Arnis: The Philippines' National Sport and Martial Art (2024)

FAQs

What is Arnis as a national martial art sport of the Philippines? ›

Arnis is the national martial art sport of Philippines. It is also known as Eskrima and Kali. This sport actually emphasizes weapon based fighting which is done using knives, bladed weapons, sticks and various improvised weapons. It also includes hand to hand combat, grappling and weapon disarming methods.

Answer: Arnis, also called Kali and Eskrima, is a traditional martial art that uses sticks, bladed weapons, knives, and improvised weapons when fighting. It also includes hand-to-hand combat, grappling, joint locks, and weapon disarming techniques.

Known for their heavy use of weaponry, the Philippines formed their own fighting styles and techniques practiced throughout the world for various combat training. Fighting is such an essential part of the culture that in 2009, the Republican Act 9850 declared Arnis the national sport and martial art of the Philippines.

Arnis is a formidable close-combat martial art because of its progressive nature. The techniques flow from one to the next, inflicting more damage and gaining greater control of the opponent with each sequence of movements.

Arnis also includes hand-to-hand combat, joint locks, grappling and weapon disarming techniques. Although in general, emphasis is put on weapons for these arts, some systems put empty hands as the primary focus and some old school systems do not teach weapons at all.

As Filipinos frequently had to defend themselves against attackers from other countries as well as from other villages, it was necessary for them to hone their own effective and simple form of combat. Thus Arnis was developed as a way of defending one's life (and the lives of one's family members) when attacked.

It is a martial art characterized by the use of “swinging and twirling movements, accompanied by striking, thrusting and parrying techniques for defense and offense.” Having been handed down from generation to generation for centuries, the discipline hones the skill, speed, accuracy and agility of its practitioners.

No punching, kicking, or takedowns permitted. No contact to the back. The format of arnis stick fighting is continuous. Referee stops and restarts the fight if one or both competitors fall on the ground, one or both weapons fall on the ground, or one competitor grabs the handle and takes away the opponent's weapon.

Unlike other martial arts that teach the use of weapons only after years of unarmed training, students of Arnis learn to use weaponry first. Its philosphy is that the same technique can be applied to any weapon, just as its versatility allows for it to blend seamlessy with many other martial arts.

Arnis was included in the calendar 49 sports and 608 events that the Philippine Olympic Committee announced Sunday, a milestone that Senate President Miguel Zubiri, who is the Philippine Eskrima Kali Arnis Federation president and chairman, acknowledged.

What are the 3 forms of Arnis? ›

Arnis incorporates 3 methods: espada y daga (sword and dagger), solo baston (single stick) and sinawali (to weave) which uses two sticks as per the photo at the start of this page.

Practitioners of the sport are called “arnisador” for male and “arnisadora” for female in Arnis and “eskrimador” for male and “eskrimadora” for female in the Eskrima and Kali Art.

Arnis is an indigenous martial arts sport that originated from the Philippines. Arnis was designed as a self-defence system for an injury-free training method as well as effective self-defense system.

Improved strength and cardio. Quicker reflexes. Increased confidence in tense situations.

This art was practiced primarily for self-defense by the pre-Spanish Filipinos who were noted for their friendly nature and legendary hospitality. The art of hand-to-hand combat has always been an integral part of the Filipino in his long, turbulent, and bloody history.

Unlike other combatitive sports, arnis does not usually require any body contact between each player besides the batons that they are holding. Any attack using bare hands or feet is considered a foul. Scores depend on the number of strikes each player could deliver.

Arnis is a combative sport played by two individuals in a court measuring 26.24 Feet (8 meters) into 26.24 Feet (8 meters), with a smooth and clean surface.

Remy Amador Presas was the founder of Modern Arnis, a popular Filipino martial art and is recognized as the “Father of Modern Arnis”.

QUALITIES OF A GOOD PLAYER

Alertness and Awareness – a player must possess keenness of the mind and reflexes. Coordination and Concentration – the body and the mind should work together. The correct body movement is perceived in the mind. Speed – a player must exhibit a quick reaction ad total body movement.

What is the other name of Arnis? ›

— Arnis, also known as Eskrima, Kali, Garrote and other names in various regional languages, such as Pananandata in Tagalog; Pagkalikali, Ibanag; Kabaraon and Kalirongan, Pangasinan; Kaliradman, Bisaya; and Didja, Ilokano, is an indigenous Filipino martial art and sport characterized by the use of swinging and twirling ...

A major lesson you'll learn in arnis, and any other martial art, is discipline and self control. You'll learn to discipline yourself in actually showing up to class and practicing to learn and perfect the drills and movements so you can execute them seamlessly.

Rattan. Rattan is the most commonly used material for bastons in Arnis training. They are light, flexible and good for training in speed. They are made from dried and cut reeds and are typically cut 26"-30" in length, 3/4"-1" in diameter and rounded at both ends.

In general, Arnis Kali takes one of its two forms: the performance-based “Anyo” or the combative “Laban.” The anyo competitions are judged based on the performances' overall choreography. These include the force, strength and gracefulness employed.

Arnis is the term used in Northern Philippines, Escrima is what is used in the middle and southern islands. Kali is a non-Filipino term. It's a generic, umbrella term for stick fighting but no Filipino ever uses it to describe FMA.

In Modern Arnis, Anyo is the application of all styles learned throughout one's training, and is performed with a specific weapon (i.e. cane, dagger, hands) to show the flow of that form. Anyo requires certain proficiency of beat, tempo, timing, agility, and most of all, diwang. panlaban (fighting spirit).

Practitioners of the Arnis arts are called arnisador (male, plural arnisadores) and arnisadora (female, plural arnisadoras). For those who practice Eskrima/Escrima are called eskrimador (male, plural eskrimadores) or eskrimadora (female, plural eskrimadoras), and kalista for those who practise kali.

It is a form of martial art focusing on weapon-based fighting with sticks, knives, bladed weapons, and different improvised weapons. It also includes techniques like hand-to-hand combat, grappling, joint locks, and weapon disarming.

They are the espada y daga (“sword and dagger”) in which a long wooden sword and a short wooden dagger is used; the solo baston (single stick) in a single long muton or baston (wooden stick or rattan cane hardened by drying or heating) is used; and the sinawali, a native term applied because the intricate movements of ...

The conduct of the Full Contact competition shall be on a two-out-of-three round system. Each round should be held for a maximum of two (2) minutes for the Secondary level. Players are required to show artistic arnis movements unique to their styles for at least three (3) seconds when the referee says “HANDA”.

What countries use Arnis? ›

Modern Arnis is perpetuated worldwide and some of the countries where the art is most popular are the Philippines, the United States, Canada, and Germany, but there are practitioners in many other nations as well.

The Americans first witnessed Arnis in the Philippine–American War in such events as the “Balangiga massacre” where the majority of a US company was cut to death or severely injured by knife-wielding guerillas in Eastern Samar, as well as in Mindanao battles, where an American soldier was beheaded by a Moro warrior.

Arnis differentiates between the old traditional warfare and its modern interpretation Modern Arnis. Modern Arnis deals with the transmission of the old art to sticks and everyday objects whereas the classical Arnis is about warfare with blades.

Sipa was made in the country and was thought to be the national sport. In 2009, Gloria-Macapagal Arroyo, president at the time, made Arnis the national sport of The Philippines. Sipa's popularity has decreased, but Filipinos still like to play it for fun.

Historically, Arnis incorporated three related methods: “espada y daga” (sword and dagger), which employs a long blade and short dagger; “solo baston” (single stick); and “sinawali” (to weave), which uses two sticks of equal length twirled in “weaving” fashion for blocking and striking (term is derived from sawali, the ...

As a fighting art, Arnis has three forms of play.

Arnis incorporates 3 methods: espada y daga (sword and dagger), solo baston (single stick) and sinawali (to weave) which uses two sticks as per the photo at the start of this page.

Each round should be held for One (1) minute with Three (3) Judges using flag system, both elementary and Secondary level. Players are required to show artistic Arnis movements unique to their styles for at least three (3) seconds when the referee says "HANDA".

Remy Amador Presas (December 19, 1936 – August 28, 2001) was the founder of Modern Arnis, a popular Filipino martial art.