Customer Reviews

Tuttle Dictionary of the Martial Arts of Korea, China & Japan

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

There aren't that many martial arts dictionaries to begin with, but this one is really quite nice. It has a 6"x4" form factor and is a little under an inch thick. At 318 pages and 7000+ definitions, it packs quite a punch and I've found it very handy.

Definitions are given with their Language of Origin (Japanese, Okinawan, Korean, Cantonese, Mandarin) and includes pronunciation guides for the same. As far as printing, it's on quality paper with a clean font and the printing is quite exceptional compared to a lot of rag books that seem to pop up in the MA world.

With this many definitions, it covers a lot of ground. I wouldn't mind it including more phrases, especially terms from particular styles. However, when it does have phrasing, it tells you if it's commonly used, or particular to a given style of MA.

I love the size and it's a nice addition for any student. Certainly it's worth it's price. One might think it would be helpful to include the native language pictograms, but with multiple languages, this could be confusing. Those typically take up a lot of space and for the most part, English speaking martial artists don't tend to need that information. If you do, I recommend you pick up an accompanying dictionary for the language you need.

I lament only one thing about this book, and it's why I can't give it a 5. Although the pages of the book themselves are bound and cut very nicely, the cover gluing is brittle and the cover came off of mine amost immediately with use. It's hanging on by the edge of the front cover, and I'm certain I'll need to glue this up on my own to repair it. I may have simply been unlucky. Either way, it can be fixed and shouldn't detract from your consideration to purchase this book.

Easy to find words and handy size to keep in your Karate bag. Doesn't cover all but does a good job covering most of the common names. Has blank page at the end to make notes. Well worth the money.