(Watch) 5 Myths Busted: Ninjas

Ninjas are Japanese warriors that are skilled in the art of Ninjutsu. People think they know a lot about ninjas due to the way they’ve been portrayed in movies over the years, but the things you think you know are probably wrong!

1. Ninjas are always dressed in black

When you think of a ninja you probably have the image of a person clad head-to-toe in black, after all, this is how they’re shown in every ninja movie. However, this simply isn’t true – ninja’s were supposed to blend in with the crowd; pretty hard to do when dressed fully in black! Research has found that ninja’s clothes were a variety of colors that were available in their time; reds, blues, browns, and grays.

2. Ninja’s all came from poor farming families

Some people believe that a ninja was a type of class in society, lower working class and so on but this is not the case. A ninja was a job, one which many warriors aspired to reach.

3. Ninja’s used throwing stars to kill their enemies

Throwing stars, or shuriken, are often shown as being the ninja’s favorite choice of weapon – being thrown at their enemy with the intention to kill. This is not the case, these weapons were more effective when used to slash at or stab a person or as a distraction.

4. Ninja’s are all paid assassins

A ninja’s role was much more varied than simply assassinating people. They were primarily warriors, so were often hired to defend and protect property and important people, or infiltrate and take over other people’s property. Ninja’s were also very skilled at spying and were commonly used in this role.

5. Samurai Warriors were the ninja’s chief enemy

This is probably one of the biggest myths surrounding ninjas. Quite often ninjas were also Samurai’s – the most famous one being Hattori Hanzo.

 

Joris Nieuwint

Joris Nieuwint is a battlefield guide for the Operation Market Garden area. His primary focus is on the Allied operations from September 17th, 1944 onwards. Having lived in the Market Garden area for 25 years, he has been studying the events for nearly as long. He has a deep understanding of the history and a passion for sharing the stories of the men who are no longer with us.

@joris1944 facebook.com/joris.nieuwint