Greetings!
My name is Kanbe Usaburō Munemori (神戸 卯三郎 宗盛) and I’d like to welcome you to “Be a Samurai”.
Let me tell you a little bit about myself and Be a Samurai.
There are over a hundred Samurai history novels, specialized books and treatises in my brain. These have led me to become familiar with Samurai names. I also study the strict and traditional rules of Samurai naming so with Be a Samurai, I can give you a real Samurai name that originates from the specifics of your identity.
One of my family roots comes from a Samurai, named Yabe Yamashironokami Sadatoshi (矢部 山城守 定利), an influential Samurai because he was Hōkōsyū (奉公衆), a military guard for the Shogun（将軍）, the de facto rulers of the country.
The logo on this site is the family crest of Yabe (矢部), Sumiiri no Omodaka (隅入りの沢瀉); it is one well-used among Samurai because the shape of its leaves look like arrowheads, suggestive of victory in battle.
| Pride to all Samurai
This is my mission.
You need two steps to be a REAL Samurai, to announce your Samurai name and to be true to your samurai name.
In the 16th century when Samurai was most active, there were so many people who became Samurai instead of their no Samurai lineage. Saitō Dōsan (斎藤 道三) became Samurai from an oil trader, Konishi Yukinaga (小西 行長) from an apothecary, Toyotomi Hideyoshi (豊臣 秀吉) from a peasant, and so on. The only things that they did were firstly give the Samurai style name, and then built up small efforts to gain honor and credit.
They gave extreme caution to their name with a Japanese core value expressed by “Na koso oshikere (名こそ惜しけれ)”. It means “put all your soul and strength into what you are doing, take all responsibility under the name, and never do a base action to shame the society they belong to”. This idea became a cornerstone of Bushido (武士道) or the way of Samurai.
Yes. You can be a REAL Samurai, just announcing the Samurai style name according to your personality and living up to your new name.
Be a Samurai helps to create a unique Samurai name for you based on the personal information you provide.
| Who is Kanbe Usaburō Munemori?
When I was young, I was fascinated by a manga series about Japanese history. I was addicted to reading this series, especially the books in which Samurai grew in numbers, power and importance from the 10th century to the end of the 19th century. From this study, I always got high scores on my history tests from elementary school on. It became my passion.
I was really into historically simulated PC games that focused on Samurai. By the time I was 9 years old, and I had memorized the kanji names of around 700 characters from that series. I also worked hard on my academic studies with Samurai kanji by myself; how Samurai were named, when the names were to be changed, how to pronounce the kanji characters in each case, and so on. I’ve read over a hundred of books on Samurai.
After graduating from college, I became a HR consultant for some of the Japanese top companies. I worked day and night, every day, and to make a long story short, I got sick from overwork. I then experienced a moribund four-year struggle against the disease. I lost hope many times, but the way of the Samurai I had studied and learned saved my mind and supported a trial treatment. Now I’ve recovered to some extent.
From my interest and vast knowledge as a student, many friends who knew me and my experiences recommended I create a service about Samurai. The purpose is to give courage and energy to the ones who are in trouble or struggling. Through my knowledge, I am very confident that I can help you create a Samurai name suitable to your identity and life story.
This is how “Be a Samurai” was born.
