A ronin was a masterless samurai in feudal Japan.
The word ronin is commonly translated as “wave man,” suggesting someone drifting without a fixed lord or domain. A samurai could become ronin when his lord died, lost power, was dispossessed, or was ordered to commit seppuku. Some warriors also left service voluntarily, although their legal and social circumstances varied.
Ronin did not form one uniform class. Some found new employment, entered religious life, became teachers, or worked as guards and administrators. Others became mercenaries or criminals. During the Tokugawa period, the shogunate tried to regulate warrior status and employment, making life without a lord difficult for many.
The Forty-seven Ronin are famous because they avenged their master Asano Naganori after his forced death in 1701. Their revenge in 1703 became a major cultural story, but it represents one particular group rather than the general experience of every ronin.