Shihan

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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 interchangably with English terms such as "master instructor".

Various martial arts organisations 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 organisation. 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 and the aikido organisation Aikikai 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. Just as black belt rank in one style might be equated to green belt in another, and master rank in one could not even be considered black belt elsewhere, the term Shihan is just as subjective and is completely available to be used without any solid requirements at all. It is only within specific organizations that it has any definitive real meaning.