Enpi

燕飛 · Enpi

Literally: „Flying swallow“

Also known as: Empi, Wanshu, Wansu

Flying swallow: according to JKA it has 37 movements, two kiai shouts, and ends with a high turning jump. On Okinawa the kata was called Wanshu; Funakoshi Gichin gave it the name Enpi.

Quick Facts

Martial Arts

Karate Shotokan Shito-ryu Shorin-ryu Wado-ryu Isshin-ryu Karate

People

Gichin Funakoshi · Modified by Kosaku Matsumora · Transmitted by Anko Itosu · Transmitted by Sokon Matsumura · Transmitted by

Form typeKata

OriginJapan

Period of originEarly modern

CharacterExplosive

About the kata

Enpi (燕飛), also transcribed as Empi, means flying swallow. The kata originated in Okinawan Tomari-te, where it was called Wanshu. Funakoshi Gichin renamed it in the nineteen-twenties, as he brought karate to Japan's main islands; according to karatevancouver.ca, he wanted to bring the Okinawan art closer to the nationalist Japan of the time. Under the old name, according to the English Wikipedia, it is still practiced among others by Wado-ryu, Isshin-ryu, and Korean Tang Soo Do. The JKA material assigns it 37 movements, while karatevancouver.ca counted 39 – the difference comes from the way of counting. The JKA prescribes two kiai shouts: in movement 15, when the right wrist strikes the left palm in kiba dachi, and in movement 36, a high turning jump to the left, just before landing in kokutsu dachi. The English Wikipedia places it among Shorin-type kata, light and fast, as opposed to the powerful Shorei kata. Karate GKR, which requires it for the 2nd kyu exam, interprets the name through up-and-down movements recalling a swallow's flight, emphasizes agility and power from explosive speed in a straight direction, and notes that the crossed stance kosa dachi is lower here than in previous kata.

The kata in different styles

Style	Name in the style	Movements	Kiai
Shotokan	Enpi	37	2
Shito-ryu	Wanshu	—	—
Shorin-ryu	Wanshu	—	—
Wado-ryu	Wanshu	—	—
Isshin-ryu Karate	Wanshu	—	—

Meaning of the name

The English Wikipedia translates Enpi as flight of the swallow, karatevancouver.ca as flying swallow. According to the English Wikipedia, the older name Wanshu is written in two ways: 腕秀 can be read as "excellent wrist," referring to a technique in the kata, and 汪輯 as "Wang's line," referring to the Chinese envoy Wang Ji.

Creator and history

According to the English Wikipedia, Wang Ji led a large Qing dynasty embassy to Tomari in 1683. He was a poet, calligrapher, diplomat and expert in the Shaolin tradition; the kata is either his own work or was composed by his students in his honor. Historyoffighting.com describes him as an expert in the Fujian white crane and also mentions the older possibility that the kata came to Okinawa with the so-called 36 families at the end of the fourteenth century. The same source describes the transmission from Kosaku Matsumora of Tomari to Sokon Matsumura and Anko Itosu, who each practiced a different version; Itosu then taught it to Funakoshi Gichin. The English Wikipedia, by contrast, states that Itosu most likely learned the kata from Gusukuma of Tomari.

Bunkai – applications

In its 2nd kyu syllabus, Karate GKR sees in the kata repeated grabs by the hair, knee strikes and strikes to the groin, and evasions that quickly turn defense into attack. It considers a strike to the jaw, followed by grabbing and pulling in the opponent, particularly notable. The English Wikipedia recalls a legend according to which Wang Ji threw opponents and jumped on them; we have not found in the sources an interpretation of the kata's jump linking it to this legend.

Competition status

Sport karate (WKF) — Official kata list · valid from 1/1/2026 ↗
WUKF (World Union of Karate-Do Federations) – Isshin-ryu Karate — Shitei (compulsory) · valid from 4/26/2024 ↗
WUKF (World Union of Karate-Do Federations) – Shito-ryu — Sentei (selected) · valid from 4/26/2024 ↗
WUKF (World Union of Karate-Do Federations) – Shorin-ryu — Sentei (selected) · valid from 4/26/2024 ↗
WUKF (World Union of Karate-Do Federations) – Shotokan — Sentei (selected) · valid from 4/26/2024 ↗
WUKF (World Union of Karate-Do Federations) – Wado-ryu — Tokui (free choice) · valid from 4/26/2024 ↗

Common Mistakes

The lunge into the crossed stance kosa dachi should not, according to Amos (shotokankarateonline.com), be turned into a jump: it is a long pushing step, after which the left foot ends up tucked just outside the right heel. The JKA material, however, describes this same movement as a jump forward.

Key Tip

Push off with the right leg during gedan barai with the body facing forward (shomen), and only on landing in zenkutsu dachi block sharply and turn the body into hanmi, advises Amos (shotokankarateonline.com).

Technique Sequence — Shotokan

Breakdown source: jkakarate.co.uk

Further sources on this topic (8)