Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu , originally called Daitō-ryū Jujutsu , is a Japanese martial art that first became widely known in the early 20th century under the headmastership of Takeda Sōkaku. Takeda had extensive training in several martial arts and referred to the style he taught as "Daitō-ryū". Although the school's traditions claim to extend back centuries in Japanese history there are no known extant records regarding the ryū before Takeda. Whether Takeda is regarded as either the restorer or the founder of the art, the known history of Daitō-ryū begins with him. Takeda's best-known student was Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikido.
Retouched photograph of Takeda Sokaku, ca. 1888
The Asahi Newspaper office in Osaka, Japan, where many Daitō-ryū techniques were preserved on film as originally taught by both Morihei Ueshiba and Takeda Sōkaku
The University of Tsukuba, where members of the Sagawa branch teach aiki-jūjutsu today
Jujutsu, also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdue one or more weaponless or armed and armored opponents. It was coined by Hisamori Tenenuchi when he officially established the first school of jiu-jitsu in Japan. A subset of techniques from certain styles of jujutsu were used to develop many modern martial arts and combat sports, such as judo, aikido, sambo, ARB, Brazilian jiu-jitsu, and mixed martial arts.
Jujutsu training at an agricultural school in Japan around 1920
Competition at the 8th Annual West Japan Jujitsu Championship in Hiroshima, 2010
Demonstration of a jujutsu defense against a knife attack. Berlin 1924
1911 French publication on jujutsu
