Karate = Tae kwon Do??

[Adam]

I was driving around the other day and couldn't help but notice how some schools advertise themselves. Where I live there are lots of "martial arts schools" in the area. I was looking to see what japanese/okinawan style schools (shotokan, gojo ryu, etc.) were in my area. So, I stopped by some of the schools that had "Karate" as their sign. To my dissappointment most of the schools were either tae kwon do, tang soo do or some other korean influenced art! So I started to think is it appropiate for tae kwon do schools to advertise themselves as "Karate" schools??? Your thoughts......

[Sohan]

The TKD enthusiasts I know would be insulted if someone referred to their art as "karate". Tang soo do and karate have many of the same origins, I seem to remember, so perhaps it is not as much of a slight there.

Karate has become a generic term for many people in the US to represent any martial art that involves kicking, punching and blocking. I've even heard Muay Thai referred to as a "karate class" with a "sensei". I almost choked on my energy bar when I heard that....

With respect,

Sohan

[Fairfax_Uechi]

I could see 20 years ago, but not now. TKD is so big, it's almost the other way around. I've seen martial arts classes at rec centers where people say things like "Look at the TKD class". The sad thing was the class was either Judo, Karate, or another art and clearly not TKD.

[rmclain]

It's mostly a marketing technique when you see a sign for a "karate" school and they teach something else. Most Americans know what karate is from television or friends, etc. But, many are clueless about Muy Thai, Taekwondo, Hapkido, etc. So, many schools simply use "karate" on their signs whether it is technically correct or not.

R. McLain

[elbows_and_knees]

tang soo do is basically korean karate. many of korea's arts have a huge japanese influence behind them, do to their interactions with japan. However, it's no secret that the koreans and japanese don't really like eachother, so when TKD was created, they added more of a korean flavor to it so that it could be distinguished from the more japanese flavored tang soo do. There were also political reasons behind it, from what I understand.

tang soo do has a heavy karate influence

yudo is korean judo

hapkido is korean aikijutsu with tsd / tkd strikes.

kumdo is korean kendo

Ssireum and tae kyon are native korean arts.

[lordtariel]

It's mostly a marketing technique when you see a sign for a "karate" school and they teach something else.

I think a school that markets their art as something else isn't worth going to no mater the quality of instruction. If you've lied to me about the name of the art to simply get me in the door, what else are you going to lie about?

[Sohan]

tang soo do is basically korean karate. many of korea's arts have a huge japanese influence behind them, do to their interactions with japan. However, it's no secret that the koreans and japanese don't really like eachother, so when TKD was created, they added more of a korean flavor to it so that it could be distinguished from the more japanese flavored tang soo do. There were also political reasons behind it, from what I understand.

tang soo do has a heavy karate influence

yudo is korean judo

hapkido is korean aikijutsu with tsd / tkd strikes.

kumdo is korean kendo

Ssireum and tae kyon are native korean arts.

Yep. Many of our kata in Shorin ryu are the same or similar, ie Bassai/Passai form. I studied Tang Soo Do about 16 years ago and enjoyed it. It was nice to have that background when I began Shorinryu.

With respect,

Sohan

[elbows_and_knees]

to illustrate the dislike between the koreans and japanese, I've got a korean friend whose dad says:

"God created the japanese. Then he realized he could do better, so he created koreans"

[Sohan]

It's a shame there's so much animosity between those two cultures when they both have such rich histories. Hopefully this won't always be the case.

With respect,

Sohan

[patusai]

Maybe the sign was cheaper than a "Tae Kwan Do" sign and/or as others have said they felt that it would be more easily understood. The TKD schools around me at least are very proud of the fact that they are TKD and are rather specific in their signs.