Thomas H. Makiyama

Who was Thomas H. Makiyama?

Thomas H. Makiyama, born in Hawaii, was an aikido teacher and founder of Keijutsukai Aikido and the Keijutsukai International Federation, based in Tokyo. The organization teaches Keijutsukai Aikido and Keijutsu.

Makiyama started budō at the age of 18 in 1947 after enlisting in the U.S. Army. He was sent to Japan and was stationed in Yokohama, where he was assigned to the 8th Army’s military police criminal investigation division. At the Isezaki-cho police station in Yokohama he started to train in police judo.

Over the years, he studied judo, jujutsu, Gōjū-ryū karate and aikido among other budō arts. In aikido, he achieved eighth dan in Yoshinkan aikido and a certification as shihan. He is believed to be the only American with that distinction at the time.

He also contributed to a number of articles for martial arts publications such as Black Belt magazine. Makiyama was the author of one of the first books in English on Aikido in 1960 and the book Keijutsukai Aikido in 1983.