Born in Okinawa, Gichin Funakoshi trained from a young age in two major styles, Shuri-te and Naha-te. Later, he melded these two styles into the Shotokan style of karate. In 1917, he had the opportunity to introduce karate to Japan when he was invited by the Ministry of Education to display his style for a physical education exhibition. He was invited back twice more, once to perform for the imperial family, after which he decided to remain in Japan and teach.
Most of this information was found at http://www.gichinfunakoshi.com/.
Guchin Funakoshi
Credit: http://www.gichinfunakoshi.com/
Takayuki Kubota
Credit: http://www.ikakarate.com/