Gichin Funakoshi

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Lore & Background

Gichin Funakoshi was born prematurely on November 10, 1868, the year of the Meiji Restoration, in Shuri, Okinawa, to a Ryūkyūan Pechin. His father's name was Gisu. He was of samurai lineage, from a family which in former times had been vassals of Ryukyu Dynasty nobles. After entering primary school he became close friends with the son of Ankō Asato, a karate and Jigen-ryū master who would soon become his first karate teacher. Funakoshi's family was stiffly opposed to the Meiji government's abolition of the Japanese topknot, and this meant that he would be ineligible to pursue his goal of attending medical school (where topknots were banned), despite having passed the entrance examination. Being trained in both classical Chinese and Japanese philosophies and teachings, Funakoshi became an assistant teacher in Okinawa. During this time, his relations with the Asato family grew and he began nightly travels to the Asato family residence to receive karate instruction from Ankō Asato. Funakoshi had trained in both of the popular styles of Okinawan karate of the time: Shōrei-ryū and Shōrin-ryū. Shotokan is named after Funakoshi's pen name, Shōtō (松涛), which means 'waving pines'. Kan means training hall or house, thus Shōtōkan (松涛館) referred to the 'house of Shōtō'. This name was coined by Funakoshi's students when they posted a sign above the entrance of the hall at which Funakoshi taught. By the late 1910s, Funakoshi had many students. In 1922 Funakoshi (aged 53) and Makoto Gima (aged 26) were invited to the Kodokan by Judo Master Jigoro Kano to perform a karate demonstration. It was this demonstration that inevitably made karate popular in the mainland. In 1936, Funakoshi built the first Shōtōkan dojo in Tokyo. While on the Japanese mainland, he changed the written characters of karate to mean 'empty hand' (空手) instead of 'China hand' (唐手) to downplay its connection to Chinese boxing. Funakoshi's re-interpretation of the character kara in karate to mean 'empty' (空) rather than 'Chinese' (唐) caused some tension with traditionalists back in Okinawa, prompting Funakoshi to remain in Tokyo indefinitely.

Reader's Guide

Gichin Funakoshi's significance lies in his role as the founder of Shotokan karate and a key figure in the modernization and spread of karate from Okinawa to mainland Japan. His reinterpretation of the character kara to mean 'empty' rather than 'Chinese' reflected a philosophical shift that helped karate gain acceptance in Japan. His legacy is preserved in the niju kun, or twenty principles, which guide Shotokan practitioners, and in his detailed publication Karate-Do Kyohan. Although Funakoshi wrote that there are no contests in karate, his students at the Japan Karate Association pushed toward standardization and competition, leading to the first All Japan Karate Championships in 1957, the year of his death. Today, the JKA World Championships are named the Funakoshi Gichin Cup. A memorial at Engaku-ji in Kamakura, erected on December 1, 1968, features his precept 'Karate ni sente nashi' (There is no first move in karate), the second of Funakoshi's Twenty Precepts. The monument also includes a copy of the poem he wrote on his way to Japan in 1922.

Did You Know?

• Funakoshi was born prematurely in Shuri, Okinawa, in the year of the Meiji Restoration.
• His pen name Shōtō means 'waving pines', and his students coined the name Shōtōkan by posting a sign above the entrance of his training hall.
• In 1922, at age 53, Funakoshi and Makoto Gima (age 26) performed a karate demonstration at the Kodokan by invitation of Judo Master Jigoro Kano.
• Funakoshi changed the written characters of karate from 'China hand' (唐手) to 'empty hand' (空手) to downplay its connection to Chinese boxing.
• A memorial at Engaku-ji in Kamakura, erected on December 1, 1968, features his precept 'Karate ni sente nashi' (There is no first move in karate).