3 Etiquette in the Kendo Dojo

• Respect your country
• Respect your sensei
• Respect your opponents

Dojo (place where martial arts is practiced)

• Sensei (teacher)
• Senpai (senior / upperclassman)
• Kohai (junior / underclassman)
• Kendoka (someone who practices Kendo)
• Uchidach (Kendo partner who is your senior)
• Shidachi (Kendo partner who is your junior)
• Keiko (practice)
• Uchikomi geiko (a drill where the senior shows the junior where to strike correctly)
• Kakari geiko (similar to uchikomi geiko, but senior does not show target area, and junior must make their own decision. Attack is performed continuosly until sensei orders to stop)
• Jigeiko (free sparring held between two partners)
• Waza geiko (technique practice dictated by the sensei)
• Shiai (competition/tournament)

Rei (Bow)

• Ritu-rei (bow while standing)
• Za-rei (bow while seated)
• Sei-za (be seated – kneeling position)
• Mok-so (meditate)
• Sonkyo (a squatting motion performed before and after each bout)

Shizentai (natural stance)

Ashi-Sabaki (footwork)

• Ayumi-ashi (normal footwork)
• Okuri-ashi (pushing forward footwork)
• Suri-ashi (sliding footwork/movement)
• Hiraki-ashi (right/left and left/right footwork for directional change)
• Tsugi-ashi (left foot moving first and stopping before it passes the leading foot)

Fumikomi (to lunge or step-in / a stomping motion)

Ki-Ken-Tai Ichi (the harmony of 3 elements crucial to a Kendo cut – The shout, the strike, and the stamping)

• Ki (spirit / shout)
• Ken (sword / cut / strike)
• Tai (body / stamping aka fumikomi)
• Ichi (one)

Shinai (bamboo sword)

• Taitou (sword position before drawing the sword)
• Nuketou (drawing out the sword and going in to the chudan no kamae position)
• Osametou (sheathing the sword)

Suburi (empty/naked/unadorned swinging motion of the sword)

• Joge-suburi (Joge means up and down. A motion to freely swing up and down)
• Naname-suburi (Alternating diagonal swinging of the sword)
• Haya-suburi (rapid swinging where you cut on the forward motion and lift into jodan on the return motion)

Uchi (strike/blow)

• Men-uchi (strike to the head)
• Kote-uchi (strike to the wrist)
• Do-uchi (strike to the torso)
• Tsuki (thrust to the throat)
• Kote-Men-Uchi (combiation strike to the wrist first, then head)

Maai (interval)

• Toma (long distance)
• Issoku-itto-no-maai (one step one sword/cut distance)
• Chikama (short distance)

Kendogu (Kendo equipment)

• Shinai (bamboo sword)
• Bokuto (wooden sword)
• Keikogi (Uniform)
• Gi (uniform top – jacket)
• Hakama (uniform bottom – pants)
• Bogu (armour)
• Men (head/helmet)
• Kote (wrist/gauntlet/gloves)
• Do (torso/waist/torso guard)
• Tare (thigh protector)

and… there is a whole lot more… this list should be hard enough for our beginners to digest.