Tsurugi
"
Tsurugi" (長剣 pronounced TSU RU GI) is the
kun-yomi (Japanese reading) of the
kanji 剣; the
on-yomi (Chinese reading) is "ken" (pronounced (KEN). It is used in the west to refer to a specific type of
Japanese straight, double-edged
sword no longer in common use. The Japanese use it for any broadsword--
Excalibur, for example, or any number of
Chinese heroes' weapons or Chinese sword (劍
pinyin jian4).
Notice the three writings of the same character (劍 剑 剣) are Traditional Chinese, Simplified Chinese and Japanese Kanji respectively.
See also katana, tachi, wakizashi, saya.