How Old Was Tanjirō When His Family Died at the Hands of Muzan?

Tanjirō Kamado is the protagonist of the Demon Slayer manga and demon-themed anime. A young boy struck by tragedy, Tanjirō overcame his horrid fate and became a Demon Slayer, but not to avenge his family – he did it to find a way to return his sister, Nezuko, to a human once again. Tanjiro and Nezuko had an extremely close bond, as they were the only surviving members of the Kamado family after it had been attacked and slaughtered by Muzan Kibutsuji. In this article, we will tell you how old Tanjirō Kamado was when Muzan murdered his family at the beginning of Demon Slayer.

In Chapter 1 of the Demon Slayer manga, Tanjirō Kamado was 13 years old and was the oldest Kamado sibling, as well as the oldest male member of his family, as his father had died before the start of the story. Since Muzan killed his family at the very beginning of the manga, we can confirm that Tanjirō was 13 years old when his family died.

The rest of this article is going to focus on Tanjirō and the tragedy that would go on to shape him as a character. We have now provided you with the answer to the question you were looking for, but we are going to expand on it by talking a bit about the history of the Kamado family, as well as what happened on that dreadful night. This article has spoilers, but only for those who haven’t seen or read any Demon Slayer episode or chapter.

Tanjirō’s age when Muzan killed his family

Tanjirō is the firstborn of the Kamado Family, whose components were his father, Tanjurō, his mother Kie, and his younger siblings: Nezuko, Takeo, Shigeru, Rokuta, and Hanako. Nezuko was the oldest daughter in the family, and she was born a year after Tanjirō. His family made a living selling charcoal in neighboring villages. When his father died, Tanjirō took his place as the man of the house, working to support his family. Until one day, an event occurred that completely marked his life. During the Taishō era, Tanjirō was a boy who made a living selling charcoal and firewood to nearby villages to support his entire family: his mother and his younger siblings.

One winter day, when Tanjirō was 13 years old, he went down to the nearest village to sell his products in preparation for the New Year festivities, and when he was about to return home, a snowstorm forced him to take refuge in a nearby cabin. There, its occupant, Saburo, tells him a strange story about creatures that attack people at night and devour them.

Tanjirō at first does not believe in the story and just falls asleep. Still, when he returns home, he notices a disturbing smell of human blood: upon entering his house, what he finds is a nightmare scenario: all his brothers and his mother were brutally murdered, and their sister Nezuko, the only survivor of such a massacre, was seriously injured so desperate. He takes her sister for someone to help them. However, during the tour, Nezuko wakes up, but unfortunately for Tanjirō, she is no longer the same: she became a Demon, and she suddenly increases in size and pounces on Tanjirō, intending to devour him.

Before Tanjiro could realize what was happening, a Demon Slayer called Giyu Tomioka arrived and told Tanjirō that he had to kill his sister since she had been turned into a demon. Nezuko had attacked Tanjiro, but Tanjito successfully rejected her attack and convinced Giyu to spare her life, promising he would take care of her.

Giyu then helped them, and Tanjirō’s and Nezuko’s adventures began. Since Nezuko was turned into a demon, she gained some additional demon powers, but also the behavioral traits of a demon, which means that she became attracted to human blood and flesh and would, as Giyu stated, turn to attack humans, just like all other demons. Tanjirō convinced Giyu that he would stop Nezuko if she ever tried to do that. Along with Sakonji, they helped her preserve her humanity and overcome her demonic urges, while Tanjirō kept searching for a cure for her.