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Dao () is a category of single-edge Chinese Sword s primarily used for slashing and chopping ( Saber s), often called broadswords in English because some varieties have wide blades. Dao is actually a generic word used to denote any member of a family of Single-edged , broad-bladed cutting or slicing tools, but in common, everyday usage means Knife . The weapon, also known as dan dao (single knife), is thereby thought to be an adaptation of the kitchen knives common to Chinese Cuisine . The same character, 刀, is also used in Japanese for a single edged sword, and one of its readings is '' Katana ''. ANCIENT HISTORY From the original and Tungus ic tribes of Central Asia since the 8th Century at least. Its effectiveness for mounted warfare and dispersion across the entirety of the Mongol empire had lasting effects. It spawned descendants across the continents that in turn produced even more kinds of curved swords over the years. The Persian Shamshir , the Indian ''' Tulwar ''', the Afghani ''' Pulwar ''', the Turkish ''' Kilij ''', the Arabian ''' Saif ''', the Mameluke "''' Scimitar '''", and the Europe an ''' Sabre ''' (adopted via Hungary 's Magyar horsemen) and ''' Cutlass ''' are all progeny of this Mongol curved blade. China, being firstly (and completely) conquered by the Mongols, spawned a variety of new blades over the centuries. As well, different regions of China had their distinctive styles even before the Yuan dynasty (setup by the Mongols after the successful Mongolian invasion). The two most notable breeds of saber are called the ''liuyedao'' ("willow leaf knife") and ''yanmaodao'' ("goose quill knife"); the liuyedao features an overall slight curve to the blade while the ''yanmaodao'' is straight-bladed for much of its length, curving only near the tip. Some of the designs seemed distantly related to the common pole-arms in use then, the '' Kwan Dao '' developed by a Shu general, Kwan Yu (and thus named after him), and ''huyadao'' which bore curved blades on the end of wooden hafts of varying lengths; in addition the neighboring Burmese Dha and Siamese Krabi bear strong resemblance to the Chinese sabers. One of the blades influenced by the Manchu s is the ''niuweidao'' (oxtail knife), a heavy bladed weapon with a characteristic flaring tip which is the archetypal "Chinese broadsword" of kung fu movies today. As the niuweidao was not invented until the early 1800s (the late Qing Dynasty ) and was not issued to troops, its appearance in movies and modern literature is often anachronistic, and it is also sometimes mislabeled as a willow-leaf saber. The Chinese Spear and dao (liuyedao and yanmaodao) were commonly issued to infantry due to the expense of and relatively greater amount of training required for the effective use of Chinese straight sword, or Jian . Dao can often be seen depicted in period artwork worn by officers and infantry. Its popularity on the battlefield earned it the name "General of all Weapons" while the spear was commonly deemed as the "King of the Battlefield". RECENT HISTORY 's Manchu bodyguards (1760) carrying his Archery equipment and wearing a sheathed dao, notice the lanyard through the handle.]] Some of the blades from the Qing dynasty lived on and even had descendants see military action in the 20th Century . A Direct Derivative of the huyadao was used by some Chinese Militia units against Japanese invaders in the Second Sino-Japanese War . These were used during planned ambushes on Japanese troops because the Chinese military and patriotic resistance groups often had more willing soldiers than firearms. Most Chinese Martial Arts schools still train extensively with the dao, seeing it as a powerful conditioning tool and a versatile weapon, with self defense techniques transferable to similarly sized objects more commonly found in the modern world, such as Baseball or Cricket bats, for example. One measure of the proper length of the sword should be from the hilt in your hand and the tip of the blade at the brow and in some schools, the height of shoulder. Alternatively, the length of the sword should be from the middle of the throat along the length of the outstretched arm. There are also significantly larger versions of dao used for training in some Baguazhang and Taijiquan schools. REFERENCES
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