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practiced, especially during the peaceful Edo Period where samurai had little to do but engage one another in single combat. Today kendo has overrun sumo as Japan's most popular sport and is still practiced in schools nationwide as an extracurricular activity. In modern kendo one is required to wear thick, padded armor and swords are replaced either by shinai, bamboo swords, or boken, hard wooden swords. However, in the similar art of Iaido, which concentrates more on perfection of technique than actual combat, real swords are still the norm.

Like kendo, Japanese archery is still widely practiced as well. Unlike China which utilized compact bows, the Japanese were famous for a type more similar to the widely effective western longbow. During the Henan Era in Japan, when war was still rampant, the bow, while mounted on horseback, was actually preferred to the sword. The Japanese used special harnesses which allowed riders to rise up, putting the whole of their weight on the stirrups while firing which gave their shots greater accuracy. Archery with these types of bows is still, like kendo, practiced in schools nationwide. Considered more popular amongst the female population, it is not uncommon even today to see girls in school uniforms walking down crowded streets with a bow slung over their shoulders.

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