A Very Basic Introduction

Karate is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Islands (Okinawa) from indigenous fighting methods te (手, literally: "hand"?) and Chinese kenpō. Karate is characterised as a striking art using punching, kicking, knee and elbow strikes and open-handed techniques such as knife-hands (karate chop). Grappling, locks, restraints, throws, and vital point strikes are taught in some styles.

Karate developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom prior to its 19th century annexation by Japan. It was brought to the Japanese mainland in the early 20th century during a time of cultural exchanges between the Japanese and the Ryukyuans. In 1922 the Japanese Ministry of Education invited Gichin Funakoshi to Tokyo to give a karate demonstration. Keio University became the first Japanese university to open a dojo; by 1932, all Japanese universities had dojo. In this era, the name karate (唐手Chinese hand?) was changed to karate (空手, empty hand?) to indicate that the Japanese wished to develop the combat form in Japanese style

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Karate)