What is "age-uke"

, which translates to "rising block", or "upward block" is the Japanese term for a technique used in martial arts. There numerous variations in how the technique might be executed, and nothing implicit in the term itself restricts its use to unarmed techniques

Age-uke may be used to stiffly block or deflect an incoming high attack. Alternately, it may be used to receive an incoming attack, sweeping it overhead while maintaining contact with the attacking instrument (limb or weapon).

The term age-uke is frequently used interchangeably with "jōdan-uke" (high-level block). Whether these terms refer to two distinct techniques, or the same technique, depends entirely upon how each is used within any given martial arts school. However, the terms are distinct in that age comes from the verb ageru, meaning upward, and implying direction and/or motion. In the martial arts, the noun jōdan refers specifically to a target area of the body, including the shoulders and above.