May 14 marks the birthday of master Seiichi Akamine (stage name in Japanese Yoshitaka or Chinese Shikan), born in 1920 in the city of Naha, Okinawa. Akamine is one of the pioneers of Karate in Brazil and South America, having founded the first legally established school in the country, the Brazilian Karate Association (Associação Brasileira de Karate – ABK). He is also considered an introducer of the Goju-Ryu style in Brazil, despite having a slightly different curriculum from the more traditional schools of that lineage.

Shikan Akamine’s Goju-Ryu comes from Kanki Izumikawa and his master, Seiko Higa, who was a student of Kanryo Higaonna and Chojun Miyagi. He was also friends with Seiken Shukumine (Gensei-Ryu) and trained with Kanbun Uechi (Uechi-Ryu). Some sources say he had contacts with masters of the Shuri-Te lineage, such as Chomo Hanashiro, Kentsu Yabu and Chotoku Kyan.

My lineage of Karate has roots with Shikan Akamine, as he was the first master of my late sensei Tsunioshi Tanaka, founder of the Tanaka Karate-Do Association (Associação Karate-Do Tanaka). Read more about this at this link. Our organization subsequently followed other paths, representing Kyokushinkai (Mas Oyama) and Seido Juku (Tadashi Nakamura) in South America, incorporating a little of each of these schools.

Elements of Shikan Akamine Karate have survived in our dojo in the form of characteristic versions of some katas and also by exercises created by him. It is said that this master’s favorite kata was Seyunchin / Seonchin / Seienchin. When Master Tanaka taught me this kata, he reported details transmitted by Akamine. This was the last kata that Master Tanaka taught me before he passed away, so for me it is doubly significant.

Shikan Akamine passed away on July 18, 1995, in São Paulo. I am grateful to this master for the Okinawan roots of my Karate.