Black Belt Design
Because of the difficulty of ordering the length and weight of the belt, the embroidery (including the embroidery color, the name of our style in kanji and the student’s name in karakana) and the addition of the small logo we ask that you leave the ordering of black belts to Kaichō Sue and Frank Crow. They will order black belts through Kataaro, an American company based in Indiana. The company employees are very helpful and the belts arrive exactly as ordered – no surprises. They cost about $125.
KATAARO
512 E COMMERCIAL AVE
LOWELL, IN 46356
PHONE: 815.846.1128
EMAIL: INFO@KATAARO.COMKataaro
WEBSITE: https://www.kataaro.com/
The official black belt will have 沖縄孝武流空手道 (Okinawa Kōburyū Karatedō) embroidered on one side and the student’s name in katakana on the other. A student may wish to have both a karate and a kobudō belt, but this is not required. The belt will say karatedō unless otherwise requested.
As the designer, Kaichō Sue will do her best to include the student’s first and last names on the belt. However, since American names can be quite long in katakana, occasionally she may need to include the last name only.
Note: The circular symbol is a patch available from Kataaro. Because of its small size it is woven rather than embroidered. The patch adds $5.50 (or less if purchased in quantity) to the cost of the belt.
View the Designs
Shodan Through Yondan
The achievement of shodan through yondan is recognized by a black belt with gold writing. The gold writing is also matched by gold writing on the uniform. No new uniforms are necessary, since theuniform already displays gold writing.
Godan and Shihan
The achievement of godan is recognized by a black belt with red writing. The red writing is also matched by red writing on the uniform. A new uniform for karate and/or kobudō will be required because of the change in embroidery color. The designation of shihan Is not reflected in the obi design.
Advanced Dan Levels and Honorifics
The achievement of rokudan and above is recognized by a black belt with red writing and the addition of stripes. The number of stripes indicates the honorific as follows:
| 6th | Renshi | Rokudan | One red stripe |
| 7th 8th | Kyōshi | Nanadan Hachidan | Two red stripes |
| 9th 10th | Hanshi | Kyūdan Jūdan | Three red stripes |
Note: Kataaro offers the ability to add stripes without requiring the purchase of a new belt.
Hanshi – Alternative
The achievement of kyūdan and jūdan can also be represented by a red belt with black embroidery. There are no stripes but the kanji for hanshi (範士) is embroidered above the person’s name.
