Karate

Karate is a form of full contact martial art that dates back to the 17th Century. It was developed in the Okinawa Prefecture of Japan.

 

The sport is evolved from the native martial arts of the Ryukyu Islands under the leadership of Chinese martial arts, especially Fujian White Crane. In its initial stages, karate was an original form of closed-fist fighting; Kara means ‘empty,' and te means ’hand’. Karate not only grooms the body but the mind of the practitioner as well where people as young as four years of age can learn and participate in karate competitions in different age, weight, and experience categories.

 

The sport is widely practiced by people of all ages all around the world. The global governing body of the sport is World Karate Federation that organizes various World Championships and will also be a recognized Summer Olympics Sport from 2020 onwards.

In Kumite competitions the core objective is to score ippon (1 point), nihon (2 points), or sanbon (3 points) by performing various techniques according to the said criteria. The participant with the higher no. of scores wins.

General History

Karate, the Japanese word for "bare hands," was conceived in the Okinawan Islands as a type of fighting style purposed for self-protection, when weapons were restricted by invading Japanese forces. It started as te (hand), a battling technique utilised by the locals of the Ryukyu Islands, and was later impacted by Chinese kenpō, introduced through the Chinese families that settled on Okinawa after exchange and trades among China and the islands were built up.

 

From three Okinawan urban areas, Shuri, Naha, and Tomari, three separate styles rose:

• Shuri-te

• Naha-te

• Tomari-te

 

Aggregately, these styles were called Okinawa-te or tode (Chinese hand), and after some time, the styles combined somewhat to turn out to be only two: Shōrin-ryū, developed close to Shuri and Tomari, and Shōrei-ryū, near Naha.

 

Because of expanding Japanese impact, the name of te was in the long run stretched to karate-jutsu (Chinese hand art). It at that point changed to karate-do after an Okinawan master adjusted the significance of the word kara (likewise articulated tode) to signify "empty" as opposed to "Chinese hand." karate-do converts into "the method of the empty hand."

 

The Common Beliefs of Where Karate Started

Next to no is known about the definite roots of karate before it showed up in Okinawa. However, one famous hypothesis expresses that it originated from India over a thousand years back, conveyed to China by a Buddhist priest called Bodhidharma ("Daruma" in Japanese). As legend depicts it, Bodhidharma came in Shaolinsi and started encouraging Zen Buddhism too, a style of temple boxing dependent on activities intended to reinforce the brain and body. The chronicled exactness of this legend is as yet a hot issue of discussion today.

 

Important Dates in the History of Karate

 

Year 1905

Karate is incorporated into Okinawa's physical training programs at the intermediate level.

 

Year 1917

Funakoshi performs the first open show of karate-do.

 

Year 1922

Funakoshi is welcomed by Dr Jano Kano to do an open show at the Kodokan Dojo, conveying karate-do to Japan.

 

Year 1924

The first college karate club is built up in Japan, at Keio University.

 

Year 1930s

Karate advances toward Canada.

 

Year 1936

Okinawan masters meet to talk about karate in Okinawa, a gathering supported by the paper Ryukyu Shimpo.

 

Year 1939

Japan opens Shoto-Kan, its first formal training school.

 

Year 1945

The first dojo is opened in the United States.

 

Year 1949

The Japan Karate Association is founded.

 

Year 1950s

Karate arrives in the United Kingdom.

 

Year 1960s

Karate advances toward the Soviet Union and is restricted and unbanned a few times throughout the following three decades.

 

Year 1964

France Shotokan Karate is made in France.

 

Year 1989

Karate is authorised and legalised once again the Soviet Union.