Monthly Archives: August 2023

Kobudo, entertainment art, or both?

It is sometimes hard to distinguish if an old photo or a demonstration on film is actually a martial art or something else. Like this, there was a question in social media about a number of sketches from the 19th … Continue reading

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Chōun no Kon, or Shōun no Bo?

There was a discussion on social media about the spelling of a kata. In the Taira lineage, the kata is generally known as Chōun no Kon. However, in a bilangual work of 1987, there is the description of “Chōun no … Continue reading

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The 9-foot-staff and spearmanship in Ryūkyū

Recently I wrote about the 9-foot-staff as used in Okinawan bōjutsu. While sources are scarce and fragmentary, there are a number of traditions using a 9-foot-staff. In written sources it appears first in the 1960s. However, when looking at the … Continue reading

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Online exhibition: Shihan certificates in Okinawa

Recently, there was a social media discussion about the difference between sensei and shihan. Both sensei and shihan mean teacher, but while sensei is used extensively in general, shihan is an older term used particularly in the world of budō and other traditional arts such as calligraphy, flower arranging, … Continue reading

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The 9-foot-staff in Okinawa bōjutsu

I have written about the 9-foot-staff before. In the bōjutsu tradition of Taira Shinken, it is called the kushaku-bō. This staff is about ca. 273 cm long. I want to recapitulate on what I have established before and extend it … Continue reading

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How Miyake Sango was identified

Here I would like to shortly explain how Miyake Sango was identified as the person in the alleged Itosu photo. It began on January 10, 2018, when my good fellow researcher Thomas Feldmann (herinafter abbreviated to TF) sent me a … Continue reading

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The alleged photos of Itosu Ankō actually show Miyake Sango

I have written about three different photos allegeldy showing Itosu Anko, the father of modern karate (1, 2, and 3). Then, I provided a translation of an article from the Okinawa Times which stated that the person is not Itosu, … Continue reading

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1964: An Entry about Kenshin-ryū, ancient martial art of Okinawa

[The following is a translation of a short entry from 1964 about the Kenshin-ryū school of kobudō established by Hayashi Teruo] Born in Kumejima, Okinawa Prefecture, [Mr. Taira Shinken] trained karate under Funakoshi Gichin Sensei and kobudō under Yabiku Mōden … Continue reading

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Example of Examination Regulations in Okinawa

Previously I presented an Example of Association Rules in Okinawa. It describes the exact rules and how Okinawan karate kobudo associations are organized. From it, it can also be seen what distinguishes Okinawan associations from associations in other countries. Over … Continue reading

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Example of Association Rules in Okinawa

How are Okinawan karate kobudo associations organized? What distinguishes them from associations in other countries? What are the exact rules? Over years, karate kobudo practitioners around the world have asked these and similar questions. Therefore, to give you a reliable … Continue reading

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