Graham Noble
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Unknown testimonial by Gima Makoto (1983)
Gima Makoto (儀間真謹, 1896–1989) is one of the most important eyewitnesses to the early development of karate on the Japanese mainland. He is best known for assisting Funakoshi Gichin (1868–1957) during the historic karate demonstration at the Kōdōkan in Tōkyō in 1922. On that occasion, Funakoshi performed the kata Kūsankū, while Gima demonstrated Naihanchi. Funakoshi… Continue reading
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The 1927 photograph and the early misidentification of karate in Europe
Knowledge about karate outside Japan before the end of the Second World War was extremely limited. Apart from a few early mentions in Western publications—such as those by Ernest Satow in 1872/3 and William Furness in 1899—information about the art remained scarce. There were, however, occasional points of contact. Overseas Okinawan communities, for example in… Continue reading
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The Graham Noble Collection
For martial arts research, private collections are of inestimable value alongside libraries and archives. One such collection is that of Graham Noble. Graham Noble was born in 1949 and became interested in karate and its history in the mid-1960s. Seeing that reliable information on the martial arts, especially karate, was scarce, Graham set about gathering… Continue reading
Investigations into the history of karate 