Though they share a name, traditional Japanese Jujitsu is very different from Brazilian Jujitsu. Traditional Jujitsu is a much older sport that emphasizes defense and form, while Brazilian Jujitsu is a much more aggressive combat sport. The differences between these martial art styles are a result of how they were developed and what their intended uses are.
Japanese Jujitsu History
Japanese Jujitsu has its historical roots in ancient Greece, not Asia. According to Marc Walder, author of "Brazilian Jiu Jitsu," Alexander the Great spread the basics of Jujitsu to Buddhist monks in Asia who wanted to defend themselves without harming their opponents. Those monks then spread to China and eventually Japan, where the techniques of Jujitsu were expanded into nearly 700 different styles. Eventually Jujitsu was broken down into simpler styles such as judo, karate and aikido. Though many different styles were developed, the philosophy of stopping your opponent without harm remained throughout most Jujitsu teachings.
Brazilian Jujitsu Development
Brazilian Jujitsu found root in the South American country around 1915 when Jujitsu and judo master Mitsuyo Maeda began to teach the sport to the sons of prominent Brazilian official Gastao Gracie. Gracie's son Helio was smaller and weaker than his brothers, so he eventually began to alter his technique for maximum efficiency to defeat stronger opponents. The Gracie family emphasized the shift in ideology from a defensive art to a combat sport that could trump other martial arts like kickboxing, wrestling and judo. The family often hosted open challenges to any fighter in the world who wanted to test his skills against the new style.
Training
On the mat, the primary difference between Jujitsu and Brazilian Jujitsu training is that traditional Jujitsu focuses on scripted drills, whereas Brazilian Jujitsu simulates real-life fighting situations trained at near-maximum force. According to author Gene Simco on Jiu-Jitsu.net, Japanese Jujitsu's scripted nature is a remnant from how old the technique is and has very little success in a live combat situation unless you are a highly trained master.
Application
Traditional Jujitsu has many different forms, some of which have no sporting application whatsoever, but instead are intended to demonstrate technical mastery. Most Japanese Jujitsu styles also require you to fight from your feet. This can be seen in judo, where the referee will stop the match if one fighter is on his back for more than 25 seconds. Contrarily, Brazilian Jujitsu combat often takes place on the ground, with fighters enacting grapples from either the top or bottom position. The effectiveness of Brazilian Jujitsu as an active combat sport was demonstrated in 1993 when Royce Gracie entered and won the first Ultimate Fighting Championship, wowing the world as he used Brazilian Jujitsu to knock off opponents of many different styles.
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