# Fame.am profile — machine-readable export
# Canonical URL: https://fame.am/person/gichin-funakoshi
# Generated: 2026-09-07T20:58:23.688Z

schema: https://schema.org/Person
url: "https://fame.am/person/gichin-funakoshi"
name: "Gichin Funakoshi"
slug: "gichin-funakoshi"
description: "He brought karate from Okinawa to mainland Japan in 1922, transforming a regional martial art into a discipline that would spread worldwide. Funakoshi founded Shotokan karate and spent decades teaching at Japanese universities, turning combat technique into structured pedagogy."
tagline: "Japanese karateka (1868–1957)"
image: "https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Special:FilePath/Gichin_Funakoshi_-_Heian_Nidan_(2).png"
gender: "male"
country:
  name: "Japan"
  isoCode: "JP"
profileType:
  name: "Other"
  slug: "other"
birthDate: "1868-11-10"
deathDate: "1957-04-26"
livingStatus: "DECEASED"
scores:
  popularity:           55.43
  momentum:             0.6277980218636128
  historical:           24.367488
  currentAttention:     0
  sourceConfidence:     60
  profileCompleteness:  60
  trendDirection:       "STABLE"
ranks:
  global:   null
  country:  null
  category: null
tags:
  - name: "Business Professionals"
    slug: "business-professionals"
  - name: "Other"
    slug: "other"
  - name: "Japan"
    slug: "japan"
  - name: "Asia"
    slug: "asia"
  - name: "19th Century"
    slug: "19th-century"
sources:
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    title: "Wikipedia"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q41105"
    title: "Wikidata"
    type:  "WIKIDATA"
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    title: "Pantheon 2.0"
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    title: "جيشن فوناكوشى"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://az.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qi%C3%A7in_Funako%C5%9Fi"
    title: "Qiçin Funakoşi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://bg.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D0%93%D0%B8%D1%87%D0%B8%D0%BD_%D0%A4%D1%83%D0%BD%D0%B0%D0%BA%D0%BE%D1%88%D0%B8"
    title: "Гичин Фунакоши"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "গিচিন ফুনাকোশি"
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    title: "གི་ཆིན་ཧྥུ་ན་ཀོ་ཤི།"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://cbk_zam.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Gičin Funakoši"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://da.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://de.wikipedia.org/wiki/Funakoshi_Gichin"
    title: "Funakoshi Gichin"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Giĉin Funakoŝi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
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    title: "فوناکوشی گیچین"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fi.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://he.wikipedia.org/wiki/%D7%92%D7%99%D7%A6'%D7%99%D7%9F_%D7%A4%D7%95%D7%A0%D7%90%D7%A7%D7%95%D7%A9%D7%99"
    title: "גיצ'ין פונאקושי"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://hr.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Funakosi Gicsin"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Գիչին Ֆունակոշի"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
  - url: "https://ia.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"
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    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://es.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://it.wikiquote.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
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    title: "Wikiquote"
    type:  "WEBSITE"
  - url: "https://an.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gichin_Funakoshi"
    title: "Gichin Funakoshi"
    type:  "WIKIPEDIA"

# bio (long form, separated for readability)
bio: |
  Born November 10, 1868, Funakoshi trained under Okinawan masters Anko Itosu and Anko Asato, learning karate when it was still largely confined to the islands. In 1922 he made the crossing to mainland Japan—Itosu had introduced it earlier, but Funakoshi carried it forward, teaching at universities and formalizing the art. By 1949, when the Japan Karate Association formed, he became its honorary head. He wrote poetry and philosophy alongside his martial work. His son Gigō developed much of what became the modern Shotokan style. Funakoshi died April 26, 1957, decades after the move that changed karate's geography forever.