International Shuriway Karate & Kobudo Society

•  ABOUT US

Welcome to the International Shuriway Karate & Kobudo Society (国際首里道唐手と古武道会). We are a traditional based society dedicated to studying, the origins, evolution and cultural heritage of the traditional and classical martial arts of Okinawa.

The name of our association, International Shuriway Karate & Kobudo Society, is hugely significant within the traditional martial art of karate from Okinawa. We chose the name to represent the path taken by many of Okinawa's past karate masters.

Many karate masters of the time originated from the small village of 'SHURI' and many of its exponents called their system of karate, 'SHURITE' (literally - hand of SHURI). During the Ryukyu (琉球) period the historical kingdom encompassing present-day Okinawa and other local islands was very different from the karate of today with its basis in civillian self-defense.

Therefore, our name International Shuriway Karate & Kobudo Society accurately conveys the meaning of a Ryukyu Traditional Association.

•  ORIGINS

Originally established in 1999 as a resource website for the purpose of providing a karate and kobudo reference resource. It was created to help current practitioners, newcomers and those interested in finding further information about traditional karate masters, past and present, articles, styles, history and much more. (The resourse website is HERE)

Many of the friends from that website we had around the world, who had become somewhat despondent with the politics, the high cost of memebership fees of the groups they belonged to, asked us to form a martial arts group based on the traditional values of Japan and Okinawa's past.

We are dedicated to the preservation of the Ryukyu arts and the cultural traditions and heritage we have been entrusted with for the next generation of traditional students. Our aim is to help preserve and promote these traditional roots, with the cultural heritage of the classical karate and kobudo of Okinawa.

We do not get involved in your classes or politics, our purpose is to unite traditional and classical martial artists and help to build new friends.

•  MEMBERSHIP

The International Shuriway Karate & Kobudo Society is an excellent resource of knowledge and information and this offers all of us a great opportunity by which we can grow and learn from each other, a group of like-minded martial arts students, seniors and leaders around the world.

Our goal is to offer all martial artists regardless of style or system an organization in which they can retain control of their curriculum, teach the way they like and receive international membership recognition, rank certification based on time-in-grade-, best practices and effectiveness, and enjoy the camaraderie and friendship of other members of a respectable martial arts family.

•  MINDSET

The International Shuriway Karate & Kobudo Society will be ever mindful of its responsibility to follow classic Budo etiquette. It is the essence of traditional Okinawan martial arts and the heritage we claim: Honor, character, integrity and moral values. Conduct in all things dealing with its members will be done with courtesy and respect.

•  CODE OF CONDUCT

   Code of Conduct

•  JOIN US

   Membership
   Our Art