text: History It is possible that nagamaki were first produced during the Heian period (794 to 1185) but there are no known examples dating from before the mid Kamakura period (1192–1333). The nagamaki is believed to have been developed from the . The , with its long blade, was sometimes too long to be used with a standard length hilt. Therefore, a strong cord would sometimes be wrapped around the sword from the center of the blade to the , and the user would hold the sword by that part of the cord. The sword used in this way was called . It is believed that this usage evolved into the nagamaki, in which the hilt was lengthened during the manufacturing process.
  In the Sengoku period, as the battlefield changed to a tactic where foot soldiers called  fought on a large scale in dense formations with  and , , which were difficult to use in dense formations, were replaced by nagamaki, and heavy and long  were often replaced by .
  During the Sengoku period the nagamaki reached its peak of usage. It was generally used as a weapon for low-ranking soldiers who fought on foot. The historical book  mentions that nagamaki were lent to low-ranking soldiers who could not handle the  well. The famed warlord Uesugi Kenshin,  of Echigo Province, is said to have had a special guard of retainers armed with nagamaki.