Shigeru Nakamura
中村茂
Okinawan teacher of karate and kobudo (1891–1969), creator of the name Okinawa Kenpo and a pioneer of postwar bouts in protective gear (bogu kumite).
Quick Facts
JapanBiography
Shigeru Nakamura (1891–1969) was an Okinawan teacher of karate and kobudo who gave his approach the name Okinawa Kenpo. He was born in 1891 in Nago in the north of Okinawa as the eldest son of Kokichi and Kame Nakamura. We know his biography mainly from the researcher Andreas Quast, and we have not found an official source about him.
His father died early and uncle Teiichi Nakamura taught him kobudo. At fifteen he entered the prefectural middle school in Shuri and began learning karate, according to Quast perhaps from Chomo Hanashiro. From Shinkichi Kuniyoshi in Nago he learned the kata Niseishi. He graduated from the teacher training institute in Shuri, taught primary school in Nago and, after special study at the Tokyo University of Agriculture, also in Nagano Prefecture.
He believed that Okinawa originally had no separate styles, and therefore promoted the name Okinawa Kenpo. He was the first after the war to introduce fighting in protective gear (bogu kumite) in Okinawa. In 1961 he was among the founders of the association Okinawa kobudo kyokai. He died in 1969 aged 78, the English Wikipedia gives 1968, and we have not resolved the dispute.
Early life
He was born in 1891 in Nago magiri, today the town of Nago in Kunigami District in Okinawa, as the eldest son of Kokichi Nakamura and his wife Kame. We have not found the exact date of birth. His father died early and his uncle Teiichi Nakamura taught him kobudo. At fifteen he entered the Okinawa Prefectural Middle School, today Shuri School, and there he began with karate. He graduated from the teacher training institute in Shuri and taught at a primary school in Nago. Later he completed a special programme at the Tokyo University of Agriculture and taught in Nagano Prefecture.
Training and teachers
Andreas Quast states that his karate teacher at the middle school may have been Chomo Hanashiro, but he presents this himself with reservation. After moving to Nago he learned the kata Niseishi from Shinkichi Kuniyoshi (1848–1926), which according to Quast comes from Seisho Arakaki. Among the kata he practised, Quast lists Naihanchi, Pinan, Sesan, Passai, Niseishi and Kusanku.
Contribution and innovations
He believed that separate styles had originally not existed in Okinawa, and therefore he chose the name Okinawa Kenpo for his karate. Quast attributes to him the equation Okinawa Ti equals Okinawa Kenpo. He was the first after the war to introduce fighting in protective gear (bogu kumite) in Okinawa and he supported competition decided by knockdown. In June 1961 he was among the founders of the association Okinawa kobudo kyokai, whose president was Seitoku Higa, and at its first tournament he demonstrated the kata Niseishi.
Philosophy and principles
He stressed fighting power, especially the power of the fist, and personal guidance of pupils. Quast attributes to him the motto tijikun di-ichi, that is, the fist comes first. In a Japanese newspaper article from the turn of the nineteen-sixties and nineteen-seventies, which Quast translated, his opinion is presented as saying that karate schools should disappear and karate should be unified like judo and kendo. This is a paraphrase by the journalist, not his literal words.
Legends and documented facts
Sources differ on the year of death. Andreas Quast gives 1969 and an age of 78, the English Wikipedia 1968. We have not found the exact date and we have not resolved the dispute. The claim that he was a teacher of Seiyu Oyata rests only on secondary literature cited by Wikipedia. We do not consider it refuted, but we have not been able to document it from a source that wrote about Nakamura directly.
Legacy
He died in 1969 aged 78 after falling ill on a business trip to an education exhibition in Nakijin. Quast states that the Japan Karate Federation awarded him the 10th dan hanshi, but we have not found a document from the federation. The English Wikipedia states that Seiyu Oyata learned the twelve basic open-hand kata from him. It relies on secondary literature, and the biography of Oyata by Quast does not mention him, so we consider this claim unconfirmed.