20th Century
- 1900 – British and American soldiers in Japan begin learning techniques from the Japanese Army.
- 1908 – Amateur boxing becomes an Olympic Sport.
- 1920-1925 – Mitsuyo Maeda, a student of Jigoro Kano's, travels to Brazil (among other places) to spread Judo teachings. He also participates in several challenge matches. In 1925, Carlos Gracie, a student of Mitsuyo Maeda, opens his school, the first for Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. The art is further refined by the Gracie family thereafter, particularly by Carlos' brother Helio Gracie.
- 1928 – Shaolin temple records are burned, destroying many documents and records of earlier martial arts.
- Unspecified date 1930s - The Thai Government introduces codified rules and regulations for Muay Thai (Thai Boxing)competitions. Gloves are made compulsory, replacing the hemp rope bindings used prior to the 1930s. Weight classes are also standardised and introduced.
- Unspecified date 1930s Imi Lichtenfeld begins developing Krav Maga in Czechoslovakia
- 1935 – “Karate” becomes official name of the Okinawan martial arts, based on the traditional art of “Te” (hand) and the term “Kara” (empty or unarmed).
- 1936 – Gichin Funakoshi publishes the first edition of his book Karate-Do Kyohan, documenting much of the philosophy and traditional katas (forms) of modern Karate. A second edition was published in 1973, many years after his death in 1957.
- 1938 – Sambo presented by Anatoly Kharlampiev; Nguyễn Lộc introduced Vovinam to the public.
- 1942 – Morihei Ueshiba begins using the term Aikido to describe his art, which is related to aiki-jujutsu. He is credited as the father of Aikido.
- 1943 – Judo, Karate, and Kung Fu are officially introduced in Korea, likely beginning to mix with the indigenous Korean arts.
- 1945 – First Korean dojang, or martial arts school, opens in Seoul, Korea. Many other schools follow. Korean military personnel receive training in martial arts.
- 1945 - Choi, Yong Sool travels back to Korea after living in Japan with Sokaku Takeda. He Begins teaching Dai Dong Yusool (Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu), later to become known as Hapkido.
- 1945 – World War II ends, with many more American and British soldiers stationed in Asia exposed to the martial arts. This includes the American Robert A. Trias who began teaching Asian based martial arts in Phoenix, AZ.
- 1955 - On April 11 General Choi calls a meeting between Korean Masters to unify the Korean Martial Arts.
- 1957 – Taekwondo becomes the official name of the Korean martial arts.
- 1959 - Bruce Lee arrives in America and begins to teach kung-fu to his first student, African American Jesse Glover, the first documented instance of a westerner being taught Chinese martial arts.
- 1964 – Kyokushin Kaikan a style of stand-up, full contact karate, founded in by Masutatsu Oyama.
- 1966 – International Taekwon-Do Federation (ITF) is formed.
- 1972 – Judo becomes an official Olympic sport.
- 1973 – The Bruce Lee film Enter the Dragon brings Asian martial arts to the United States domestic audience. He dies that same year.
- 1973 – World Taekwondo Federation (WTF) is formed.
- 1975 – Bruce Lee's book Tao of Jeet Kune Do is published post-mortem. He credits the influence of western boxing and fencing in developing his art, among others.
- 1985 - Satoru Sayama, forms Shooto, a shootwrestling organization. It would go on to become the first mixed martial arts organization in the world.
- 1988 – WTF-style Taekwondo becomes an Olympic demonstration sport, later becoming a full-medal sport in 2000.
- 1993 – The first Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is held. Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu practitioner Royce Gracie wins the event.
Read more about this topic: Martial Arts Timeline