Karate or Kempo ?

[caped crusader]

saw a part in a Kem(n)po video where they mention this man, Seiyo Oyata. Looks more like Okinawan karate?

 

[caped crusader]

seems very close combat Goju Ryu direction. Ryu Te No Michi @21.10 mark

 

[Blindside]

Some Okinawan Karate systems also use the term "kenpo." As an example Motobu-ryu's full system names is "Nihon denryu heiho Motobu Kenpo."

About Nihon Denryu Heiho Motobu Kenpo

Nihon Denryu Heihou Motobu Kenpo (Japan Traditional Fighting Tactics Motobu Kenpo) is one of the most historic and pedigreed schools of karate in Japan, founded by master Motobu Choki sensei in 1922. It is more commonly known as Motobu-ryu karate-jutsu or Motobu-ryu karate-dō. Choki sensei was...

www.motobu-ryu.org

 

[TxTom]

Part of Mr. Oyata's system came from Okinawan Kempo. Mr. Nakaumra's system.

 

[isshinryuronin]

"Kempo" was used as a generic name for karate in Okinawa as already noted. Oyata Sensei's lineage includes strong Okinawan roots as shown by his emphasis in tuite and kyusho, disciplines that have faded from many schools. Various Okinawan styles have/had kempo in their name. Not to be confused with Ed Parker's Kenpo and its offshoots.

 

[Oily Dragon]

Kenpo is a loanword translation from Chinese quan fa, so it's just a way for any Japanese or Okinawan (or Hawaiian) school to identify with Chinese schools. Whether or not they ever actually crossed paths.

saw a part in a Kem(n)po video where they mention this man, Seiyo Oyata. Looks more like Okinawan karate?

Looks like...nonsense to me. Definitely not quan fa. More like huo gwei lo.

 

[TxTom]

Oily is basically correct. Kempo roughly translates to fist way. Mr. Oyata quit calling his system kempo though around 1998. Give or take a year or 2. He changed the name to Ryu Te™. There are a few reasons for this change. One was he wanted to distance himself from all the people out there who were using the name of okinawan kempo and also using his name to ride his coat tails. He also thought that Ryu Te™ expressed the essence of his art better. The kanji for Ryu is part of the kanji for Ryukyu which was the kingdom before Japan took it over. Mr. Oyata explained it that it was like saying USA instead of United States of America. Mr. Oyata thought the ideals of the Ryukyu people and peace were at the heart of the martial arts. Ryu can also be expressed as flowing. So Ryu Te™ can be expressed as Ryukyu Hands or as flowing hands. Both encompassed his thoughts on martial arts.

This is a high level explanation and I'm glossing over a great many nuances about the name and his thoughts on how he viewed his art.