is an Okinawan style of

karate (; ; Okinawan language, Okinawan pronunciation: ), also , is a martial arts, martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the Okinawan martial arts, indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called , "hand"; ''tī'' in Okinawan) un ...

. It was originally a family style of the Nakaima family of Naha and is now one of the internationally recognized Okinawan Karate styles. It is practiced in the

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, Chile,

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and Okinawa.

History

This style of karate was first introduced to Okinawa around 1875 by Norisato Nakaima. Born of wealthy parents in Kume, Okinawa, Nakaima went to

Fuzhou Fuzhou is the capital of Fujian, China. The city lies between the Min River (Fujian), Min River estuary to the south and the city of Ningde to the north. Together, Fuzhou and Ningde make up the Eastern Min, Mindong linguistic and cultural regi ...

China China, officially the People's Republic of China (PRC), is a country in East Asia. With population of China, a population exceeding 1.4 billion, it is the list of countries by population (United Nations), second-most populous country after ...

at the age of 19 for advanced studies in the

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

. In China, a former guard to the Chinese embassies in the

Ryukyu Islands The , also known as the or the , are a chain of Japanese islands that stretch southwest from Kyushu to Geography of Taiwan, Taiwan: the Ryukyu Islands are divided into the Satsunan Islands (Ōsumi Islands, Ōsumi, Tokara Islands, Tokara and A ...

introduced Nakaima to a Chinese boxing teacher known as Ryū Ryū Ko, who also taught to Sakiyama Kitoku and, according to some sources, Kanryo Higashionna many years later. Nakaima was accepted, trained for 7 years and received a certificate of graduation from the master. He was trained in a variety of arts and skills ranging from combative techniques to Chinese medicine and herbal healing remedies. Before leaving China, Nakaima traveled to the

Fujian Fujian is a provinces of China, province in East China, southeastern China. Fujian is bordered by Zhejiang to the north, Jiangxi to the west, Guangdong to the south, and the Taiwan Strait to the east. Its capital is Fuzhou and its largest prefe ...

, Canton, and

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areas, where he collected a number of weapons and scrolls in order to further his experience in the martial arts. Nakaima returned to Okinawa and passed the Chinese boxing style in secret to his son Kenchu Nakaima, who then went on to teach it only to his son, Kenko Nakaima (founder of the Ryuei Ryu Karate and Kobudo Preservation Society). In 1971, at the age of 60, Kenko Nakaima realized that there was no longer a need to keep his family's fighting system a secret. He took on a group of 20 school teachers as karate students; it was at this point the name "Ryuei-Ryu" was first used to describe the art.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Ryuei-Ryu Okinawan karate Traditional karate Japanese martial arts