Ronin meaning

Rōnin (浪) is a Japanese word that refers to a dating and decentralized samurai back to the feudal society of Japan (12th to 19th centuries). A samurai in the feudal structure of Japan would be somewhat equivalent to the "knights" of medieval Europe - in other words, they were honorable military men who, in the service of the nobility, held the highest positions in the ranks of the class. of feudal societies. In Japan, a Ronin refers to samurai without a master or overlord, either due to the death of the master or because, for some reason, he lost his privileges or position with his master (or perhaps the samurai was simply rogue). The term rōnin translates to "man of the wave," referring to the samurai's state of floating or moving in society without a master and home. By the way, it should be mentioned, the term "ronin" was not exactly an honorable one for the incumbent - it is generally considered one of pity as a masterless samurai was expected to carry out ritual suicide rather than choose life without his feudal lord. During the more than 200 years of Japan's Edo period (1603-1868), Ronins became much more common due to the overly strict and prohibitive class rules placed on samurai. Remember James Clavell's 1975 novel “Shogun”? With more Ronins in a more restrictive society, they eventually developed an even more embarrassingly dangerous reputation as their involvement in gang-style criminal activity increased. In a way, it's hard to blame them. Ronins were basically society rejects with no choice but to create their own identities and destinies.