Motobu Chōki

Who was Motobu Chōki?

Motobu Chōki was a Japanese karateka from Akahira Village in Shuri, Okinawa, capital of the Ryūkyū Kingdom when he was born. His elder brother Motobu Chōyū was also a noted karateka.

His father, Lord Motobu Chōshin was a descendant of the sixth son of the Okinawan King, Shō Shitsu, namely Shō Kōshin, also known as Prince Motobu Chōhei. Chōki was the third son of Motobu Udun, one of the cadet branches of the Ryūkyūan royal family.

As the last of three sons, Motobu Chōki was not entitled to an education in his family's style of Te. Despite this Motobu was very interested in the art, spending much of his youth training on his own, hitting the makiwara, pushing and lifting heavy stones to increase his strength. He is reported to have been very agile, which gained him the nickname Motobu no Saru, or "Motobu the Monkey." He began practicing karate under Matsumura Sōkon and continued under Ankō Itosu, Sakuma Pechin and Kōsaku Matsumora.