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The history of the Philippines stretches all
the way back as far as 900 AD. Examining the
history of the Philippines as a nation, it is
clear that martial arts have always been an
essential part of the Filipino society. Many
different cultures and migrants influenced the
martial arts of the Philippines, like in many
other places.
Settled in about 200 B.C by the Malays, in a
first wave of migrations from the Southeast,
they brought with them the weapon of the long
knife. Although many weapons of different shapes
and sizes were brought into the Philippines, the
"Kris", a wavy bladed knife from the island of
Java, was the first foreign weapon to be
transplanted into the Filipino fighting arts.
During the two more migrations that followed,
these people were actually the ancestors of the
present day Muslim-Filipinos of Mindanao and
Sulu.
In 1518, Ferdinand Magellan convinced King
Charles I of Spain that the Moluccas, then known
as the Spice Islands, could be reached by
sailing west. Magellan told the king that the
Moluccas belonged to the Spanish side of the
demarcation line drawn according to the Treaty
of Torsedillas. The king agreed to send an
expedition to the Spice Islands under the
command of Ferdinand Magellan. On September 20,
1519, the expedition sailed southward across the
Atlantic Ocean. Magellan reached the
southernmost tip of South America, where he
crossed the Pacific Ocean strait, otherwise now
known as the Magellan strait. On March of 1521,
he finally reached the Marianas. After resting,
his men and obtaining provisions, Magellan
continued his voyage and, on March 17th, 1521,
sighted the mountains of Samar, marking their
arrival in the Philippine Archipelago.
On April 28th, Ferdinand Magellan and his men
waded ashore in knee high water to do battle
with Raja LapuLapu and his men. The methodical
historian at his side, Antonio Pigafetta
recorded that LapuLapu's men were armed with
fire-hardened sticks. In this battle, Magellan
was slain by the chief Raja LapuLapu with a
Kampilan by a blow to the leg and then a thrust
to the neck.
In 1542 the group of islands was officially
named Las Philippinas in honor of Prince Philip
who later became King Philip of Spain (Philip
II, 1556-1598). An explorer named Ruy Lopez de
Villalobos, one of Magellan's predecessors takes
credit for giving the place its name.
Spanish rule in the Philippines lasted until
1898 when Spain was defeated in the
Spanish-American war. During this long period of
colonization, the Spanish had some important
effects on the Filipino culture. Firstly, most
of the population was converted to Roman
Catholicism with the exception for the Muslim
Moros of the Sulu archipelago. Spanish fencing
also had a direct effect on the fighting arts of
the Philippines, with the introduction of the
angles of attack, and the use of Espada y daga.
When the Spanish imposed a ban on the practice
of all native fighting arts and the carrying of
bladed weapons during their occupation of the
islands, the Filipinos were forced to substitute
the use of the sword with that of the rattan. In
the beginning, the rattan was used to deliver
strikes in the same manner as the blade i.e.
slashing and thrusting, and the knife or short
stick was still held in reserve as a back up
weapon in case the opponent closed the distance,
typical of its use by the Spanish. It was hardly
ever used to block or parry an oncoming strike.
However, through time, the Filipinos began to
realize that because the stick had different
handling qualities, certain lines of attack were
open to them that were not available with the
sword, for example, the curved and snapping
strikes. Once they began to appreciate the
combat effectiveness of the stick, the use of
the knife also changed and began to be used more
aggressively in terms of blocking, parrying,
checking, scooping, thrusting and slashing. This
in turn led to the creation of "Olisi y baraw",
which is the stick and dagger.
One of the other effects to have reportedly
influenced the Filipino culture is the colorful
costume of the Spanish. The bright and at times
tacky colors are said to be the basis of the
colorful outfits worn by many Escrimadors today.
However, there is no evidence to support this
claim.
Filipino martial arts today are even more
confusing. Arnis and Escrima are used to refer
to the weapon arts of the Philippines today.
Kali is actually used outside the Philippines to
refer to the same art. The term Arnis de mano is
especially misleading. The term Arnis is a
varied form of the word Arnes, which refers to
the decorative harnesses used by the actors in
moro-moro stage displays. De mano simply means
hands, and so a literal translation of Arnis de
mano turns into 'harness of hand'. The
manipulation of these harnesses during the stage
plays impressed the Spanish who dubbed it Arnes
de mano. The style Arnis, a Spanish term itself,
uses many Spanish terms to describe its
techniques such as Espada y daga.
The term Eskrima is another wide-ranging term
derived from the word Escrima, which is again
derived from the Spanish term Esgrima that is
the term for fencing. It is also believed to
mean to skirmish but there is no evidence to
support this.
The last term Kali is always the most
controversial. Many martial arts schools and
instructors believe the word Kali to be a
combination of the words Kamut, which is hand,
and Lihok, which is movement. It is also
believed to be the mother art of Arnis or
Escrima but there is a lack of evidence to
support this. Kali or Kahli as it is sometimes
written, in Visayan as a type of stick, but not
used to refer to the fighting art. Kali is also
the Hindu Goddess of destruction, and the Moros
of the Sulu archipelago would often go into
battle dressed like the Goddess of Destruction.
The more believable explanation is from the
Tagalog word for a large bladed weapon, Kalis.
This was shortened simply to Kali to refer to
all bladed weapons. Its use in the West stems
from the use of the word by Floro Villabrille
who used this term to describe his art, and Dan
Inosanto eventually popularized this. An
interview with Antonio Illustrisimo in 1993
revealed that he only used the word out of
convenience because foreign students recognized
it, although he preferred the term Escrima
because this is what it was called when he was
learning from his uncles.
Whatever term is used to describe the Filipino
fighting arts today it is clear that they offer
deep and rewarding training for those involved.
The Origin
Filipino martial arts training traditionally
starts with weapons then transitions into
shorter weapons and so on to empty hands. The
reason for this is of a historical and practical
nature given the environment of the Philippine
Islands. Throughout the Philippine history,
unending wars between rival tribes and invasions
from foreign aggressors have imposed the need
for combat readiness. Survival did not depend on
the strongest, but the smartest. Man used
whatever it could to secure the advantage and to
fend off and protect themselves against animals
and other aggressors. This could have meant
throwing an object, using a tree branch, and
perhaps poking at their enemy with a sharp
object. The weapon was used to equalize the
differences of strength, speed and aggression
between man and other enemies. Imagine the
general make up of the Philippines. There are
over 7,000 total islands, and these are divided
into the three major island groups consisting of
Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. There are over a
hundred different dialects throughout the
country. However, the national language spoken
is Tagalog. This means there is a lack of
central communication and organization yet there
is central theme in the Filipino Martial Arts,
which revolves around fighting concepts. Looking
at the different styles and systems, the
techniques used are somewhat different, but the
overall concepts of combat and winning remain
the same. The Filipino Martial Arts is not a
compassionate art; it is a vicious and dangerous
form of self-preservation. There are hundreds of
unique styles of the Filipino martial arts
throughout the Philippines. Regardless of the
controversies behind the origins of systems and
the various styles of Filipino martial arts, it
remains that the "Arnís", "Kali" and "Escrima"
are the most commonly used names for the
indigenous Philippine Martial Arts. Whatever the
name, style or system, Philippine martial
artists often chose the best available weapons
in order to gain the best advantage over their
opponents. These may encompass a variety of
bladed weapons, projectile weapons, all sizes,
length and shapes of hardwood and rattan
weaponry. In other words any object held in a
person’s hand is a potentially dangerous weapon.
Most Filipino martial arts systems have empty
hand techniques that resemble a blend of western
boxing. These techniques are actually derived
from the weapon applications. Because of many
innovations and the creativity of Filipino
Martial Artists, many of the systems have become
personalized and unique.
The Filipino art of weaponry, Escrima or by its
many other names, has a long and colorful past.
A lot of its history has been lost since little
was recorded in writing prior to the 1900's, but
rather taught from father to son or daughter.
Masters and teachers of the art would pass their
knowledge and secrets to only those select few
who were deserving of such training. In these
modern times we are lucky to have some masters
who have been and are currently willing to share
their art with others. These masters are
concerned with promoting the Filipino culture
and demonstrating to the public that the
Filipinos have a martial art of their own.
The development and history of Escrima parallels
the development of the Philippines as a nation.
The various immigrants and invaders alike have
had an extensive impact on the Philippine
national history and its martial arts.
Around 200 A.D. Arab traders brought bladed
metallic weapons and a fluid style of fighting
to the islands. These Moslems, who settled on
the southern islands of Mindanao, were noted for
their tenacity and their ability to fend off
invaders.
In the 9th century the Chinese began trading
with the Philippines, bringing their flowing
influence to Escrima. Trade was also heavy with
Japan in the pre-Spanish years (around the 15th
century) their blade methods and joint locking
martial art systems effected additional changes
in the Filipino martial arts. The Spanish
merchants who followed Magellan in the mid-1500
have brought their styles of "Espada y daga,
which natives were also quick to adopt. All
these outsiders have had a drastic effect on all
the Filipino blade and stick fighting arts.
Development in Secrecy
The Spanish effort to control the people was the
primary reason the art of Escrima was driven
into secrecy. During their move to Christianize,
claim and exploit the Filipinos, the Spanish
officials decided that the existing Filipino
martial arts were too dangerous to their efforts
to control the natives. Therefore, they
announced that practicing Escrima was banned and
the penalty for violation of the law was death.
Escrima became a covert martial art for over 400
years. Many moves, countermoves and techniques
were lost during this period. However, many of
the movements that were lost were replaced with
movements that the Spanish brought with them. It
should be noted, the Spanish did not control all
the land in the Philippines, only the vital
coastal and fringe areas; they dared not enter
the forest and jungles, which were inhabited by
countless snakes and the ferocious natives whose
martial arts they had banned in the cities. By
the 1900s, the Spanish oppression of the people
had really taken its toll on the practicing of
Escrima. Few remained who knew the revered blade
and stick movements.
In the 1900's the Americans came into the
picture after defeating the Spanish in the
Spanish American war of 1898. For five years,
the Filipinos fought the Americans, who desired
peace but resembled the Spanish too closely to
be readily accepted by the Filipino people.
However, the Americans brought their martial art
of boxing which no doubt have influenced some of
the more modern movements of Escrima.
Migration to Hawaii and the USA
In 1935, the Philippines were recognized as an
independent nation until occupied by Japan
during World War II. Welcoming U.S. intervention
during the occupation, Filipinos eagerly
enlisted in American services. Known for
close-in, hand-to-hand combat with bolo knives,
the Filipino troops established themselves as
fierce guerrilla forces, marching in triangle
formation with the point, or lead, man disabling
enemy soldiers, leaving the following formation
to finish the job.
Following the war, many adventurous escrimadors
and Kali men left the Philippines for Hawaii and
California. There they grouped together, working
as farm laborers and practicing their art in
secret, still adapting it to their environment
by utilizing farm tools -asparagus knives,
machetes, hoes and the like - as weapons.
After years of clandestine practice, the old
masters have begun to teach a younger generation
the beautiful and deadly Filipino Martial Arts.
The "old men" of Kali and escrima believe the
art is dead in the Philippines. However, they
teach the younger generation to respect the art
by a salutation, shown by touching the closed
fist of the right hand to the forehead and the
open hand to the heart. Some of these masters of
Kali who have continued the art are Angel
Cabales, Regino Ellustrisimo, Leo Giron, John
LaCoste, Ben Largusa, and Floro Villabrille.
Today, Dan Inosanto is responsible for making
famous the Filipino martial arts into a well
recognized discipline.
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