When we think of martial arts, we think of karate, sumo wrestling, and judo from Japan, kung fu from China, and taekwondo from Korea.
Many cultures have some form of martial art. We know them because we see them in movies and TV. Once they’re popular, people start practicing them as a sport in gyms and dojos.
The Philippines also has several forms of martial arts, which have been featured in movies for years…most of us just don’t know about them.
From Julia:
Filipino martial arts, like its culture, is a blend of Eastern and Western influences. It was influenced by its history of trading with countries like China and India. The environment also plays a significant role because it uses a lot of readily available weapons and items. If you watch videos of it being practiced, you’ll see elements from different martial arts.
But the one thing that makes Filipino martial arts distinct is how fast, raw, and lethal it is, especially in close contact. The Philippine armed forces are trained to fight this way. They even train US soldiers whenever they have joint military exercises.
https://youtu.be/r1CWSEAJT1M
You’ve probably even seen it in a few movies.
https://youtu.be/WxudL917gkA
Arnis (also known as escrima or kali), the most popular Filipino martial art, is taught in schools for fitness. Children and beginners start out being taught to wield two bamboo sticks, learning how to strike, defend, and perform proper footwork. It’s a great aerobic and strength training exercise because, in addition to the repetitive movements, you build strength by learning to strike harder and faster.
There are even school competitions where children compete as demonstration teams or in duels:
https://youtu.be/-CUSsvegpzY
(context: Palarong Pambansa is a yearly nationwide sports competition for grade school and high school students. Filipino professional and Olympic athletes usually get their start competing in Palarong Pambansa)
Advanced practitioners eventually move on by mastering how to fight with everyday objects and, if necessary, unarmed.
Why haven’t people heard of it if it’s widely practiced? For the longest time, many Filipino martial arts practitioners were against sharing it. When the Philippines was colonized, its martial arts were one of the few things that gave it an advantage in guerrilla and jungle warfare. They were also worried that Filipino martial arts would be appropriated and diluted, as seen with karate and judo.
Another reason it’s not well known is that it was primarily passed down through oral tradition, and training was very informal. It also lacked a standard ranking system, such as belts, making it difficult to determine who is qualified to teach.
The reason we know about it now is because of the decades-long work of the Philippine government, historians, academics, and martial arts practitioners to preserve, revive, and strengthen this tradition. It’s now required learning in schools, mandatory training if you’re part of the armed forces, and they’re now part of a lot of the action scenes we see in movies.
The more you know…
John