The Language of Aikido
Subtitle
A Practitioner’s Guide to Japanese Characters and Terminology
Researched and written by a professional linguist with decades of experience as a student of the Japanese language, culture, and martial arts — including living and training in Japan for 10 years — "The Language of Aikido: A Practitioner’s Guide to Japanese Characters and Terminology" was designed specifically for students and teachers of the Japanese martial art Aikido, but will also be of interest to Japanese language enthusiasts who practice other martial arts such as Karate, Judo, Jujutsu, Iaido and Kendo.
Translating martial arts terminology using a standard Japanese-to-English dictionary is potentially fraught with cultural and contextual errors due to the specialized way that such terminology is used in a Budo study. Even dojo glossaries, while more specifically directed at relevant connotations of such vocabulary, are sometimes lacking in depth and historical and linguistic context. Without the combination of a background in the Japanese language coupled with a serious study of Budo, proper understanding of the richness and full meanings of these terms can prove difficult to the non-Japanese speaker. This book attempts to address this problem by introducing the reader to historical and deep contextual information, alternate understandings of terms through the minds of experts in other Japanese martial traditions, and multiple translations of particular kanji (characters).
Bio
Michael holds an MA in linguistics from ASU. He has worked as a linguist and translator for various companies and governement agencies and currently teaches at ASU Global Launch. He spent a decade in Japan, training in Aikido and studying Japanese language and culture. While in Japan, Michael shared the tatami with senior shihan.
Praise for this book
This is a book all Aikido people will want to read cover to cover, probably more than once. It is a detailed reference work, and also human and readable. Not only is it well-written, it's also beautifully formatted. I don't say this lightly: this book is going to be an instant classic that every student of the art should own.
Linda Eskin
Michael Hacker's book about the language of aikido explains its terminology and analyzes its kanji characters. It is an interesting read for any aikido student. Not only does it unravel what the words and expressions mean, but just as importantly: what they don’t mean. There are many misconceptions floating around in the aikido community. Michael is a professional linguist who practiced aikido for many years in Japan. So, his knowledge is right from the source.
Stefan Stenudd
