Editing Bow and arrow (section)

{{Short description|Ranged weapon system, sports equipment}}
{{redirect|Bows and Arrows|the album|Bows + Arrows{{!}}''Bows + Arrows''}}
[[File:Guinea Fowl Hunter (49109425873).jpg|thumb|upright=1.5|A [[Karo language (Ethiopia)|Karo]] man holding a bow and arrow]]

The '''bow and arrow''' is a ranged weapon system consisting of an [[elasticity (physics)|elastic]] launching device (bow) and long-shafted [[projectile]]s (arrows). Humans used bows and arrows for [[hunting]] and [[aggression]] long before [[recorded history]], and the practice was common to many [[prehistoric]] cultures. They were important [[weapon of war|weapons of war]] from [[ancient history]] until the [[early modern period]], when they were rendered increasingly obsolete by the development of the more powerful and accurate [[firearm]]s. Today, bows and arrows are mostly used for [[bowhunting|hunting]] and [[Modern competitive archery|sport]]s.

[[Archery]] is the art, practice, or skill of using bows to [[shooting|shoot]] arrows.<ref name=Paterson17>Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 17</ref> A person who shoots arrows with a bow is called a bowman or an archer. Someone who makes bows is known as a [[bowyer]],<ref name=Paterson31>Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 31</ref> someone who makes arrows is a [[fletching|fletcher]],<ref name=Paterson56>Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 56</ref> and someone who manufactures metal [[arrowhead]]s is an arrowsmith.<ref name=Paterson20>Paterson ''Encyclopaedia of Archery'' p. 20</ref>