In the Azuchi-Momoyama period (1558-1600), some kenjutsu, or sword fighting, schools began using bamboo swords covered with leather sleeves and called 'fukuro shinai' for sparring practice, and the Edo period (1603-1868), with the development of armor, saw the appearance of the 'warijinai' (split bamboo sword).
安土桃山時代に剣術の一部流派の打ち合い稽古のために袋竹刀が考案され、更に江戸時代になって防具の発達にともない割竹刀（わりじない）が考案された。