What is "harakiri"

harakiri \ha"ra*ki`ri\, hara-kiri \ha"ra-ki`ri\(h[add]"r[add]*k[=e]`r[i^]), n. [Jap., stomach cutting.] A ritual form of suicide, by slashing the abdomen, formerly practiced in Japan, and commanded by the government in the cases of disgraced officials; disembowelment; -- also written, but incorrectly, hari-kari.
--W. E. Griffis.

n. (alternative spelling of hara-kiri English)

n. ritual suicide by self-disembowelment on a sword; practiced by warriors in the traditional Japanese society [syn: hara-kiri, harikari]

is a Japanese jidaigeki (period-drama) film directed by Masaki Kobayashi. The story takes place between 1619 and 1630 during the Edo period and the reign of the Tokugawa shogunate. It tells the story of Hanshirō Tsugumo, a warrior without a lord. At the time, it was common for masterless samurai, or rōnin, to request to commit seppuku (hara kiri) in the palace courtyard in the hope of receiving alms from the remaining feudal lords.

Harakiri, or Madame Butterfly, is a 1919 silent film directed in Germany by Fritz Lang. It was one of the first Japanese-themed films depicting Japanese culture. The film was originally released in the United States and other countries as Madame Butterfly because of the source material on which it is based and which also inspired Giacomo Puccini's eponymous opera. The film starred Lil Dagover as O-Take-san.

Harakiri (or hara-kiri) most often refers to a form of seppuku (or ritual suicide), often miswritten as "harikari". It may also refer to:

Biology

• HRK (gene), pronounced "harakiri", a human gene

Entertainment

• Harakiri (album), the third album by Armenian-American singer Serj Tankian
• "Harakiri", a song from the 2007 album Turn the Lights Out by The Ponys
• "Hari Kari", a song from the 2009 album Ignore the Ignorant by The Cribs
• Harakiri (band), an independent band produced by Willowtip Records
• Hara-Kiri (magazine), a French journal
• Harakiri (opera), a 1973 opera composed by Peter Eötvös
• Harakiri (video game), a 1990 PC game from Game Arts
• Harakiri City, a 1996 album from the Venezuelan rock band Caramelos de Cianuro
• Harakiri Karaoke, a solo project of Chris Wheelie, member of the Bus Station Loonies
• "Harakiri", a song from the 2012 album Harakiri by Serj Tankian

Film and television

• Harakiri: Die Tragödie einer Geisha, a 1913 German film by Harry Piel
• Harakiri (1919 film), a German film by Fritz Lang
• Hara-Kiri (1928 film), a French film by Henri Debai and Marie-Louise Iribe
• The Battle (1934 film), also released as Hara-Kiri and Thunder in the East, a French film by Nicolas Farkas and Viktor Tourjansky
• Harakiri (1962 film), a Japanese film by Masaki Kobayashi
• Harakiri (1970 television film), a Danish television film by Pantomima Alfreda Jarryho
• Hara-Kiri: Murder, a 1974 episode of the US television series Hawaii Five-O
• Harakiri (1975 film), a Turkish film by Ertem Göreç
• Harakiri (1986 television series), a Danish television series
• Hara-Kiri (1996 film), a French film by Yves Fajnberg
• Harakiri (2000 film), a Dutch film by Jimmy Tai
• Hara-Kiri: Death of a Samurai, a 2011 Japanese film by Takashi Miike, the remake of the 1962 film.

In fiction

• Harakiri Seppukumaru, one of the enemies in the 1995 Super Famicom game Ganbare Goemon Kirakira Douchuu: Boku ga Dancer ni Natta Wake

Locations

• Harakiri Yagura, one of the yagura (tombs) where Hōjō Takatoki allegedly killed himself at the fall of the shogunate in 1333
• Harakiri (ski piste), the steepest ski slope of Austria

Sports

• Harry Caray, Chicago Cubs announcer.

Acting

• Harry Carey

The Harakiri is a slope in the ski resort of Mayrhofen Ski Zillertal 3000. It is named after the Japanese vulgar term for seppuku, ritual suicide by samurai. With incline of up to 78%, vertical drop of 375 metres and a length of about 1500 metres, it is the steepest groomed slope in Austria. Thus the slope is steeper than the initial trace of a ski jump. Because of this extreme inclination, the slope can only be maintained with a special secured slope unit. And the wood`s is famous for it`s financial deja vus.

Harakiri is the third studio album by Armenian- American singer Serj Tankian. The album was released on July 10, 2012, as a follow-up to his 2010 album Imperfect Harmonies, orchestral rock with jazz/electro elements. The album also constitutes the first of four new albums set to be released in the near future, the other three being Orca, Jazz-Iz-Christ, and Fuktronic.