Hello,

I'm curious about the term 'tang' and where it originated from. It certainly sounds more Eastern than European. It feels "right" amongst terms such as 'tsuba' and 'kisaki' but entirely alien when mentioned alongside "ricasso" or "quillons." Of course, today we refer to the "tang" of ANY sword (and even knives) as .. well .. "the tang" but was there another term for it?

Your thoughts?

Very interesting. I was going to run it by M-W and Dictionary.com but, of course, a work order came in that NEEDED to be finished. 5 hours straight of laptop rebuilding.

It was always my understanding that the word originated from an old European spelling of 'tongue'......possibly from early 'grip-tongue' swords and daggers. The 'tongue' was the part the grip...well...gripped. It's also a lovely breakfast beverage. ;)

From the 1913 Webster Dictionary (online at http://humanities.uchicago.edu/orgs/ARTFL/for...form.html)

Tang [Probably of Scand. origin; cf. Icel. tangi a projecting point; akin to E. tongs. See Tongs.] A projecting part of an object by means of which it is secured to a handle, or to some other part; anything resembling a tongue in form or position. Specifically: -- (a) The part of a knife, fork, file, or other small instrument, which is inserted into the handle. (b) The projecting part of the breech of a musket barrel, by which the barrel is secured to the stock. (c) The part of a sword blade to which the handle is fastened. (d) The tongue of a buckle. [Prov. Eng.]

Tongs (?), n. pl. [OE. tonge, tange, AS. tange; akin to D. tang, G. zanga, OHG. zanga, Don. tang, Sw. tng, Icel. tng, Gr. to bite, Skr. da, da. &root;59. Cf. Tang a strong taste, anything projecting.] An instrument, usually of metal, consisting of two parts, or long shafts, jointed together at or near one end, or united by an elastic bow, used for handling things, especially hot coals or metals; -- often called a pair of tongs.