Aikido vs. Hapkido
Quick answer
Aikido and hapkido share a root in the Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu of Sokaku Takeda, under whom Morihei Ueshiba studied and, by his own disputed account, Choi Yong-sool too. Both build on wrist and elbow locks and on throws, and hapkido adds numerous kicks, strikes and throws influenced by judo. Aikido competes only in some schools, hapkido in judged demonstrations of techniques and forms, and neither is Olympic.
At a glance
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Country of origin | Japan | South Korea |
| Origin | 20th century (present form) | 20th century (present form) |
| Founder | Morihei Ueshiba | Choi Yong-sool |
| Contact | Light contact | Light contact |
| Sparring | Partner drills only · Light contact (depending on style) | Partner drills only · Light contact (depending on style) |
| Competition format | Mixed | Forms |
| Olympic status | Not Olympic | Not Olympic |
| Ranks | Yes (belts) | Yes (belts) |
| Rank recognition | fragmented | fragmented |
| Attire | Gi required | Gi required |
| Weapons | Weapons optional | Weapons optional |
| Forms | Forms optional | Forms optional |
| Relative cost | low | low |
| Techniques in the encyclopedia | 14 | 1 |
Scales 1–5
Rated for the typical training of an adult beginner in an ordinary club, calibrated across all arts.
What each art is built from
Editorial rating 0–3: how much room each area gets in ordinary training.
History and relationship
Aikido and hapkido share a root in Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu and in the teaching of Sokaku Takeda. Morihei Ueshiba studied under him from 1915, Choi Yong-sool by his own account for about 30 years. This claim is disputed: Takeda’s records confirm only a shorter period of study, and Choi gave two different versions of his story in 1962 and 1982.
- 1915: Morihei Ueshiba began studying Daito-ryu under Sokaku Takeda.
- 1942: Ueshiba’s art received the name aikido.
- 1948: Choi Yong-sool began teaching in Daegu, his first student was the judoka Seo Bok-seob.
- 1951: the first school Daehan Hapki Yu Kwon Sool Dojang, 1958 Choi’s school for the first time under the name Hapkido.
- Sources date the name hapkido to 1959, Ji Han-jae claimed 1957.
Technique
- Principles irimi, tenkan, atemi, kokyu-ho and sankaku-ho.
- Locks and throws: ikkyo to gokyo, shiho nage, kote gaeshi.
- Atemi as a strike to vulnerable points or preparation for a throw.
- Techniques standing, seated and in the hanmi handachi position.
- Locks mainly on the wrist and elbow, largely from Daito-ryu.
- Throws from locks and from judo, ground work Wa Uul and Jwa Sul.
- Low sweeping kicks, spinning heel kicks, at an advanced level blade kicks.
- Strikes with the hand and elbow, strikes to the pressure points hyeol.
Both arts have the wrist and elbow locks from Daito-ryu. Hapkido adds numerous kicks, strikes and throws influenced by judo, while aikido uses strikes mainly to prepare a lock or a throw.
Training
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Pillars of teaching | paired kata (uke attacks, tori responds), warm-up junbi taiso, falls | practice of technique, falls (nakbeop), sparring, meditation, gi exercises |
| Partner resistance | cooperation is the default, Shodokan tanto randori with resistance | we have not found the form of sparring and resistance according to organisations |
| Ground work | seated techniques (suwari waza) | traditionally in self-defence sets instead of sparring |
| Weapons | bokken, jo, tanto, Iwama aiki-ken and aiki-jo | defence against a knife, danbong, staff, long staff, rope, sword, nunchaku |
Aikido stresses relaxation, mobility and flexibility rather than strength. We have not found the ratio of technique, sparring and conditioning in a lesson for either of them.
Progression and ranks
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Grades | kyu (white belt) and dan (black belt) | formerly 5 belts, today often 10 gup after taekwondo, then dan |
| Who awards them | Aikikai: certificate signed by the doshu | we have not found the organisations’ rules |
| Younger students | some dojo set a minimum age before the dan exam | junior black belt (pum), 1st dan from 16 or 18 years |
| Content of exams | randori against multiple attackers at higher grades | Korea Hapkido Association 1991: 4th dan sword and multiple attackers |
In both arts the system of grades differs by organisation, and in aikido the grades are therefore not interchangeable between organisations.
Physical load and risks
- Zetaruk et al. (BJSM 2005, 47 aikido practitioners out of 263 participants): an injury with time lost from training within a year in 51% of aikido practitioners, in karate 30%.
- Compared with karate a higher risk of injuries to the head and neck, upper limbs and soft tissues.
- Typically soft tissues, joints and fingers, often from misjudging how uke will handle the throw.
- Yudistira, Khasanah and Sefriana (SURYA 2021, 60 hapkido practitioners in Indonesia): most often the ankle, 50.9% of injuries.
- Joints and ligaments 44.4% of injuries, 50.9% occurred during technical training.
- A small sample from one province, we have not found other injury studies.
Who it suits
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Women | Hombu dojo: a women’s class | a mixed pair in the Iowa Games techniques discipline, we have not found a programme for women |
| Older age | Ki Society teaches all age groups | we have not found a programme for seniors |
| Professional groups | Yoshinkan Senshusei with the Tokyo police | presidential guard (Ji Han-jae), police in Seoul (Chong-min Lee) |
Children
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Age of programmes and competitions | Hombu dojo has a children’s class, we have not found the age | the World Championships in Changnyeong (2026) have divisions from kindergarten |
| Children’s grades | a minimum age for dan is set only by some dojo | junior black belt (pum), 1st dan from 16 or 18 years |
| Children’s disciplines | we have not found a children’s competition | forms, self-defence, long fall, breaking, speed kicks, sparring not listed |
| Forbidden techniques and protection | we have not found any | we have not found any |
| Studies and physicians’ positions | Zetaruk et al. 2005, mixed sample of martial arts | we have not found a study in children |
Self-defence
- Locks, throws and falls against a partner’s attack.
- Randori against multiple attackers at higher grades.
- Critics point out that weak attacks by uke lead to conditioned reactions.
- The syllabus contains defence against grabs, strikes, kicks and a knife.
- Multiple attackers in the 4th dan syllabus (Korea Hapkido Association 1991).
- We have not found whether the defences are practised against full resistance.
Both arts practise self-defence mainly against a cooperating partner, and in aikido resistance is added by Shodokan. We have not found a study of effectiveness against a real attack for either of them.
Practical use
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Studies | review of 20 articles (Archives of Budo 2017): flexibility, balance, mindfulness, weak methodology | we have not found a study of benefit for fitness or the mind |
| Balance | 30 beginners, 8 weeks (Saruhan and Bavli 2023): improved static balance | we have not found any |
| Professional use | Yoshinkan Senshusei with the Tokyo police since 1957 | weapons in the syllabi of some armies and police forces, presidential guard |
The studies of aikido concern small groups and short programmes, and for hapkido we have not found any. No general conclusion about suitability can be drawn from them.
Competition
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Sport competition | only some schools, Aikikai does not compete | judged demonstrations, we have not found unified sparring rules |
| Competition in pairs | Shodokan: tanto randori, toshu randori, embu, ippon 4 points | Iowa Games: pairs demonstrate techniques, a jury judges practicality, effectiveness, timing and execution |
| Sets and forms | Ki Society: taigi, 31 sets | Changnyeong 2026: forms with bare hands and with a weapon, self-defence, long fall, breaking, speed kicks |
| Olympic Games | no | no, we have not found the World Games status |
Some aikido practitioners consider the Shodokan competitions contrary to the spirit of aikido.
Gear and costs
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Clothing | white keikogi, in many schools hakama from dan | dobok |
| Weapons in training | bokken, jo, tanto | danbong (35 cm), staff, long staff, rope, sword, nunchaku |
| Protection | not mentioned for regular training | we have not found sparring protection |
| Relative cost | low | low |
Availability and organisations
| Aikido | Hapkido | |
|---|---|---|
| Organisations | Aikikai (Hombu dojo), IAF, Yoshinkan, Shodokan, Ki Society | Korea Hapkido Federation, World Hapkido Federation, Hapkidowon and others |
| Recognition of grades | valid worldwide within Aikikai, not between organisations | we have not found rules on recognition between organisations |
| Succession | doshu from the Ueshiba family | doju after Choi was Chin-il Chang (1985), succession disputed |
Aikido has one centre in Tokyo in Aikikai. After Choi, hapkido split into a number of organisations, from which separate styles such as hankido also emerged.
Switching and combining
- Wrist and elbow locks from the common Daito-ryu root.
- Experience with falls and with the partner’s role in a lock and a throw.
- Add kicks, including spinning and jumping ones.
- Get used to the danbong, rope and other weapons of the syllabus.
- Locks and the circular movement that hapkido describes by the principle of won.
- Nakbeop falls as a basis for ukemi.
- Atemi instead of kicks, strikes mainly as preparation for a throw.
- Bokken, jo and tanto instead of Korean weapons, seated techniques.
On the left the move from aikido to hapkido, on the right from hapkido to aikido.
Philosophy
- Masakatsu agatsu katsuhayabi: the aim is to overcome oneself, not to cultivate violence.
- Takemusu aiki from the late period in Iwama.
- Ki Society: One Point, Relax Completely, Keep Weight Underside, Extend Ki.
- Hwa: harmony, redirecting the opponent’s force instead of resisting it.
- Won: the circle, redirecting direct attacks with a circular movement.
- Yu: flow, avoiding brute force.
- A typical lesson includes meditation and gi exercises.
Forms and terminology
Aikido is learned mainly through paired kata, in which uke attacks and tori responds, and Shodokan has the set Junanahon with 17 techniques. Only some schools teach forms (hyeong) in hapkido. Traditional hapkido, by one school’s description, did not have them, and some systems adopted them under the influence of taekwondo.
Training culture
- Hombu dojo in Tokyo, headed by the doshu from the Ueshiba family.
- The uchi-deshi programme, life in the dojo.
- Above the Law (1988) with Steven Seagal, the first American film with aikido in its fight scenes.
- Choi Yong-sool titled founder (changsija) and doju.
- The film Hapkido (1972) with Angela Mao, Sammo Hung and Ji Han-jae.
- Billy Jack with choreography by Han Bong-soo brought hapkido closer to Western audiences.
Common misconceptions
- Choi Yong-sool studied under Takeda for 30 years: he told it himself, Takeda’s records confirm only a shorter period of study.
- Choi Yong-sool taught Ueshiba or introduced him to Takeda: Yoon Dae-hyun, president of the Korea Aikido Federation, considers this unlikely, Ueshiba studied under Takeda from 1915.
Which to choose
Frequently asked questions
Do aikido and hapkido have the same ancestor?
Both come from Sokaku Takeda’s Daito-ryu aiki-jujutsu. Ueshiba studied under him from 1915, Choi Yong-sool by his own account for about 30 years, but Takeda’s records confirm only a shorter period of study.
How do they differ technically?
Hapkido has numerous kicks, strikes with the hand and elbow, and throws influenced by judo. Aikido builds on locks, throws and falls, and atemi strikes serve mainly to prepare a throw.
Do both compete?
Aikido competes only in some schools, mainly Shodokan and Ki Society, and Aikikai does not compete. Hapkido has competitions of judged demonstrations of techniques, forms and self-defence. Neither is Olympic.