Karate was developed on the small island of Okinawa, just south of Japan, from a variety of influences, but especially the Chinese combat systems that came with trade and political connections.
On Okinawa, three main strands of karate (at the time meaning Chinese Hand, but sometimes just referred to as 'te') developed and intermingled around the cities of Shuri, Naha and Tomari, all within just a few miles of each other.
For most of its history, karate was taught privately on a person-to-person basis, until the early twentieth century when it was introduced to the school system. From here it was exported to mainland Japan and the styles we know today came into being. By this time karate had come to mean 'empty hand' to aid its introduction to the Japanese.
Karate was first brought to the Japanese mainland in 1915 by a man named Gichin Funakoshi who lived between 1868 and 1957.
Funakoshi studied under various noted masters of his time in the skills of Okinawa-te / Shuri-te, including Master Azato and Master Itosu, (whose grip was allegedly so powerful that he could crush an adult bamboo stem with one hand).
In time Funakoshi became a noted authority in Shuri-te and in 1922 was invited to Japan to give a demonstration in Tokyo. Not only was the display a great success, but Jigoro Kano, the founder of Judo, asked Funakoshi to lecture at the Kodokan (judo hall) on his skill. This was the turning point in Funakoshi's career.
Instead of returning to Okinawa he stayed in Tokyo to promote Karate (Empty Hand), from Japan, initially through the American air bases on the mainland and in Okinawa, karate has spread to all the corners of the earth. It came to Britain in 1957 through Vernon Bell, who invited the first JKA Shotokan instructors to the country in the mid-60s, these were Kanazawa, Enoeda, Kase and Shirai.
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