Aikido Demographics: A Special Report

An Introduction to the Report, by Josh Gold

As I sat down to create this report, I was saddened to revisit the data from our 2019 survey that would be the central focus of this article.  I wondered how publishing it might impact the morale of the aikido community in a time of crisis. I was hesitant to bring more bad news at a time when things are worse for the martial arts than they’ve been in our lifetime. But in the end, I decided this is the right time to publish the report.

I believe that as we look ahead to the end of the COVID-19 pandemic, it’s important we know where we stand, what assets we have, and what challenges we will face as we begin to emerge from the global crisis that has prevented us from training and operating our dojos in the ways we’ve all known for our entire lives. 

Because data is critical to effective decision making, we want to make sure everyone in the aikido community has access to the available data about our demographics in order to form their own insights, ideas, and theories about how we arrived at our current state, and what perspectives and actions should be taken to preserve and advance our art. This is an ideal time for us to reposition for the future.

And although I was saddened as I began putting together this special report, by the time it was finished, I was encouraged and optimistic. Yes, things are bad. But I believe we are at an inflection point for our art.  I view this as a time for new beginnings, where great opportunity lies ahead.

The trajectory of aikido’s popularity and its health have been undeniably in decline. But I believe that the core of our community has been forged so strongly, and developed such adaptive capacity through the pandemic, that we’ll be well equipped to find ways forward that bring new life and meaning to the art of aikido in the 21st century. 

Please note that in this report, I’ve added Aikido Journal’s perspective and interpretation of some aspects of the data. However, we’ve made every effort to present the data itself clearly and objectively so you can draw your own conclusions.

I’d like to extend a special thanks to Adam Pilipshen and Josephine Fan of Long Island Aikikai for their diligent and professional work in helping us clean and organize the survey data, Mario Sapienza for creating the infographics for this report, and to everyone who responded to our 2019 survey.

Josh Gold, Executive Editor // Aikido Journal 


About the Survey

  • Performed in February 2019*
  • 2,214 validated respondents
  • 85% or respondents are active practitioners

*Statistics are pre-pandemic (unless otherwise noted). We know our numbers have declined in 2020, although it’s not clear how those losses may have altered the demographic landscape reflected in our survey data. 


Interest Levels in Aikido: 2020

This data, sourced from Google, provides an important backdrop for viewing our demographics. Interest levels in aikido have declined 93% since 2004. Note that this chart does not represent the number of practitioners over time, but global search trends. Interest levels in aikido have been declining at least 10% / year. Anyone interested in playing with the Google Trends data can do so here

We will need a major catalyst to reignite interest in aikido, but this is well within our reach. Digital communication is frictionless. If we can find ways to make aikido interesting enough to new groups of people that they talk about it online, interest levels can rise rapidly. Budo Accelerator, a new aikido-based nonprofit, was able to recruit more high school students from around the country than it could handle for its 2020 online summer programs. This is one example of many, where we are finding new ways to connect with different parts of society around the globe. It takes time to build dojos and train teachers, but interest in aikido can scale rapidly if we can show the world why it’s worth paying attention to.


Demographics

Our survey polled teens and adults only. There are many young kids in children’s programs around the world, but as they enter teenage years and young adulthood, most disappear from the art.  A clear conclusion that can be drawn is that our community is aging out. This has been observed anecdotally by many teachers and students and our data confirms this to be the case. In the U.S only 4.8% of practitioners are under the age of 30.

With the rare exception, a look at photos from most aikido seminars will show a group of enthusiastic but mature practitioners. As one example, we’ve included a shot from the Doshu Moriteru Ueshiba seminar hosted by the California Aikido Association in September 2019. This was the largest aikido seminar held in the U.S last year. There were young people on the mat, but they were few and far between.

Doshu Seminar: San Francisco, CA 2019. An aging demographic.

It’s also clear that the United States in particular has struggled to attract and retain young people as aikido practitioners. There are many theories why this is the case. We don’t have enough data to draw conclusions, but do know that there is a significant delta between the United States and other areas of the world in terms of the age of practitioners. Only 1.9% of our U.S survey respondents are age 25 or younger, with 81% over the age of 40. 

…ideally serious training should start at about 15 or 16. Physically speaking, the body frame becomes sturdier and the bones somewhat stronger at that age. Besides, aikido contains many spiritual aspects (of course, so do other forms of budo), so at that age one begins to acquire a perspective of the world and of the nature of budo. So, all in all, I would say 15 or 16 is a good age for beginning the study of aikido.

-Kisshomaru Ueshiba, 1957 interview translated by Stanley Pranin

It seems imperative that we revitalize our dojos and organizations with a new generation of aikido practitioners. The bad news is that as a community- at a macro-level, what we’ve been doing over the last 15 years has not been working. The good news is that there are success stories (like Tenzan Aikido in Seattle with a youth program 200 strong), and some promising new initiatives are being explored, like Aikido for Tomorrow. Our success stories can serve as case studies that can be replicated, and we can throw full community support behind the initiatives that can make the biggest impact in engaging youth. A new wave of teens and young adults will bring new life to our dojos, and new perspectives that can benefit us all.

We don’t know how gender ratios look in other martial arts, and it’s quite possible that aikido is a progressive leader among the martial arts in this area. However, most agree that more can be done to move towards gender balance in the art of aikido. Due to the nature of our principles and practice methods, there should be no reason we can’t achieve better gender balance. 

For those organizations and dojos implementing diversity and inclusion policies and / or initiatives, we’d encourage collecting, analyzing, and reporting data in this area, as a way of establishing a baseline, measuring change over time, and determining the effectiveness of any efforts undertaken in this area. 

Ikazuchi Dojo, where Aikido Journal is based, has done just this, and from 2014-2019 went from 15% female to 45% female members. And while this is not commonplace, it’s also not an isolated case. Other dojos have had similar or greater success. Birankai North America, one of the larger U.S aikido organizations, lists six 7th dan shihan on their website. Five out of the six are female. If more within our community can move towards gender balance, we’ll create a more diverse community and drive tremendous member growth. If a dojo can transition from 16% to 50% women, without losing male members at a greater rate than usual, membership increases by nearly 70%.

Across the United States aikido community, Asians and whites are overweighted while Latinx and blacks are underrepresented. However, aikido is also overrepresented with mixed individuals, which likely contain many people from our underrepresented ethnic groups. Despite being overweighted in the “mixed” ethnicity, those individuals still don’t come close to creating an ethnic landscape that reflects the U.S general population. 

As with gender, we don’t know how other martial arts compare in this area. And it’s important to understand that each local community has its own ethnic makeup and every dojo shouldn’t expect to have a student population that mirrors the general U.S. population. We do believe, however, that it’s important to note this imbalance at a macro level, and that individual dojos would be well served to look at the demographic composition of their local community vs. their dojo student population. 

As with gender, there are major segments of our society that are largely absent from aikido. If we can find ways to engage them and bring them into the art, we will end up with a stronger and more diverse community, and many new practitioners.

It’s clear that those who started aikido decades ago have stuck with it. They are resolute and dedicated to the art. However, we now have an inverted pyramid where senior level / experienced practitioners far outnumber newer students. For example, for every new student (less than 2 years of practice) there are 4 senior level practitioners with over 16 years experience. 

While this is a negative indicator of our past performance in attracting and retaining new practitioners, it does show a strong capacity of experienced practitioners to mentor new students- if we can find ways to engage them with aikido. Interest in aikido can scale rapidly, but developing quality instructors takes time. One advantage we have at this moment in time, is that if we can scale interest in aikido, we have more than enough teaching capacity to accommodate growth. 

Those who do practice aikido are a dedicated bunch – 70% of us train 4+ hours per week, which reflects a pattern of taking 2-4 classes / week on average.  


Conclusions

Let’s face it – aikido wasn’t in great shape before the pandemic. Now things are worse. 

Some thought leaders in the budo world believe that a shrinking aikido ecosystem can be a good thing; that it can create a contraction into quality. This is no longer theoretical.  Many casual practitioners are gone, but the strongest and most passionate of us remain- and we have been tested in a trial by fire. I believe we shouldn’t look at this data with despair, but as an opportunity and a challenge that has been issued upon us. One that we are ready to face. 

There is much to be done ahead. We must continue our training and uphold the principles and traditions of aikido. We must preserve quality. We must innovate. We must rebuild our infrastructure, find ways to attract a new generation into the art, and create a more meaningful place for aikido in today’s world. 

Not everyone needs to participate in all of these important initiatives, but together we must develop and pursue varying strategies, learn from each other, put support behind our most promising efforts, and be open to questioning our own assumptions, beliefs, and practices. Most importantly, we must continue to train- to practice and embody the techniques and principles of aikido, to build friendships, and to enjoy the art we love.

We hope this data will provide insights that can guide our decision making and our efforts to make the art of aikido shine more brightly than ever before.  We have a great opportunity before us and new beginnings ahead.  

I am convinced that it is our most important priority to pass on to the future in the best possible way, the aikido that the Founder created. For such purpose, those who are engaging in the propagation of aikido, including myself, must give our utmost efforts.

– Moriteru Ueshiba, 2019

Infographics by Mario Sapienza. Email him here, or check out his portfolio here.

Josh Gold

Executive Editor of Aikido Journal, CEO of Budo Accelerator, and Chief Instructor of Ikazuchi Dojo.

45 comments

  • Great analysis. Aikido has always sort of been an underdog in martial arts for certain reasons. Aikido is for everybody but not everyone is for Aikido. Keep up the excellent work AJ!

  • I really believe that technical aikido as taught in general comes no where near what O-Sensei developed. I think Tohei had the right idea (though I am an Iwama Aikido student) and aikido classes should embrace self learning about body and mind and which transcend the need for a partner, dojo or tatami. wellness and consciousness, of mind and body are valuable life assets. They are addictive in that any one who has found them will never want to abandon them. Technical aikido becomes a form in which they can develop but is not the answer. Always do what you always did … and you’ll always get what you always got’ Extend ki … there are no limits. I have come to this conclusion after 45 years of aikido and twenty plus of tai chi. I wish you all well in difficult times, Richard

    • Hi Matthew,
      Your use of the term neo-marxist suggests you don’t understand why the term Latinx is used. Latinx is used because the term Latino/Latina comes from Spanish, which is a gendered language. The convention in Spanish is to use masculine nouns (eg. Latino) to describe plural groups that contain both genders. English speakers using Latinx use the term intentionally to counter the erasure of women and their perspectives. It is similar to the decision to use the term “police officers” instead of policemen to refer to large mixed gender populations.

      In an article highlighting the peril the art of Aikido faces, and that calls out the demographic disparities in who practices and benefits the art, it only makes sense to use accurate language to describe groups of people. Your reactivity to this language use suggests you may be off balance and need to recenter yourself in the knowledge that O Sensei created this art for the world, and using more accurate and inclusive language is consistent with that vision.

      • Hi, John. Your reply to Mathew is linguistically inaccurate. Speaking from a latin language country, the grammar that orients the gender use for plural nouns is clear and both culturally and formally accepted the implicit semanthic absortion of one gender by another. The whole formal and informal use of it, the classical and modern literature is completely according with it. The only use of the “x” option for gender neutralization on latin languages comes from ideological authors and purposes. Besides, if the word “latin” in english is already neutral, what would be the need to change its language only to ignore the grammar rules of it? So it is a valid point what Mathew said.

        • HI Danilo,

          So this is interesting. The term “Latinx” was not used with any kind of idealogical motivation. It’s been increasingly used as a gender neutral / inclusive term. What do you think is a better term to represent that demographic segment? We’re happy to look at using different terminology for various demo segments. Our goal is to use accurate terms that best describe a given demographic segment and are widely accepted by those within a given segment.

          • My two cents: just use the term “Latino” as in the Latino Community. It is understood by our community that it refers the the entire community regardless of gender. The term “Latinx”, is an american term that is in vogue right now with a small minority. In spanish grammar the male version of the word is used to reference a group of mixed gender. There is no need to deviate from that and creat or use terms that may have unintentional inherent political overtones.

        • Danilo,

          Thanks for the feedback here. We’ve been pretty busy with other projects but I did. get a bit of time to review a study by Pew Research on this topic. Seems like “Latino” is a better term to use right now since it is all gender inclusive and only 3% of Latinos use the term Latinx. Given that, we’ll use Latino for future demographic reports. Appreciate the well articulated perspective here.

      • Latinx is a war against all gendered language, which is a war against all romance languages, the languages that built and created western civilization. This is a covert form of anglo imperialism, its extremely offensive for you to impose your supposed values on the imposition of your cultural suppositions on others, including myself. Im Latin, call me latin, but dont put a stamp of oppression X over Latino, or any other word of my languages poetry of reality [Spanish, Italian, French]
        .

        • Thanks for your feedback on this. We got similar comments after we first published this report a couple years ago. We also looked at stats from Pew Research and the vast majority of Latinos do not prefer the term Latinx. This report was the last time we used that term and now use Latino…

  • Excellent report! Grateful that it has been done. One wish: number of active practitioners by country and number of active dojos. Even if we could know the U.S. data that would be wonderful! I am writing a book with my Shihan and this kind of data would be most helpful

    • Hi Catherine,

      Thanks for the feedback. Yes, it would be great to get data on practitioners and active dojos by country. Our survey data is self-reported from members of the community so we are unable to source the kind of data sets you outline. Not sure if it’s possible to get number of practitioners in the U.S., but some good data sets exist for France, for example. In terms of number of active dojos in the U.S. – that data is difficult to compile if we want to include non-Aikikai affiliated dojos (of which there are many). One thing we can look at though is number of dojos within the U.S. Aikikai affiliated orgs. That’s only one subset of the data you’re talking about but that info seems to be publicly available for all the orgs. We will likely include something related to this in a future report.

  • When I chart aikido, judo, krav maga and taekwondo in Google Trends they are all declining in parallel. There’s a temporary spike every four years for the summer Olympics with judo and taekwondo, but they immediately resume their downward trend. Those spikes appear to be fueled by spectator interest, and even that level of public exposure does not rescue them from quickly returning to shadow aikido’s trend line.

    The downward trend in krav maga counters the view that aikido is not sufficiently self-defense oriented. The downward trend in taekwondo seems to refute the idea that aikido is not kid oriented enough – kids classes being the primary target of the formidable taekwondo marketing machine. The downward trend in both judo and taekwondo also runs counter to the notion that just adding more aliveness, resistance or competition will provide a remedy.

    It might be tempting to blame laziness, but plenty of people still enjoy BJJ, yoga, crossfit, marathons, rock climbing and other physical activities. Aikido was much more popular than BJJ (in search interest) up until 2009 when the trend lines crossed. BJJ has enjoyed rising popularity ever since. So I don’t think laziness really explains it (although I’m sure Netflix and YouTube are some to blame!).

    I bring all this up because we don’t want to get stuck in the mindset of someone who gets dumped in a relationship who keeps asking themselves what they did wrong. It might be that we did nothing wrong. We just need to find someone who loves and appreciates us for who we are. And finding that perfect relationship means we need to get really clear about and accepting of ourselves and stop trying to appeal to the wrong person. We need to articulate a message and project an image that matches our product.

    Yoga has maintained huge interest – bigger than any MA including BJJ. According to a Yoga Journal and the Yoga Alliance survey from 2017 the majority of yoga practitioners are women (70%+) and most are between the ages of 30 and 60. There’s no reason to to think that Aikido cannot do very well by embracing a mature adult market segment. This doesn’t preclude having kids programs and many schools do very well with them. But there are also many products and services that serve purely adult demographics and do very well. In fact, these are often people with more spare time and expendable income than younger folks. If your dojo already contains a high constituency of mature students then these folks will feel right at home when they show up. It’s often better to find the one who’s gonna love you for you rather than blaming the world, blaming yourself or trying to bend the course of the zeitgeist to your favor. That being said, you should always continue to work on improving yourself too!

    • Philip,
      You make excellent points in your post especially in regards to embracing the demographics that Aikido works for, that being said there are things the art does many things ineffectively and a strong chain of events that have led to that decline as well as ways to combat it.

      Like you said with spectators dictating interest, All Martial Arts come with a sensational mysticism around them, the whole foundation of MA culture in the Western World truly comes off the back of Hollywood with the likes of Bruce Lee, Seagal, Chuck Norris, Van Damme, etc making things look cool and flashy and they kicked butt! Now for those time periods too and even today quite bluntly, most people don’t know how to fight. They don’t know how to truly throw punches or kicks, they’re not grappling, a foundational ability in any MA will tend to put you above someone completely untrained and that was fine for a time, but two key things happened within the last two decades that have changed the landscape of Martial Arts entirely, the internet and the rise of combat sports.

      One problem with all Martial Arts is the instructional dogma that people get locked into, “My style is 100% effective, and can stand against all others and never needs to adjust” but what happens to a species that doesn’t adapt to the environment? They die off. Aikido is largely unchanged since O’Sensei and will be because of that mysticism that surrounds him, but just like the videos of him throwing people, it’s people willing themselves to be thrown because they truly believe in it, that speak of circular energy is a dogma you try to line up with and that will force it to manifest, when you see pressure point knockouts by the likes of George Dillman or No Touch things again it’s participants willing those results, not real results and hands down if we were to put O’sensei in a ring with any modern Martial Artist, he would get thrashed. If the art doesn’t evolve past him to this current market, it will die entirely within the next few decades, he was not infallible, nor are his children.

      The rise of combat sports has spurned an interest in tons of different MA’s and rather than having to go to dojos and see firsthand and get absorbed in the culture and possibly become a victim of dogma, we also have the internet and many many different organizations broadcasting (especially in the last decade) to see these things put to real work, and shocker, most are not conducive to a combat situation.

      This isn’t limited to Aikido but many traditional MA and that will instantly move away the younger populace when you search “Aikido street fight” you’re either going to see something incredibly staged, or an Aikidoka who is confused as their techniques don’t work. Even as a self defense system it’s flawed and will generally only help you fair against the most untrained fighter considering the techniques are totally exaggerated, but chances are any amateur boxer will strike down or high school wrestler will out grapple a ton of traditional MA practitioners and in this day and age, more people are training and influential social media personas also play those videos on their streams and insult different MA’s directly as jokes which is absorbed into the culture.

      Krav Maga tends to go through its phases because it’s always broadcast “SPECIAL FORCES” but realistically to be certified in it isn’t that hard and it’s designed as a program with a start and end date, not something to cultivate year after year where Tae Kwon Do and Judo are focused around the competition aspect which has a lifespan for everyone before they can’t really keep doing it.

      Now BJJ (No-Gi especially), Thai Boxing, Greco-Roman Wrestling, Boxing, etc these all are proven methods of combat and self defense because they are the Jutsu, they cut to the core of the matter and are sciences on the human body and effectiveness. You cut out the dogma and train your body to grow stronger and your knowledge of how to manipulate it to an extreme and ultimately anyone who pushes themselves physically will develop mentally from these arts as a byproduct and those environments tend to be more conducive to a friendly gym based group regardless of rank rather than a hierarchal merit based system that creates a class society in traditional MA.

      While they’re all effective, they all come with a cost to the body which is why Yoga will always be more popular than all MA. It makes your body limber, unless there’s an accident you never leave sore, you develop core strength, natural endorphins flow and ease the body, and the meditative aspect mentally calms. If there’s a downside to yoga I’m hard to find it.

      Now Aikido does well for developing the body though especially the core and realistically if they were to either emphasize that more and make the focus about becoming in tune with your body in motion (as opposed to Yogas more stationary approach) dropping the notion of self defense, or adapt to becoming a true hybrid and updating their combat aspects along with it that would be the way I see a resurgence in the art coming about.

      • Great article! Cant wait the 2nd part. And some excellent comments!!.. other comments i dont like the gender/ethnicity subject- perspectiv though, I never had any of those mental rusted labels, and as practicioner think that is like showing your weak spot, keeping still at the wrong moment, and if it goes on in your mind… goes outwards too. As a mathematician can read the clustering with no further issues. I would say though that why they dont seem to be thinking in applying the inverse gender perspective for yoga practise “70% women” !

        Josh: That said, last year i think, in Federación Aikikai Argentina they made an Aiki Census here in Argentina, so i think that could bring more valuable data to your sample. You should get in contact with them to see if the could give you that.

        Thanks for the info, this is a year for change so you did well and perhaps with this article (id love to read the paper when finished) you set things in motion for a better in the Aikido an MA community, greetings from Argentina.

    • Thank you Josh. And thank you for your great work in this article. I might add that it’s good to remember that aikido, BJJ and judo are children of the same parent. One has shown wonderful abilities in the fighting world. Another goes to the Olympics and shows great sport. Another provides a way for people to explore existential issues, to develop physically and spiritually, to understand themselves and the world in creative new ways.

      It’s good to appreciate how wonderfully fruitful this tradition has been.  Japanese martial arts are siblings. And other arts are our cousins. All have their good points and share many common attributes. We don’t need to be envious of our brothers. We should be happy for them and celebrate each others accomplishments. We can all learn from each other and aikido has many fine points they can learn from as well. If we think we need to be like them then we betray the genius within ourselves. In the words of Thelonious Monk, “A genius is the one most like himself. “

      • Excellent point. I agree 100% that we will be well served by understanding aikido’s place in the larger martial arts ecosystem and being confident with its focus, strengths, and weaknesses. It’s a wonderful art and one that has brought me, and many others, so much value.

        Establishing a better understanding of, and connection with, other arts is something that can only benefit us. It can bring us more insights, friendships, understanding, and martial skill. Always great to hear from you Greenwood Sensei.

    • Philip — thank you for your perspective, and I appreciate your comments on the changing popularity trends in martial arts.
      I’m a bit of a data wonk, and you mention popularity of Krav Maga, BJJ, etc. Could you link to those sources?

    • Nicely put Phillip, yoga allows and encourages a self development that continues outside of class and creates a feeling of body mind consciousness which once found is hard to throw away. There is no reason why aikido should not do this too …. but for how and why it is taught … and you have to say, the people teaching it the way they perceive the art. Evidence in the survey might point to this. To understand aikido I really think we have to go outside it and see and feel what is available in other arts. Only my opinion.

  • I found this of great interest but disappointed that it said (A world survey) ye most of it you talk only about the USA?

    I have been saying for years we should incorporate teaching a mixture in the Dojo, Yoga, Tai-Chi, bodywork, Meditation. But putting it to my dojos in our organisation, they did not want to even think of it and just want to keep to teach Aikido. So of course with this “looking forward” Aikido will die out in 90% of the world.
    Without offering to offer more to the general public we cannot gain their interest.
    My advice is if you do not personally wish to study these other arts, find teacher to hair your dojos space and advertise it under one name like in Seatle. then you will grow. NOT Die-out?

  • There are several strategies, to improve memberships in The Aikido Community.
    One way would is to have demonstrations in High schools ,Fairs and Elementary schools.
    This will reinforce the beauty of Aikido, and even get the Senshi’s more enthused, to show his or her skills.
    The Senshi Could also visit local Police and Sheriff’s Departments to Demo the Art of self defense. The problem is,many people never heard of Aikido;
    Since MMA is En vogue it gets more visibility, the Community must find ways to engage.
    Social media, must be used more to show the way of Aikido.
    Or the the Art will unfortunately fade away.

    • There are Aikido classes for Seniors. I am over 70 yrs old, as is one of the other students in Aikido of Pittsburgh, prior to COVID. We have practiced Aikido for decades and do not want to stop just because we are older. As one of the best teachers at AoP said, as you watch the older senseis you see their movements get smaller and still more powerfull. . . . But I should admit that the isolation of COVID moved me to practice with a different school that mandated virtual practice. This school, founded by Shuji Maruyama Sensei, Kokikai, has many details of practice that are compatible with my old body. These include the primary position of the hands and possibly less emphasis on roles. In any case it is the goal of the instructor to meet the needs of the students, within the framework of Aikido. So there should be a place where older stiffer people can practice. I have seen 2 such dojos. I am not in extremely good shape!
      BWB, 3rd Dan, >25 yrs of practice

  • One thing that seems to be missing in aikido schools in more information on the 5 principals of aikido along with the the consciousness of the universe. More information on Mi-ai De-ai other than distance and time between two individuals as it’s given during training.

  • Una de las cuestiones que considero se debe replantear, (al menos por lo que, tengo conocimiento) es establecer programas de exámenes para niños/adolescentes, fomentar y estimular a todos los instructores que comiencen a enseñar a niños a partir de 6 años, creo que si se hace una estadística, son pocos los instructores que se animan a enseñar a niños de esas edad, es el semillero de nuestro arte marcial.

  • In my view no 18-20 year old will see a 65 -70 year old 7th dan chief instructor physically inspirational or a physical role model. We need 7th dans to be 40 year old athletes to attract 18 or so year olds. The answer to this problem is hidden somewhere in the tradition that most ‘mature’ instructors (particularly in the US), who are supposed to lead and inspire 18 year olds get their 7th dans at 65 or older.

  • Thank you for compiling this data. Aikido is at an inflection point right now, and either we revitalize the art and find ways to make it relevant or we disappear.

    To some extent there are forces at play outside of our control. What we can do is train hard, work toward making our practice the best it can be, and be ready when people come looking for something of value.

  • I think one way to reach a wider audience is through mass media. I still remember the excitement I felt after watching Seagal in “Above The Law”. Interest in aikido surged after the movie came out. The same thing is happening with Wing Chun after the Ip Man movies. It’s about time we have another movie where Aikido is prominently displayed!

  • Hi Josh,

    Thank you very much for that work.

    I have been studying Aikido for over 20 years and have a small Dojo in São Paulo, Brazil.
    I believe it is possible to link this article to the article by Robert Savoca – What Aikido is, what it is not, and why it is of value.
    I believe it is time for Aikido to break free from the common bonds of martial arts and especially the bonds of self-defense. Apparently, aikidoists have been little updated in the last 20 years, when I say that I do not mean that Aikido has to be modified, on the contrary, I believe that the perspective in which aikidoists and senseis keep Aikido, is that to need to be update. Even today it is possible to see people trying to attract practitioners through YouTube videos through demonstrations of “self defense”, knife defense, defense against firearms. Unfortunately, or fortunately, these demonstrations are conspicuously false and you can see an avalanche of derogatory comments. This needs to stop, we need to put Aikido in another perspective.
    I have used the human development perspective, Aikido as a tool for human development. On my YouTube channel – Canal.budo – and my website aikidogakko.com I try just talk (not demonstrate techniques) about ideas that involve Aikido and Japanese culture in a comprehensive perspective of art and culture, that make it possible to see Aikido as a practical and non-intellectual way of seeing oneself and developing with the help of another person through the perspective of symbolic combat, that is, we are not interested in the combat itself, whether or not it works in a “real situation”, but in the symbologies that combat can give us. This does not mean that we do not practice with vigor and martial thinking, but that we also understand that in these more than 20 years, none of my more than 50 old friends practicing martial arts has entered into a real combat.
    In this way, trying to attract practitioners through a mature perspective on the martial arts and not being stuck with old ideas, like the one that puts a function of self defense in Aikido, but thinking about an idea of ​​martial education, through conviviality and learning by another route, the corporal route.

    What Aikido is, what it is not. – I believe Ô Sensei made it clear that Aikido is not a faith in combat, in resolving situations through violence, but learning through the perspective of conflict and in this way transforming the universe in a large family.
    This was his utopia, so it is essential to stop spreading Aikido with illusory demonstrations of defense against firearms and knives, which only put the unsuspecting people at risk and denigrate the image of Aikido as Dô. In this sense, we are doing very well, 33% of practitioners have been cultivating the path for more than 30 years.

    Thank you one more time.

    • Andre,

      Great to discover your work. Love your videos!

      I’ve been thinking along the same lines for many years as well. And here in Toronto, Canada, I have been honoured to be a part of designing psychotherapeutic interventions that weave in much of Aikido practice and philosophy and also these days of bringing it into circles of men learning about conflict resolution and transformation in a more embodied way.

      I often wonder if O’Sensei dreamt of Aikido making into our everyday lives… the way we talk, garden, work, and relate to one another…

      Thanks for sharing your example!

  • I would like to suggest that one of the traits that is described as at least partially negative is really a strong positive. Consider that in much of the martial arts world, the vast majority of those who achieve a first dan or equivalent quit at that point, so that those arts are mostly mudansha, and in some arts, mostly children. The retention of large numbers of people in the yudansha levels of the art is really a profoundly important difference from many other arts for many reasons. You do allude to some of them as a positive, but I am suggesting that this characteristic deserves much more appreciation. Granted, it does make outreach to some demographics harder, but it is something that should matter and appeal to sincere budoka. The ratio of yudansha to mudansha, and inevitable fact that yudansha tend to be older means that Aikido is attractive and compelling enough to keep a relatively large number of practitioners from quitting at not only that first dan milestone, but for years and decades beyond. To my mind that is a very big thing and a very good thing, especially in contrast to those arts that have increasingly become regarded as an after school children’s game. (To be clear, I believe that those arts are themselves very poorly served by such developments, and the world of martial arts as a whole loses from them.)

  • I very much enjoyed your writing and research. I have been studying Aikido since 1985. As a law enforcement officer Aikido has saved my life on several occasions. I am still practicing but certainly don’t do falls like I use to, LOL. I remember when I started there were rows of students in the dojo. Now I’m lucky if I have five students. It is certainly a hidden art and I hope it does come back. Thank you for your research. I look forward to your next article

  • Great perspective, thanks a lot!

    I have a few remarks of caution, though, on interpreting this data. I think the real picture is not as gloomy as one might think:
    – I could be mistaken, but it seems this survey shows more the demographics of AikidoJournal readers & afficionados, rather than the general Aikido population. This could very well account for the high proportions of males and older / more experienced folk.
    – The experience level chart group clustering paints a distorted picture… to see a correct distribution, all age groups would have to have the same spread/number of years in them. So the first 3 points combined make 1-5 years experience, which is 24%, compared to the next group 6-10 years, with 17%, then 11-15 with 14%, 16-20 with 12%, and 21-25 is what? 26-30 is what? The incline to 33% paints a wrong picture… I guess the experience levels correctly clustered will decline nicely according to the started trend 17%,14%,12%… Hence, the pattern one would expect.
    – Also the exclusion of kids/young youths distorts the picture, age distribution, numbers versus general population, as well as experience levels.

    I can also only second some of the remarks made below from my experience where I live, concerning the general decline in all sorts of sports, MAs and other activities, in favor of screen time. The exception is things for improving body and mind health, due to increased need, i.e. Yoga, Meditation, Relaxation, Spirituality, Religion (eastern)… And I think Aikido includes much that could very well also speak to those crowds…

    O-Sensei made it pretty clear what he wanted Aikido to stand for, and martial effectiveness, combat, toughening to be able to survive, creating perfect Aikido-technicians, are not on that list. I second what Richard said below…

  • With the controversy and huge loss of membership within the single largest aikido organization in the U.S. (the United States Aikido Federation) over the past year and a half specifically, it seems there is an elephant in the room that no one wants to address – that one of the major factors in the decline of aikido among younger people is that they are more ethically/sociopolitically evolved than those running the hierarchical patriarchal structures that we largely require people to mindlessly join in order to practice aikido.

    Indeed, it was the USAF itself that refused a completely free goodwill offer of a data-gathering project strikingly similar to this one. The younger generations, in addition to having a greater awareness of the value of deliberate and thoughtful action to enhance diversity and inclusiveness in our communities, may also be more savvy to the banal manipulation tactics of the organizations that slide towards or deeply into territory of “high demand organizations” as the USAF does.

    There is so much circular talk about the practice and the community and the philosophy of aikido, which ignores the absolute self-absorption and abject greed of many of those running the show. The brass tacks are that those (predominantly old white men in the U.S. in particular, overwhelmingly old men throughout the aikido world period) who have attained status, power, and for the lucky few – a sizeable income from aikido do not want to give up even a sliver of that power. Of all the things killing aikido, the archaic and obsolete neo-colonialist structures that dominate the art are certainly at the top of the list.

    • It sounded loud and clear to me. Thank you Arielle for writing openly on such a complex subject. I do not believe that only the new generations have a clearer view of this agenda, but there is a laziness in the character of those who are not so young and want to maintain the status quo. We have to question from the smallest things, for example, why when the sensei speaks or explains, everyone should kneel before him and reverence him? (Countless times in a single encounter) What kind of power do we give that person over our bodies when we make such a gesture? Are the relationships between Sempai-Kohai healthy or most of the time abusive? Making the youngest go through a type of military test which they must show that they are up to the task. Anyway, we would have to go far on these issues. Sorry for my bad English. Once again I thank you for your words.

  • Aikido has in truth been technically, organizationally and spiritually dead for a long time – the survey reflects this.
    When aikido organizations – like religions and corporations become large and lucrative – they become corrupt, Now they are collapsing under their own weight, and greed. The pandemic is only accelerating their demise. I shed no tears.

    ” My shihan says…. ” reflects a childish attitude which has encouraged abuse, manipulation and very poor leadership. Perhaps the forced return to small – unaffiliated aikido clubs, without “master” worship will revive our art’s original inspiration, integrity and creativity.

  • We are Aikido Cantabria, a small Aikido school located in the north of Spain. Our activities go back more than thirty years. We practice Iwama style. Some years ago, we realized that the age of Aikido practitioners was getting older, so we decided to develop a plan to encourage the practice of Aikido in the youngest. In 2020 we reached 164 practitioners of which 70% are under 16 years of age.

    The classes for children do not follow the usual pattern in terms of format and content, but have been designed and developed specifically for children. Also, in addition to teaching classes in the two dojos we have, we have reached agreements with schools to teach Aikido classes as an extracurricular activity.

    Aikido is an activity that is very beneficial for children and parents are delighted.

  • Dear Mr. Gold. Thank you so much for pulling this together, this data is so important and it is the foundation to bringing the Aikido community together, regardless of styles and lineage.

    As a practitioner of Renshinkai Aikido, I too feel a sense of urgency. However, I also feel that maybe Aikido is exactly where it needs to be. Aikido is a martial art that revolves around love and with today’s fast moving world, it is not surprising that people are not “slowing down to smell the rose”. I recall from one of Mr. Roy Dean’s interview.

    Perhaps more love is what we need? In Canada, elementary schools have a program called “take your kids to work day”. With so many seniors in our ranks, perhaps we can make a “take your family to aikido day/week”? Image how beautiful it would be to see grandson practicing with grandpa. It’s almost like reproducing the image of O Sensei himself, practicing with his group of young students as seen on YouTube. Throwing them effortlessly, with the power of ?

    Dojos can do this as individuals, but a collective effort with media support may prove to be quite powerful.

    If other martial arts like Bjj and karate follows, is this not even better?

    Ps: this is just one idea , but even if Aikido becomes an “older people’s” martial art (like tai chi) , there maybe there is a place for it. As practitioners of other arts becomes older, maybe they will take up this new game call Aikido. What we need is a program that fits their .

    Thank you again for your time and everything that you are doing. I would love to hear from you but I can understand if you are busy. This is my 2 cents 🙂

  • Josh,

    This is so important to reflect on. Thank you for doing the and synthesizing the results so clearly and in an most accessible way.

    I’m curious to read more about the motivations you’ve gathered from Aikidoka.

    Wondering if you are aware of how Aikido, as a purely martial art practice, is also being applied in parallel fields such as psychology, organizational coaching, and in child and youth education?

    I’ve been part of designing psychotherapeutic interventions that weave in much of Aikido practice and philosophy and also these days of bringing it into circles of men learning about conflict resolution and transformation in a more embodied way.

    I often wonder if O’Sensei dreamt of Aikido making into our everyday lives… the way we talk, garden, work, and relate to one another…

  • The key for Aikido (both good and bad) is the same key for the phenomenal rise of BJJ.
    Having had the benefit of of 6 years Aikido and 3 years of BJJ, it is chalk and cheese. If Aikido (as BJJ did) can prove that it WORKS against a live, resisting opponent then the popularity will increase sharply. Disciplines such as – Boxing, Muay Thai, Wrestling, BJJ – is repeatedly done (every class) against live resisting opponents.
    It is absolutely repeatable over a long period of time. The perception of Aikido is that it is a choreographed dance (even by the best practitioners in the world) so the lack of popularity will necessarily follow suit.
    It seems Aikido has a positioning issue. If it doesn’t work and can’t be proven to work in a fight then popularity declines. If Aikido positions itself on the side of Yoga/Spiritual/Tai Chi maybe that would work.
    I think people looking for effective techniques can see development in 3 years of BJJ (serious development). In 10 years of Aikido you are still doing Morote Dori (incorrectly) every lesson.
    In my experience with different Aikido schools in the area, the average dojo size was 8 students and the politics between dojos was utterly stupifying.

    Don’t go on a recruitment campaign. PROVE it works and watch the attendance go up significantly. The reputation of Aikido among other disciplines is seriously bad.

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