Karate Words- Translated!

Some of the words you can hear at my karate school can be pretty weird, but they all have a meaning. Here I will tell you what some of these words mean. Some of them are weapons, so I'll also tell what they are and how they are used.

Dojo  

Dojo means training hall. A training hall is a place where students go to work out. Though training halls have differed over the years, they remain a safe, harmonious place to be taught karate.

Nunchuks

The word comes from the Okinawa word for two equal sticks. Nunchuks are weapons that are spun by one of the sticks. Two sticks are connected together by a usually short rope. These were not always weapons, however. In Okinawa they were used by farmers to strip the rice from the stem. When the samurai took all of the weapons, they were forced to turn many farm tools into weapons. This is where many traditional karate weapons, such as the sai, come from.

Sai

The sai, another Okinawan weapon, means hairpin. The name fits, as the sai is shaped exactly like a hair pin. They were used to hold carriages together. Today, the sais are taught as a competitive form for tournaments. They are not a common choice of weapon, however. Many people prefer the bo staff or the nunchuks.






The Teacher Ranks

Hanshi- Head of house, highest rank.

Shihan- Master

Sensei- Teacher

Nidan- 2nd Degree Black Belt

Shodan- 1st Degree Black Belt


I don't really want to go into any more description than this because I don't know some of the words and I don't want to give inaccurate descriptions and stories.

Later,
Maddie