Japanese Martial Arts The history of the island nation of Japan paints a clear picture of a proud and powerful people forging a national identity, robust culture, and unique way of life from the crucible of war and uncertain peace.
History Broadly speaking, the history of Japanese martial arts can be broken down into two categories: Koryu Bujutsu and Gendai Budo.
Their martial arts evolved as weapons and technology did, but the focus always remained the same: victory in actual combat, for their own honor and for the cause of their ruler.
In their wake, the Japanese martial arts styles evolved into what came to be known as Gendai Budo, which focused far less on broad-scale military application and far more on self-improvement and personal growth.
Styles Traditional Japanese Martial Arts Sumo: The oldest of Japanese martial arts styles is sumo, named after the emperor who popularized it in 728 AD. However, the origins of the fighting style go back long before him, to 23 AD, when the first sumo battle was fought, watched over by the emperor and continuing until one of the fighters was too wounded to continue.
Many elements of jujutsu have been incorporated into a wide variety of more modern Japanese martial arts, including judo, aikido, and non-Japanese martial arts styles like karate.
Although many a martial arts movie has portrayed ninjas as expert combatants, their true purpose was to avoid combat, or even detection altogether.
Although there are a number of other Koryu Bujutsu Japanese martial arts styles, they mostly involve weapons, and will be discussed in the Japanese Martial Arts Weapons section.
Modern Japanese Martial Arts Judo: Literally translated into “The gentle way” or “The way of softness”, Judo is an extremely popular Japanese martial art style developed in the late 19th century based on grappling, and used for sport as well as personal and spiritual development.
Aikido: Aikido is one of the most complex and nuanced of the Japanese martial arts styles, and that is reflected in its name, which translates into “The way to harmony with ki”, “Ki” meaning life force.
Japanese Karate: Karate, the “Way of the empty hand”, was actually not originally a Japanese martial art, having been developed in Okinawa and later influenced by the Chinese.
Japanese Martial Arts Weapons Weapons played a key role in the Japanese Martial Arts, especially during the Koryu Bujutsu phase when they were practically used in combat.
Sword: Undisputed amongst the hierarchy of Japanese martial arts weapons is the Katana, or the traditional curved sword.
Japanese Martial Arts Weapons Techniques: Kenjutsu: the “Art of the sword”, this technique is the oldest and used to refer to partnered, one-on-one sword training.
Kendo: Kendo, which translates into the “Way of the sword”, is a modern, gendai budo Japanese martial arts style.
In traditional Japanese martial arts, the bow and its art was a staple of Samurai discipline, as it was a potent military weapon.
Japanese Martial Arts List If the above was a bit too long to read, here is a concise list of the major differing Japanese martial arts styles: Traditional Japanese Martial Arts Styles Sumo: earliest style, involves pushing a single opponent over or knocking them from the ring.
Modern Japanese Martial Arts Styles Judo: “The Gentle Way”, based on grappling, used for sport as well as spiritual and personal development.
Japanese Karate: An “Imported” martial art to Japan, Japanese Karate is more linear than the other arts, involving direct punches and kicks from a fixed position.
Kendo: The “Way of the sword”, Kendo uses bamboo swords and lightweight wooden armor to allow full-speed strikes and has reinvented Japanese sword fighting into a competitive sport rather than an art of war.
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