The History of Kali and Escrima

Filipino Kali is the martial art of stick fighting. Hard,are called Northern, Southern, and Central.
bamboo sticks are used for defense and toIn Kali the assumption is always to use the edge
attack. They have made this particular fightingof a blade, be it sword or knife. Kali employs
style into a unique and deadly martial art form.many techniques, including strikes, stances and
Kali Practitioners are first taught weapons fightingweapons handling, which have influences from
before hand to hand combat, differentiating itselfChina, Arabia, Indonesia and Spain.
from other martial art styles. A student in anyThe Southern islands, where influenced by Arab
other Asian Martial Art is expected to mastermissionaries and became know as (Moro Filipinos"),
hand to hand combat before moving on tofierce Moslems who violently opposed foreign
weapons.peoples on their native land. During the American
A definition of Kali would be: A Martial Artoccupation in the early 1900s, Moros, marked by
specializing in the use of two baton-length sticks,tiger-eyes and red headbands - signifying a
with techniques adaptable to empty-hand orresolve to kill until killed battled American trrops.
edged weapons.The Moro's we so ferocious that the American
The word "escrima" originates from the Spanishsoldiers found their .38-caliber pistols ineffective.
verb "escrime", meaning to fence with a sword.As a result the .45-caliber pistol was designed as a
Escrima is thought to have originated during theknock down weapon specifically to deal with the
Spanish occupation of the Philippine Islands.Moros. The American militray term "leather neck"
Escrima is often used synonymously for Arnis andcomes from fighting the Moro's during this time.
Kali.American Marines would wrap their necks in
Kali is an ancient term used to signify the martialleather to keep from getting injured by the Kali
arts in the southern Philippines. This martial artwarriors.
style is known as Kali-Silat. During the occupationIn 1935, the Philippines were occupied by the
by Spain, it was forbidden to practice Kali.Japanese during World War II. Known for close-in,
Studies of dance forms in the Philippines show thehand-to-hand combat with bolo knives, Filipino
influence of Kali. Kali martial arts movements aretroops established themselves as fierce guerrilla
ingrained in all the hand gestures and footsteps offorces.
the dances. These Kali patterns are not to beFollowing the war, many Kali practitioners
seen in the dances of India, Indochina, Indonesia,migrated from the Philippines to Hawaii and
Malaysia, Thailand, China, Japan, Pacific islanders.California. They lived close together, working as
Both men and women were taught martial arts infarm laborers and practicing their martial art in
the Philippines. Combat was a fact of life and usedsecret.
against neighboring tribes, warlords and foreignAfter years of secrecy the old Kali masters
occupiers.started to teach a younger generation the
Kali, Ecrima or Arnis stick fighting was developedbeautiful and deadly Filipino Martial Art. Its sad to
over a period of many centuries. The people ofsay that the older generation of Kali masters
the Philippines fought constant foreign invadersbelieve the martial art is dead in the Phillipines.
during this time. Each struggle against a newTodays Kali practicioner shows respect to the art
culture added to the Filipino Martial Arts as Kaliby the use of a visual salutation. They touch the
warriors developed techniques to counter, combatclosed fist of their right hand to their forehead
and integrate many foreign styles. More than 100and the open palm if the left hand to their heart.
different Filipino Martial Arts styles developed,Some of these masters of Kali who have
which can be grouped into three completecontinued the art are Angel Cabales, Regino
self-defense systems which utilize sticks, swords,Ellustrisimo, Leo Giron, John LaCoste, Ben Largusa,
empty hands and other weapons. The systemsand Floro Villabrille.