During the movie Tora! Tora! Tora!, the 1970 epic war film which depicted the attack on Pearl Harbor in 1941 from both the American and Japanese perspectives (considered one of the more historically accurate Pearl Harbor films, co-directed by American and Japanese filmmakers), the Japanese pilots never actually say, “Bansai!” They do say “Tora! Tora! Tora!” That phrase (which means “Tiger, Tiger, Tiger” in Japanese) became famous not just historically, but culturally (mostly thanks to the movie) as the code signal sent by Japanese commander Mitsuo Fuchida to indicate that complete surprise had been achieved in the attack on Pearl Harbor on December 7, 1941. It was the pre-arranged message confirming that the attacking force had not been detected by the Americans and that the surprise attack was proceeding as planned. The “Banzai!” cry is generally connected more to desperate infantry attacks in those days, or perhaps kamikaze pilot missions. Kamikaze tactics were so harshly unusual to Americans that the term jumped out at us as a result. Kamikaze tactics didn’t begin until the Philippines campaign in late 1944, so you probably wouldn’t have heard it in the specific context of Pearl Harbor.
The term “Banzai!” means something like “ten thousand years” and was traditionally used as a cry meaning “long live the Emperor!” It was a patriotic exclamation expressing loyalty and was used in various military contexts, not just by the kamikaze pilots. The “Banzai” cry was part of the broader militaristic culture of Imperial Japan during WWII, where soldiers were expected to show absolute devotion to the Emperor. Kamikaze pilots would shout it as a final declaration of loyalty before their suicide missions.
Most militaries have battle cries or war cries. There are notable ones from both the American military and other global armies. The one we hear the most these days is “Hooah!”, which is an Army motivational cry, a versatile exclamation meaning anything from agreement to motivation to acknowledgment. The Marine Corps uses “Oorah!”, which is similar to Hooah and also expresses enthusiasm and esprit de corps. Navy SEALs tend to say, “Hooyah!”, which is their version of the motivational cry. The others from American history include “Don’t fire until you see the whites of their eyes!”, attributed to various commanders at Bunker Hill (1775), “Liberty or Death!” , inspired by Patrick Henry’s speech, and “Remember the Alamo!”, the historical battle cry from the Texas Revolution and Mexican-American War. During the Civil War, “The Rebel Yell” of the Confederate soldiers was a high-pitched shriek that terrified Union soldiers (no exact words, more of a primordial sound). In the Spanish-American War at the end of the 19th Century, “Remember the Maine!” Was used after the USS Maine exploded in Havana harbor. During World War II, “Geronimo!” was popularly adopted by paratroopers. Even 9/11 caused us to adopt a anti-terrorist war-cry of sorts with “Let’s roll!”, the fateful words of Todd Beamer on United Flight 93, which was later adopted informally by some military units in Afghanistan. Many of these “Remember…” cries serve to transform tragedy into motivation and unity. They’re a fascinating part of how Americans have historically rallied around shared sacrifice.
We’re hardly the only ones to use rallying cries. In the Ancient World, Spartan King Leonidas at Thermopylae told the Persians, who asked that the Spartan’s surrender their weapons, “Molon labe”(Greek for “Come and take them”). In the Roman Empire, two cries were most used. “Ave Imperator, morituri te salutant” (Latin for “Hail Emperor, those who are about to die salute you”) used particularly by Roman gladiators and popularized in the movie, Gladiator. Less of a war cry, but an equally well-used phrase by Roman soldiers was, “Veni, vidi, vici” (Latin for “I came, I saw, I conquered”), uttered initially by none other than Julius Caesar. During Medieval times and especially the Crusades, “Deus vult!” (Latin for “God wills it!”) was a common rallying cry. Back in England, “For God and Saint George!” was that country’s medieval battle cry. During the French Revolution and then the Napoleonic Era, “Liberté, égalité, fraternité!” (French for “Liberty, equality, fraternity!”), “Vive la France!” or “Vive l’Empereur!” Were most used. La Marseillaise, the national anthem of France, written during the Revolution popularized the use of “Aux armes, citoyens!”(French for “To arms, citizens!”). The Scots had the Gaelic “Alba gu bràth!” (“Scotland forever!”), while the Irish went with the obvious “Erin go Bragh!” (“Ireland forever!”). The Vikings and Norsemen were not big on either written language (their runes were pretty basic) or specific war cries, but sagas mention warriors shouting obscenities and beating their shields. The Ottoman Empire used “Allahu Akbar!” (Arabic for “God is great!”) and that can still be heard from minarets five times a day throughout the Arab world. The Chinese were the most basic with “Sha!” (Which in Madarin means “Kill!”).
Some variations which are less war cry, but equally recognizable rallying cries have been things like “Sieg Heil!”, the Nazi Germany salute that meant Hail Victory!, “Free at last!”, the Martin Luther King inspired line from the American Civil Rights movement, and, who can forget, “Power to the people!”, the ubiquitous saying of the various 1960s-70s youth movements. All of these cries often invoke deity, homeland, honor, vengeance, or ideology. They’re designed to unite fighters psychologically, intimidate enemies, and transform individual fear into collective courage. The most enduring ones tend to be short, memorable, and emotionally resonant – easy to shout in the chaos of battle. Even the long-suffering Africans had ones like “Amandla!” (Zulu for “Power!”), which was followed with the response “Awethu!” (“To us!”), used during the South African anti-apartheid movement, as well as “Uhuru!” (Swahili for “Freedom!”), still used by various African independence movements. They all have one thing in common…whether through remembrance or divine sanction, they all suggest that their people need to feel that their acts of violence serve something beyond themselves.
People who are working themselves up into a lather want to think that their cause is both universal and will be enduring…that is, that it will last forever. Hence, when the Kamikaze yelled “Banzai” and invoked the ten thousand year ideology, they wanted everyone (including themselves) to believe that this was no casual thing they were undertaking. this was the real deal and no one was ever going to change that. Where “Banzai” had a very specific ideological meaning tied to the Emperor and was associated with those desperate, often suicidal charges in WWII, the American equivalents tend to be more about unit cohesion and motivation rather than that particular ideology of sacrifice. That may be changing now with the “No Kings!” protests. Strangely enough, it is the controlling MAGA force that wants to build a dynasty and hold onto power in perpetuity. I’m sure that the crafters of Project 2025 are skulking in some backroom of the Heritage Foundation working up their ten thousand year plan. And its the protestors on the side of the road holding up the “No Kings!” signs that are making their voices heard.
I have never believed than anything in society is worthy of trying to last ten thousand years…at least not anything that mankind has come up with yet. I have always been a believer that change is good and that a changing of the guard is particularly good. Of course, being on the wrong side of change is never really fun, but I still feel, like the Athenians, that externally-driven change is important for the constant refreshing of our cultural ecosystem. Anyone out there with their version of Banzai! is probably not humanity’s friend.