American Kenpo

American Kenpo

Focus	Hybrid
Country of origin	United States of America
Creator	Ed Parker
Famous practitioners	Thomas Carroll, Graciela Casillas, Raymond Daniels, Zane Frazier, Keith Hackney, Chuck Liddell, Frank Mir, K.J. Noons, Elvis Presley, Patrick Smith, Jeff Speakman, Bart Vale, Jay T. Will[Raymond Doucette Jr] [Ray Doucette III]
Parenthood	Kosho Shorei Ryu Kempo, Chu'an Fa Kung-Fu
Olympic sport	no

American Kenpo or Kenpo Karate is a system of martial arts commercialized by Ed Parker, characterized by the use of quick moves in rapid-fire succession. The multitude of fast strikes, sometimes criticized by other arts, has a dual purpose. The strikes may overwhelm an opponent but more importantly, the various strikes demonstrate to the practitioner that there are many options should the technique not work as planned, and also should the initial strikes miss some will not. Ed Parker stated that this training was not intended for "overkill," but rather "overskill". It is largely marketed as a self-defense system, and is derived from traditional Japanese martial arts and other martial arts such as Southern Chinese kung fu found in the cultural melting pot of Hawaii.

Parker introduced significant modifications in his art, including principles, theories, and concepts of motion as well as terminology, throughout his life. He left behind a large number of instructors who teach many different versions of American Kenpo as Parker died before he named a successor to his art.

Kenpo Creed

"I come to you with only karate, empty hands. I have no weapons, but should I be forced to defend myself, my principles or my honor; should it be a matter of life or death, of right or wrong; then here are my weapons, karate, my empty hands."

—Ed Parker - March, 1957

Kenpo Crest

The design of the I.K.K.A Crest was completed in 1958 when the art of American Kenpo was gaining international notoriety. Highly symbolic, the crest design represents the more modernized form that the art was transforming into while at the same time acknowledging its roots in traditional Chinese and Japanese martial arts.

Designs on the Crest

Tiger

Represents physical strength and the early stage of a martial artist's learning.

Dragon

Represents spiritual strength and the later stage of a martial artist's training. The dragon is placed above the tiger in the crest to symbolize the importance of mental/spiritual strength over physical strength. This does not mean that physical strength is unimportant. What it does imply is that martial artists need to think first before acting physically.

Circle

The circle represents continuity.

Dividing Lines

The lines within the circle represent the original methods of attack first learned by ancient practitioners of the Chinese martial arts. They also demonstrate the pathways which an object could travel by.

Colors

The colors are representations of proficiency within the art alluding to the colored belt ranking system. The white represents the beginning stages and progresses through to black (expert level) and then red (professorship).

Oriental Writing

The writing acknowledges the art's oriental roots. The characters on the left of the crest translate to "Law of the Fist" and "Empty Hand" a.k.a. "Kenpo Karate." The characters on the right translate to "Spirit of the Dragon and the Tiger."

Shape

The shape of the crest represents the structure of a house. The walls and roof are curved to keep evil from intruding. The ax at the bottom of the crest is a solemn reminder that should a martial artist tarnish the reputation of the organization they will be "cut off" completely.

Origins of American Kenpo

The modern history of American Kenpo began in the 1940s, when Great Grandmaster James Mitose (1916–1981) started teaching his ancestral Japanese martial art, Kosho-Ryu Kenpo, in Hawaii. Mitose's art, later called Kenpo Jiu-Jitsu, traditionally traces its origin to Shaolin Kung Fu and Bodhidharma. Kenpo Jiu-Jitsu emphasizes punching, striking, kicking, locking, and throwing. Mitose's art was very linear, lacking the circular motions in American Kenpo.

William K. S. Chow studied Kenpo under James Mitose, eventually earning a first-degree black belt. He had also studied Chinese Kung Fu from his father. Chow began teaching an art, which he called Kenpo Karate, that blended the circular movements he had learned from his father with the system he had learned from Mitose. Chow experimented and modified his art, adapting it to meet the needs of American students.

Ed Parker learned Kenpo Karate from William Chow, eventually earning a black belt, Al Tracy claims that Chow promoted Parker to sandan (3rd-degree black belt) in December 1961.

The system known as American Kenpo was developed by Ed Parker as a successor to Chow's art. Parker revised older methods to work in modern day fighting scenarios. He heavily restructured American Kenpo's forms and techniques during this period. He moved away from methods that were recognizably descended from other arts (such as forms that were familiar within Hung Gar) and established a more definitive relationship between forms and the self-defense technique curriculum of American Kenpo. Parker also eschewed esoteric Eastern concepts (e.g. qi) and sought to express the art in terms of scientific principles and western metaphors.

Evolution of American Kenpo

Kenpo Karate

Ed Parker initially called his art Kenpo Jujitsu. He started teaching other Hawaiian Islanders attending Brigham Young University in Provo, Utah in 1954. By 1956, he was teaching commercially in Provo. Late in 1956, he opened a studio in Pasadena, California. He published a book about his early system in 1960. This has been characterized as having a very Japanese influence, including the use of linear and circular movements, "focused" techniques and jujutsu-style locks, holds, and throws.

Ed Parker's Kenpo techniques were modifications of the techniques taught by William Chow, combined with modifications that incorporated moves from Boxing, Judo, and Lua.

Chinese Kenpo

When Ed Parker embraced the Chinese Arts he began to refer to his art as "Chinese Kenpo." Based on this influence he wrote Secrets of Chinese Karate, published in 1963, only very shortly after Kenpo Karate. The technical syllabus has recognizable similarities to Hung Gar, Choy Li Fut, and other Southern Chinese Martial Arts, including two forms, Tiger&Crane and Panther (or "Book Set"), and one training practice ("Star Block") that can be traced back to James Wing Woo.^{[citation needed]}

American Kenpo

Parker began codifiying his early understandings of Chinese Kenpo into a distinct and evolving personal interpretation of the art. Here he dropped all Asian language elements and many traditions in favor of American English. During this period, he de-emphasized techniques and principles organized in the same manner as in Chinese and Japanese arts in favor of his own curriculum of forms and techniques. Parker took his art through continual changes. Parker always suggested that once a student learns the lesson embodied in the "ideal phase" of the technique he should search for some aspect that can be tailored to his own personal needs and strengths. Furthermore, Parker's students learned a different curriculum depending on when they studied with him. Some students preferred older material to newer material, wanted to maintain older material that Parker intended to replace, or wanted to supplement the kenpo they learned from a particular period with other martial arts training.^{[citation needed]}

One of the best-known students and honorable black belt of Ed Parker was Elvis Presley.

Belt rankings

American Kenpo Belts

White
Yellow
Orange
Purple
Blue
Green
Brown (3 degrees)
Black (10 degrees)

American Kenpo has a graded colored belt system consisting of White, Yellow, Orange, Purple, Blue, Green, Third degree Brown, Second degree Brown, First degree Brown, and First through Tenth degree Black. Different Kenpo organizations and schools may have different belt systems. For example, the W.K.K.A (World Kenpo Karate Association) includes an "advanced" rank for each belt (except White), signified by a stripe of the next full belt's color worn on one end of the belt. They also include a 3 degree Red belt prior to first degree black. The black belt ranks are indicated by half-inch red 'strips' up to the 4th degree, then a 5 inch 'block' for 5th. Thereafter, additional half-inch stripes are added up to the 9th degree. For 10th degree black belt, two 5 inch 'blocks' separated by a half-inch space are used. There are different requirements per belt depending on the school. Most popular are the 24 techniques per belt system, but it is rumored that a few months before his death, Ed Parker told those close to him that he planned to change to a 16 technique per belt system, with yellow having only ten techniques, 3 of which are originals that were replaced by other practitioners. Some schools stick by the new 16 technique per belt system. In addition to Self-Defense Techniques Ed Parker set specific criteria required for proficiency at each level. The criteria included basics categorized by stances, blocks, parries, punches, strikes, finger techniques, kicks, and foot maneuvers. Beyond proficiency, a student's character was also analyzed as a major consideration in the promotion to a new rank.

Belt Ranks	Proficiency Level
White, Yellow	Beginner
Orange, Purple	Intermediate
Blue, Green	Skilled
Brown	Advanced or Semi-expert
Black	Highly Advanced or Expert

Black Belt Degree	Instructor Level
First Degree	Junior Instructor
Second Degree	Associate Instructor
Third Degree	Head Instructor
Fourth Degree	Senior Instructor
Fifth Degree	Associate Professor
Sixth Degree	Professor
Seventh Degree	Senior Professor
Eighth Degree	Associate Master
Ninth Degree	Master
Tenth Degree	Grand Master
Tenth Degree and Founder	Senior Grand Master

Further reading

• Parker, E. (1982). Ed Parker's Infinite Insights into Kenpo, Vol. 1: Mental Stimulation. Delsby Publications ISBN 0-910293-00-7
• Parker, E. (1983). Ed Parker's Infinite Insights into Kenpo, Vol. 2: Physical Analyzation I. Delsby Publications ISBN 0-910293-02-3
• Parker, E. (1985). Ed Parker's Infinite Insights into Kenpo, Vol. 3: Physical Analyzation II. Delsby Publications ISBN 0-910293-04-X
• Parker, E. (1986). Ed Parker's Infinite Insights Into Kenpo, Vol. 4: Mental and Physical Constituents. Delsby Publications ISBN 0-910293-06-6
• Parker, E. (1987). Ed Parker's Infinite Insights Into Kenpo: Vol. 5: Mental and Physical Applications. Delsby Publications ISBN 0-910293-08-2
• Parker, L. (1997). Memories of Ed Parker - Sr. Grandmaster of American Kenpo Karate. Delsby Publications ISBN 0-910293-14-7

External links

• KenpoTech.Net - A site dedicated to the preservation of Ed Parker's American Kenpo Karate. Includes full details on techniques, forms, sets & more.