Okinawa
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Memories of Yabu Kentsū
Yabu Kentsū, who was born in 1866, died in 1937. The sympathy was great especially in the Shuri district and among students and teachers of the Okinawa Normal School. Beside several obituaries which were published following his death, the school publication Ryūtan in 1938 prepared a lengthy article which extensively remembered Yabu’s life and work.… Continue reading
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Taiwan Nichinichi (1921) on Hirohito’s stay in Shuri
The karate demonstration led by Funakoshi Gichin 船越義珍 (1868–1957) during the visit of the Japanese Crown Prince Hirohitos 裕仁 (1901–1989) to Okinawa on March 6, 1921 is a much-cited event. Hirohito visited Shuri en route to Europe. After the visit the prince said that he had been much impressed by three things in Okinawa: the… Continue reading
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“Kunpatte Sensei”
In the book Okinawa kenshi: Kakuron hen IV-V. Bunka (1965) 沖縄県史: 各論編 IV-V. 文化, there is a brief passage describing Hanashiro Chōmo 花城長茂 (1868–1945): 花城はふんばってというのをくんばる というところから、「クンパッテ先生」とあだ名がつけられていたよう一方 … Hanashiro was nicknamed “kunpatte sensei,” from the Japanese word “funbaru“ … The verb funbaru 踏ん張る can be translated as (1) to brace one’s legs; to stand firm; to… Continue reading
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Weapon performances on the Yaeyama Islands
In the book 南島江戸時図誌 Nantō Edo toki-zu-shi [24] (1977) are several pieces of the 八重山風俗図 Yaeyama Fūzoku-zu, a collection of genre paintings from the end of the Ôfu period (15th century–1879). It is said that Nishi Tsuneo (西常央, 1848–1900), a native of Fukuoka who came to Okinawa in 1882 and held public offices in the… Continue reading
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Itosu Ankō medical history
For my book Ankō Itosu: The Man. The Master. The Myth (2021), I had a medical specialist evaluate the health of Itosu Ankō 糸洲安恒 (1831-1915) in his last 2–3 years. For this task based on my research, I prepared a brief profile and an anamnesis of Itosu. ———– Profile: Name: Itosu Ankō Gender: male Born:… Continue reading
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A poem by Funakoshi Gichin unearthed recently
It was in 1922 that karate began to be popularized outside of Okinawa Prefecture by Funakoshi Gichin 船越義珍 (1868–1957). A hundred years have passed since then. In this context, the Okinawa Karate Academy on November 24, 2022 dedicated a lecture to Funakoshi’s time on Okinawa: 空手普及100年 一 船越義珍の足跡をたどる一 (100 Years of Karate Popularization: In the… Continue reading
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Matsumora Kōsaku heroic tales
Matsumora Kōsaku 松茂良 興作 (1829–1898) was a famous Okinawan karate master from Tomari. Over the course of several months in 1938, his heroic tales were written down in a number of fictional short stories in the newspaper Ryūkyū Shimpō. Based on the stories also a stage play was set up which had been advertised in… Continue reading
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Analysis of Itosu’s letter in Hungarian academic magazine
There is a very interesting article about Itosu Ankō’s 糸洲安恒 (1831-1915) 1908 letter also known as the “Ten Lessons of Itosu” 糸洲十訓 (Itosu jūkun). For the Hungarian academic magazine Távol-keleti Tanulmányok (Journal of East Asian Cultures) the author Gábor Richárd Gottner (Master’s degree in Japanese Studies and member of the Japanese Studies Doctoral Programme of the Eötvös… Continue reading
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Karate mentioned in a diary from 1911?
There is a certain fascination with early descriptions of the indigenous martial arts of Ryūkyū in Western literature. The overviews are numerous. In this context, we certainly think of the “boxer’s position of defense” mentioned by Basil Hall (1818), the “well-trained fighter” described by Ernest M. Satow (1873) who “can smash a large earthen water-jar,… Continue reading
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Articles on unveiling of the Itosu monument in 1964
On May 30, 1964, Master Chibana Chōshin 知花朝信 (1885–1969) and adoptive grandson Itosu Angō 糸洲安剛 (1915–1996) gathered family, friends, karateka and officials to remember Itosu Ankō 糸洲安恒 (1831–1915). Very close to his burying place in Furushima 古島 in Mawashi, a stone monument was unveiled to commemorate the venerable master. On that occasion, speeches were held… Continue reading
Investigations into the history of karate 