Okinawan Karate – The Origin Of Karate Martial Art

Do you have a keen interest to learn Okinawan Karate? There are many options as far as Okinawan Karate schools are concerned.

The question is which school to choose from, which school has the best system? These are normal questions for the parents who want their kids to be trained in Okinawan Karate. As its name suggests, the origin of Karate can be traced to Okinawa, one of the islands in Japan.

The islanders here developed a martial art to defend themselves from the outside attack. This martial art was kept alive and passed on to the generations and now it has become a part of the curriculum of the schools in Japan.

Original Okinawan Karate was divided into various styles, these were named after the cities in Okinawa, for instance, Shuri-Te and Naha-Te are both derived from the cities of Okinawa.

There is lot of influence of Chinese Kung Fu in the Okinawan version of Karate. This was due to Okinawa’s strong trading ties with Chinese traders and maintained friendly relationship.

Today there are many styles of Karate, but all of them have been taken from the original Okinawan Karate. One of the master, Gichin Funakoshi, introduced Karate in the Japanese schools. His style of Shotokan Karate became the first popular styles across the world.

Often students are left to create their own styles, thus there may be disagreement but many have honored their teachers and instructors to preserve the essence of the art. It becomes very important that each style has a detailed and well defined curriculum; chances of further improvements should be left to senior black belt practitioners.

This will be quite beneficial for both students and the instructors. The martial art enthusiasts would have to ensure that all schools are there for a long time. There are instances where schools run such classes for profits, but there are also schools which are lean more to giving quality trainings to the community.

Schools who are there to serve the community have maintained the originality of Okinawan Karate, which has been passed on from grandfather to son to grandsons.

Unfortunately, maintaining the originality of Karate does not attract many students, as people look for a mixed variety of martial art. As long as the dojo owners stay true to their practice, there will students who want to follow the old ways of Karate.

My own experience has been with schools which do not run the classes for profits and I have great instructors. Nonetheless, schools which are profit oriented too have dedicated teachers and instructor. It is up to you to choose which one best suit you.

The old Karate martial art is for self-defense and not for spectators’ tournaments, but competition is important for excelling in the art. There are many government and other organizations who issue coaching certificates.

If you want to be sure about the reputation of the schools, you must look for a school which has dedicated and qualified instructors and provide ample opportunities of competition.

The atmosphere of the school should be safe and the instructors there should be dedicated in imparting his knowledge and experience to his students. Do your own research online to find a school or a club which meets your expectation.

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