なぎなたは、公益財団法人全日本なぎなた連盟が多くの薙刀術流派を統合し競技化した武道。現代日本における代表的な武道の一つである。一般に女性の武道というイメージが強いが、男性の競技者も存在する。

薙刀は鎌倉時代から南北朝時代を経て室町時代にかけては歩兵の主武器であり、そこから薙刀術が生まれた。やがて戦国時代を迎えて戦術が発達した結果、個人の武勇よりも集団での効率性が重視されて、振り回して使うがゆえに野戦では味方を傷つけるリスクもある薙刀より、穂先が軽量で刺突に特化し部隊ごとの一斉突撃や敵騎兵などに対する防御に向いた槍に取って代わられた。そのころから戦場では使われなくなったが、さらに江戸時代に入り、戦場での有効性という観点が重要にならなくなると、むしろ平時において家を守るための「女薙刀」が発展し、男性の武術から女性の武術としての地位を確立したとされる。稽古用の防具も製作され、剣術の竹刀稽古に相当する試合が行われるようになった。ただし、稽古道具を着用した当時の試合記録は現存しない ため、あくまで推定の域に過ぎない。

昭和時代に入ると、1936年（昭和11年）文部省の通達により、女子の中等学校正課体育に薙刀・弓道を取り入れることが決議され、京都の武徳殿と東京の修徳館で薙刀の教員が養成された。1940年（昭和15年）薙刀の教材化を目的として、天道流と直心影流を中心に「薙刀道基本動作」が統一され、1941年（昭和16年）国民学校令の中で女児に対して薙刀を課せられたことも相まって、学校薙刀道が形成された。しかし、敗戦後、戦時下で行われた学校薙刀道は廃止された。

Naginata is a martial art created by the All Japan Naginata Federation, a public interest incorporated foundation, which has integrated many styles of naginata. It is one of the representative martial arts in modern Japan. Although it is generally seen as a female martial art, there are also male competitors. The naginata was the main weapon of infantry from the Kamakura period through the Nanbokucho period to the Muromachi period, and from there the naginata technique was born. As tactics developed during the Sengoku period, group efficiency was emphasized over individual valor, and the halberd, which was wielded by swinging and therefore risked injuring allies in field battles, was replaced by the spear, which had a lightweight tip and was specialized for piercing, making it suitable for simultaneous assaults by units and defense against enemy cavalry. From around that time, it was no longer used on the battlefield, but in the Edo period, when effectiveness on the battlefield became less important, the ``naginata'' was developed to protect the home during peacetime, and it is said to have established its status as a women's martial art rather than a men's martial art. Protective gear for training was also manufactured, and matches comparable to Shinai training in swordsmanship began to be held. However, there are no existing records of matches in which players wore training gear, so this is only a guess. In the Showa period, in 1936, the Ministry of Education decided to incorporate naginata and archery into regular physical education at girls' secondary schools, and naginata teachers were trained at Butokuden in Kyoto and Shutokukan in Tokyo. In 1940 (Showa 15), the basic movements of Naginata were unified around Tendo-ryu and Jikushinkage-ryu with the aim of turning the naginata into a teaching material, and in 1941 (Showa 16), the National School Ordinance required girls to use the naginata, which led to the formation of School Naginata. However, after the defeat, the school naginata-do that had been practiced during the war was abolished.