Kyū

is a Japanese term used in martial arts, chadō, ikebana, go, shogi and in other similar activities to designate various grades or levels of proficiency or experience. In Japanese martial arts, kyū-level practitioners hold the ranks below dan or black belt. The kyū ranking system varies from art to art and school to school. In some arts, all the kyū-level practitioners wear white belts while in others different coloured belts, tags or stripes are used; in kendo there is no external indicator of grade.
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