ryu
Language: English
Part of speech: noun
Forms: form: ryu
form: ryus
form: ryū
Etymology: From Japanese 流(りゅう) (ryū), mainly an affix, used here in the sense of 流派(りゅうは) (ryūha).
Senses: examples: text: When Nakanishi became the headmaster of his own ryu, in the later 1700s, he began looking for a way to make swordsmanship less hazardous, concentrating on the improvement of practice equipment.
ref: 1982 April, Dave Lowry, “Jutsu and Do: The Art and the Way; Part II”, in Black Belt, page 37, column 2:
text: In these ways, the ryu system differed little from the European custom of apprenticeship. The Japanese ryu were distinctive, however, in that an imparting of the mechanics of the craft, the shoden and chuden (“first and second stages of teachings”), were considered to be only a partial aspect of a student’s education. What really mattered was the sensei’s careful transmission of the metaphysical principles of his ryu to his most promising disciples.
ref: 1985, Dave Lowry, Autumn Lightning: The Education of an American Samurai, Boston, Mass.: Shambhala Publications, Inc., published 2013, →ISBN:
text: Dave notes that the only people capable of such precise destruction were bone-breakers from an ancient Japanese ryu.
ref: 1986, Kirtland C. Peterson, Mind of the Ninja: Exploring the Inner Power, Chicago, Ill.: Contemporary Books, Inc., →ISBN, page 12:
text: Numerous instructors have trained in a traditional Japanese ryu, but few have progressed to the oku level—they may not even be aware of the existence of such a thing.
ref: 1987, Fredrick J. Lovret, The Way And The Power: Secrets Of Japanese Strategy, Paladin Press, →ISBN, pages 20–21:
text: In today’s Japan, to receive this title, you must have the rank of godan or above in that ryu. Many people claim this title, but very few have actually received it from a traditional Japanese ryu.
ref: 1995, Darrell Max Craig, Japan’s Ultimate Martial Art: Jujitsu Before 1882; The Classical Japanese Art of Self-Defense, →ISBN, page 166:
text: In an ironic twist of fate, many of the Japanese ryu went underground themselves during the Menji Restoration period in the 1880’s and all of them again, including judo, karate and kendo as entire entities in 1945 at the close of World War II.
ref: 2005, Erdix C. Dearing, Te Waza: A Novel of the Martial Arts, iUniverse, Inc., →ISBN:
text: The 22nd Soke, Momochi Kobei, was related to Momochi Sandayu, who was the Soke of the Momochi Ryu, Gyokko Ryu and Koto Ryu (the last two ryu are also part of the Bujinkan).
ref: 2007, Simon Yeo, Ninjutsu: The Secret Art of the Ninja, Marlborough, Wilts: The Crowood Press Ltd, published 2011, →ISBN:
text: Professor Kano analyzed these two ryu carefully, identifying their strong points and compensating in areas where they were lacking by studying other jujutsu schools.
ref: 2009, David Monteverde, Judo: A Samurai Legacy, Lulu Publishing, →ISBN, page 25:
text: Most traditional Japanese ryu, however, continue to promulgate karate as a budo, or martial Way. […] Karate students in traditional Japanese ryu wear plain white uniforms, or karate-gi.
ref: 2017, Carrie Wingate, “Exploring Our Roots: Historical and Cultural Foundations of the Ideology of Karatedo”, in Michael DeMarco, editor, Teaching and Learning Japanese Martial Arts: Scholarly Perspectives, Santa Fe, N.M.: Via Media Publishing Company, →ISBN:
synonyms: ryuha
glosses: A Japanese school of a specific discipline, usually martial arts.