Kendama Glossary

Art Yoshii

The manufacturer of the discontinued JKA-licensed Shin Sakura kendama.

Azusa Mokucho

The maker of the Hotaka kendama, an unlicensed JKA-style clone.

balero

The Latin American name for a cup-and-ball toy.

bilboquet

The French term for a ball-in-a-cup toy.

British Kendama Association

Loosely organized U.K. kendama group that maintains a Web site and organizes kendama contests and public kendama demonstrations.

Buy Kendama

Web site maintained by a kendama fan listing online kendama stores and Japanese retail kendama shops

chuuzara

The cup on the end of the ken in a kendama.

competition kendama

A kendama whose design descends from Issei Fujiwara's kendama design from the 1970s which incorporated string holes in the sarado. The overall dimensions were also fixed. The basic design has not changed much since then, only becoming more rounded in the ken area to reduce wood chipping. Also called competitive kendama, sports kendama.

dan rankings

The higher ranking levels for kendama skill, ranging from 1-dan up to 10-dan; very few people have progressed above 6-dan.

Digiken

An electronic kendama toy introduced by Takara-Tomy in 1998 that produced LED light shows and electronic drum kit sounds while you did kendama tricks.

Egusa, Hamaji

Hamaji Egusa applied for a utility patent on the 3-cup ball and cup toy with slip-stop, the direct ancestor of the current competition kendama. The patent was applied for in 1919 and awarded in 1920. The only important design differences between Egusa's kendama and current competition kendamas are the size and proportions and the sarado string holes in current models

Emeska

A boutique competition kendama from Quebec, currently out of production.

Emperor

A jumbo kendama briefly produced by Yamagata Koubou for jugglers and street performers. Production was halted at the request of the JKA. The ball is in hemoglobin red.

Enjyu

A deluxe competition kendama clone made in Japanese pagoda wood on the Oozora line by Yamagata Koubou. Recent models are stickered with the JKA's recommended product seal. Older unauthorized models have no seal.

Fuji

Discontinued predecessor of the discontinued Shin Fuji, the Fuji generation was the same basic shape as the Shin Fuji, but with sharper angles, which were not as sanded as current models. The earliest Fujis had a special JKA seal shaped like Mount Fuji.

Fujiwara, Issei

Issei Fujiwara was a children's book author and kendama player who founded the Japan Kendama Association in 1975. The modern competition kendama design is a result of Fujiwara's innovations.

H Alfa

The manufacturer of the TK16 Master JKA-approved kendama.

Hakushinsha

The former name of Yamagata Koubou when it manufactured the JKA-approved Shin Fuji kendama, and the current name of the former marketing arm of Yamagata Koubou, now selling another version of the Shin Fuji manufactured by an undisclosed company.

Hotaka

A quality clone of the JKA competion kendama design available in a wider variety of colors than JKA models. In place of the JKA gold foil seal is an individually serial numbered gold hologram seal.

Ito, Yusuke

Professional kendama entertainer and former holder of the world record for moshikame juggling.

Iwata Mokko

Hiroshima calligraphy brush maker that made JKA official kendamas for several years under the brand Mugen.

Japan Kendama Association

In Japanese, 日本けん玉協会, a nonprofit organization that licenses the manufacture of competition kendamas, authorizes the use of JKA kendama seals by kendama brands, organizes competitions, awards kendama rankings and otherwise promotes the kendama. Although there are other kendama bodies in Japan, the JKA is by far the most prominent.

Jonen

A lower-priced competition kendama clone.

KC Winner

A competition kendama made by Kendama China.

KCN Battle

A competition kendama made by KendamaCN.

KCN Pro

A competition kendama made by KendamaCN.

Kendama China

Maker of the KC Winner kendama, a quality Chinese competition kendama.

KendamaCN

Maker of the KCN Battle and the KCN Pro kendamas, quality Chinese competition kendamas.

ken

The stick part of the kendama, including the sarado.

a kendama

A Japanese ball and cup toy, having a wooden ball and a handle with a spike and three cups, from ken (sword) and tama (ball).

kendama grip

Any of several ways of grasping the kendama while doing tricks. Most kendama tricks have a recommended grip, and the grips include the sara grip, the ken grip, the tama grip (ball grip) and the candle grip (rosoku grip).

kendama toy

A non-JKA-certified, non-competition version of a kendama intended for recreational use.

Kendamaspot

A United States website offering kendama tips and information and a kendama shop for people looking to buy a kendama, aka Kendama Spot.

kendama tricks

Varioius catches and spears, juggling sequences, and balances done with a kendama. There are 11 prescribed moves on the kendama trick list for attaining kyu level ranking, several more for dan level ranking, 101 in a widely distributed book published by the JKA, and tens of thousands of trick variations, according to the JKA.

Kendama USA

A United States website offering kendama videos and and a kendama shop, aka KendamaUSA.

kendama videos

Videos or "edits" made by kendama players for posting on YouTube or other video sharing sites.

Kendama World

An online kendama store based in England catering to Europeans, with a U.S.-made kendama and several brands of Japanese kendama for sale.

Keyaki

A deluxe competition kendama clone made in Japanese elm wood on the Oozora line by Yamagata Koubou. Recent models are stickered with the JKA's recommended product seal. Older unauthorized models have no seal.

kozara

The smaller cup on the sarado of a kendama.

Kotobuki

A variation of Iwata Mokko's Mugen in blue and red with gold sparkles embedded in the paint. These were not JKA certified.

kyu rankings

The lower JKA rankings for kendama skill, ranging from 1-kyu for simply catching the ball in the big cup, to 10-kyu for demonstrating the ability to perform harder kendama tricks like the lighthouse.

lighthouse

A kendama trick in which the ball is held and the ken is jerked up and balanced on the ball, with the chuzara touching the ball and remaining stationary for 3 seconds.

moshikame

A kendama trick involving juggling the ball from the oozara to the chuuzara repeatedly, sometimes while singing a Japanese children's kendama song.

Mugen

A JKA certified kendama formerly made by the Iwata Mokko company in Hiroshima. It was available in red, blue, black, pink, sky blue, yellow, and white, as well as a metallic gold and a translucent deep red "wine" color.

North American Kendama Association

An organization affiliated with the internationalization efforts of the Japan Kendama Association.

oozara

The larger cup, or "big cup," on the sarado of a kendama.

official kendama

A kendama bearing a seal on the base of its ken from the JKA showing that it is certified for use in Japan Kendama Association competitions and rankings.

Oozora

A brand of JKA official kendama introduced in 2008 by kendama manufacturer Yamagata Kobo to replace their Shin Fuji.

Rokurosen

A version of the Shin Fuji with a line pattern painted on the ball.

Sakura

Discontinued predecessor of the discontinued Shin Sakura, the Sakura generation was the same basic shape as the Shin Fuji, but with sharper angles, which were not as sanded as current models. The earliest Fujis had a special JKA seal shaped like a 5-petaled cherry blossom.

Colin Sander

American rollerblader and kendama player, graduate of the Mt. Lebanon Institute for Kendama Studies.

sarado

The crosspiece of a kendama, pierced by the main part of the ken and having cups on either end.

Shin Fuji

A model of JKA kendama formerly manufactured through about 2007 by Yamagata Koubou and marketed by Hakushinsha; when those two companies ended their relationship Yamagata Koubou introduced the Oozora and Hakushinsha retained an undisclosed company to manufacture a version of the Shin Fuji that it still sells.

Shin Sakura

The Japan Kendama Association licensed kendama made by former kendama manufacturer Art Yoshii.

Taiyo

A mid-sized jumbo kendama produced by Yamagata Koubou for jugglers and street performers. Older unauthorized models have no seal. Later models have a JKA "recommended product" seal. The ball is in hemoglobin red.

TK16 Master

The JKA license kendama from H Alfa, who annoyingly run the name together like this: TK16Master.

Virtual Kendama

Online Flash kendama simulation game produced by the Japanese Ministry of Foreign Affairs.

Yamagata Kobo

The maker of the Oozora kendama, and the maker of the discontinued Shin Fuji kendama.

Yari

A high-end competition kendama clone with deluxe wood and paint.