Japan, in the midst of the Meiji Restoration, was keen to not fall behind when it came to military technology, and devised a replacement for their Type 26 revolver.

[1] Initially produced for Japanese army and naval officers' private purchase, the 8×22mm Nambu was not officially adopted until 1926 when it was designated as the Type 14 pistol cartridge.

Small batches of Nambu pistols were also exported to Siam and China before World War II.

[7] Afterwards there was no major demand to keep the 8×22mm round afloat, and the post-war Japan Self-Defense Forces swiftly replaced it with the 9×19mm Parabellum, which during World War II was already in use in the United Kingdom and Germany.

In 1939, the cost of 8×22mm Nambu ammunition manufactured by the Imperial Japanese Army's arsenals was 390 yen per 10,000 rounds.