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Different Styles of Karate

Posted by Greg in January 3rd 2009

Not all inclusive, but a quick look at different styles

Many people think that Karate came from Korea or China, this is not true. Although many styles did originate from these two areas, quite a few styles developed in other countries as well. The word Karate has been associated with any type of Martial Arts in the western world, and thanks to a few martial arts actors, have made the western world rush to learn any form of Karate that they could. The most famous of these actors was Bruce Lee; although he did not invent a new style, he just simply made it more public to the world. Other actors such as Chuck Norris, Jet Lee, Jackie Chain, Jon Claude Van Dam, have made the martial arts even more famous.

Japan and Okinawa developed their own form of Karate, with some changes being made from one instructor to another. Some styles have even been developed in the United States.

Originally Karate got its start in China, in the 16th century but the development of Karate started when Okinawan travelers began visiting China and were so enthused with this ancient style of fighting, that they learned the techniques and once they became masters of the Chinese Martial Arts, and in the 20th century these travelers went back to Japan and began teaching Karate to the solders, using the styles that they had learned and also made some changes of their own.

Today there are hundreds of different types all throughout the world. Karate is not just restricted to Oriental fighting techniques, in France, there is a form called, Savate, this style was first used in Marseille, and is a method of using kicks. Savate uses the feet and legs for both striking and blocking. It has become a form of today’s kickboxing.

Krav Maga is a method of self-defense that was developed in Israel, and practiced by the entire Israeli Army; it has become quite popular in the United States.

1,000 years ago, India developed a form of Karate, called Pentjak Silat, which used forms of martial arts mixed with some mystic powers, magic, and healing. Pentjak Silat has now spread the Indonesian Islands.

Sambo is an ancient Russian self-defense art. It is used with the Russian Elite Special Forces, and consists of many striking, kicking and defense.

Sumo dates back to the 8th century and originally was held as ceremonies in the Imperial Court. It used the techniques of both boxing and wrestling. The competitors usually weight 100’s of pounds (kg), but as time passed throughout the centuries, it has become a very popular sport in Japan.

Today many styles of Karate have adapted the belt system as a means of accomplishments for their students; however, the belt color system varies from school to school. The ranks have always started at 10 (being a white belt beginner), and ended at 1, and the Black Belts started at rank 1 and went to 10. Some schools now start their students from rank 10, which is considered a white belt beginner, and go to rank one, which enables the students to reach an extra grade. The grading of the belt colors starts at white, the beginner, and develops to yellow, orange, green, blue, brown, and black.

I hope this study of the different styles of Karate have helped people understand that there are many forms of Karate, and the ones that have been mentioned are not even the deadliest ones.