Shihan

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This page is about the Japanese term. For the poet Shihan, see Shihan van Clief. For other uses see Shihan (disambiguation).

Shihan (師範, Shihan^?) is a Japanese term, often used in Japanese martial arts as an honorific title for expert or senior instructors. The term is frequently used interchangeably with English terms such as "master instructor".

Various martial arts organizations have different requirements for the usage of the title, but in general it is a high title that takes many years to achieve. It is sometimes associated with certain rights, such as the right to give out black belt (dan) ranks in the name of the organization. However, the title is generally distinct from the black belt ranking system (dan'i).

While westerners want to know specifically what makes a person into a shihan, the process of becoming a shihan can be rather abstruse in Japan. For instance, within the Bujinkan it has been said that you become a shihan when the other shihan start calling you a shihan.

The use of the term is completely style or organization specific. In Japan for instance, within judo a Japanese teacher automatically became a shihan at sixth dan. One could say your promotion to sixth dan comes when you are ready to be called shihan. In other organizations, for example Shodokan aikido, the title is organizational and less strongly correlated to rank.

[edit] See also

• Japanese honorifics
• Dojocho