Filipino martial arts
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Filipino martial arts refers to fighting methods created in the Philippines. The intrinsic need for self-preservation was the genesis of these systems. Throughout the ages, invaders imposed new dynamics for human conflict and combat in the islands now making up the Philippines. The Filipino people developed battle skills as a direct result of an appreciation of their ever-changing circumstances. They learned often out of necessity how to prioritize, allocate and utilize common resources in combative situations. Filipinos have been heavily influenced by the phenomenon of cultural and linguistic mixture. Some of the specific mechanisms responsible for cultural and martial change extended from phenomena such as war, political and social systems, technology and trade.
Filipino martial arts have seen an increase in prominence due to several Hollywood movies and the teachings of modern masters such as Venancio "Anciong" Bacon, Dan Inosanto, Teddy Buot, Sam Buot, Bobby Taboada, Cacoy Canete, Leo Gaje, Mike Inay, Ernesto Presas and Angel Cabales.
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[edit] History
The oldest martial arts in the Philippines were those practiced by the indigenous peoples. They were in contact with the aborigines of Taiwan and Borneo which is evident from oral legends and the similarities between their fighting styles. The native tribes focused on combat with sticks, canes, knives and broadswords while practicing unarmed combat forms like dumog(trans. - wrestling). Some of these ancient Filipino martial arts still exist but others are either extinct or very rare. Armed training took precedence over empty-handed techniques with the reasoning that a warrior will naturally learn to fight unarmed after gaining enough experience in using weapons. Even today most Filipino fighting arts remain weapon-based.
Malays from Indonesia and Malaysia made three separate mass migrations to the Philippines and brought with them the influence of silat. Filipinos would later go on to create silat styles of their own. Early settlers and traders from China also had a large impact on the local fighting techniques and certain Filipino styles contain characteristically Chinese movements. Additionally, the migrants practiced localized Chinese martial arts which they called kuntaw. These Malay and Chinese settlers are considered progenitors of the classical Filipino combat methods.
The first western account of Filipino martial arts comes from the 16th century when Spanish colonists attacked.[citation needed] The invaders failed to defeat the locals in hand-to-hand combat and only managed to arise victorious after resorting to guns. For more than three hundred years Spain had control over much of the Philippines. The European regime often enforced royal laws and decrees limiting and prohibiting weapons among the indigenous people. These restrictions were partly responsible for the secretive and underground nature of Filipino martial arts. During this period of colonization, fighters would train in secret and only passed down their skills to family members. It was this isolation between the practitioners that gave birth to the vast number of Filipino fighting styles that exist today. Despite their prohibitions, Spaniards often employed Filipino warriors to fight in various battles and skirmishes.
After independence, martial arts in the Philippines could be practiced publicly and freely influenced each other. Modern styles use weapons and techniques taken from numeorus sources especially silat, karate, jujitsu and the Chinese martial arts. Today there are said to be almost as many Filipino fighting styles as there are islands in the Philippines. In 1972, the Philippine government included Filipino martial arts into the national sports arena. The Ministry of Education, Culture and Sports also incorporated them into the physical education curriculum for high school and college students. Knowledge of the Filipino fighting skills is mandatory in the Philippine military and police.
[edit] Types
Filipino martial arts is a broad term meant to unify the country's various styles under one identity. The three most commonly-used umbrella terms are eskrima, arnis and kali. The word eskrima derives from the Spanish term escrima or esgrima which means skirmish, while arnis comes from the Spanish "arnis de mano" meaning "harness of the hand". The origins of the word kali are uncertain but it may come from the Indonesian word tjakalele.[1] The multitude of languages spoken in the 7,107 islands have not only diverged into dialects, but they have been constantly mixing with one another and as a result, Filipino martial arts comprise a vocabulary of heterogeneous terms.
Eskrima, arnis and kali are used interchangeably for weapon-based martial arts, particularly those which focus on bladed weapons or stick-fighting. Panantukan, pangamut and pamuok all refer to empty-handed striking methods, while pantadyakan and pananjakman are kick-based. Dumog or wrestling is considered one of the oldest unarmed Filipino fighting styles.
[edit] Weapons
Filipino martial artists are noted for their ability to fight with weapons or empty hands interchangeably. Weapons-training takes precedence because it promotes proficiency in bare-handed techniques, so the empty hands are treated as another type of weapon. Traditional weaponry varies in design, size, weight, materials and usage.
[edit] Unarmed
- Mano Mano: (lit. hands) Incorporates punches, kicks, elbows, knees, finger-strikes, locks, blocks, grappling and disarming techniques
[edit] Impact
- Baston / Olisi: Short sticks, traditionally crafted from rattan or kamagong
- Sibat / Tongat: Staff, rod or pole
- Dulo-Dulo: Palmstick
- Tameng: Shield
[edit] Edged
- Daga: Modern knife or dagger. Traditional varieties include the gunong, punyal and barung or barong
- Balisong: Foldable butterfly knife
- Karambit: Small blade shaped like a tiger claw
- Espada: Sword. Includes kampilan, ginunting, pinuti and talibong
- Kalis: Poison-bladed dagger, also known as kris
- Golok: Machete or broadsword
- Bangkaw: Spear
[edit] Flexible
- Latigo / Buntot Pagi: Whip
- Lubid: Rope
- Kadena / Tanikala: Chain
- Tabak-Toyok: Two sticks attached together by rope or chain, also known as nunchaku
[edit] Projectile
- Bow and arrow
- Lipad-lipad, bagakay: Blowpipe and darts
- Pintik: Slingshot
[edit] Stringed
- Yoyo: Joined discs with a groove between which string is wound
[edit] Training
[edit] Signs and symbols
The triangle is one of the strongest geometrical structures and stands for strength. Many training halls incorporate the triangle into their logo. It represents numerous underlying philosophical, theoretical and metaphysical principles in the Filipino martial arts. Applications of the triangle are found in defensive and offensive tactical stratagies, including footwork, stances, blocking and disarms.
During training, non-verbal gesture communication and recognition is used in teaching and identification. This sign language, utilizing hand, body, and weapons signals, is used to convey ideas, desires, information, or commands.
[edit] Basic tactical ranges
The three combat ranges in the Filipino martial arts are corto (close-range), medio (medium-range) and largo (long-range).
- Hakbang: general term for footwork
- Corto Mano: close range, short movements, minimal extension of arms, legs and weapons, cutting distance
- Serrada: "split step", short range footwork, quick, split action, front and back, low stance. Serrada footwork is the base of a triangular framework methodology
- Largo Mano: long range, extended movements, full extension of arms, legs and weapons, creating distance
- Fraile: short range footwork, hopping action, balanced position, short hop, pushing off from the lead foot
- Ritriada: short range footwork, shuffling action, pushing backward by pushing off the lead foot, giving six to eight inches of range per action.
- Banda y banda: side to side action
[edit] Basic tactical methods
Filipino martial arts contain a wide range of tactical concepts, both armed and unarmed. Each art will include several of the methods listed below. Some of these concepts have been taken in isolation to serve as the foundation for entire fighting systems in themselves.
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- Solo baston - single stick
- Doble Baston - double stick
- Bati-Bati - butt of stick methods
- Dulo-Dulo - palm stick methods
- Bantay-Kamay, Tapi-Tapi - "guardian hand" or "alive hand", auxiliary weapon used in conjunction with the primary weapon for checking, blocking, monitoring, trapping, locking, disarming, striking, cutting, etc. Examples include the empty hand when using a single stick or the dagger when fighting with sword and dagger
- Mano Mano, pangamut, pamuok - empty hands
- Baraw - knife and dagger
- Mano y Daga - hand and dagger
- Baston y Daga - stick and dagger
- Daga y Daga - pair of daggers
- Espada y Daga - sword and dagger
- Latigo y Daga - whip and dagger
- Tapon-Tapon - hand thrown knives and weapons tactics
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- Numerado - striking and blocking by the numbers, refers to the most basic strikes and angles
- Cinco Teros - five strikes, refers to the five most basic strikes and counters
- Doblete - two-weapon blocking and countering method of doubles
- Sinawali - "weaving"; rhythmic, flowing, striking patterns and tactics, utilizing two impact or edged weapons.
- Redonda - circular double-stick vertical downward pattern of six strikes
- Ocho ocho - repeating pattern, strikes and tactics, such as the figure-eight
- Palis Palis - meeting force with force
- Abaniko - fanning techniques
- Witik - whipping, snapping back or picking movements
- Lobtik - follow-through strikes; horizontal, vertical, diagonal methods
- Crossada - cross blocking methods, hands and weapons
- Gunting - "scissors"; armed and unarmed scissoring techniques aimed at disabling an opponent's arm or hand
- Lock and block - dynamic countering, attacks based on the striking and blocking methods of the system
- Free flow - live interaction and play, flowing practice, rapid, rhythmic, weapons tactics
- Kadena De Mano - chain of hands, close quarters, continuous, empty-handed combat
- Hubud Lubud - to tie and untie, continuous trapping methods
- Trankada - joint locking and breaking techniques
- Kino mutai - a sub-section of pangamut that specializes in biting and eye-gouges
- Panganaw - disarming techniques
- Panantukan / Panuntukan - kickboxing method
- Pananjakman, Sipat - low kicks
- Suntukan - empty-hand striking
- Dumog - wrestling or grappling methods with an emphasis on disabling or controlling the opponent by manipulation of the head and neck
[edit] Esoteric practices
- Agimat: An eskrimador's amulet worn to protect against misfortune and increase the chance of victory
- Arbularyo: A shaman who carries out the initiation ceremony and treats injuries
- Hilot: A traditional system of herbalism, massage and first-aid that was traditionally taught alongside martial arts
- Kulam: Witchcraft or spell-rituals carried out by shamans
- Orascion: Special incantations or mantra which may be recited before battle
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ Remy Presas, 1974, "Modern Arnis", pp. 10-12 ISBN 971-08-6041-0
[edit] External links
- Filipino martial arts at the Open Directory Project
- Traditional Filipino Weapons
- The FMA-Eskrima-Kali FAQ
- Overview and Differences in Filipino Martial Arts
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