(, "practice", , "dress or "clothes"), also known as or , is a traditional uniform worn for training in

Japanese martial arts Japanese martial arts refers to the variety of martial arts native to the country of Japan. At least three Japanese terms (''budō'', ''bujutsu'', and ''bugei'') are used interchangeably with the English phrase Japanese martial arts. The usage ...

and their derivatives. Emerging in the late 19th century, the was developed by

judo is an unarmed modern Japanese martial art, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyclopedia Nipponica, "Judo") ...

founder

Kanō Jigorō was a Japanese educator, athlete, and the founder of Judo. Along with Ju-Jutsu, Judo was one of the first Japanese martial arts to gain widespread international recognition, and the first to become an official Olympic sport. Pedagogical in ...

Origin

Japanese martial arts historian

Dave Lowry David John Lowry (born February 14, 1965) is a Canadian ice hockey coach and former professional player. He is currently an associate coach with the Seattle Kraken of the National Hockey League (NHL). He played in the NHL from 1985 to 2004. Lowry ...

speculates that Kanō derived the uniform's design from the uniforms of Japanese firefighters' heavy hemp jackets, . By 1920, the as it exists today was worn by Kanō's students for judo practice; a photo displayed in the

Kodokan The , or ''Kōdōkan'' (講道館), is the headquarters of the worldwide judo community. The ''kōdōkan'' was founded in 1882 by Kanō Jigorō, the founder of judo, and is now an eight-story building in Tokyo. Etymology Literally, ''kō'' ...

(judo headquarters) taken in 1920 shows Kanō himself wearing a modern . Judo newaza

Until the 1920s,

Okinawan karate Okinawan may refer to: * Something of or relating to: ** Okinawa Island ** Okinawa Islands ** Okinawa Prefecture * Okinawan language, an endangered language spoken by the people of Okinawa Island * Okinawan people, a subgroup of the Ryukyuan people ...

practice was usually performed in everyday clothes. Given the social climate between the Japanese and Okinawans during this time, karate was seen as brutish compared to Japanese martial arts, which had their roots in

samurai were the hereditary military nobility and officer caste of medieval and early-modern Japan from the late 12th century until their abolition in 1876. They were the well-paid retainers of the '' daimyo'' (the great feudal landholders). They ...

culture, such as

jujutsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subd ...

. To help market karate to the Japanese,

Gichin Funakoshi was a japanese martial artist who is regarded as the founder of Karate, Shotakan karate, perhaps the most widely known style of karate, and is known as a "father of modern karate". Following the teachings of Anko Itosu and Anko Asato,Funakoshi, ...

– the founder of Shotokan karate and the instructor responsible for importing karate to mainland Japan – adopted a uniform style similar to Kanō's design.

Construction

Over time, karate practitioners modified the for karate by lightening the weave of the fabric, and adding strings to the inside of the jacket, tied to keep the jacket closed. The jacket is also held closed by a belt or . The top part of the is called the . The trousers of the are called , or . In modern times, white, black, blue and indigo are the most common colours of . In competitive judo, one contestant wears a white uniform, and their opponent wears a blue one. However, traditionally, the was white in all instances. Commonly used include: * , aikido uniform) * Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu gi/kimono (

Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; pt, jiu-jitsu brasileiro ) is a self-defence martial art and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on the skill of taking an opponent to the ground, control ...

uniform) * ,

Korean martial arts Korean martial arts ( Hangul: 무술, Hanja: 武術, ''musul'' or Hangul: 무예, Hanja: 武藝, ''muye'') are fighting practices and methods which have their place in the history of Korea but have been adapted for use by both military and ...

uniform * ,

uniform * , karate uniform *

kendo is a modern Japanese martial art, descended from kenjutsu (one of the old Japanese martial arts, swordsmanship), that uses bamboo swords ( shinai) as well as protective armor ( bōgu). Today, it is widely practiced within Japan and has spre ...

uniform, consisting of an and a *

Sambo , aka = Sombo (in English-speaking countries) , focus = Hybrid , country = Soviet Union , pioneers = Viktor Spiridonov, Vasili Oshchepkov, Anatoly Kharlampiev , famous_pract = List of Practitioners , olymp ...

uniform * ,

Vietnamese martial arts Traditional Vietnamese martial arts (''Võ thuật Cổ truyền Việt Nam''; Chữ Hán: 武術古傳越南) often referred to as Võ thuật (Chữ Hán: 武術), can be loosely divided into those of the Sino-Vietnamese descended from th ...

uniform can also be replaced by , meaning "the way", referring to both the martial art and the lifestyle of the martial artist. In this, it is similar to the term for Korean martial arts uniforms, .

materials

* Single weave: A lighter material, cooler for use in the summer. * Double weave: A very thick material, not as cool as other weaves. * Gold weave: Between a single and double weave thickness; gold weave was initially required by the International Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu Federation in order to standardize for competitions. * Platinum weave: Lighter than gold weave, cooler for use in the summer.

Notes

References

External links