The Martial Arts Portal
Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preservation of a nation's intangible cultural heritage. (Full article...)
Although the earliest evidence of martial arts goes back millennia, the true roots are difficult to reconstruct. Inherent patterns of human aggression which inspire practice of mock combat (in particular wrestling) and optimization of serious close combat as cultural universals are doubtlessly inherited from the pre-human stage and were made into an "art" from the earliest emergence of that concept. Indeed, many universals of martial art are fixed by the specifics of human physiology and not dependent on a specific tradition or era.
Specific martial traditions become identifiable in Classical Antiquity, with disciplines such as shuai jiao, Greek wrestling or those described in the Indian epics or the Spring and Autumn Annals of China. (Full article...)
Selected articles
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Daitō-ryū Aiki-jūjutsu (大東流 合気柔術), originally called Daitō-ryū Jujutsu (大東流柔術, Daitō-ryū Jūjutsu), is a Japanese martial art that first became widely known in the early 20th century under the headmastership of Takeda Sōkaku. Takeda had extensive training in several martial arts (including Kashima Shinden Jikishinkage-ryū and Sumo) and referred to the style he taught as "Daitō-ryū" (literally, "Great Eastern School"). Although the school's traditions claim to extend back centuries in Japanese history there are no known extant records regarding the ryū before Takeda. Whether Takeda is regarded as either the restorer or the founder of the art, the known history of Daitō-ryū begins with him. Takeda's best-known student was Morihei Ueshiba, the founder of Aikido. (Full article...) -
The traditional martial arts of the Mainland Southeast Asia are related to one another, and as a group to Indian martial arts. The most salient common feature is Mainland Southeast Asia kickboxing. The region of Mainland Southeast Asia is believed to be the land of Suvarnabhumi that ancient Indians mentioned in Buddhist text and Hindu text. In 790 A.D., a Khmer prince who grew up abroad by the name of Jayavarman II returned to unify the Khmer civilization. In 802 A.D., Jayavarman II established the Khmer Empire, the precursor to modern Cambodia, and declared himself the Chakravatin (universal ruler). Around 850 A.D., Pagan, the ancestor of modern-day Burma, was established by Tibeto-Burman speakers. For 200 years, Pagan remained a small principality until the reign of King Anawrahta. In 1238 A.D., Thailand's first state, Sukhothai, was started when the residents declared independence from the Khmer Empire. In 1353 A.D., Laos's first state, Lan Xang, was started by Fa Ngum with the assistance of the Khmer from Angkor. (Full article...)
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Iaidō (居合道), abbreviated iai (居合), is a Japanese martial art that emphasizes being aware and capable of quickly drawing the sword and responding to sudden attacks.
Iaido consists of four main components: the smooth, controlled movements of drawing the sword from its scabbard (or saya), striking or cutting an opponent, shaking blood from the blade, and replacing the sword in the scabbard. While beginning practitioners of iaido may start learning with a wooden sword (bokken) depending on the teaching style of a particular instructor, most of the practitioners use a blunt-edged sword called an iaitō or mogitō. Few, more experienced, iaido practitioners use a sharp-edged sword (shinken). (Full article...) -
Late 19th-century photograph of a sohei fully robed and equipped, armed with a naginata (薙刀) and tachi (太刀)
Japanese martial arts refers to the variety of martial arts native to the country of Japan. At least three Japanese terms (budō, bujutsu, and bugei) are used interchangeably with the English phrase Japanese martial arts.
The usage of the term budō (武道) to mean martial arts is a modern one: historically the term meant a way of life encompassing physical, spiritual and moral dimensions with a focus on self-improvement, fulfillment or personal growth. The terms bujutsu (武術) and bugei (武芸) have different meanings from budō, at least historically speaking. Bujutsu refers specifically to the practical application of martial tactics and techniques in actual combat. Bugei refers to the adaptation or refinement of those tactics and techniques to facilitate systematic instruction and dissemination within a formal learning environment. (Full article...) -
Vale Tudo or vale-tudo (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈvali ˈtudu]; English: Everything Goes/Everything Allowed), also known as No Holds Barred (NHB) in the United States, is an unarmed, full-contact combat sport with relatively few rules. It became popular in Brazil during the 20th century and would eventually evolve into modern mixed martial arts (MMA). For years, "Vale Tudo" was used as a synonym for MMA in Brazil, but the term fell into disuse due to the emergence of stricter rules and the influence of the media to have a more "civilized" name. It is now used to refer to an early, more rules-free stage of the modern sport.
Vale Tudo initially started as an informal ruleset for fighters from different martial arts to fight each other. The Gracie family was known to organize their famous "Gracie Challenge", where they would fight other martial artists in Vale Tudo bouts to prove the efficiency and superiority of their own Gracie Jiu-Jitsu. Many fighters eventually started to train specifically for Vale Tudo events, mixing striking and grappling, eventually advertising "Vale Tudo" as its own standalone style. For example, Marco Ruas referred to his hybrid style of Luta Livre and Muay Thai striking simply as "Vale Tudo". (Full article...) -
Sanda (Chinese: 散打; pinyin: Sǎndǎ), formerly Sanshou (Chinese: 散手; pinyin: Sǎnshǒu), is the official Chinese boxing full-contact combat sport. Sanda is a fighting system which was originally developed by the Chinese military based upon the study and practices of traditional Chinese martial arts and modern combat fighting techniques; it combines boxing and full-contact kickboxing, which includes close range and rapid successive punches and kicks, with wrestling, takedowns, throws, sweeps, kick catches, and in some competitions, even elbow and knee strikes.
As part of the development of sport wushu by the Chinese government, a standard curriculum for Sanda was developed. It is to this standard curriculum that the term Wushu Sanda is usually applied. Sanda may also involve techniques from any other fighting style depending on the teacher's mode of instruction. (Full article...) -
Chitō-ryū (千唐流) is a style of karate founded by Dr. Tsuyoshi Chitose (千歳 强直, Chitose Tsuyoshi), (1898-1984). The name of the style translates as: chi (千) - 1,000; tō (唐) - China; ryū (流) - style, school, "1,000 year old Chinese style." The character tō (唐) refers to the Tang dynasty of China. The style was officially founded in 1946.
Chitō-ryū is generally classified as a Japanese style because Chitose formulated and founded Chitō-ryū principally while living in Kumamoto, Japan. However, some modern practitioners feel it is better categorized as an Okinawan style given that its roots and techniques are firmly grounded in and derived from traditional Okinawan Tōde (唐手). This belief is warranted since the style's founder, Tsuyoshi Chitose, received first the rank of Judan, in 1958, and then the rank of Hanshi, in 1968, from the Zen Okinawa Karate Kobudo Rengo Kai (All Okinawa Union of Karate-do and Kobu-do). (Full article...) -
Lethwei (Burmese: လက်ဝှေ့; IPA: [lɛʔ.ʍḛ]) or Burmese boxing is a full contact combat sport from Myanmar that uses stand-up striking including headbutts. Lethwei is considered to be one of the most brutal martial arts in the world, as the sport is practiced bareknuckle with only tape and gauze while fighters are allowed to strike with their fists, elbows, knees, and feet, and the use of headbutts is also permitted. Disallowed in most combat sports, headbutts are important weapons in a Lethwei fighter's arsenal, giving Lethwei its name of the "Art of nine limbs". This, combined with its bareknuckle nature, gave Lethwei a reputation for being one of the bloodiest and most violent martial arts. Although popular throughout modern Myanmar, Lethwei has been primarily and historically associated with the Karen people of the Kayin State; vast majority of competitive Lethwei fighters are ethnolinguistically of Karen descent. (Full article...) -
Karate (空手) (/kəˈrɑːti/; Japanese pronunciation: [kaɾate] ⓘ; Okinawan pronunciation: [kaɽati]), also karate-do (空手道, Karate-dō), is a martial art developed in the Ryukyu Kingdom. It developed from the indigenous Ryukyuan martial arts (called te (手), "hand"; tī in Okinawan) under the influence of Chinese martial arts. While modern karate is primarily a striking art that uses punches and kicks, traditional karate also employs throwing and joint locking techniques. A karate practitioner is called a karate-ka (空手家).
The Ryukyu Kingdom had been conquered by the Japanese Satsuma Domain and had become its vassal state since 1609, but was formally annexed to the Empire of Japan in 1879 as Okinawa Prefecture. The Ryukyuan samurai (Okinawan: samurē) who had been the bearers of karate lost their privileged position, and with it, karate was in danger of losing transmission. However, karate gradually regained popularity after 1905, when it began to be taught in schools in Okinawa. During the Taishō era (1912–1926), karate was introduced to mainland Japan by Gichin Funakoshi and Motobu Chōki. Karate's popularity was initially sluggish with little exposition but when a magazine reported a story about Motobu defeating a foreign boxer in Kyoto, karate rapidly became well known throughout Japan. (Full article...) -
Ancient Greek boxing (Greek: πυγμαχία pygmachia, "fist fighting") dates back to at least the 8th century BC (Homer's Iliad), and was practiced in a variety of social contexts in different Greek city-states. Most extant sources about ancient Greek boxing are fragmentary or legendary, making it difficult to reconstruct the rules, customs and history surrounding this activity in great detail. Still, it is clear that gloved boxing bouts were a significant part of ancient Greek athletic culture throughout the early classical period. (Full article...)
Selected biography
Lesnar competed in collegiate wrestling for the University of Minnesota, winning the NCAA Division I national championship in 2000. He soon signed with the World Wrestling Federation (WWF, renamed WWE in 2002), rising to industry prominence in mid-2002 by winning the WWE Championship at age 25, setting the record for the youngest performer to win the championship. In 2004, Lesnar departed WWE to join the Minnesota Vikings of the National Football League (NFL), but was cut from the team during pre-season. He returned to wrestling and signed with NJPW in 2005 where he won the IWGP Heavyweight Championship. Lesnar later departed NJPW and continued to be promoted as the IWGP Heavyweight Champion in the IGF before taking a hiatus from wrestling to pursue a career in mixed martial arts (MMA). Years later in 2012, he re-signed with WWE; his 504-day first reign with the WWE Universal Championship is the seventh-longest world championship reign in the promotion's history and he holds the record for most reigns as Universal Champion at three. He also won the Royal Rumble match twice (2003 and 2022), the Money in the Bank ladder match (2019), the King of the Ring tournament (2002), and has headlined several pay-per-view events, including WWE's flagship event WrestleMania five times (XIX, 31, 34, 36, and 38), nine SummerSlams (2002, 2012, 2014, 2015, 2016, 2017, 2018, 2019, and 2022); in addition, he also ended The Undertaker's undefeated WrestleMania streak in 2014.
Lesnar began his MMA career for Hero's in 2007, and signed with the UFC in 2008. He quickly won the UFC Heavyweight Championship, but was sidelined with diverticulitis in 2009. On his return in 2010, Lesnar defeated Interim UFC Heavyweight Champion Shane Carwin to unify the heavyweight championships and become the undisputed UFC Heavyweight Champion. After a couple of losses and further struggles with diverticulitis, Lesnar retired from MMA in 2011. He returned at UFC 200 in 2016 to defeat Mark Hunt, but his victory was overturned to a no-contest after he tested positive for a banned substance on UFC's anti-doping policy. He then retired from MMA for the second time in 2017. A box office sensation, he competed in some of the bestselling pay-per-view events in promotion history, including headlining UFC 91, UFC 100, UFC 116, and UFC 121. He also co-headlined UFC 200, briefly being the main headliner before that spot was given to Amanda Nunes vs. Miesha Tate. (Full article...)
Selected entertainment
The 2008 Lockdown was a professional wrestling pay-per-view (PPV) event produced by the Total Nonstop Action Wrestling (TNA) promotion, which took place on April 13, 2008, at the Tsongas Arena in Lowell, Massachusetts. It was the fourth under the Lockdown chronology and fourth event in the 2008 TNA PPV schedule. Eight professional wrestling matches, two of which for championships, were featured on the card. In the concept of Lockdown events, every match took place inside a six-sided steel structure known as the Six Sides of Steel.
The main event was for the TNA World Heavyweight Championship between then-champion Kurt Angle and Samoa Joe, with the added stipulation if Joe lost he would retire from professional wrestling. Joe won the encounter, thus winning the TNA World Heavyweight Championship for the first time. Also held on the card was the 2008 Lethal Lockdown match between Team Cage and Team Tomko. Team Cage of Christian Cage, Matt Morgan, Kevin Nash, Rhino, and Sting defeated Tomko, A.J. Styles, James Storm, and Team 3D (Brother Devon and Brother Ray) of Team Tomko in the contest. Two featured bouts were scheduled on the undercard. The first was an Intergender Tag Team match pitting the team of Robert Roode and Payton Banks against the team of Booker T and Sharmell. Booker T and Sharmell were the victors in the match. The TNA X Division Championship was defended in the 2008 TNA Xscape match by Jay Lethal against Consequences Creed, Curry Man, Johnny Devine, Shark Boy, and Sonjay Dutt. Lethal won the competition to retain the championship.
Lockdown marked the fourth time the Lethal Lockdown and Xscape match formats were used by TNA. 55,000 was the reported figure of purchasers for the event by The Wrestling Observer Newsletter. Lockdown had an attendance of 5,500 people. Chris Sokol of the professional wrestling section of the Canadian Online Explorer rated the event a 6.5 out of 10, higher than the 2007 event's ranking of 5.5 out of 10 also by Sokol.
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A foil is one of the three weapons used in the sport of fencing. It is a flexible sword of total length 110 cm (43 in) or under, rectangular in cross section, weighing under 500 g (18 oz), with a blunt tip. As with the épée, points are only scored by making contact with the tip. The foil is the most commonly used weapon in fencing. (Full article...)
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Two Brazilian fighters in a Sanda/Sanshou match. Sanda is a modernized form of Kung Fu and one of the two disciplines of Sport Wushu (from Chinese martial arts) -
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Two children training in judo techniques (from Judo) -
King Shō Shin (from Karate) -
Groundfighting in MMA. Differently from other grappling-based martial arts, you are allowed to strike your opponent when fighting on the ground. (from Mixed martial arts) -
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Bruce Lee popularized the concept of mixed martial arts via his hybrid philosophy of Jeet Kune Do during the late 1960s to early 1970s. (from Mixed martial arts) -
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Gichin Funakoshi (from Karate) -
Dragon Ball's main protagonist Goku uses a variety and hybrid of east Asian martial arts styles, including Karate. (from Karate) -
The judogi is made from a heavy weave to withstand the stress of throwing and grappling. (from Judo) -
A scene of ancient Greek pankratiasts fighting. Originally found on a Panathenaic amphora, Lamberg Collection. (from Mixed martial arts) -
Depiction of fighting monks demonstrating their skills to visiting dignitaries (early 19th-century mural in the Shaolin Monastery). (from Chinese martial arts) -
Two judoka wearing judogi (from Judo) -
Throw during competition, leads to an ippon (from Judo) -
Mural at Shaolin temple from 1830's depicting forearm strikes and reverse kicks (from Chinese martial arts) -
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Chōki Motobu in Naihanchi-dachi, one of the basic karate stances (from Karate) -
Eisho-ji temple, Tokyo (from Judo) -
Pankratiast in fighting stance, Ancient Greek red-figure amphora, 440 BC. (from History of martial arts) -
Kung fu sword (from Chinese martial arts) -
Fol. 4v of the I.33 (from History of martial arts) -
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Kung fu in Iran (from Chinese martial arts) -
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A Chinese martial artist preparing to throw his opponent during a lei tai contest in Ancient China. (from Mixed martial arts) -
Olympic Judo pictogram (from Judo) -
The Pancrastinae: A statue portraying the pancratium, an event which took place in the Roman Colosseum. Even as late as the Early Middle Ages, statues were put up in Rome and other cities to honor remarkable pankratiasts. This statue, now part of the Uffizi collection, is a Roman copy of a lost Greek original, circa 3rd century BC. (from Mixed martial arts) -
MMA gloves. They are fingerless gloves which allow both striking and grappling to occur. (from Mixed martial arts) -
An octagon cage used by the UFC. (from Mixed martial arts) -
Martial arts fan (from Chinese martial arts) -
Ancient Chinese weapons (from Chinese martial arts) -
Japanese judoka Takamasa Anai Vs French judoka Thierry Fabre during the 2010 World Judo Championships held in Tokyo (from Judo) -
Masters of karate in Tokyo (c. 1930s), from left to right, Kanken Toyama, Hironori Otsuka, Takeshi Shimoda, Gichin Funakoshi, Chōki Motobu, Kenwa Mabuni, Genwa Nakasone, and Shinken Taira (from Karate) -
Gina Carano applying a ground-and-pound on her opponent. (from Mixed martial arts) -
Vale tudo match between thai boxer Flávio Molina and Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner Marcelo Behring, 1984 (from Mixed martial arts) -
Modern forms are used in the sport of wushu, as seen in this staff routine (from Chinese martial arts) -
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A ring-side doctor attends to a fighter following a loss. (from Mixed martial arts) -
Yoshihiko Yoshimatsu attempting to throw Toshiro Daigo with an uchi mata in the final of the 1951 All-Japan Judo Championships (from Judo) -
A "soccer kick", movement where the fighter kicks the head of a downed opponent. While common in vale tudo, early MMA and Japanese promotions, the soccer kick has been banned from the Unified Rules of Mixed Martial Arts (from Mixed martial arts) -
Jigoro Kano, founder of judo (from Judo) -
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A ring used by PRIDE. (from Mixed martial arts) -
Karate movements in Lappeenranta (from Karate) -
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Karatekas wearing different colored belts (from Karate) -
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Judo (1935) (from Judo) -
Fighter performs a takedown on his opponent. (from Mixed martial arts) -
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Bronze medal match at the 2018 Summer Youth Olympics in Buenos Aires, Argentina. (from Karate) -
All-Japan Judo Championships, 2007 men's final (from Judo)
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Topics
- Regional origin - China - Europe - India - Indonesia - Japan - Korea - Philippines
- Unarmed techniques - Chokehold - Clinch - Footwork - Elbow strike - Headbutt - Hold - Kick - Knee strike - Joint lock - Punch - Sweep - Takedown - Throw
- Weapons - Archery - Duel - Knife fighting - Melee weapons - Shooting - Stick-fighting - Swordsmanship
- Training - Kata - Practice weapon - Punching bag - Pushing hands - Randori - Sparring
- Striking - Boxing - Capoeira - Karate - Kickboxing - Muay Thai - Lethwei - Sanshou - Savate - Taekwondo - Vovinam
- Internal - Aikido - Aikijutsu - Baguazhang - Tai chi - Xing Yi Quan
- Full contact / Combat sports - Professional boxing - Professional kickboxing - Knockdown karate - Mixed martial arts - Pankration - Submission wrestling
- Self-defense / Combatives - Arnis - Bartitsu - Hapkido - Kajukenbo - Krav Maga - MCMAP - Pencak Silat - Systema - Wing Chun - Legal aspects
- Eclectic / Hybrids - American Kenpo - Chun Kuk Do - Jeet Kune Do - Shooto - Shorinji Kempo - Unifight
- Entertainment - Fighting game - Martial arts film (Chanbara) - Professional wrestling - Stage combat - Wuxia
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