color belts karate
Originally, Japan, practitioners wore a white kimono, similar to their work clothes and a white belt to close the jacket. White belt to black then becoming brown As the drive, the black belt was considered the ultimate step to achieve.
The Shotokan style of Master Ohshima kept this principle of three colors, white 9th Kyu to 3rd, 3rd to brown the shodan (first dan), then to black shodan godan (5th dan). Although, originally, karate and other martial arts belt that is used to hold the pants, it soon became common to differentiate the practitioner initiated (not "finished") Beginner's a black belt girdling (insider) or white (beginner). Subsequently, the brown belt appeared. She pointed to the student about to get the black belt.
Today, a wide and varied classification exists and varies according to the styles and schools. However, different practitioners generally agree on the following: there can be between six and ten levels to climb up the first black belt, they are called kyu (kyu, "rank") and range from ten to one (see the list of colors in the diagram). In general, adult beginners climb the belts by color, while for children there établiera belts intermediaries (bi-color). These belts will motivate children and to wait until the black belt (accessible only from 16 years in France).
These levels are at the discretion of sensei and / or federation who teaches in the dojo and can be further divided into sub-grades usually represented by black or colored strips affixed to the belt. These strips are sometimes used on the white belt (in some traditional styles) to indicate kyu failing to change color.
Summary of belt colors: 9th kyu (white), 8th kyu (yellow), 7th kyu (orange), 6th kyu (Green), 5th kyu (purple / blue), 4th kyu (purple / blue), 3rd kyu (brown ), 2nd kyu (brown), 1st kyu (brown), 1st dan, 2nd dan, 3rd dan ... (black)
