1. Karate is a fighting art that evolved on the Japanese islands of Okinawa. It was introduced to
mainland Japan in the early 1900s and since the 1950s it has spread throughout the world.
Karate literally translated means “empty hand fighting”.
2. Karate is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous martial
arts of Ryukyu Islands.
3. Karate history can be traced back some 1400 years, to Daruma, founder of Zen Buddhism in
Western India. A ban on weapons in Okinawa for two long periods in its history is also partly
responsible for the high degree of development of unarmed fighting techniques on the island.
4. The true history of traditional karate is almost impossible to verify due to the secrecy surrounding
the arts and the lack of written records.