The ''fukiya'' (吹き矢) is the

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 ...

ese

blowgun A blowgun (also called a blowpipe or blow tube) is a simple ranged weapon consisting of a long narrow tube for shooting light projectiles such as darts. It operates by having the projectile placed inside the pipe and using the force created by ...

, as well as the term for the associated sport. It consists of a tube, with darts approximately in length. Unlike modern Western blowguns, the fukiya has no mouthpiece: instead, a shooter must maintain a seal with the lips while forcefully exhaling. The darts used in the fukiya are called ''fukibari''. Traditionally, fukibari were 5 cm in length. In Japan, fukiya is considered to be an

archery Archery is the sport, practice, or skill of using a bow to shoot arrows.Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17 The word comes from the Latin ''arcus'', meaning bow. Historically, archery has been used for hunting and combat. In m ...

sport, maintained by the Japan Sports Fukiya Association. In order to promote fukiya, the International Fukiya Association (IFA) was formed, based in Japan. The main organizations under the IFA are the American Association (ASBA), and the French Federation (FSBA).

History

The ''fukiya'' is often considered to have been a weapon of the

ninja A or was a covert agent or mercenary in feudal Japan. The functions of a ninja included reconnaissance In military operations, reconnaissance or scouting is the exploration of an area by military forces to obtain information about enem ...

. It is known that in the past, there were numerous schools of martial arts and

ninjutsu , sometimes used interchangeably with the modern term , is the martial art strategy and tactics of unconventional warfare, guerrilla warfare and espionage purportedly practised by the ninja. ''Ninjutsu'' was a separate discipline in some tradit ...

(such as

Togakure-ryū is a historical tradition of ''ninjutsu'' known as the "School of the Hidden Door", allegedly founded during the Oho period (1161–1162) by ( ), who learned his original fighting techniques from a Chinese monk named Kain Dōshi. However, the hi ...

) which used the fukiya and fukibari alone (as ''senbon''). A typical ninjutsu fukiya is around 50 cm, which is shorter than the sport fukiya, but does affect the effective range. Thus, even in theory, ninja would have had to use special darts with

poison Poison is a chemical substance that has a detrimental effect to life. The term is used in a wide range of scientific fields and industries, where it is often specifically defined. It may also be applied colloquially or figuratively, with a broa ...

ed tips in order for it to work, and fired from a concealed location. Most likely, it was used similar to ''

shuriken A ''shuriken'' ( ja, 手裏剣; literally: "hidden hand blade") is a Japanese concealed weapon that was used as a hidden dagger or metsubushi to distract or misdirect. They are also known as throwing stars, or ninja stars, although they were ...

'', as a distraction. The blowgun can also double as a breathing pipe and straw to enable the ninja practitioner to better survive in the wilderness. There will always be doubts whether it was truly effective compared to bow and arrows, since it has a shorter range. In the hands of experts ("Master" level), it can be very accurate, as testified by sport fukiya players today.

Science of fukiya

The range of a fukiya is determined by size (diameter), weight, length and material of its basic component, the tube. Pressure built up in the tube from the player's breath and the technique that the player uses to channel the breath into the tube affects the speed that the dart will exit the muzzle. Weight will affect a player's ability to hold the tube steady, and arm

fatigue Fatigue describes a state of tiredness that does not resolve with rest or sleep. In general usage, fatigue is synonymous with extreme tiredness or exhaustion that normally follows prolonged physical or mental activity. When it does not resolve ...

level over a period of time.

Sport fukiya

Like any sport, fukiya has certain guidelines for its equipment. In general, international guidelines set by IFA are less strict than JSFA. Currently, the specifications for international competitions are as follows: *Equipment: Can be self-made (Japanese competitions require properly made equipment) **Pipe ***length: 120 cm (4 ft); For practice at home, students can employ a 50 cm pipe, with the target placed at 5 to 6 metres away ***diameter: 13mm (.51 cal) if possible; anywhere between 12mm to 13mm, so .50 cal (1/2") is acceptable for International competition ***Weight: 150g for beginners; 600g for advanced **Darts: wedge shape if possible; conical shape is acceptable; guidelines can vary ***length: Approximately 20 cm in length ***weight: 0.8g *Competition **Distance from target: 10m; 8m for handicap competitors; 6m for novice; (5-6m for practice, using a shorter blowgun) **Number of darts in use: 30 **Target: 3 rings ***bulls-eye: 6 cm diameter, 7 points ***inner ring: 12 cm in diameter, 5 points ***outer ring: 18 cm in diameter, 3 points ***Bulleye's height from the ground: 160 cm (90 cm for handicap) **Point calculation: 6 rounds of 5 shots are taken, with a maximum score of 210 points **Time allotted: not exceeding 25 minutes, for all 30 darts, including shooting, scoring, retrieval, and cleaning the barrel *Level advancement (minimum score required) **3 kyu: 60 points **2 kyu: 75 points **1 kyu: 90-105 points (depends on association) **shodan: 105-119 points (depends on association) **2 dan: 120 points **3 dan: 150 points **4 dan: 162 points **5 dan: 175 points **Master level I: three 186 points scores

Associations

International Fukiya Association

(USA)
Japan Sport Fukiya Association
(Japan)

Popular culture

* ''

Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles ''Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles'' is an American media franchise created by the comic book artists Kevin Eastman and Peter Laird. It follows Leonardo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Leonardo, Michelangelo (Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles), Miche ...

'' features fukiyas being used by the Ultimate Ninja and Foot Ninjas. * In ''

Princess Mononoke is a 1997 Japanese animated epic historical fantasy film written and directed by Hayao Miyazaki and animated by Studio Ghibli for Tokuma Shoten, Nippon Television Network and Dentsu. The film stars the voices of Yōji Matsuda, Yuriko Ishida ...

'', Jigo's men use bfukiyas which they keep disguised as

parasol An umbrella or parasol is a folding canopy supported by wooden or metal ribs that is usually mounted on a wooden, metal, or plastic pole. It is designed to protect a person against rain or sunlight. The term ''umbrella'' is traditionally used ...

s when not in use. * A fukiya was used by a ninja in ''

Deadliest Warrior ''Deadliest Warrior'' is an American television program in which information on historical or modern warriors and their weapons are used to determine which of them is the "deadliest" based upon tests performed during each episode. The show was c ...

''.

Sources

IFA FAQ, English version
''(Japanese versio

''

External links

* {{Japanese (samurai) weapons, armour and equipment Blowgun Ninjutsu artefacts Personal weapons Primitive weapons Weapons of Japan