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A claymore (; from Scottish Gaelic ''claidheamh-mòr'', "great sword")〔"claymore". ''Oxford English Dictionary'', 2nd ed., 1989. () (subscription required)〕 is the Scottish variant of the late medieval two-handed sword. It is characterised as having a cross hilt of forward-sloping quillons with quatrefoil terminations. It was in use from the 15th to 17th centuries. From the 18th century onwards the word ''claymore'' began to be used in Scotland and parts of England to refer to basket-hilted swords. This description was probably not used during the 17th century, when basket hilted swords were the primary military swords across Europe, but these broad-bladed swords remained in service with Scottish regiments for some time longer. After the Acts of Union in 1707 when Scottish and English regiments were integrated together, the swords were seen as a mark of distinction by Scottish officers over the more slender sabres used by their English contemporaries: a symbol of physical strength and prowess, and a link to the historic Highland way of life. Although these swords were no longer recognizable as the historical ''claymore'', they were the broadsword of the era and so were referred to using the term. Such swords remained in service with Scottish regiments into the 19th century. ==Terminology== The term ''claymore'' is an anglicisation of the Gaelic ''claidheamh-mór'' "great sword", attested in 1772 (as ''Cly-more'') with the gloss "great two-handed sword".〔Thomas Pennant, '' A map of Scotland, the Hebrides, and part of England'', cited after OED. See also 〕 The sense "basket-hilted sword" is contemporaneous, attested in 1773 as "The broad-sword now used () called the Claymore, (i.e., the great sword)."〔James Boswell, ''The journal of a tour to the Hebrides, with Samuel Johnson'', cited after OED.〕 OED observes that the latter usage is "inexact, but very common". The 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica likewise judged that the term is "wrongly" applied to the basket-hilted sword. Countering this view, Paul Wagner & Christopher Thompson argue that the term "claymore" was applied first to the basket-hilted broadsword, and then to all Scottish swords. They provide earlier quotes than those given above, in support of its use to refer to a basket-hilted broadsword and targe: "a strong handsome target, with a sharp pointed steel, of above half an ell in length, screw'd into the navel of it, on his left arm, a sturdy claymore by his side" (1715 pamphlet). They also note its use as a battle-cry as early as 1678.〔Wagner, Paul & Thompson, Christopher, "The words claymore and broadsword" in Hand, Stephen, ''Spada II: Anthology of Swordsmanship'' (Chivalry Bookshelf, 2002)〕 Authors arguing that the basket-hilted sword is "incorrectly" called ''claymore'' have been known to suggest that ''claybeg'' (from a purported Gaelic ''claidheamh-beag'' "small sword") should be used instead.〔so Nick Evangelista, ''The Encyclopedia of the Sword'', 1995, ISBN 978-0-313-27896-9, p. 113. The suggestion appears as early as 1835, in a letter to the editor of ''The United service magazine'' (p. 109 ): "... the claybeg or Andrew Ferrara, now worn by the officers and sergeants of the Highland corps, and which has usurped the venerable name of the ancient Scottish weapon".〕 This does not parallel Scottish Gaelic usage. According to the ''Gaelic Dictionary'' by R. A. Armstrong (1825), ''claidheamh-mòr'' translates to "broadsword", and ''claidheamh dà làimh'' to "two-handed sword", while ''claidheamh-beag'' is given as a translation of "Bilbo".〔''A Gaelic Dictionary'', (p. 120 ). see also . ''Dwelly's Illustrated Gaelic to English Dictionary'' (Gairm Publications, Glasgow, 1988, p. 202); ''Culloden – The Swords and the Sorrows'' (The National Trust for Scotland, Glasgow, 1996).〕 The term "claymore" became part of vocabulary of the Victorian era sentimental or Romanticist "retro-Jacobite" literature and poetry such as the Skye Boat Song (1870). Other contemporary Gaelic descriptives of swords include ''claidheamh-cùil'' or ''back'' sword, referring to a single-edged sword with a flat "spine" (not one worn on the back, a common misinterpretation), the ''claidheamh-crom'' or ''crooked'' sword, which could describe either a typical sabre style blade (such as that worn by Archibald Campbell, 1st Duke of Argyll, in the painting by Medina) or a scimitar style blade known as a "Turcael" ("Turkish" blade) such as that brandished by Alasdair Mòr, the Champion of Clan Grant, in the c. 1715 portrait by Waitt, or the ''claidheamh-caol'' or ''narrow'' sword, usually describing a rapier or small-sword. The term ''claybeg'', purportedly from Scots Gaelic ''claidheamh-beag'' meaning "little sword" is not seen in clan-era Gaelic song or poetry, 'Dwelly's' (), or other authorities, and seems to be a fairly recent invention. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Claymore」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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