What does osu mean in jiu jitsu

We do use it when we enter and exit though. Which I after this post, need to bring up with our Sensei. That just seem weird. Thank you for clearification. At my old dojo we used "Osu" for everything: "kiai," greeting, acknowledgement, bowing, and so on. Now that I'm in Isshin Ryu, I'm having to learn how to drop it and start using "hai. March 30, at am. I did change from "osu" to "hai" in my dojo 2 years ago. Just have to explain it means nothing for japanese and things goes very fast.

Great article! Zaren Berg Jr. Wonderful article and very useful information. Our feelings are when in Rome do as the Romans do.

So if its being used to follow the use. When your not sure silence is always golden The masculine part is more of a concern as to share in the macho activity. How about a discussion on god bless you for a sneeze?

Love your point of view. Scott Campsall. This is a great post. I truly believe in theory 1, but while in Japan a friend of mine bought a book. Guess what the very first word was? The answer you would give would be "Wassup? Thanks for sharing your thoughts about the "Oss" thing In my dojo?? I am more annoyed by the "San"-thing Mike Black. Jesse: I think the use of "Oss" in the world of karate is more style specific than people realize.

It is very prevalent especially in the Shotokan style. My theory is that because the Shotokan system concentrated on getting karate in the universities and the college programs were pretty rough and tumble, their karateka gravitated towards the use of "Oss". My bet is that Funakoshi probably never used it but when his system spread to Japan, that's when the "Oss" word spread also. It did not come from the Okinawans. I have studied a Japanese style for over 40 years and have never heard "Oss" used at any of the our style's dojos in Japan.

Ryan Parker. So, are you saying that as an American woman training at an American dojo, when I use the term in class, I'm using what amounts to Japanese bro-slang that wouldn't be uttered by a proper woman in polite Japanese society? I find that highly amusing, kinda makes me want to say it more, purely for entertainment value. We basically only use it here upon bowing at the start and end of class, as a respectful acknowledgement of willingness.

I've never seen the degree of "oss-ing" you mention. Aubin, the best comparison I've heard is that "osu" is basically the Japanese equivalent of "football locker room" speech. Or really any similar setting where spitting, swearing, and jokes about genital size are the norm. Benjamin K. Hi Jesse, Somewhat confused about the 'when not to use' part, having trained in various styles and forms over 23 years, and currently in shotokan, I've seen Japanese seniors of both men and women using this phrase fairly commonly, although always in a karate context and not outside the dojo.

True I think western culture has taken it a bit far in the usage, often an instructor might describe a technique, and ask Osu? I mean, they go on forever about what not to do on stances, punches, kicks, other forms of dojo etiquette, surely if it was as bad as you are trying to make out in this article someone from some style somewhere in Japan would say 'Hey guys, don't go around abusing this phrase Osu because it's bad mojo' or something?

What gives?? Jesse-san, great article. Now I can pass out a copy of this article rather than argue with my Shotokan, Kyukushinkai, Japanese based karate-ka friends. Yes, Jesse despite all that you heard I do have friends. Chinen Sensei did not use the term "OSU" in his classes and at times when outside visitors from other styles would visit the training session.

His explanation was always towards the Naval Officers view. His Dad was a WWII Naval Submarine Officer that rather than surrender at the end of the war they road the sub to the bottom and scuttled it, in turn killing everyone on board. His explanation was akin to US Navy officers moving through a crowded below deck hallway where sailors would place their backs to the wall and allow the Officer by.

Rather than returning a dozen salutes the Officer would say "Carry on" or "As you were". The use in the Japanese Subs were due to cramped quarters and officers were constantly rubbing shoulders with enlisted so the use of OSU which is a contraction showing seniority of the officer to the others. Please note that the older Ju Jutsu arts e. Daito Ryu or Sword Arts do not use this term. We're on Spring Break and I hooked up with a friend of mine who is a Sensei there.

They are Guju ryu. I went to train this morning for the first time at his Goju dojo where we are spending our Spring Break.

What I noticed, right off, were the use of traditional greetings and thank yous, etc. But then I had to really tune into the use of "Hai Sensei" after each and every instruction. It really didn't bother me I just had to switch over because we use Osu in our school. Not quite as much though. For me, I think that when we train in our own school, we do as the Sensei directs. And when we train in someone else's school, we do what they do. Being in the US, this does not create the kind of problems it might in Okinawa.

One of the reasons that I use Osu in my classes, is that we are connected to a high school and the majority of my students are 14 - 18 years old. I would much rather hear a student acknowledge my comment or instruction with "Osu" instead of "Sure" or "Yea.

On a funny note, I heard someone try to use Osu as a yes at a Japanese restaurant once. Charles F Quimby. March 30, at pm.

Great effort, Jesse! For me, it really always comes down to the sincerity and spirit of the term's usage. The intent, what feeling and message was behind the words, is often more important than the words themselves.

But we are complicated beings, aren't we? Mike Martinez. March 31, at am. That is by far the most thorough explanation of "Osu" I have had the pleasure of reading.

I was taught, as you mentioned, Osu has many meanings. However, in our traditional Japanese Karate style, Osu is most often used to convey the "keep pushing" meaning. In other words, it is used to encourage the student not to quit on themselves. Dan Soller. March 31, at pm. Some words transcend their original meanings and become martial arts school specific; in the Phoenix Way school, based on Kyokushin, the simple word represents the philosophy of the Association.

Without it, and the understanding of its meaning to push on and constantly seeking human depth, our training would lack true budo purpose.

Good piece and debate. My best. OSU Dan Soller. April 1, at pm. Genial que haya debate, un gran post, felicidades Sr. En otras palabras, lo utilizamos para estimular al estudiante. Gracias, creo recordar que es mi primer comentario. Mariano Chantal. When I was a kid in the dojo I attended the tradition was to say "hai" for "yes teacher" or to say "I got it"" as a reply to the question "wakarimasu ka", I mean in case one actually did understand the explanation.

Well, if you wanted to be very formal "wakamrimasu" and "wakarimasen" was OK to be used too, but I never did, it was more like a thing that the "diehard fans of the movie Shogun used. So that "hi" kinda stuck with me to this day, it might be just as wrong as saying osu, but it is an easy way to get over with the talking and continue with the doing.

So I just use hai. Except when I talk to an echte Japanese instructor, to them I say "yes sir". They seem to like more a native polite version than a half assed Japanese. April 2, at pm. April 5, at am. Theory 4, It is an international word that is nearest to the natural sound a gentleman makes when you kick him in the balls and he doesn't want to cry in front of you.

It also works when you have been punched in the solar plexis and it is about the only word you can manage to say as you try to re inflate your lungs, like your key word in transcendental meditation. I suppose shiiiiiiittttt!!!!!! April 6, at am. June 24, at am. Great article and great comments, the article about OSU?? July 16, at pm. BJJ community too uses the phrase oss. I asked him about this oss thing. He told me that it started as a joke but now every body uses it.

The host of the show began every single episode by saying oss. Bernardo told it was a funny thing and soon it became a phenom. It spread via twitter and facebook rapidly. Everybody was posting pictures and commented by saying oss etc. I dont mind saying oss among bjjcommunity because the meaning is different. Maybe this was helpfull? February 3, at am.

It's interesting how the word began to be used in BJJ. At one of the seminars, there was a large contingent of Kyokushin students. And when Professor Carlos would explain something or say something the Kyokushin students would do what they do and respond with a very polite "Osu. And Carlosinho must have like the idea of it because he took that back to Brazil and introduced it to his own schools. That was an influential move, Carlos Gracie Jr being who he was.

The Kyokushin guy visited Carlosinho's academy in LA a few years later and was happy to see it was used as standard practice there and, it turns out, at many, many other BJJ schools worldwide. Richard Ganey.

January 31, at am. Jessie, thanks for the great article. The writing was witty and spot on. I was raised in a traditional Japanese Dojo where the "word which will not be spoken" was never ever used. I knew it existed but it had never entered my ears other than an occasional 80's B rated Karate flick.

Really enjoyed the read. Domo arigato gozaimasu. Adrian J Pullin. February 5, at pm. I did some karate about 30 years ago and returned to it about 18 months ago when my son wanted to try it.

On returning after such a long gap, there are a few things that I did not recognize and "Oss" was one of them. I do not remember it at all from 30 years ago. We used to just say "Yes" or "Yes Sensi". Does anyone know if this is because "oss" is a more recent thing or is it may fading memory that is at fault?

My view is that I do not speak Japanese so I do not say "Oss". Yes, I use the Japanese names for techniques but then I use the Italian name for spaghetti because there isn't an English word for it and the English translations of karate techniques are so clunky that the Japanese is much easier.

March 16, at pm. Joel Quebec. April 9, at am. I think that whatever country you live and train in, use that language. There are millions of Japanese language speakers that can't kick, punch or strike, but they can speak Japanese very well.

The same with Chinese, Korean, etc. There is too much language misuse and unnecessary mysticism associated with the languages. April 17, at pm. April 27, at pm. Should I explain it to my sensei or is it ok if we keep using it like that? July 28, at pm. Do you mind if I quote a couple of your articles as long as I provide credit and sources back to your webpage?

My blog site is in the very same niche as yours and my users would definitely benefit from some of the information you present here. Please let me know if this ok with you. A Black Belt at June 24, at pm. Osu you nerd. BTW, thanks. I had searched years ago for this sort of information and could find nothing.

Thomas Kilian. Hi Jesse, Thanks very much for this article. So can I assume that you mean Japanese women? A black belt at Words only mean what they mean in that context. Around our dojo and crowd, OSU means hello and "I'm one of you" or " you are one of us". Thanks for telling us about what this word means elsewhere. Of course, they'd probably not even recognize the word the way we pronounce it.

I'm from Germany so I used OSS as this is the common spelling here and it's pronounced more like Ous as you mentioned somewhere else. I and probably most people in out dojo used it the way like in the theories described above 1 "Yes, Sir sensei!

What I was not aware is the fact that it looks like all these terms sound the same but have a different origin. Anyhow, I'd like to know whether Jesse's "don't use it with women" aims to women in general or Japanese women.

July 29, at am. Great article. Though I dont pracrice Karate, I do practice kendo here in Japan. I think the Ohayougozaimasu theory is a big one. Most verbs and sentences end in a masu or desu sound that comes out as an elongated s. I've practiced at a lot of japanese dojo and university clubs and I usually only here people say osu, or asu, 'su in the university dojo. Some adult males use it but only with their old buddies.

And never women. The students take something like arigatougozaimasu and make it asu or azas, and Otsukare sama deshita becomes otsukare'su Since I practice a lot, I once made the mistake of replying to a female friend of mine with osu instead of onegaeshimasu, it's like saying yeh instead of certainly miss.

So I think folks should be mindful that the word they are saying has an unclear origin, as well as a possible meaning in japanes, a language with a lot of layers.

July 29, at pm. I don't believe that people should be responsible for the hidden historical overtones of a word. Example: "Goodbye" - I believe that it derived from "God be with you. As an atheist, should I avoid the term and take umbrage when my well-meaning friends mark by departure with a well-intentioned: "Goodbye"?

I don't think so. But, as a contrasting example which illustrates another point. There are terms in our language which convey current significant biases and these should be avoided at all costs. For instance, "boy" used the wrong way.

And terms like, "run like a girl" or you "hit like a girl. Jesse, Thanks for the incredibly well researched historical and cultural insight into the term and of course, in some places in the world, be careful of its use. But for those of us who have enormously enjoyed and benefited from training in American karate schools, derivative of foreign martial art schools, I don't think we need to shoulder any social responsibility for minor affectation of using a few foreign terms.

I would like, as long as some of you are willing to engage in a nerdy discussion of the implications of language and hidden overtones, like to raise the question of throwing around the word "McDojo. Aren't you being a lot more overtly "judgy" in the use of that term than the innocuous "Osu"? Great article I became tired of this term many years ago, and have remained silent since. It is a crude attempt of instructors and students to sound "Japanese" I guess. Kind of goes along with calling people "hanshi, shihan, kyoshi", etc, but that is another topic Andrea Harkins.

August 1, at pm. Well, to each his own. Whatever your school promotes, your Sensei wants you to say, or you feel compelled to say as a form of true thanks or appreciation is just about o.

Like anything, many practitioners have diverted from traditional arts and words into a more current Westernized version. I can think of a lot worse things to say than "OSU! Thanks for the research. I absolutely always learn something great here! August 13, at pm. I already made my comment on this one elsewhere, but am itching to comment again.

People still seem to not understand the meaning of OSU. Let's ask some questions here, "Who's to say that it is right or wrong to use it? As a matter a fact it is a part of official IKO dojo etiquette. Obviously Masutatsu Oyama made it official and his followers continue the tradition. Is someone here saying that Kyokushin or Shotokan karate is a Mcdojo art?

I sure hope not. Thanks to Funakoshi Gichin and later other masters from Okinawa, we now can enjoy the "Modern Karate" as we know it, perhaps watered down a little bit, but nevertheless a beautiful art.

Let's NOT forget the true meaning and essence of "Budo" which is "Perfection of character of it's participants" We fight against one enemy - "our self" and Mcdojos :- of course and OSU is a good reminder of it. The meaning of OSU is "Oshi Shinobu" Endure under pressure so as long as it is correctly understood, there is nothing wrong with using it.

It is a reminder to oneself to push through and never give up. It has a very deep meaning to those who understand it. Let's not disrespect here those karatekas who's OSU is a part of their style's school tradition. There's a time and place for everything.

But of course OSU as anything else for that matter is being misunderstood and widely abused, especially by Mcdojos and Martial Art's wannabies. I constantly remind and educate my students about it's meaning. Rob T. Not my real name. February 4, at am.

I know this comment is 3 years old, but I just came onto this page today and read it - and I'm sure many others will be recent and future readers too, so I'm going to go ahead and reply anyway. You do realize that actual Japanese people use "Hai" all the time. It's part of their language, like "OK" or "Alright" is in English. It's the most natural, and actually quite respectful. On the contrary, "Osu" is highly irregular in regular polite Japanese conversation.

As a native Japanese speaker, I never use it. Also because I'm a woman. It just doesn't make sense if I use it. I'll explain more in detail below. Keeping it strictly in the dojo is fine, but outside of the dojo, it's not something to just throw around.

You might as well be calling everyone you meet on the street and your boss and a client a "bro" and going, "Heyyyy Hey, it's still in English, and an American band totally said it's right. But then be prepared to get a lot of strange looks if you just randomly start saying "Whoop Whooop! November 15, at pm. Thank you for sharing simle truth. More than a year later when i read this post November , you brought the words back into perspective without "McDojo" jibes.

Japan has given us much, much more than karate; hosted so many nations including the Rugby World Cup - thank you! Thank you for sharing a simple truth. More than a year after you replied, i read this post November , and you brought perspective without "McDojo" jibes.

Japan has given us much, much more than karate; hosted so many nations including the Rugby World Cup - Arigato. Joe Ward. September 14, at pm.

Not sure why it took so long to enter into the conversation. What I did notice was that the term was mainly used by senior dans when greeting their juniors. September 16, at am. After uttering the sacred word "OSU", for a number of years, I decided that because of how we over used it, I would just stop saying it until such time as I felt it could be reintroduced into my dojo conversations.

It is now more than 30 years since I last used the sacred word and still counting. Maybe someday, when the time is right, I will again say "OSU". September 17, at am. I agree and tend to use hai as a response never as a kiai.

My Shotokan Sensei i do Shotokan and Shito-Ryu is a fan of osu and will respond sparingly to appease him but also use mostly hai in his dojo as well. I have been fortunate to attend some of Fumio Demera's workshops in the past. Due to his health issues he did a speaking seminar for us last time about the benefits of karate. He got onto the topic of osu and said in nice words that the use of it was rather low brow.

There is definitely a rough element of Japanese practitioners who use the word. He said that the use of hai was 'classier'. That sort of substantiated what I thought to be the reason for hai being used in some of the dojo's in Japan. I admit to being probably a pain to my Sensei's though as I always ask about these things and don't like to do things blindly without knowing what the reason is for it. September 18, at pm. Excellent explanations. I tend to prefer nodding especially if I have a mouth guard in.

I hope they don't mind that I just prefer to be the shut up and train variety of person. Michael Magee. October 12, at am. Thank You! I came looking for this and got what I needed. But I will still say Osu! Coming from a Kyokushin school with 17 years of training and a Nidan, I will say that "Osu" first is a sign of respect. We bow onto the mat tatami and we bow to the Shihan or Sensei.

We use it to show respect to our Masters and Elders. Yes, we do mean "I understand", and "Do you understand". But first is respect. October 13, at pm. It is a senseless term that really has no meaning, other than the meanings applied to it by overly conditioned karate students and instructors.

I mean really? Does it make us feel like we belong to an exclusive club or fraternity? Why not use terms that are actually from a dictionary? I am not criticizing those who use it October 23, at pm. Hello to all Karate nerds an Jesse-san Great article And I think that this lesson should be one of the first to be taught in a dojo, otherwise we'll never be able to improve the future karate-kas and that is our duty as karate nerds I've always answered my Sensei with Oss..

But now I see that is a lot of different meanings and the best choice is to for sure do what your Sensei expects meaning respect but knowing that this is not the best answer So, we're still on the old OSS topic?

Here is my third contribution to this conversation: Many years ago, a Japanese Judoka who had visited the karate class I was teaching. After observing our use of the word or term OSS, he informed me that this was not considered polite in mainstream Japan , and that it was never considered a word, and he mentioned that it was a method of response among the military of Japan during war years between soldiers or navy men and their commanding officers.

October 24, at am. In that respect it's one valid use to bow against your sensei telling him that you understood and will give your best. Not much different to what the full-contacters express their kick-ass attitude ;-.

November 15, at am. I've only used this term when first greeting a martial artist whose spirit I respect, usually with a small head nod. Recently, I listened to an instruction on youtube and it was used as a catch-all are you with me, boys? In our style Hapkido any noises are made as an exercise of ki Qi.

Many schools today yell hai, but they're only using their voice box. In a true practitioner you can hear the G utterance of ki. Said in the company of recognized practitioners, it is both a proclamation and recognition of shared respect. Dave G. December 15, at pm. I didn't think so. Rank applies within an organization. Status applies within the mind.

There are ways to say that a well-spoken person should be conscious of the effect of their words, without descending into a pecking order mentality. To say it sounds a bit rough and martial for the family room is probably enough.

Sean Fitzpatrick. January 7, at am. Osu was ubiquitous in my Kyokushin days January 11, at am. I might get to meet our Soke, Iwao Tamotsu this year, so I'm glad to have read this article before that. January 12, at am. Actually there is nothing wrong with using ossu, in the culture martial arts, especially where it is the norm. As an analogy, people might stand up and shout various things at a football match which would be inappropriate at a ballet. Ossu is fine, in Karate and Judo and Yoshinkan Aikido dojos.

A masonic handshake might be lost on a girl scout. Personally, I'm 30 years in Japan, and in three martial arts. In one, Ossu is encouraged in our dojo, like a secret code. In another, Ossu is never used but I do But and this post is in reply to JayRay , it isn't a universal greeting as much as it is a statement of affirmation. It passes for a greeting in some dojo cultures but more polite would be to say, if off the mat, "Hello, sensei" or if in the morning, "ohayogozaimasu sensei" or first time on the mat, "yoroshiku onegaishimasu sensei".

These are greetings. On the other hand when being corrected or instructed, especially in martial arts, ossu is appropriate, unless you are at a dojo where nobody ever says it, ever, and even then it is probably fine. The non-martial way to say "yes", "understood" would be "hai".

However, please know that in some situations, in some teacher-student or sempai-kohai martial arts hierarchies, "hai" can sound flippant. I say CAN, not definitely, and certainly dependent on the disposition of your sempai. The reason is that many less than disciplined folk say "hai" without thought and without meaning to comply or without gratitude. Well, it isn't uncommon.

Slight intonations, if you were to draw out the "hai" as "haaaaai" or use a falling tone, could even make you sound rebellious and cheeky. There is a lot in tonality. It was founded and began use in Japan. One theory comes from Dr. Mizutani speaks about an experiment with people in returning greetings. However, the jury is still out if this is the reason it was adopted into karate. It is very important word used within dojos of Japan, when asking of instruction or help from a senior student or teacher.

Judd Reid is well known within Kyokushin Karate. He is a champion in full contact karate and much sought after teacher. I asked Shihan Judd Reid recently his thoughts on Osu and he had this to say:. When people start kyokushin karate, or start to go to kyokushin tournaments, their first introduction to karate etiquette and Japanese vocabulary is the word Osu.

Osu is a very powerful word. All you here from the student is Osu. They answer it loudly and sharply with no hesitation. The fighter installs belief within himself that he will succeed. Osu is a humbling word too. There is etiquette obviously in the dojo, and when and how to use Osu is no different. There is debate not only on the origins of the word, but also on when and when not to use it.

I have many Japanese friends, some of whom are female. I brought this up in conversation with them and their response was that it was nonsense. My very good friend Nori who is a karateka from Japan uses the term with me a lot. He is younger than me, but higher in rank. Even when he texts me about meeting for dinner, he will end the text in OSU! For him, he tells me, it is a sign of respect for his friend and fellow karateka.

But, they told me that female karateka in Japan freely use it in the dojo and to one another, regardless of gender. Viewed 17k times. I am training at a Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy, and their use of the word "Oss" is ubiquitous.

What is the etymology and meaning of "oss"? Improve this question. Be aware of not to use "Oss" when addressing elderly people or someone upper rank from you. It would be very disrespectfull. In Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, it is used freely, often regardless of rank or age. But here, I believe you mean Japanese culture and martial arts, yes? I would recommending removing your own research from the question and adding it as its own answer here, as in your original post on Martial Arts SE.

Add a comment. Active Oldest Votes. Improve this answer. Community Bot 1. Dan Dan 36 2 2 bronze badges. To add a way to diffenrentiate the "Oss" and " 'ss" the people using the " 'ss" in the morning as a greeting would switch to "' 'wa" in the afternoon for Konnichiwa but people using the actual "Oss" would stick to it in the afternoon.

I was not aware of the morning greeting, nor those resources. That has helped solidify my research. Thank you. However, there also seems to be a common essence shared among them all. Following another's suggestion, I've moved my findings into an answer.

I had done this previously, but it had been down-voted, and I had deleted it, thinking I'd done something wrong. But undeleting and resurfacing this as an answer, as the comment above suggests.

Nick Blanchard Nick Blanchard 11 3 3 bronze badges. Sign up or log in Sign up using Google.