The word santoku translates as "three virtues", which refers to the cutting of meat, fish and vegetables or the following three types of cutting: chopping, slicing and dicing. Very versatile, the santoku is one of the types of knives we recommend as the first or main knife in the kitchen.
Shirogami #1 by Hitachi steel co translates to white steel #1 and is an improved version of Shirogami #2 as it contains a higher carbon content. It is named after the color of the paper in which it is packaged once produced. It is considered one of the purest steels, after Tamahagane, which allows for a sharper edge than most other steels. However, it will generally be more brittle and can break more easily due to misuse. Mastering the forging of shirogami #1 to exploit its full potential is not simple and requires an expertise that few blacksmiths have. It is in the process of making a Mizu Honyaki type knife that you will find the shirogami #1 in its most difficult to forge version, but also the sharpest.
Futana is the name of a line of Hitohira's house knives. You will discover knives of any profile, made of stainless or semi-stainless steel and with several different types of finishes : nashiji, kurouchi, damascus, etc.