Japanese Terms

Although most instruction at JKA Boston is in English, we usually count in Japanese. Here are some Japanese terms that you may hear during class.

Counting

Japanese	Pronunciation	English
ichi	eech	one
ni	nee	two
san	sahn	three
shi	shee	four
go	goh	five
roku	rohk	six
shichi	seech	seven
hachi	hahtch	eight
ku	koo	nine
ju	joo	ten

Commands

Japanese	Pronunciation
seiza	kneel
moku-so	meditate
rei	bow
shomen ni rei	bow to the front
Sensei ni rei	bow to Sensei
yo-oi	ready
kamae	take position
mawatte	turn
hajime	begin
yame	end (recover)

Stances

Japanese	English
heisoku-dachi	attention stance
hachiji-dachi	ready position
kiba-dachi	horse stance
zenkutsu-dachi	front stance
kokutsu-dachi	back stance
sochin-dachi	rooted stance
sanchin-dachi	hourglass stance
nekoashi-dachi	cat stance
hangetsu-dachi	half moon stance

Punches and Hand Techniques

Japanese	English
oi-zuki	step-in punch
kizami-zuki	jab
gyaku-zuki	reverse punch
nukite	spear-hand thrust
kagi-suki	hook punch
uraken	back fist

Blocks

Japanese	English
age-uke	rising block
soto-uke	outside block
uchi-uke	inside block
shuto-uke	knife-hand block
gedan-barai	down block
juji-uke	x-block

Kicks

Japanese	English
mae-geri	front kick
yoko-geri	side kick
keagi	snap kick
kekomi	thrust kick
mawashi-geri	roundhouse kick
ushiro-geri	back kick
mae-ashi	front leg

Kata Numbers

Kata Family	Pronunciation	English
Heian	Shodan	1
	Nidan	2
	Sandan	3
	Yondan	4
	Godan	5
Tekki	Shodan	1
	Nidan	2
	Sandan	3