Eskrima

Eskrima (also known as Arnis[1] and in the West sometimes as Kali) is the umbrella term for the traditional martial arts of the Philippines, which emphasize weapon-based fighting with sticks, knives and other bladed weapons, and various improvised weapons. It also includes hand-to-hand combat and weapon disarming techniques.

Etymology

For all intents and purposes, eskrima, arnis and kali all refer to the same family of Filipino weapon-based martial arts and fighting systems. In Luzon they may go by the name of arnis, arnis de mano, sinawali, pagkalikali, panandata (usage of weapons), didya, kabaroan (blade usage) and kaliradman. In the Visayas and Mindanao, these martial arts have been referred to as eskrima, kali and kalirongan. Kuntaw and silat are separate martial arts that have been practiced in the islands.

Both eskrima and arnis are loans from Spanish and ultimately from Old Frankish:

Eskrima is a Filipinization of the Spanish word for fencing (esgrima).[2][3]
Arnis comes from arnes, Old Spanish for armor (harness is an archaic English term for armor which comes from the same roots as the Spanish term). It is derived from the armor costumes used in Moro-moro stage plays where actors fought mock battles using wooden swords. Allegedly, the practice of weaponry by the peasants or Indios was banned by the Spaniards during colonial times and the Moro-moro stick fights were a "disguised" form of continued practice of indigenous martial arts.[4]
The name 'kali' is primarily used in the United States and Europe, and seldom in the Visayas, in some cases being an unknown word to eskrima practitioners. The term is used mostly in Mindanao, but due to the popularity of the term outside of the Philippines and the influence of foreign practitioners the term has now been accepted as a synonym for eskrima and arnis.

In their Cebu Eskrima Myth distributed by Lex libris, Dr. Ned Nepangue and Tinni Macachor contend that the word did not exist until the 1960s when two well-known eskrimadors in the United States popularized it to distinguish what they taught from other styles. One belief is that the word comes from tjakalele,[5] a tribal style of stick-fencing from Indonesia. This is supported by the similarities between tjakalele and eskrima techniques, as well as Mindanao's proximity to Indonesia. Numerous alternative theories attempt to explain the term's origin:

Kali may be a portmanteau of the Cebuano words "ka"mot, or "ka"may meaning hand or body, and "li"hok, meaning motion.[6]There exist numerous similar terms of reference for martial arts such as kalirongan, "kalibanga", kaliradman and pagkalikali. These may be the origin of the term kali or they may have evolved from it.[5] Since eskrima and arnis are derived from Spanish words, the preference for the term kali by foreigners is due its the lack ofa definitive foreign origin and an attempt to preserve authenticity of a name that has otherwise been lost to history.Practitioners of the arts are called eskrimador for those who call their art eskrima, arnisador for those who call theirs arnis and kalista or mangangali for those who practice kali.

Modern history

The Philippines has what is known as a blade culture. Local folk in the Philippines are much more likely to carry   knives than guns. They are commonly carried as tools by farmers, used by street vendors to prepare coconuts, pineapples, other fruits and meats, and balisongs are cheap to procure in the streets as well as being easily concealed. In the language of Palau, the term for Filipino is chad ra oles which literally means "people of the knife" because of Filipinos' reputation for carrying knives and using them in fights.[14]

 "ABC's" of eskrima.

Some angles of attack and some strikes have characteristic names.

Eskrima techniques are generally based on the assumption that both the student and their opponent are very highly trained and well prepared. For this reason, eskrima tends to favor extreme caution, always considering the possibility of a failed technique or an unexpected knife. On the other hand, the practitioner is assumed to be able to strike very precisely and quickly. The general principle is that an opponent's ability to attack should be destroyed rather than trying to hurt them to convince them to stop. Thus many strikes are aimed at the hands and arms, hoping to break the hand holding the weapon or cut the nerves or tendons controlling it (the concept of defanging the snake), but strikes to the eyes and legs are important. A popular mnemonic states that "stick seeks bone, blade seeks flesh".