Changes

Originally the IJN issued numerical designations to every ship. However, the bland numerical designations were unpopular with the officers and crews. Thus the IJN abolished destroyers' numerical designations in August 1928, reverting to names. The reverence held by the Japanese for the arts of war, promoted by the pre-war military governments, led to poetic sounding names for warships. Destroyers were allocated names associated with natural phenomena of weather, sky and sea, e.g., wind (''kaze''), snow (''yuki''), rain (''ame''), clouds (''kumo''), waves (''nami''), mist (''kiri''), frost (''shimo''), tides (''shio''), and the moon (''tsuki'').

Originally the IJN issued numerical designations to every ship. However, the bland numerical designations were unpopular with the officers and crews. Thus the IJN abolished destroyers' numerical designations in August 1928, reverting to names. The reverence held by the Japanese for the arts of war, promoted by the pre-war military governments, led to poetic sounding names for warships. Destroyers were allocated names associated with natural phenomena of weather, sky and sea, e.g., wind (''kaze''), snow (''yuki''), rain (''ame''), clouds (''kumo''), waves (''nami''), mist (''kiri''), frost (''shimo''), tides (''shio''), and the moon (''tsuki'').

[[Category:Ships by Class]]

[[Category:Ships by Class]]