text: what is kamikaze?   kamikaze (神風) is a japanese word, usually translated as "divine wind" — which came into being as the name of a legendary typhoon said to have saved japan from a mongol invasion fleet in 1281. in japanese, the word kamikaze is usually used only for this typhoon. in the english language, kamikaze usually refers to suicide attacks carried out by japanese aircrews against allied shipping towards the end of the pacific campaign of world war ii.