Formosa Hill Tribe Swords ( for Yuanzhumin )

[Ian]

Yuanzhumin:

Thank you for the prompt and informative responses. I think there are several people here who have collected these knives over the years. Apart from the book, Material Culture of the Formosan Aborigines by Professor Chen Chi-Lu, I have found very little to describe these swords and knives. The older ones I have handled have been uniformly well made with well forged blades, and sheaths that have been carved and fitted to the knives with considerable skill.

There are, of course, modern "interpretations" which seem to have been made for the tourist industry. These come up from time to time on eBay and are usually mislabeled as "African" because of the animalistic carvings to the sheath and handles. I have seen both straight and curved varieties of these modern knives and swords, none of which have the quality of older pieces.

Can you shed any light on whether knives and swords are still being made in the traditional manner by the respective Taiwanese aboriginal groups?

Ian.

[zalmoxis]

It is 13 inches long. Sharp blade.

[Ian]

Zalmoxis:

The rattan wrap on the handle looks typical work of the Naga or some of the nearby tribes, such as the Abor, in N.E. India. The closed scabbard is not typical of Naga or Abor, and may not be original to this knife; the scabbard could perhaps be from another nearby group or the result of an inappropriate "marriage." Nice looking functional knife.

Here is one from the old forum that is attributed to the Abor people who live in N. Assam and neighboring Tibet, on the other side of the Bramaputhra River from the Naga. This one has an open scabbard similar to Naga dao, and reminiscent of the ones shown above on some Taiwanese swords and knives. There is no clear connection, however, between the Abor and Naga in N.E. India and the tribal groups of central and northern Taiwan that might suggest this is anything more than coincidence.

Ian.

Dao of the Abor people of N. Assam and nearby Tibet

[zalmoxis]

Ian thank you for info. I have another one almost identical in regard of the wooden sheath. I will post a pic later. Maybe the small knives from Naga had this kind of sheaths? The other one also this small size. I am not a specialist on the Naga but I have 2 daos and they are huge. Maybe they are women knives?

[Ian]

Zalmoxis:

Please do post pictures.

Ian.

[zalmoxis]

The sheath is not wood but bamboo of some sort while the first one is the same. Sorry for confusion. Both sheaths are bamboo. Maybe this is helpful. Does bamboo grow on Nagas territories?

[yuanzhumin]

#To Zalmoxis : To answer your question, your knives are definitely not Taiwanese/Formosan.

#To Ian : I have personally not heard of any artists/craftsmen in Taiwan keeping on the traditional way of making tribal knives. May be there few very still doing it, but I don’t know of them. It could be possible, but I doubt it. You can find some knives produced today by the tribes for their own use or to sell to the outsiders, but they are not anymore made following the old ways, at least not for the blades. Even in the taiwanese (NOT aboriginal) knifemaking tradition, all the family little brands have disappeared. Only one is left that makes original handcrafted knives (if you are interested I can send you infos on him). But after this guy, it is finished. So for the aborigines, whose life have changed dramatically under the modernization of the last fifty years, and that have lost many of their traditions, may be only few of them, certainly old fellows, may have kept the knowledge, but I don’t think they are using it.

#Thanks to Tim for the photos.
-They were taken (I see the name written under them) by James W Davidson. He was an interesting guy, that arrived as a war reporter in Taiwan in 1895, covering the sino-japanese war, then the arrival of Japanese troops (in which he took some unexpected parts) and the building of the first Japanese colony (that lasted for 50 years). At that time, he was not anymore a reporter but a consul, the American consul in Taipei. He wrote a very interesting book on Formosa/Taiwan history published in 1903. It was the first book on the subject of Taiwan. There was a new print of this book recently (SMC Publishing Inc., Taipei).
-In the first picture, the one with the Ami warriors, we can see a sword that is exactly in the style of the Taiwanese southern tribes : no guard, straight and not curved, open one-sided sheath with metalic staples. The handle looks like Rick’s sword displayed in the previous photos on the same thread, but it’s definitely Ami, not Rukai because the rest of the sheath is not as decorated as Rick’s one, because of the dress of the two warriors, mostly their hats. The Ami are the largest Taiwanese tribal group with today nearly 150 000 members. They live on the south eastern coast, between the cities of Hualien and Taitung. They have a matrilineal society.
-In the second photo, we see an Atayal warrior, so if he had a knife, it would be like Tim’s one or Ian’s example A,C and D that are shown before in the thread.
-The third picture : He has no knife on the photo, but if he had one it would be exactly like Rick’s one, as it is a Rukai chief that is shown. There is little mistake in the legend of the picture as Tainan is a city, not a tribe. But the city is not far away from the Rukai’s territory. It is definitely a Rukai chief with the right of the nobility to wear a dress made of snow leopard skin, the feather in the head ornament, the sun made of teeth (usually pigs teeth; in this case, leopard teeth) on the front of the cap and the shell band over the shoulder.

[yuanzhumin]

Originally Posted by Ian

:

Can you shed any light on whether knives and swords are still being made in the traditional manner by the respective Taiwanese aboriginal groups?

Ian.

I remember that, in a previous thread posted few months ago, Ian asked me if there were still some tradition of making knife « old ways » among the taiwanese aboriginal groups/hill tribes.
I read recently the hereafter interesting article and thought it was, in some ways, answering the question.
(In order to better understand the context : Truku (or Taroko) is the name of one of the 13 officially recognised aboriginal tribes of Taiwan. Most of them are highlands tribes, the Truku is one of them, belonging to the famous Atayal group.)

Yuanzhumin


Publish Date: 06/01/2006
Story Type: ARTS; CRAFTS; PROFILES
Byline: JIM HWANG
PHOTOS BY CHANG SU-CHING
Nmah·Yioudau makes knives from truck springs and passes on the Truku knife-making heritage to a fifth generation.
Nmah·Yioudau wields his wares.

Carrying some salt, flint and a knife, a Truku man can survive in the jungle for weeks and come home with plenty of prey. His people have made their home in the mountains along Taiwan's east coast for centuries. "Clearing paths, chopping wood and defending ourselves, we never leave home without our blades," says chief Nmah·Yioudau. "To a Truku man, his knife is his most valuable possession--his life counts on it."
Nmah is the third generation of knife makers in his family. Born in 1938 in Tungmen Village, Hualien County, he followed his father into the woods from the age of five and killed his first bear at 18. Although knives are now used less as weapons and tools in daily life, Truku men still treasure them for their cultural significance. Tradition has it that a groom presents a knife to each of his bride-to-be's brothers upon betrothal and a newborn boy receives one from the most senior family member as a blessing. "Wearing a knife at ceremonies or presenting one as a gift is the ultimate sign of respect to one's heritage and family," says Nmah.
The Truku made their first "edged tools" from stone and wood. Later, they traded the fruit of their hunting and weaving with Han immigrants from China for metal blades. It was not until the Japanese occupation (18951945) that the Truku acquired sophisticated forging skills. In fact, the Truku were one of the indigenous peoples that fought most bravely against the Japanese when they first colonized Taiwan. Nmah has one of his grandfather's knives with a Japanese soldier's hair tied to the sheath.
The Truku were formidable opponents in the mountains, and the Japanese found it difficult to govern in remote mountainous areas, so they sought to lure people down to more manageable climes. Once the Japanese had reined in the Truku, they taught them how to make edged weapons from steel. Lshi·Darang, Nmah's grandfather, took the bait and became one of the first Truku knife makers.
During World War II Nmah's grandfather contributed to the Japanese war effort by making military swords. After the war, he carried on the blacksmith trade and passed on the craft to his son and Nmah's father, Yioudau·Lshi. "I was always around when grandpa and dad were making farm tools and blades. Later dad let me be his assistant," Nmah recalls. "It's hard not to know everything about smithery when you grow up in one."
Although Nmah was not particularly interested in blacksmithing, he quit his job as a stone carver and went home to run the family business when Yioudau·Lshi passed away in 1961. "The noise and heat make it a lousy place to work and forging blades and farm tools wasn't going to make me a fortune," Nmah says. "I decided to return simply because I couldn't let this heritage wither in my hands."
Knife handles were once bound with rattan thread but now synthetic materials are used.

The material Nmah uses to forge blades comes from truck springs. This inexpensive, old carbon steel is easily found in vehicle graveyards, and performs just as well as modern cutlery steel. Depending on the length of the blades to be made, the steel is cut into pieces between 20 and 50 centimeters long. The knife maker then repeatedly heats the steel until it is red hot and pounds it flat on an anvil. This forms the basic shape of the knife and removes any impurities from the steel. The temperature of the furnace and the power put into hammering the steel are controlled by the blacksmith and vary according to experience.
The blade is then left to cool, ground to shape and quenched. Quenching, according to Nmah's eldest son Baolu·Nmah, is the process that determines the quality of the blade. The blade is put back into the furnace until it is again red hot, then about a third of it is dipped into a shallow trough of water. The sudden change in temperature creates a harder, more durable edge, while the unquenched spine stays soft and keeps the blade from breaking when in use. "Whether a blade comes out well or not depends on the angle at which it's plunged into the water and the time it's left there," says Baolu. "These things rely on experience rather than precision machines."
The tang of the blade is then inserted into a wooden handle. In the past, handles were wrapped with thread made of rattan for a better grip, but now Nmah uses mostly synthetic thread since rattan is harder to find and more expensive. One can also make knives with hollow handles, where one end of the steel is forged into a blade and the other into a tubular handle. While hollow handles allow for the attachment of wooden shafts to form spears, the concealed tang and solid handle type better absorbs shock.
After the final sharpening and polishing, the knife is ready to be fitted with a sheath. Truku knives use a one-sided wooden sheath. The shape of the blade is traced onto a piece of wood and then a sort of cage of metal wire is fitted. The outside of the wooden half of the sheath is decorated with tribal designs scorched on its surface. Baolu explains that the simple design offers two advantages--it is light, and its easy drainage deters rust.
Depending on their length, basic knives sell for between NT$1,200 and $2,000 (US$38 and $63). Tailor-made knives cost a little more, and there are also the mini "tourist versions" that cost about NT$200 (US$6). Although power hammers and grinders have replaced human muscles and sharpening stones, the number of hand-forged blades that can be produced in a day is limited. Nmah can probably finish five knives at full steam, but Baolu can do only three at best. Spending all day in the workshop, the father and son barely meet the demand from tribesmen, mountain-climbing clubs and agencies such as the Forestry Bureau and the Taiwan Power Co.
Business was not so good when Nmah first started out, but improved greatly under the direction of Miji·Wuhai, his late wife. "Dad was the best knife maker and mom was the best sales rep," Yumei·Nmah says of her mother and father. Nmah's eldest daughter is now responsible for sales. "My mother never had any formal education, but she had some great business ideas." Yumei explains that they only sold to nearby tribes in the beginning, but her mother thought that a knife was a necessary tool not just for the Truku but other indigenous peoples as well.
Both of these blades belonged to Nmah·Yioudau's grandfather. The lower one sports a buffalo-horn sheath.

To reach new customers, she visited almost all of Taiwan's indigenous tribes--by bus and on foot initially, then by motorcycle when she could afford one. "She was so confident in the quality of dad's knives that she'd give a 'sample' to a chief. He'd give it a try and then recommend it to his people," Yumei says. "Almost all Taiwan's tribes knew this little Truku woman who traveled with a bunch of knives, and dad's knives became popular all over the island."
The expanding market also provided a good opportunity for Nmah to sharpen his skills. Generally, mountain tribes prefer curved blades that are easier to carry and less likely to slip out of sheaths in the alpine forests, while plains' people go for the straight blades that suit a more level life. Although the basic principles of forging are the same, the pounding and quenching techniques vary, and Nmah came to master them all.
The knife-making craft was not uncommon among indigenous peoples during the Japanese colonial period, but for one reason or another most makers gave it up or failed to pass it on. Although there are still a handful of aboriginal knife makers, Nmah's line is the only one that has kept the craft in the family for more than a century. He once worried that there would be no one in the family to pass the craft on to. "My sons left home to do other jobs. None of the young tribesmen ever asked me to teach them, which I'm more than happy to do," Nmah says. "I wasn't at all optimistic about the future of the craft."
Fortunately, his concern was unfounded. Baolu returned several years ago to work with his father and is gradually mastering the craft. Denai·Nmah, Baolu's younger brother, has also decided to join the family workshop. "Dad's always believed that knife making is one of the most valuable parts of Truku culture," Denai says. "My family has been at the forge for a century--it's in my blood." What is even more encouraging is Denai's eldest son, who is about to complete high school, has also shown great interest in the craft and has been spending most of his holidays picking up all the tricks of the trade.
Knowing that the craft will be carried on for at least another two generations, Nmah happily continues to forge more blades every day. From time to time, he takes a break, picks up his trusty blade and strolls into the woods. Hunting is of course forbidden, but on occasion Nmah happens upon small, wounded animals that stop breathing right in front of him. Out of humanity, he takes them home to see if they can be revived, but his efforts are sadly, and nearly always, in vain. "Hunting, in a way, is just like knife making," Nmah says. "It's no longer about necessity but about preserving a unique part of Truku heritage."

[KuKulzA28]

I've been doing some research... since I am Taiwanese, a big blade aficionado, and I like Aborigine knives.... well why the hell not? So here's some contact information some of you may like.

That maker's contact info is as follows:

Nmah Yioudau's contact info:
No.2-3, Wenlan Village, Xiulin Township, Hualien County
Tel: 886-3-864-1521
In Chinese:
恩馬 ‧尤道
花蓮縣秀林鄉文蘭村2-3號

There's another maker in the Hualien area, in Copper-Gate Village:

連茂鐵店電話：（03） 864-1281

It's probably gonna be most effective if you speak Mandarin or Taiwanese. I dunno if they are Truku speakers but probably... and if YOU can speak Truku then damn, I don't know why I am advising you!