 What is the difference between Okinawan and Japanese karate? And more importantly, why should you care? Many may claim, well, what does it matter? It's all just karate. Oh, but it matters enough so that by not understanding the difference You might be missing your own training goals We're gonna break this down into a few key segments We're going to explore the origin of the two the differences in training methods And then we'll illustrate this with an example between a Shoren Ryu and Shoto kankata And I bet once you see the differences, you'll never be able to unsee them And for those of you who stick to the end, we'll talk about a very common karate phrase that probably shouldn't be used in an Okinawan Dojo Okinawan karate has its roots in the indigenous martial arts of Okinawa, which at the time was known as the Ryu-Kyu Kingdom Now the development can be traced back to the late 14th century when martial arts were practiced and taught by Okinawan nobility And warriors as a means of self-defense and combat training Now these early martial arts were influenced by the various Chinese martial arts brought to Okinawa through maritime trade and cultural exchange So the specific origins of Okinawan karate as a distinct art are difficult to pinpoint However, over the centuries through cross-cultural exchange, three main styles of te or hand emerged These systems were shurite, nahate, and tomarete, named for the cities that they were establishing Later the term karate emerged, meaning tang hand The modernizing and standardization of Okinawan karate began in the early 20th century when karate was introduced to mainly in Japan Gichin Funukoshi, the founder of shuritake on karate, is largely credited with this migration Now while he wasn't the only one to bring karate to Japan, he was definitely the most influential He was dubbed the father of modern karate and he made several changes when he introduced karate from Okinawa to mainland Japan These changes were motivated by various factors including the desire to make karate more accessible, understandable, and acceptable to the Japanese population So for the cultural adaptation, Funukoshi recognized that karate, as practiced in Okinawa, had historical connections to China that might not resonate with the Japanese people The two countries were at odds with each other and therefore he adopted karate to align more with closely with Japanese culture and societal norms This included changing the kanji name from tang hand or chinese hand to empty hand, though the pronunciation remained the same He introduced a more structured and systematic approach to training Including the use of belt ranks to denote skill levels and the organization of techniques into a formal curriculum Now while he implemented the color belt system, he didn't create it That credit goes to his friend and judo founder, Jigoro Kano Funukoshi standardized it across Japanese karate and it became so ingrained in training that the influence even traveled back to Okinawa Where several schools chose to utilize it as well Funukoshi emphasized the philosophical and moral aspects of karate promoting values such as discipline, respect, and self-improvement He saw karate not only as a means of self-defense, but also as a path to personal development and enlightenment So overall Japanese karate is a modern adaptation of the okinawan systems that root back hundreds of years If you like our content and you want us to keep developing more episodes like this Then please help us out by visiting artofwondoja.com We have a store with exclusive shirts that feature various martial arts styles and grandmasters And for a limited time you can use the code WUSHU2024 to get 10% off of any t-shirt This is our way of thanking you for being a part of our dojo family and you can fashionably represent your art Okay, so let's run through a list of some of the more notable differences And after this you should start to see the clear distinction between okinawan and Japanese karate Stances in okinawan karate stances tend to be higher and narrower emphasizing mobility and agility This allows practitioners to move quickly and efficiently In contrast Japanese karate often adopts deeper and lower stances which provides stability and power generation These stances are designed to root the practitioner into the ground allowing them for strong and forceful techniques Also as a generality okinawan karate utilizes a combination of circular and linear motions stemming from its chinese influences When karate came to japan it blended with existing japanese arts and reflects a more direct linear style range Okinawan karate emphasizes close-range combat techniques incorporating strikes and vigorous grappling maneuvers Techniques are often executed in a compact and efficient manner Making use of close-quarter fighting tactics such as elbow strikes knee strikes violent giant joint locks and takedowns In contrast Japanese karate tends to utilize more linear and powerful range attacks Techniques are executed with precision and focus on generating maximum force from a distance This includes techniques such as straight punches front kicks and footwork that allow practitioners to maintain distance and control engagement Conditioning now okinawan karate often incorporates strength building tools such as the makiwara and hojo undu or supplementary exercises into training regiments These tools are used to develop physical conditioning power and precision through repetitive striking and conditioning drills The makiwara for example is used for practicing powerful strikes while experiencing some resistance While hojo undu implements tools such as stone weights and gripping jars are used to strengthen the body's muscles and joints In contrast Japanese karate typically relies less on the strength training building tools and focuses more on kata kihon which are basic techniques and kumite sparring for physical conditioning and skill development kata okinawan karate places a strong emphasis on the practical application or bunkai of techniques Which involves understanding the context and purpose behind each movement within kata Practitioners analyze kata to extract self-defense applications Exploring how techniques can be applied effectively in a real combat situation Japanese karate on the other hand tends to place greater importance on the form and technical precision of the kata Now while bunkai is still taught in practice Japanese karate styles often prioritize perfecting the execution of kata movements focusing on correct posture timing and alignment This emphasis on technical precision reflects Japanese karate's dedication to discipline mastery and aesthetic beauty in martial arts practice Class setting okinawan classes typically feature smaller more intimate settings where the instructor encourages questions and fosters understanding among students The learning environment prioritizes individualized interaction allowing students to engage with the instructor and deepen their understanding of their techniques and principles Japanese karate has been adopted to accommodate much larger class sizes often teaching to the masses in more structured settings Question is sensei can sometimes be perceived as disrespectful and students are generally expected to follow technical instructions without much deviation The focus is on learning through repetition and following the instructor's guidance rather than engaging in an extensive dialogue or exploration of concepts power generation In Japanese karate there is a key term called kimei Now kimei signifies a focus and explosive contraction of muscles upon strike It is the act of delivering maximum power and precision through a coordinated breath body mechanics and mental focus Characterized by a momentary freeze upon impact. It allows for effective power transfer and a decisive finish Now okinawa has a different term called jinkuchi Now the word is a bit hard to translate directly But it refers to internal strength or power at the point of contact It's fundamental in okinawa martial arts like goji ryu Now unlike kimei, which capitalizes on explosive energy release, jinkuchi focuses on continuous power flow Achieved through subtle body alignments coordination and breathing It channels power from the body's core to the limbs often involving circular movements techniques appear fluid Get powerful with a constant connection to the opponent. It's a subtle difference, but it's a major difference So we can keep getting into the nuances of the two different cultures, but I think the differences are becoming clear So I thought it would be interesting to take the same kata that is in both okinawan and japanese systems Shoren Ryu is one of the oldest styles of okinawan krate stemmed from shirite Shottokan is essentially for Nogoshi's interpretation of the art Both arts have a beginning kata called pinan shodan which translates to peaceful mind first level Now the form teaches the beginning student the first couple of basic stances blocks and strikes in motion Now for the purpose of the comparison I watched quite a few different versions of each and the kata does appear to change the performance depending on the school So I picked two samples that were closer in sequence Also worth noting just as funakoshi changed the spell of the krate to distance it from its chinese roots He changed the name of this kata as well Dropping the word pinan he renamed it to heian shodan, which also means peaceful mind With the performances side by side, you can immediately see the differences Heian shodan utilizes the lower stances each step is deep linear and explosively powerful at the end of each strike Now you can see the kimei and definitely the conclusion of each move at the end of the punch Also notice that for the most part those deep stances generally maintain a constant height for the practitioner In pinan shodan, you can clearly see a difference in the footwork Stances are higher and narrower with their height changing in certain steps It's also very subtle But there are more you know nuanced circular motions in the strikes and while the pause and the focus seems similar The jinkuchi is a little bit more evident here with the power generated in the core and exhibiting slightly more fluid movements Now this was just a general comparison and i'm already anticipating comments correcting me on what versions I use or sending links to different performances If you look around you're going to find different variations that will blur the lines of what we discussed here I just thought that this served as an interesting side by side to see the two different flavors of krate in motion One more subtle difference. I would like to point out is the term us Now this is something you hear in many japanese dojos and it can mean many different things It can be said as an agreement to a command. It can be a greeting I understand or a thank you or it can be an expression of respect There are different explanations of where the word came from one of them being a combination of a japanese expression for good morning But the truth is it's an expression that is often used differently in different settings You will likely hear it a lot in kiyokushin krate dojos or even more commonly these days Brazilian jujitsu clubs. Now we use it in our own japanese jujitsu school as a sign of respect Now regardless of the meaning and the origin of the term before you use it Learn the context of it in the school that you are attending Do not assume that just because you're in a dojo that is acceptable to use Especially in an okinawan art where osu is not even a word in no vocabulary And if you use it incorrectly you may receive some confused looks or be thought of as ignorant or in the worst case Possibly insult someone so like other rules of dojo etiquette. It's probably best to ask if it's accepted before just assuming That gesture alone will at least show you that you respect the school enough to ask So why does this even matter well first? I personally think it's a fascinating study to see how arts evolve Is a migrate from one country to another adapting new cultural aspects Second if you are interested in starting karate it helps to note the differences so that you can make better choices Are you more interested in a powerful in your fighting system with a little more range or prefer a style that focuses heavily on competition? Then a japanese style may be your answer But if you're more interested in close-range self-defense that includes stand-up and some grappling techniques and heavier boomkai and kata study Well, then an okinawan art may be a better fit Always do your research identify your goals and align your options with those goals I just want to reiterate that this is once again a general classification None of these are hard rules and especially in today's global landscape is easier for the lines to blur However, I think sometimes it helps by putting things in boxes so that you can take a step back And get a sense of things on a broader scale and that's exactly what we did right here with kung fu The chinese martial arts are another beast altogether and with hundreds of styles existing It can be challenging to know where to draw those lines Now if we think that japanese and okinawan karate is different just wait until you see how diverse northern and southern kung fu styles are