Okinawan Karate: A History of Styles and Masters: Volume 1: Shuri-te and Shorin-ryu

As a lifelong martial artist, yudansha in Okinawan karate and kobudo as well as other systems, this was an excellent resource for those who don't just practice karate, but also study it in depth.

Absolutely a must-have for anyone practicing the Okinawan arts. Well done and detailed. I will read this more than once.

There are relatively few books that have a detailed history of Okinawan karate in general (as opposed to one specific ryuha), and this author has made a big effort to research the detail of the Shuri-te lineage, from which styles like Shorinjiryu, Shorinryu, Shotokan, Wadoryu and others are descended.The history of Okinawan karate is somewhat of a complicated affair with much of the history lost in lost records, the minefield of oral transmission and the legends that grow quickly in the Okinawan culture where ancestors (familial and lineage) are held in very high esteem. The author has done an impressive job of researching this often confusing history, and has put together the story in a way that is accessible to karateka wanting to learn more about the origins of their art. Its well written.My only complaint is that some incorrect historical accounts or mistranslations have been perpetuated. For example, the master Asato Anko is referred to by the Japanese (mis)-pronunciation of his name Azato Yasutsune (instead of Azato Anko).So the reader will need to recognise that this book (as with most) is not a definitive and perfect source in and of itself. With that said, it is a valuable reference that is highly recommended as a part of a karate researcher's reference library.

I enjoy this book and refer to it often. I often suggest my students purchase this book to ensure they have a good understanding of our karate lineage and our connections with other schools and styles.I have read this book cover to cover three (?) times, maybe more. It has become a key reference in my karate/martial arts library. I understand concerns expressed by Mark Swarthout and Bill Hayes in their reviews. However, I find that the author has compiled and summarized existing published information and added his own personal insights into a comprehensive tome for the Matsamura, Itosu, Chibana lineage with a chapter on Shinpan (Shiroma) Gusakuma, a fellow dojo mate of Chibana under Itosu, as well. There are chapters on Chibana's senior students Higa, Nakazato, Miyahira, Kinjo and Nakama. There are also sections on Matsabuyashi Ryu, Matsamura Seito, and Okinawan Kenpo helping me to better understand their relationship with the Chiban-ha lineage. I can't address information on other lineages.You can purchase all the books listed in the extensive footnotes, I have most of them, or purchase this book and have the information at hand in one book. If you are still wondering if you should buy this book you have probably already spent $100s on books and videos that turn out to be extremely elementary or outright useless. This is a book you can put in your library and probably refer to it often.

It was easy to read, yet thorough!

Having been involved with Okinawan martial arts for a long time, one runs out of good reading material fairly quickly. Much has been written by Bishop, McCarthy and Alexander already. While a good portion of the book I have seen elsewhere, that is the nature of writing about an activity that had little written record originally and then was almost wiped out by the devastation of a world war. There will be repetition. There is enough new material to make the reading interesting for old codgers like me and the writing is comprehensive enough to stand as a good reference for new folks. In my case, our SR Grand Master was described warts and all (Hohan Soken) and that just gives me more of a feeling of connection to the person and does not diminish what he did. At this point - I'm more interested in real people, good and bad. I thought the book was very well written and I will be checking out the second volume as it describes the other main branch and I look forward to it.

As compilations on styles and masters of Okinawan go, it's alright. The author was able to go into more detail on certain lineages as this volume was focused solely on the Shuri/Tomari-derived styles. There were some nice photos I hadn't seen before. Some obvious cut-and-paste work in some sections was disappointing and information on my own tradition was handled in a somewhat dismissive manner. References and citations abound, appropriate in a good meta analysis, but I have to wonder about some... mainly because my own website was cited twice, and it is by no means meant as an authoritative scholarly treatise but rather a source of basic generally-agreed-upon (from various un-cited sources) information for students and interested association members. That being said, I will likely buy volume two when it is published. I would say that if you don't already have books by such people as Mark Bishop, John Sells, Hokama Tetsuhiro, etc. and have not been an avid internet karate hound, this would be of more use to you.

This book has become one of my favorites on Shuri-te history. As a student for the past 30+ years, I thoroughly enjoyed the tour, including pictures I had not seen before, stories I had not heard before, and even connections I had not made before. I have been able to use the "new" information to follow up with internet searches, finding even more great information and even video footage of some of the historical figures (Chibana Chosin Passai). Thank you for writing such an interesting book, looking forward to Volume 2 and more.

An excellent breakdown of the original masters and their students. Very thorough with references. Offered great information and was a great read. Definitely what I was looking for.

It is for a Christmas gift, but I am sure he will enjoy it.

Great resource

Okinawa Karate: A History of Styles and MastersVolum 1 Shurite and Shorin-ryuChristoph M. Clarke präsentiert die Geschichte des Karates der letzten 250 Jahre mit Hilfe von Biografien ihrer Meister. Clark beschränkt sich hierbei auf die Stilrichtungen, die sich auf Okinawa entwickelt haben. Persönlichkeiten, die vorallem außerhalb Okinawas gewirkt haben, wie z.B. Funakoshi Gichin –auf den der Shotokan-Stil zurückzuführen ist – oder Mabuni Kenawa (Shito-Ryu) sind nicht biographisch erfasst, werden aber dennoch nicht vergessen, da sie Teil vieler der hier aufgeführten Lebensgeschichten sind.Im vorliegenden 1. Band konzentriert sich Clark auf die Meister und Stile die auf den Ort Shuri zurückzuführen sind.Das Buch ist in etwas so aufgebaut: Einer Kurzen Beschreibung des Lebens und Wirkens eines Meister folgt eine Auflistung der Schwerpunkte des von ihm begründeten Stils, seine Leitsätze, anekdotische Episoden, und Anmerkungen, wie seine Bemühen auf das Karate im allgemeinen gewirkt hat, bzw. wie sich der von ihm begründete Stil weiter entwickelt hat.Gut hat mir gefallen, dass es Kapitel gibt, die sich mit Geschichte im weiteren Sinne beschäftigt und wie diese auf das Karate, bzw. die Menschen, die Karate praktiziert haben. gewirkt hat. (z.B. welche Auswirkung hatte die Nähe zu China und Japan auf das Karte? Wie waren die Klassenverhältnisse auf Okinawa vor der Mejiherrschaft,? Wie wirkte sich die Eingliederung der Inselgruppe in das Staatsgefüge Japans aus usw.Die Bebilderung des Buches finde ich auch gelungen. Von jedem Meister gibt es Abbildungen meist aus verschiedenen Zeitabschnitten seines Lebens.Familienstammbäume zeigen auf, wer von wem gelernt, wer, mit wem verwandt war.Dieses Buch enthält keine Technikbeschreibungen, wer eine Anleitung sucht, kauft hier falsch.Wer schon Karate macht wird sehr viel mehr in dem Buch finden als jemand, der einen rein historischen Zugang sucht, einfach weil er die ein oder andere Kata schon selbst gelaufen ist oder erstaunt feststellt „Oh, das machen die auch!“ Oder „Wie das gibt es erst seit…“Ich habe das Buch ganz durchgelesen, aber ich könnte mir vorstellen, dass dies ermüdend sein könnte. Man kann das Buch auch als Nachschlagewerk verwenden. Einfach nur die Biographie lesen, auf die man gerade Lust hat kann eine Zugangsweise sein.Mein persönlicher Gewinn beim Lesen des Buches war: Mir ist aufgegangen, dass Karate so strukturiert ist, dass es nie“ DAS Karate !“ geben kann. Auch nicht „DEN STIL“.Eine Person beginnt mit einem bestimmten Stil seinen Werdegang als Karateka. Mit den Jahren hat er diese Form verstanden und beginnt seine eigenen Vorstellungen einzubauen. Er entwickelt sein Karate. Da dies meist der Punkt ist, an dem er sich von seinem Meister trennt und eine eigeneSchule eröffnet, in der er die eigenen Ideen weiter verfolgen kann, ist dies auch der Punkt, an dem ein neuer Stil entsteht.Ich kann das Buch jedem empfehle der Karate mag und an der Geschichte des Karates Interesse entwickelt hat.

Excellent ouvrage (comme le tome 2) sur le karaté d'okinawa, livre non pas technique mais historique, ce qui ne semble pas si facile à faire, de par la disparité des sources et leur ancienneté.Il semblerait que certains propos de l'auteur aient toutefois déplu (car il ne présente pas tous les anciens experts/maitres sous l'imagerie d'Epinal qui voudrait que tous aient été des sages et saints).Le Tome 1 se concentre sur le shuri-te/shorin-ryu, et a été une source de précieux renseignements (je tiens toutefois à,préciser que ce ne sont pas mes styles, donc beaucoup de choses à découvrir).Ouvrage bien documenté, iconographie consistante....un obligatoire pour qui s'intéresse à l'histoire originelle du karaté.Le Tome 2 est au moins aussi bien et tout aussi recommandable.