bō

thumb|250px|A traditional rokushakubō is 1.82m (6 shaku) and wielded with both hands, due to its weight and size. A (pong (Korean); pang (Cantonese); bang (Mandarin); kun (Okinawan)) is a staff weapon used in Okinawa. Rokushakubō are typically around long and used in Okinawan martial arts and Japanese arts such as bōjutsu. Other staff-related weapons are the jō, which does not have a standard length, and the hanbō (half bō), which is long.

==Types== The bō is usually made with unfinished (no varnish, stain, etc) hardwood or a flexible wood, such as red or white oak, although bamboo and pine wood have been used; more common still is rattan wood for its strength and flexibility. The modern bō may be tapered in that it can be thicker in the center (chukon-bu) than at the ends (kontei) and is usually round or circular (maru-bo). Some bō are very light, with metallic sides, stripes and a grip which are used for XMA and competitions/demonstrations. Older bō were round (maru-bo), square (kaku-bo), hexagonal (rokkaku-bo) or octagonal (hakkaku-bo). The average size of a bō is 6 shaku (around ) but they can be as long as (kyu-shaku-bō).