A Short History of Filipino Martial Arts

Arnis, the most systematic and the best known

fighting art in the Philippines is a reflection of the
Filipino people's history, their philosophy, and
their culture. Arnis boasts a long historical
development from the Kali systems. Kali (Silat)
comes from the word kalis, which implies a blade,
is the oldest form of weaponry in the Phillipines
and is the mother to escrima. The naturally
graceful, harmoniously circular movements used
in the Filipino martial arts are characteristic of the
methods found in other Asian countries.
In order to better understand the dynamics of the
unique Filipino martial arts, it is to take a brief
look at the historical roots of the culturally and
racially diversified society of the Philippines. The
Philippine islands has an area of 115,707 square
miles. It consists of more than 7,000 islands, only
154 of which have an area exceeding five square
miles. Most of the population is concentrated on
eleven islands exceeding 1,000 square miles
each, in three major areas: Luzon, the Visayan
islands, and Mindanao.
Historians and anthropologists have postulated
that during prehistoric times, various groups of
people migrated from the Asian mainland in
search of food and game and eventually settled
in the Philippines. They came from Indonesia and
central Asia and possibly as far away as India,
Persia, and Egypt. In addition to the bow and
arrow, these various groups were expert fighters
with the long knife, which has since assumed
many forms, daggers, swords, and spears. Other
subsequent migrations brought with them other
bladed weapons.
In the fifth century, one of
the earliest Asian empires,
the Sri-Vishayan Empire (a
famous Hindu-Malayan
empire of Sumatra),
conquered and colonized
many lands, which included
the Philippines. The impact
of this empire on the
Filipino culture was
extensive. Besides being
skilled warriors, seamen,
and farmers, they
introduced new laws, a
written alphabet, a new religion, a calendar, etc.

This merging of the cultures produced the

Visayan people of the central Philippines.
It was also around the twelth century that
another great empire formed in Java, called the
Majapit Empire. They took over the Sri-Vishayan
Empire and were instrumental in spreading the
Muslim religion in the Philippines. They settled
most heavily in the Southern Philippines, in
Mindanao, and became known as the Moro
(Muslim) Filipinos. They were fiercely independent
proud and today, they still exist as a distinct
culture.
It was the early in the sixteenth century when
Spain invaded the Philippines. Ferdinand
Magellan was the first famous foreigner to
encounter the Filipino "Baston". To Spain and the
old world, Magellan was a discoverer of new land.
To the Filipinos he was just another invader, a
pirate who sought to enslave people as part of
Spanish conquest. Magellan was killed by Datu
Lapu-Lapu on the island of Mactan, in what is now
the province of Cebu. There Lapu Lapu battled
Spain's finest steel armed with fire-hardened
rattan sticks with points and homemade lances
and won. This encounter was the beginning of a
400 year struggle. Magellan's men sailed home
without him, but the Spaniards returned again
with more and more firepower, reinforcements,
and the Christian religion. Though, the Filipinos
fought hard, modifying their fighting systems to
mimic the Spanish's sword and dagger method
(Espara Y Daga), they were no match for the
Spanish's firepower.
After the Spanairds took control of the Philipines,
the martial arts were outlawed by the ruling
government. In order to preserve their art, the
the Filipinos practice in secret under the light of a
full moon. Often times the art would appear in
dances being performed openly for the Spaniards.
The Spaniards were never able to conquer the
fierce mountain people called Moros.
Today, there are probably hundreds of styles of
Filipino martial arts. They are all related but have
been stylized by the tribes which used them.
Nevertheless, they can be divided into three main
groups:
Northern Style - Arnis
Central Style - Arnis de Mano

Southern Style - Kali.

The various styles have one thing in common that
makes them unique in the world of martial arts.
The principals of combat of Arnis are based on a
pattern of angles that all attacks fall into,
regardless of style, regardless of weapon. It is not
suprising that the elusive "bastons" of the
Filipinos were effective and difficult to deal with,
because of its elliptical and constant motion and
varying angles of attack and countless reversals.
Phases or stages of training
1) Solo Baston - Single stick
2) Doble Baston - Double stick

3)
4)
5)
6)
7)

Espada Y Daga - Sword and knife

Daga Y Daga - Knife to Knife
Mano y Mano - Hand to Hand
Sikaran (Sipa) - Kick counter Kick
Sibat

Changing the Fighting vocabulary

1)
2)
3)
4)
5)
6)
7)

From:
From:
From:
From:
From:
From:
From:

Defense To: Counter-offense

Block To: Recounter
Stance To: Footwork
Self-Defense To: Combat
Dogmatism To: Realism
Rigidity To: Fluidity
Frontal assault To: Guerilla warfare