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Arnis: The official sport and martial art of the Philippines
What is Arnis/Eskrima/Kali and the Filipino Martial Arts?
Arnis, Eskrima, and Kali are the names given to the native martial arts of the Philippines. Located in south-east Asia the Philippines is a country in made up of over seven thousand islands. It is often categorised into three main geographical regions: Luzon (north), Visayas (central), and Mindanao (south). The Filipino martial arts were developed for tribal warfare and often perpetuated by families, they were also utilised in gorilla warfare. Notable conflicts in the Philippines include the Spanish invasion by Ferdinand Magellan in 1521c., they also underwent occupation by the United States and were invaded by Japan in World War Two. After the conquest by the Spanish the Filipino martial arts went ‘underground’ and bladed weapons were swapped for rattan and other hardwood sticks.
The different names for the Filipino martial arts are a product of the tribal and familial perpetuation of the art and the many different islands and also led to a plethora of different variations or styles. The south (Mindanao) often refers to the art as ‘Kali’, the central area ‘Visayas’ refers to the art as ‘Eskrima’ which is translated from the Spanish term for fencing, Arnis is another term for the art often used in the Luzon area (north), although these names are not exclusive to these regions and also varies with different styles. Sometimes the Filipino martial arts are also referred to by the abbreviation 'FMA'.
The Filipino martial are called by different names depending on the region of the Philippines, generally it is called Arnis in the North, Eskrima in the middle, and Kali in the South.
Arnis: The National Sport of the Philippines
Stick fighting ('Arnis') is the national sport of the Philippines. Contestants wear armour and a head guard and fight full contact with sticks made from rattan. Other forms of competition include padded stick fighting in which a padded stick is utilised instead of rattan, combatants usually only wear headguards for these matches.
