The Japan Karate Association (JKA) is a system that has its traceable roots in 300 years of very interesting history.  The organization itself was officially founded in 1955; however, it had been operating in Tokyo, Japan since the 1920s.  On the island of Okinawa this karate developed as a method of self-defense, hidden in an artistic expression known as kata.  This phenomenon of obscuring methods of combat in an exercise or a dance has taken place throughout time in history.  It often happens when a group of people must practice to defend themselves in secret, creating a façade for a martial activity.  The Okinawans are islanders that have always been subjected to the influence of the two militarily most powerful nations in the region, China and Japan.  These two regional powers were known to outlaw weapons on the island, and to forbid the practice in anything resembling military training.  In this atmosphere karate developed the esthetics we see in the art today.

 

In the 60s and 70s, the JKA sent its best instructors from Japan to the west and became the most successful karate organization worldwide.  Master Takayuki Mikami was sent by the JKA to New Orleans in 1964.  He is still here and runs his dojo in Metairie, the Louisiana Karate Association (LKA).  This is also the headquarters of the JKA American Federation Branch.  Because of this, students of the New Orleans Shotokan Academy have direct access to the administrative and technical headquarters of the JKA in the United States.