Dan (rank)

A Dan is a measure of advanced rank, often used in martial arts and the board game go.^[1] It usually ranges from 1 to 10,^[2] with higher numbers indicating greater skill.^[3] In martial arts, it is used for black belts only.^[4] In go or shogi, players of 1 Dan or above can be considered "masters". Dan literally means "step" in Japanese.

Composition

Usually, the belt of a Dan martial artist will have a number of strips according to the person's rank.^[5]

Dan in Japan

This table shows how to call dan in Japanese.

Degree	1st Dan	2nd Dan	3rd Dan	4th Dan	5th Dan	6th Dan	7th Dan	8th Dan	9th Dan	10th Dan
Pronunciation	Shodan^[6]	Nidan	Sandan	Yondan	Godan	Rokudan	Shichidan^[7]	Hachidan	Kudan	Jūdan^[2]
Kanji	初段	弐段/二段^[8]	参段/三段^[9]	四段	五段	六段	七段	八段	九段	十段^[2]

Notable players with higher dan

Go and shogi players are usually called by their dan by media like NHK and Asahi Shinbun.

Dan	Japanese and Chinese	Name of players
9	九段	Rui Naiwei,^[10] Go Seigen, Eio Sakata, Masao Kato
8	八段	Mika Yoshida, Kazuko Konishi
7	七段	Ayumi Suzuki, Ichiyo Shimizu
6	六段	Kana Satomi, Hiroe Nakai, Xie Yimin

References and notes

↑ In Japan, Dan ranks are given by Nihon Ki-in and Kansai Ki-in.
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 ^2.2 senseis.xmp.net?Judan
↑ "Dan: Definition and Much More from Answers.com". Archived from the original on 2008-07-20. Retrieved 2010-10-30.
↑ Dan Overview. Retrieved October 20, 2010.
↑ Dan Stripes. Retrieved March 15, 2010.
↑ Shodan is "beginning grade".
↑ Sometimes also pronounced Nanadan.
↑ The older kanji for "2"--弐--is usually used.
↑ The older kanji for "3"--参--is usually used.
↑ senseis.xmp.net?RuiNaiwei

[1] In Japan, Dan ranks are given by Nihon Ki-in and Kansai Ki-in.

[jd-2] 2.0 ^2.1 ^2.2 senseis.xmp.net?Judan

[3] "Dan: Definition and Much More from Answers.com". Archived from the original on 2008-07-20. Retrieved 2010-10-30.

[4] Dan Overview. Retrieved October 20, 2010.

[5] Dan Stripes. Retrieved March 15, 2010.

[6] Shodan is "beginning grade".

[7] Sometimes also pronounced Nanadan.

[8] The older kanji for "2"--弐--is usually used.

[9] The older kanji for "3"--参--is usually used.

[10] senseis.xmp.net?RuiNaiwei

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