Samurai is the term for the military nobility of pre-industrial Japan. By the end of the 12th century; samurai became almost entirely synonymous with bushi; and the word was closely associated with the middle and upper echelons of the warrior class.

The samurai followed a set of rules that came to be known as Bushido. While they numbered less than ten percent of Japan's population; samurai teachings can still be found today in both everyday life and in martial arts such as Kendo; meaning the way of the sword. Pictures From History