Where did Karate originate?

The Chinese got their Shoalin arts when Boddidarma brought them from India. At least, that's the legend...

Karate Origin

The legend goes something like this...

Okay, so originally Dharma (Indian Bhuddist) taught the monks at Shao Lin (China) some martial arts techniques and training in order to strengthen their bodies and minds for the vigours of monkhood, they developed this further.... someone from there travelled to Okinawa (an Island off Japan) where the martial art was taught and called Karate = chinese hand or chinese boxing, the Okinawan's developed this art further. Eventually the Japanese were taught a watered down version of this art by an Okinawan man known as Gichen Funakoshi who renamed Karate to mean Empty hand.

So to me the actual origin of Karate is Okinawan, as this is where the art was first named Karate... to mean Chinese Hand.

But you obviously already know the answer to this question as you suggested it was a trick. I would be intested to hear your opinion...

It is not a trick question. It originated in the Southern Shaolin Temple in Fukien China. Mostly in the city of Fuzhou, but through a few different martial arts styles, mostly Arhat boxing, White Crane and Whooping crane, though a style of Kung Fu not alive in China today called Pangainoon is also mentioned.

Okinawan merchants and servants of the Sho Kings traveled to China to study Chuan Fa, and also Chinese families (47) immigrated to Okinawa while it was under the rule of China. When Japan took over China (Satsuma Samurai) Karateka decided to hide their Chineseness so they called their style Todejitsu. (To to represent China, De to represent Okinawa, and Jitsu to represent Japan) They then changed it to Karate (Empty Hand) completely masking the Chinese Kung Fu called Karate. They then passed the Okinawan Highschool karate curriculum (without the Bunkai) onto Japan through Shotokan, and it's original 15 kata. (No Kobudo was taught even though Funakoshi was known to have studied bo and sai)

tthank you bushido Oh, by the way MS. S, Karate actually means open hand. Karatedo means Way of the open hand. Like Bushi could be translated as warrior (or something) and DO is the way of. There for Bushido is the way of the warrior (sorta, i don't like that word warrior) And farm implements is really the truth at least what I was taught in Shotokan Karate. But because of the Kan in Shotokan I am thinking that karate must have originated in china. See the word KAN in japanese means Chinese. Like Kanji, Kan is Chinese, JI is form or character, so Kanji is Chinese character. So Shotokan karate was probably developed in okinawa, but probably origeonated in China, as Shaolin Karate is definatly chinese and so is Kempo So I think that Karate wsa created in China based on these observations of the japanese language and the other styles of karate.

Karate orginated in Okinawa over the last 700 years or so when various forms of martial arts were brought over by Chinese immigrants and developed and learned from the Chinese up until the late 1800's when karate started to develop into the styles we know today. The website below has an interesting timeline on some important events in martial arts and the development of karate starting over 2000 years ago.

http://www.gojuryu.net/viewpage.php?page_id=21

http://www.gojuryu.net/viewpage.php?page_id=31

http://www.gojuryu.net/viewpage.php?page_id=33

http://www.gojuryu.net/viewpage.php?page_id=32

This Site Might Help You.

RE:

Where did Karate originate?

It is a trick question.

Karate in Japan. It is a Japanese name and version of Fist Way. The martial way Karate is related to Chuan Fa. Chinese Hand, as most Asain arts had a start in Chinese Chuan Fa or Fist Way. Some had their own martial ways and so the blending made many variations .

The name Karate was developed in Japan the techniques from all over the show mostly main land China (some karate techniques come from thai land cambodia etc)

It's from outer space. A hundred million years ago, aliens crash landed on Earth and decided to create a home using the native creatures on the planet as cheap labor. They taught the elite priest and warriors who guarded their temple a self defense system which was handed down from generation to generation from the ancient civilization of Sumeria to Egypt to India to China and finally to Japan where the Japanese called it "Karate" or "Empty hand" : P

It's a trick answer : D

Kara-te originated in Okinawa. It is the same as Okinawan-te.

As a result of the invasion of Okinawa by the Satsuma Samurai in 1600 and the imposition of marital law ( a really tough police state), the Okinawans were compelled to learned unarmed self-defense.

The Okinawans made a trip to China and learned kung fu, brought it back to Okinawa and modified it to suit a Japanese/Okinawan value system. This modified style was called Okinawan-te, and later Kara-te by the Japanese.