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Okinawa is a small island of the
group that comprises modern day Japan. It is the main
island in the chain of Ryuku Islands which spans from
Japan to Taiwan. Surrounded by coral, Okinawa is
approximately 10 km (6 mi) wide and only about 110 km
(less than 70 mi) long. It is situated 740 km (400
nautical mi) east of mainland China, 550 km (300
nautical miles) south of mainland Japan and an equal
distance north of Taiwan. Being at the crossroads of
major trading routes, its significance as a
"resting spot" was first discovered by the
Japanese. It later developed as a trade center for
southeastern Asia, trading with Japan, China, Indo
China, Thailand, Malaysia, Borneo and the
Philippines. 
In its earliest stages, the
martial art known as "karate" was an
indigenous form of closed fist fighting which was
developed in Okinawa and called Te, or 'hand'.
Weapons bans, imposed on the Okinawans at various
points in their history, encouraged the refinement of
empty-hand techniques and, for this reason, was
trained in secret until modern times. Further
refinement came with the influence of other martial
arts brought by nobles and trade merchants to the
island.Te continued to develop over the years, primarily in three Okinawan cities: Shuri, Naha and Tomari. Each of these towns was a center to a different sect of society: kings and nobles, merchants and business people, and farmers and fishermen, respectively. For this reason, different forms of self-defense developed within each city and subsequently became known as Shuri-te, Naha-te and Tomari-te. Collectively they were called Okinawa-Te or Tode, 'Chinese hand'. Gradually, karate was divided into two main groups: Shorin-ryu which developed around Shuri and Tomari and Shorei-ryu which came from the Naha area. "It is important to note, however, that the towns of Shuri, Tomari, Naha are only a few miles apart, and that the differences between their arts were essentially ones of emphasis, not of kind. Beneath these surface differences, both the methods and aims of all Okinawan karate are one in the same" (Howard, 1991). Gichin Funakoshi goes further to suggest that these two styles were developed based on different physical requirements Funakoshi, 1935). Shorin-ryu was quick and linear with natural breathing while Shorei-ryu emphasized steady, rooted movements with breathing in synchrony with each movement. Interestingly, this concept of two basic styles also exist in kung-fu with a similar division of characteristics (Wong, 1978).
The Chinese character used to write Tode could also be pronounced 'kara' thus the name Te was replaced with kara te - jutsu or 'Chinese hand art' by the Okinawan Masters. This was later changed to karate-do by Gichin Funakoshi who adopted an alternate meaning for the Chinese character for kara, 'empty'. From this point on the term karate came to mean 'empty hand'. The Do in karate-do means 'way' or 'path', and is indicative of the discipline and philosophy of karate with moral and spiritual connotations.
The concept of Do has been prevalent since
at least the days of the Okinawan Scholar Teijunsoku
born in 1663, as this passage from a poem he wrote
suggests:
No matter how you may excel in the art of te,
And in your scholastic endevours,
Nothing is more important than your behavior
And your humanity as observed in daily life.(Nagamine,1976)
The first public demonstration of karate in Japan
was in 1917 by Gichin Funakoshi, at the Butoku-den in
Kyoto (Hassell 1984). This, and subsequent
demonstrations, greatly impressed many Japanese,
including the Crown-Prince Hirohito, who was very
enthusiastic about the Okinawan art. In 1922, Dr.
Jano Kano, founder of the Japanese art of Judo,
invited Funakoshi to demonstrate at the famous
Kodokan Dojo and to remain in Japan to teach karate.
This sponsorship was instrumental in establishing a
base for karate in Japan. As an Okinawan
"peasant art," karate would have been
scorned by the Japanese without the backing of so
formidable a martial arts master (Maliszewski, 1992).
Today there are four main styles of karate-do in
Japan: Goju-ryu, Shito-ryu, Shotokan, and Wado-ryu:
Goju-ryu developed out of Naha-te, its
popularity primarily due to the success of Kanryo
Higaonna (1853-1915). Higaonna opened a dojo in
Naha using eight forms brought from China. His best
student, Chojun Miyagi (1888-1953) later founded Goju-ryu,
'hard soft way' in 1930. In Goju-ryu much
emphasis is placed on combining soft circular
blocking techniques with quick strong counter attacks
delivered in rapid succession.
Shito-ryu was founded by Kenwa Mabuni
(1889-1952) in 1928 and was influenced directly by
both Naha-te and Shuri-te. The name Shito is constructively
derived from the combination of the Japanese
characters of Mabuni's teachers' names - Ankoh Itosu
and Kanryo Higaonna. Shito-ryu schools use a large
number of kata, about fifty, and is characterized by
an emphasis on power in the execution of techniques.
Shotokan was founded by Gichin Funakoshi
(1868-1957) in Tokyo in 1938. Funakoshi is considered
to be the founder of modern karate. Born in Okinawa,
he began to study karate with Yasutsune Azato, one of
Okinawa's greatest experts in the art. In 1921
Funakoshi first introduced Karate to Tokyo. In 1936,
at nearly 70 years of age, he opened his own training
hall. The dojo was called Shotokan after the
pen name used by Funakoshi to sign poems written in
his youth. Shotokan Karate is characterized by
powerful linear techniques and deep strong stances.
Wado-ryu, 'way of harmony', founded in 1939 is
a system of karate developed from jujitsu and karate
by Hienori Otsuka as taught by one of his
instructors, Gichin Funakoshi. This style of karate
combines basic movements of jujitsu with techniques
of evasion, putting a strong emphasis on softness and
the way of harmony or spiritual discipline.