Nothing more, nothing less. Kenpo is a style that emphasizes punches, kicks and throws/standing locks. People in the west are often confused between Kempo and Kenpo and cannot decide which way to go. And the primary reason for the variation of spelling from Kenpo to KeMpo in Hawaii was because Professor William K.S. As I understand the difference, it is in the basic stance. Copies of this book were brought to Hawaii by Mizuho himself in 1933, and it had been circulated within the Karate community there during the 1930s. it’s the Left side of the Horse you get on and off when riding a horse. The Roots of Shaolin kempo are the 108 numbered combinations. Terms of Use and Privacy Policy: Legal. One side is common in Japanese and the other in Chinese systems. The Kanji word for Kempo or Kenpo is made up of Ken, which means fist and Ho which means law. Rathbone, Jim. This term is often informally transliterated as "kempo", as a result of applying Traditional Hepburn romanization,[1] but failing to use a macron to indicate the long vowel. Shaolin Kempo says Right foot out and elbows because it’s the right foot you throw over the horse when getting on and off a horse. This should not be a difficult concept to comprehend for English speaking people as they pronounce tough when they should spell it tuff. I can never remember which is which. For the national constitution of Japan, see, Hepburn romanization provides for use of the letter "m" when. Their practitioners would argue with you. It is simply a romanization “error”. But the fact is that there is no difference between Kenpo and Kempo and both refer to the same generic word that is used to label several different martial arts that originated in Japan. And the primary reason for the variation of spelling from Kenpo to KeMpo in Hawaii was because Professor William K.S. This is also an incorrect assumption. Filed Under: Kempo Tagged With: kempo, kenpo.

This can be illustrated by the official full name of Motobu-ryu style named as "Nihon Denryu Heiho Motobu Kenpo" ("Japan's traditional tactics Motobu Kenpo") and by the International Shorin-ryu Karate Kobudo Federation,[6] where Shōrin-ryū is the actual karate style practiced, whereas "hakutsuru kenpo", or "hakutsuru kenpo karate" is a related but distinctive style also taught by the association. Mitose’s Kosho Ryu Kenpo; Chow’s Chinese Kempo, and Parker’s American Kenpo and arts with a lineage back to any one of these systems. There may be some who, after reading this would be tempted to say that the actual spelling then should be Ken-ho and not Kenpo or Kempo. The Kanji word for Kempo or Kenpo is made up of Ken, which means fist and Ho which means law.
Mitose spent most of his early years training in Japan learning his family style, Kosho-Ryū (Old pine tree school). [3] It was established in 1947 by Doshin So (宗 道臣, Sō Dōshin), a Japanese martial artist and former military intelligence agent,[4] who combined his quanfa and jujutsu practice.[5]. Filed Under: Martial Arts Tagged With: Kempo, Kenpo. However, when it comes to transliteration, the word is taken as a whole and depending upon the sound, the spellings that westerners arrive at are Kenpo and Kempo. Both the "n" and "m" romanizations are used by various groups. Difference Between Jiu Jitsu and Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, Difference Between Coronavirus and Cold Symptoms, Difference Between Coronavirus and Influenza, Difference Between Coronavirus and Covid 19, Difference Between Random Mutagenesis and Site Directed Mutagenesis, Difference Between Michael Jackson and Prince, Difference Between Panmictic and Apomictic Species, Difference Between Isopropyl Myristate and Isopropyl Palmitate, Difference Between Nernst Potential and Zeta Potential, Difference Between Hypermorph and Neomorph. I have a black belt mentor in each.

These days you can typically understand the lineage of a system by the way it’s spelled. In “hiragana” (Japanese alphabet) both Kenpo and Kempo would be spelled in this manner: けんぽう. He wanted to separate himself from the earlier spelling of KeNpo as used by Mitose, and also separate his art from the spelling used by some of his other students (who chose to call their art KeNpo). The original art of KeNpo taught in Hawaii was by Reverend James Mitose, who taught Kosho-Ryu Kenpo Jujutsu at the Official Self-Defense Club in Hawaii during the 1940s.

James Mitose would later bring that style to Hawaii where he would teach Chow, who would go on to instruct Ed Parker and Bobby Lowe.

Each kenpo/kempo as defined above has its own techniques and katas and its own roots even though it has the kenpo name; one thing you should pay attention to is the uniform that each kenpo practitioner wears; typically, American Kenpo practitioners wear a black uniform and Okinawan kenpo wear, typically, white uniforms.
"Kempo" redirects here. While there are many systems using Kempo and the alternate Kenpo spelling, there seems to be some misconceptions in regards to the term Kenpo vs. Kempo as it pertains to systems with a lineage to the Hawaiian Karate / Self-Defense traditions; e.g.