Advancement in jiu jitsu is recognized by a series of ranks. The student ranks are called "kyu" and are differentiated by coloured belts. The ten black belt ranks are called "dan".
Grade Level | Belt Colour |
7th kyu | yellow |
6th kyu | orange |
5th kyu | green |
4th kyu | purple |
3rd kyu | light blue |
2nd kyu | blue |
1st kyu | brown |
1st dan to 5th dan | black |
6th dan to 8th dan | red and white |
9th dan to 10th dan | red |
Grade Level | Belt Colour |
6th kyu | yellow with white stripe |
5th kyu | orange with white stripe |
4th kyu | green with white stripe |
3rd kyu | purple with white stripe |
2nd kyu | blue with white stripe |
1st kyu | brown with white stripe |
Shodan-ho | black with white stripe |
Grade Level | Belt Colour |
6th kyu | white with yellow stripe |
5th kyu | white with orange stripe |
4th kyu | white with green stripe |
3rd kyu | white with purple stripe |
2nd kyu | white with blue stripe |
1st kyu | white with brown stripe |
Grading examinations are held in December, March and July. Through the more junior ranks, students will likely grade every 3 to 4 months. As students move to the more senior kyu ranks, the time interval between gradings increases. Through the dan ranks, an interval of many years occurs between each grade, consequently, high dan grades are extremely rare.