Masatoshi Nakayama 1913 - 1987 “The Creator and Head of the JKA”

“The Creator and Head of the JKA”

Masatoshi was an internationally renowned Japanese master of Shotokan karate.He helped establish the Japan Karate Association (JKA) in 1949, and wrote many textbooks on karate, which served to popularize his martial art. For almost 40 years, until his death in 1987, Nakayama worked to spread Shotokan karate around the world. He was the first master in Shotokan history to attain the rank of 9th dan while alive, and was posthumously awarded the rank of 10th dan.

In May 1949, Nakayama, Isao Obata, and other colleagues helped establish the Japan Karate Association (JKA). Funakoshi was the formal head of the organization, with Nakayama appointed as Chief Instructor. By 1951, Nakayama had been promoted to 3rd dan, and he held the rank of 5th dan by 1955.

In 1956, working with Teruyuki Okazaki, he restructured the Shotokan karate training program to follow both traditional karate and methods developed in modern sports sciences.Then in 1961, Nakayama was promoted to 8th dan, a remarkable progression, in part made possible by the consensus-based system of higher dan promotion in Japan at the time. He established kata, and kumite as tournament disciplines. Students of the large JKA dojo (training halls) subsequently achieved an unmatched series of tournament successes in the 1950s and 1960s.

Together with other senior instructors, he formed the JKA instructor trainee program. Many of this program's graduates were sent throughout the world to form new Shotokan subgroups and increase membership. Nakayama also held positions in the Physical Education department of Takushoku University,beginning in 1952, and eventually becoming head of that department.

Nakayama wrote many books on karate, perhaps most notably the 11-volume Best Karate series.

After Nakayama's death in 1987, the JKA divided into two factions, which subsequently led to a further splintering within the organization.

To learn more about Nakayama and Shotokan Karate-Do, please check out: Shotokan Karate Do - Nakayama: The last Interview by clicking the image below.