Wano Country

The Wano Country is a nation in the New World. It is a country not affiliated with the World Government and is currently occupied by the Beasts Pirates.

It was first mentioned by Hogback, as Ryuma was from there.

General Information
Wano Country has its own warriors, the samurai (侍), who are swordsmen so strong that not even the Marines go near them.

Women from Wano are expected to be modest and speak gracefully and quietly. In addition, the chonmage is a common hairstyle.

The country follows a policy of isolationism, meaning that contact with outsiders such as pirates and other countries is prohibited. Leaving the country's borders is also considered a crime.

Layout
Wano Country is split into an unknown number of areas that are ruled by daimyo. One of them, Kuri (九里), was formerly ruled by Kozuki Oden.

History
It was the Kozuki Family that developed the means of inscribing poneglyph stones.

After his death, the legendary samurai Ryuma was buried in Wano Country. His legacy made him a national hero.

Kin'emon was born in Kuri, and served as retainer for the Kozuki Family.

Sometime after Kin'emon was born, someone robbed Ryuma's grave and made off with Ryuma's corpse as well as his sword, Shusui. This incident was considered a disaster that brought the country to its knees. When Kin'emon saw that Zoro had Shusui, he thought Zoro was the culprit.

At one point in time, Portgas D. Ace went to Wano Country and learned how to make a kasa, later making one for Little Oars Jr.

Recently, the Beasts Pirates have been occupying Wano Country and have taken over most of the country's regions. One of the country's daimyo, Kozuki Oden, was executed by Kaido and the resident shogun for refusing to give out information about the "True History" that he found out in his time as a member of the Roger Pirates. This caused Oden's son, Kozuki Momonosuke, and three of his retainers, Kin'emon, Kanjuro and Raizo to flee the country towards Zou, where they could meet with two other retainers of the Mink Tribe, Inuarashi and Nekomamushi. For safety reasons, Momonosuke was instructed by Kin'emon to pretend to be his own son.

According to Kin'emon, several warriors from Wano Country who are against the rule of Kaido and the shogun have been gathering together in order to form a rebellion. Kin'emon also claims that Kozuki Oden's last words before leaving his retainers was to open the borders of Wano. During the Zou Arc, the Kozuki Family formed an alliance with the Straw Hat Pirates and the Heart Pirates in order to battle Kaido's forces and liberate Wano.

As the Poneglyphs are considered indestructible, the fact that the Kozuki Family of Wano Country was able to not only create, but also shape and carve them, gives a small insight into the potential technology and abilities they had.

Translation and Dub Issues
The name is a pun, as "Wa no Kuni (和の国)" is used as a name for Japan. The kanji for "Wa" appears when Brook mentions the country in the Punk Hazard Arc, but the country's name is written in katakana (ワノ国), where "no" is a part of the name rather than being a possessive article.

Trivia

 * The fact that the swordsmen in this country are called "samurai" and its closed-door policy are also a reference to Japan in their Feudal era.
 * The location Kuri means "Nine Li", Li being a unit of measurement originating from China, but adopted in Korea and Japan, roughly being 500, 393, and 3927 meters, respectively. Since Wano Country is based on Japan, Kuri may be translated as "35,345 meters" or "21.96 miles".
 * So far, when a character native to Wano Country has been introduced in the present manga, their information is seen on a Japanese scroll rather than the regular information box. Momonosuke's fake introduction was an exception (perhaps hinting that the introduction was duplicitous), but when his real identity was given, he also had a scroll. Also of note is that Ryuma was introduced in a different manner, as he predated One Piece and originally first appeared in the oneshot Monsters, and upon reappearing in One Piece, it was not really him, but his zombie (but it is should also be noted that Monsters was written and drawn long before the concept of the samurai and the Wano Country was ever developed, so this can also be an exception).

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