karate ASSOCIATION

Karate is an Okinawan/Japanese martial arts. It is an empty hand combat. It is a martial art developed on the Ryukyu Islands in what is now Okinawa, Japan. It developed from the indigenous martial arts of Ryukyu Islands called “te” under the influence of Chinese martial arts, particularly Fugian White Crane. A Karate practitioner is called a Karateka.

Karate is now predominantly a striking art using punching, kicking, knee strikes, elbow strikes and open hand techniques such as knife hands, spear hand, etc. In some modern styles, grappling, throws, joint locks, restraints, and vital point strikes are also taught.

Karate was brought to Japan mainland in the early 20th Century during a time of cultural exchanges between the Japanese and the Chinese. It was systematically taught in Japan after the Taisho era (the first era of modern Japan).

In 1922, the Japanese Ministry of Education invited Master Gichin Funakoshi (the founder of Modern Karate) to Tokyo to give a Karate demonstration.

In 1924, Keio University established the first University Karate Club in mainland Japan and by 1932, major Japanese universities had karate clubs. In this era of escalating Japanese militarism, the name was changed from (Chinese Hand or Tang Hand) to (Empty Hand) — both of which are pronounced “Karate” to indicate that the Japanese wished to develop the combat form in Japanese style.