Shorin-ryu
少林流A family of Okinawan lineages descending from Shuri-te. The name points to Shaolin, but that is a claim to the tradition, not evidence of a direct line.
Quick Facts
JapanCharacter & Origin
Training
Who It Suits
Organisation & Competition
What the style is built from
Editorial rating on a 0–3 scale, based on how much room each area gets in ordinary training.
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About Shorin-ryu
Shorin-ryu is not a single school but a family of Okinawan karate styles from the Shuri-te lineage. The Japanese embassy places Shorin-ryu, Kobayashi-ryu and Matsubayashi-ryu in it. The name is derived from the Chinese Shaolin, but it is an affiliation with a tradition, not proof of direct lineage. Shuri-te is associated with Matsumura Sokon. Itosu Anko introduced karate into Okinawan schools from 1901, and in 1905 it became a physical education subject at the middle school and the teacher training college. The name Shorin-ryu for Itosu's lineage was chosen by Chibana Choshin, and the year of naming is given as both 1929 and 1933. In 1947 Nagamine Shoshin named his own branch Matsubayashi-ryu. According to the Oshukai federation the basic kata is naihanchi, and the main kata include pinan, passai, kushanku, chinto and gojushiho. The authorship of pinan is attributed to Itosu, but the Okinawa Prefectural Library calls the evidence unconfirmed. The branches differ in the choice and performance of kata. Shotokan also came from Shuri-te through Funakoshi Gichin. Shorin-ryu today belongs to the Shuri-te stream, one of four streams of traditional Okinawan karate, which Okinawa marks every year on 25 October with Karate Day.
History
Karate arose in Okinawa about 700 years ago according to Okinawa Prefecture, under the name ti, and around 1400 to 1500 it was influenced by Chinese martial arts. The Japanese encyclopedia Kotobank links the arrival of Chinese fist arts to the tributary relations of the Ryukyu Kingdom with the Ming dynasty from 1372. Local schools split into Shuri-te, Naha-te and Tomari-te. Shuri-te is associated with the lineage of Matsumura Sokon and with kata of the naihanchi type. According to an analysis by FightingArts, Itosu Anko began teaching karate in 1901 at Shuri Jinjo Elementary School. In 1905, according to the Cabinet Office of Japan, karate was adopted as a physical education subject at the First Prefectural Middle School and the teacher training college. In October 1908 Itosu wrote the Ten Precepts of Karate (Tode Jukun) for the Ministry of Education and the Ministry of War, mentioning in them the Shorin school and the Shorei school brought from China. It is not, however, the name of today's style. Chibana Choshin (1885–1969) chose the name Shorin-ryu for Itosu's lineage. The year of naming differs between sources, with both 1929 and 1933 given, and we have not been able to confirm it conclusively. In 1947 Nagamine Shoshin named his style Matsubayashi-ryu after the teachers Matsumura Sokon and Matsumora Kosaku, whose lineages he received from Kyan Chotoku and Motobu Choki.
How it differs
Shorin-ryu is most often compared with Shotokan. According to the Japanese association JKA, Funakoshi Gichin studied under Azato Anko and Itosu Anko, that is, in the Shuri-te lineage. Shotokan arose from his teaching in Tokyo after a public display in 1922, he built the Shotokan dojo in 1939 and JKA was founded in 1949. Shorin-ryu, by contrast, stayed the name of Okinawan lineages named by Chibana Choshin and, in 1947, Nagamine Shoshin. Its lineage and basic kata set it apart from Naha-te and the Goju-ryu and Uechi-ryu that came from it. According to the encyclopedia Kotobank, Shuri-te is associated with Matsumura Sokon and the kata naihanchi, Naha-te with Higaonna Kanryo and the kata sanchin. We have not found a technical comparison of stances, distances or the execution of kata with Shotokan in the federations' sources or scholarly literature.
Technique
Oshukai considers naihanchi the basic kata of Okinawan Shorin-ryu and counts pinan, passai, kushanku, chinto and gojushiho among the main kata. The authorship of pinan and other school kata is traditionally attributed to Itosu. However, the Okinawa Prefectural Library points out the evidence is unconfirmed and relies on a book by Kinjo Yutaka. Nagamine Shoshin outlined the curriculum of Matsubayashi-ryu in the book The Essence of Okinawan Karate-Do. It contains 18 classical kata, seven pre-arranged partner drills called yakusoku kumite, and basic techniques. The differences between the branches were shown at the Karate Day ceremony in 2019 at Okinawa Karate Kaikan: the Shorin-ryu master Shimabukuro Zenpo performed the kata seisan, the Kobayashi-ryu master Aguni Naonobu gojushiho, and the Matsubayashi-ryu master Taira Yoshitaka tomari chinto. Technical features commonly attributed to the style, such as higher and narrower stances or speed preferred to strength, we have not found in the federations' sources or scholarly literature.
Training
From 1905, karate was taught in schools on Okinawa, and according to the summary of one Okinawan school this made it more organized and less individual. According to the book by Nagamine Shoshin, Matsubayashi-ryu combines the practice of kata with seven pre-arranged partner exercises called yakusoku kumite. Foreign practitioners can train at the Okinawa Traditional Karatedo Kobudo International Training Center in the village of Yomitan. According to the official Okinawa tourism website, it is run jointly by Uechi-ryu, Goju-ryu and Shorin-ryu and requires advance booking. We have not found the structure of an ordinary lesson or the frequency of training in the federations' sources.
Ranks and progression
We have not found a uniform ranking system for all of Shorin-ryu. The Oshukai federation says Chibana Choshin was the first Okinawan Shorin-ryu master with the 10th dan and his students Miyahira Katsuya and Nakazato Shugoro also held that rank. Nagamine Shoshin died in 1997 with the 10th dan and the title hanshi from the All Okinawa Karate-do Association. At the Karate Day ceremony in 2019, masters of Shorin-ryu, Kobayashi-ryu and Matsubayashi-ryu appeared as hanshi of the 10th dan.
Today
Shorin-ryu today consists of several independent branches. The Japanese embassy classes Shorin-ryu, Kobayashi-ryu and Matsubayashi-ryu among the styles of the Shuri-te lineage. According to the Cabinet Office of Japan, Okinawa divides traditional karate into Shuri-te, Naha-te, Tomari-te and Uechi-ryu, and the names of the styles began to be used at the start of the Showa era. The Okinawa Prefectural Assembly proclaimed 25 October Karate Day on 29 March 2005. Okinawa Karate Kaikan in Tomigusuku opened on 4 March 2017. In August 2022 the second Okinawa Karate World Championships was held with the first youth championship, and 2 384 people took part in the competitions and seminars.
Did you know
In Sakiyama Park near Shuri Castle stands a monument that marks Shuri as the birthplace of Shuri-te. Karate Day on 25 October commemorates that on 25 October 1936 it was officially decided to write the name karate with the characters 空手. On that day masters recognized as bearers of intangible cultural property perform at Okinawa Karate Kaikan. According to the school's official website, the name Matsubayashi is the Japanese reading of the characters for pine forest, whose Sino-Japanese reading shorin sounds like the name Shorin-ryu, derived from the Chinese Shaolin. The Okinawa Prefectural Library states that Nagamine Shoshin's book on Okinawan karate-do contains 18 kata.
Frequently asked questions
What is Shorin-ryu?
A group of Okinawan karate styles from the Shuri-te lineage. The Embassy of Japan places Shorin-ryu, Kobayashi-ryu and Matsubayashi-ryu in it. According to the Oshukai federation, the basic kata is naihanchi.
Who founded Shorin-ryu?
It has no single founder. The name Shorin-ryu for the lineage of Itosu Anko was chosen by Chibana Choshin (1885–1969), and the year of naming is given as both 1929 and 1933. Nagamine Shoshin founded the Matsubayashi-ryu branch in 1947.
What is the difference between Shorin-ryu and Shotokan?
Shotokan derives from the teaching of Funakoshi Gichin in Tokyo, and its association JKA was founded in 1949. Funakoshi studied under Itosu and Azato, that is, in the same Shuri-te lineage from which Shorin-ryu also comes. That remained the Okinawan designation of these lineages. We have not found technical differences in stances and kata in the federations' sources.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.