傳統上可分為「刀」與「劍」兩個大類。其中「劍」通常為兩側對稱的雙刃式設計，主要的攻擊方式為刺/扎/截等，在英語中通常意譯作「longsword」；與之相對的，「刀」一般則是一邊開刃的單刃式設計，並且自宋代起刀身整體多為彎曲式，主要攻擊方式為劈/砍/切等，在英語中通常意譯作「saber」或「knife」。

從左向右排列：春秋式劍、戰國式劍、秦劍、漢劍、明劍、清劍

中國的刀劍歷史最早可追溯至上古時代，最早的青銅劍於西周時期便已經出現，刀劍的材料在戰國時代後期開始改為使用更為耐操的鍛鐵與鋼材。而在現代，解放軍海軍的儀仗刀自2008年起開始仿照中國傳統刀劍的樣式而設計。除蝴蝶雙刀等特殊武器之外，一般的中國刀劍在長度上通常都為70—110 cm（28—43英寸）左右，但一些情況下也會有超長的刀劍被使用。

除了古代中國之外，日本古代也曾在公元3至6世紀期間使用過中國式刀劍，但後者在平安時代期間逐漸演化為了日本刀並隨之被其所最終取代。

參見

• 中國劍術
• 中國甲冑
• 中國攻城武器
• 日本刀
• 印度刀劍
• 朝鮮刀劍

書目

• Andrade, Tonio, The Gunpowder Age: China, Military Innovation, and the Rise of the West in World History, Princeton University Press, 2016, ISBN 978-0-691-13597-7 .
• Behr, Wolfgang. Stray loanword gleanings from two Ancient Chinese fictional texts. 16e Journées de Linguistique d'Asie Orientale, Centre de Recherches Linguistiques Sur l'Asie Orientale (E.H.E.S.S.), Paris. 2002: 1–6. 
• Brindley, Erica Fox, Ancient China and the Yue, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2015, ISBN 978-1-107-08478-0. 
• Brindley, Erica Fox, Barbarians or Not? Ethnicity and Changing Conceptions of the Ancient Yue (Viet) Peoples, ca. 400–50 BC (PDF), Asia Major 16 (2): 1–32, 2003 [2023-10-26], JSTOR 41649870, （原始內容存檔 (PDF)於2023-03-26）. 
• Coyet, Frederic, Neglected Formosa: a translation from the Dutch of Frederic Coyett's Verwaerloosde Formosa, 1975 
• Crespigny, Rafe de, Fire Over Luoyang: A History of the Later Han Dynasty, 23-220 AD, Brill, 2017 
• Graff, David A., Medieval Chinese Warfare, 300-900, Routledge, 2002 
• Graff, David A., The Eurasian Way of War: Military practice in seventh-century China and Byzantium, Routledge, 2016 
• Kitamura, Takai, Zhanlue Zhanshu Bingqi: Zhongguo Zhonggu Pian, Gakken, 1999 
• Lorge, Peter A., Chinese Martial Arts: From Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century, Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 2011, ISBN 978-0-521-87881-4 
• Lorge, Peter, The Reunification of China: Peace through War under the Song Dynasty, Cambridge University Press, 2015 
• Milburn, Olivia, The Glory of Yue, 2010 
• Peers, C.J., Ancient Chinese Armies: 1500-200BC, Osprey Publishing, 1990 
• Peers, C.J., Medieval Chinese Armies: 1260-1520, Osprey Publishing, 1992 
• Peers, C.J., Imperial Chinese Armies (1): 200BC-AD589, Osprey Publishing, 1995 
• Peers, C.J., Imperial Chinese Armies (2): 590-1260AD, Osprey Publishing, 1996 
• Peers, C.J., Soldiers of the Dragon: Chinese Armies 1500 BC - AD 1840, Osprey Publishing Ltd, 2006 
• Peers, Chris, Battles of Ancient China, Pen & Sword Military, 2013 
• Perdue, Peter C., China Marches West, The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press, 2005 
• Robinson, K.G., Science and Civilization in China Volume 7 Part 2: General Conclusions and Reflections, Cambridge University Press, 2004 
• Swope, Kenneth M., A Dragon's Head and a Serpent's Tail: Ming China and the First Great East Asian War, 1592–1598, University of Oklahoma Press, 2009 
• Wood, W. W., Sketches of China, 1830 
• Wagner, Donald B., Iron and Steel in Ancient China, E.J. Brill, 1996 
• Wagner, Donald B., Science and Civilization in China Volume 5-11: Ferrous Metallurgy, Cambridge University Press, 2008 
• Wright, David, From War to Diplomatic Parity in Eleventh Century China, Brill, 2005 
• Late Imperial Chinese Armies: 1520-1840 C.J. Peers, Illustrated by Christa Hook, Osprey Publishing «Men-at-arms», ISBN 1-85532-655-8

外部連結

• http://www.shadowofleaves.com/Chinese_Sword_History.htm （頁面存檔備份，存於互聯網檔案館）
• http://www.chinesesword.net/Swordplay/Swordplay1E.htm （頁面存檔備份，存於互聯網檔案館）