Karate began in the island of Okinawa, the main island of the Ryuku chain in the East China Sea. With the Okinawa’s location and the political policy at that time, it gave birth to Karate.

From the Ming dynasty, about the fourteenth century, through the regular exchange of missionaries, traders and students, the Shaolin fighting techniques of China were spreading into Okinawa. It combined Okinawan methods and developed into Okinawa-style fighting system called ‘Chinese Hand’.

In 1429, the King of the Okinawa imposed a ban on all weapons to ensure law and order and to discourage political military rivals. But the practice of karate went on in secrecy. In 1609, Okinawa fell under the rule of the Satsuma clan of Kyushu. All weapons were confiscated and banned again. Okinawans turned to the ‘Chinese hand’ to protect themselves. This enhanced the martial art development.

The early karate consisted of three principle styles: Shuri-te, Naha-te and Tomari-te, named after the cities in Okinawa originated the styles. The word 'te' means hand. The man responsible for introducing karate into Japan is Funakoshi Gichin (1868-1957). He redefined the ‘Chinese hand’, gave a number of talks and demonstrations and spread its popularity in Japan.

Other Okinawan teachers who came to Japan set up their own karate styles and formed clubs. There are now many styles of karate. One of the best known is Shito Ryu. It is founded by Kenwa Mabuni (1889-1952), the student of legendary Anko Yasutsune Itosu (1830-1915) and Higaonna Kanryo (1853-1915). Kenwa Mabuni took his Shitoryu style to Japan in 1930. The style stresses speed and sparring. It contains the largest number of katas.

In 1933, karate became acknowledged by the Japanese Butokuwai, which was then the country’s governing body for all of Japan’s Martial Arts activities. It changed the translation of karate from ‘Chinese hand’ to ‘empty hand’, which is also known as ‘Karate’. Karate now spread from Japan to all the countries around the world and becomes a competitive sports. It is now an event in Asian Games.