Douk-Douk
The douk-douk is a French-made pocket knife of simple sheet-metal construction. It has been manufactured by the M. C. Cognet cutlery firm in Thiers, France, since 1929. Design origins The external engraving of the ''douk-douk'' was created in 1929 by Gaspard Cognet of Cognet, Antoine & Gaspard for sales to France's colonies in Oceania. The handle depicts a " douk-douk", or Melanesian spirit incarnation. Cognet based the design on an engraving in an illustrated dictionary. Later other designs such as the "El Baraka" and "Tiki" were developed for other regional markets, particularly in French Algeria, and even south into Sub-Saharan Africa. Originally intended as an inexpensive utility pocket knife for the ordinary working man, the popularity of the ''douk-douk'' caused it to be pressed into service as a weapon when necessary.Sarrat, Jean, ''Il était une fois mon Algérie à moi: Biographie'', Editeur Indépendant, , (2007), p. 238 During the 1954-1962 FLN-led revolt in Alg ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Mercator K55K
The Mercator K55K is a type of pocketknife produced in Germany since around 1867. Mercator knives were primarily produced by Hy. Kauffmann, which was operational from 1856 to 1995. The Mercator K55K knife is still produced in Germany by Mercator, now a division of Otter-Messer. Construction The Mercator K55K is of very simple construction: The handle consists of a folded piece of sheet metal, usually painted black, engraved with the outline of a leaping cat and the legend "K55K", with the second "K" being backwards. The blade has a nail-nick by which it may be grasped to pull it open, and it locks in the open position (a lockback knife), after which it may only be closed by depressing a lever at the back of the knife. As of 2013, the knife can be purchased with a stainless steel or carbon steel blade. The Mercator's construction is similar to that of the later appeared French Douk-Douk knife, in terms of the simple folded-metal handle. However, the Douk-Douk is a slipjoint kn ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Opinel
The Opinel company has manufactured and marketed a line of eponymous wooden-handled knives since 1890 from its headquarters in Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne, Savoie, France where the family-run company also operates a museum dedicated to its knives. The company sells approximately 15 million knives annually. Opinel knives are made of both high carbon and stainless steel, the latter being Sandvik steel from Sweden. Originally sold as a working man's knife, an Opinel knife has become emblematic of French culture. C NEWS, Le Couteau Opinel, La Lame Universelle', Directsoir, no 233, 30 october 2007, republished 7 July 2013, retrieved 15 May 2022 Pablo Picasso is said to have used one of the company's knives as a sculpting tool. In 1989, the Larousse dictionary cited "Opinel" as a registered trademark. History Joseph Opinel began making knives in 1890 in Savoie, France as a simple working man's or '' peasant's knife''.''L'Opinel, une fine lame toujours à l'affût'', Rhône-Alpes, April ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pocket Knife
A pocketknife is a knife with one or more blades that fold into the handle. They are also known as jackknives (jack-knife), folding knives, or may be referred to as a penknife, though a penknife may also be a specific kind of pocketknife. A typical blade length is . Pocketknives are versatile tools, and may be used for anything from whittling and woodcarving, to butchering small game, gutting and filleting small fish, aiding in the preparation of tinder and kindling for fires, boring holes in soft material, to opening an envelope, cutting twine, slicing a piece of fruit or as a means of self-defense. Specialised designs are also used for mushroom hunting and gardening. Pocketknives designed for gardening include pruning knives, which are folding knives with long curved blades used for pruning, trimming cuttings, taking buds and preparing material for grafting. History The earliest known pocketknives date to at least the early Iron Age. A pocketknife with a bone handle wa ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Barakah
In Islam, ''Barakah'' or ''Baraka'' ( ar, بركة "blessing") is a blessing power, a kind of continuity of spiritual presence and revelation that begins with God and flows through that and those closest to God. Baraka can be found within physical objects, places, and people, as chosen by God. This force begins by flowing directly from God into creation that is worthy of baraka. These creations endowed with baraka can then transmit the flow of baraka to the other creations of God through physical proximity or through the adherence to the spiritual practices of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. God is the sole source of baraka and has the power to grant and withhold baraka. Islamic mysticism Baraka is a prominent concept in Islamic mysticism, particularly Sufism. It pervades Sufi texts, beliefs, practices, and spirituality. Sufism emphasizes the importance of esoteric knowledge and the spiritual union with God through the heart. Baraka symbolizes this connection between the divine and ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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French Culture
The culture of France has been shaped by geography, by historical events, and by foreign and internal forces and groups. France, and in particular Paris, has played an important role as a center of high culture since the 17th century and from the 19th century on, worldwide. From the late 19th century, France has also played an important role in cinema, fashion, cuisine, literature, technology, the social sciences, and mathematics. The importance of French culture has waxed and waned over the centuries, depending on its economic, political and military importance. French culture today is marked both by great regional and socioeconomic differences and strong unifying tendencies. A global opinion poll for the BBC saw France ranked as the country with the fourth most positive influence in the world (behind Germany, Canada and the UK) in 2014. French culture The Académie Française sets an official standard of linguistic purism; however, this standard, which is not mandatory, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Pocket Knives
A pocketknife is a knife with one or more blades that fold into the handle. They are also known as jackknives (jack-knife), folding knives, or may be referred to as a penknife, though a penknife may also be a specific kind of pocketknife. A typical blade length is . Pocketknives are versatile tools, and may be used for anything from whittling and Wood carving, woodcarving, to butchering Game (hunting), small game, gutting and filleting small fish, aiding in the preparation of tinder and kindling for fires, boring holes in soft material, to opening an envelope, cutting twine, slicing a piece of fruit or as a means of self-defense. Specialised designs are also used for mushroom hunting and gardening. Pocketknives designed for gardening include pruning knives, which are folding knives with long curved blades used for pruning, trimming cuttings, taking buds and preparing material for grafting. History The earliest known pocketknives date to at least the early Iron Age. A poc ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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France
France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its Metropolitan France, metropolitan area extends from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean and from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea; overseas territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic, the French West Indies, and many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean. Due to its several coastal territories, France has the largest exclusive economic zone in the world. France borders Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Monaco, Italy, Andorra, and Spain in continental Europe, as well as the Kingdom of the Netherlands, Netherlands, Suriname, and Brazil in the Americas via its overseas territories in French Guiana and Saint Martin (island), ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countries of Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe; and to the east and northeast by Mozambique and Eswatini. It also completely enclaves the country Lesotho. It is the southernmost country on the mainland of the Old World, and the second-most populous country located entirely south of the equator, after Tanzania. South Africa is a biodiversity hotspot, with unique biomes, plant and animal life. With over 60 million people, the country is the world's 24th-most populous nation and covers an area of . South Africa has three capital cities, with the executive, judicial and legislative branches of government based in Pretoria, Bloemfontein, and Cape Town respectively. The largest city is Johannesburg. About 80% of the population are Black South Afri ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Okapi (knife)
The Okapi is a ratchet-lock clasp or slipjoint knife originally produced in 1902 for export to German colonies#Africa 2, Germany's colonies in Africa. The knife takes its name from the giraffe-like central African okapi. Okapi knives are no longer produced in Germany; in 1988, Okapi South Africa (then trading as All Round Tooling) bought the trademark and tooling and began producing the Okapi line of knives in South Africa. The South African Okapi lockback knives are produced with carbon steel, carbon or stainless steel blades, with or without serrations. The most commonly found Okapi knives in Africa are made of resin impregnated wood (usually Prunus, cherry) and the blades are made of 1055 carbon steel. Well known around the world but especially in Jamaica as badman/gangster knives or ratchet. Use Okapi knives are mainly used by working-class people due to being very affordable and, while crude in appearance, are robust knives. Use can range from harvesting crops, self-defense, ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Germany
Germany,, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It is the second most populous country in Europe after Russia, and the most populous member state of the European Union. Germany is situated between the Baltic and North seas to the north, and the Alps to the south; it covers an area of , with a population of almost 84 million within its 16 constituent states. Germany borders Denmark to the north, Poland and the Czech Republic to the east, Austria and Switzerland to the south, and France, Luxembourg, Belgium, and the Netherlands to the west. The nation's capital and most populous city is Berlin and its financial centre is Frankfurt; the largest urban area is the Ruhr. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity. A region named Germania was documented before AD 100. In 962, the Kingdom of Germany formed the bulk of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th ce ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Japan
Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north toward the East China Sea, Philippine Sea, and Taiwan in the south. Japan is a part of the Ring of Fire, and spans Japanese archipelago, an archipelago of List of islands of Japan, 6852 islands covering ; the five main islands are Hokkaido, Honshu (the "mainland"), Shikoku, Kyushu, and Okinawa Island, Okinawa. Tokyo is the Capital of Japan, nation's capital and largest city, followed by Yokohama, Osaka, Nagoya, Sapporo, Fukuoka, Kobe, and Kyoto. Japan is the List of countries and dependencies by population, eleventh most populous country in the world, as well as one of the List of countries and dependencies by population density, most densely populated and Urbanization by country, urbanized. About three-fourths of Geography of Japan, the c ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |
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Higonokami
A is a type of folding pocket knife originating in Miki, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan in 1896. The knife has no locking system, but is a friction folder or "penny knife", using the friction of the swivel or the pressure of the user's thumb on its iconic lever or ''chikiri'', to prevent the knife from folding during use. The handle of the Higonokami is made of a folded over sheet of metal. The handle is stamped with the name of the maker of the knife and the steel used in the blade. A distinguishing feature is that the blade has a flat grind without a secondary bevel. Etymology The kanji used to spell Higonokami (肥後守) in Japanese means the "Governor of Higo". This was the most senior administrative position or '' Kokushi'' who governed Higo (肥後国), an old province on the island of Kyūshū, which is now in present-day Kumamoto Prefecture. Within the Taihō Code, ''Kami'' (長官) was the highest of four titles of ''shitōkan'' (四等官) in the "four-ranked officials" s ... [...More Info...]       [...Related Items...]     OR:     [Wikipedia]   [Google]   [Baidu]   |