15
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When was throwing introduced to martial arts?
Earliest examples of wrestling
Wrestling has been a part of most societies since time-immemorial:
Fresco in tomb 15 at Beni Hasan, Egypt ca. 2,000 BC.
The earliest known historical European ...
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11
votes
Does anyone actually fight with two katana simultaneously?
Yes. Contrary to what the average "expert" on swords and Japanese swordsmanship will tell you online (along with their obligatory mentions to Miyamoto Musashi who everyone obligatorily must ...
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11
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Does anyone actually fight with two katana simultaneously?
The book of five rings, written by Miyamoto Musashi around 1645, advocates two-sword fencing style (nitōjutsu): that is, wielding both katana and wakizashi.
He does, however, states that you should ...
11
votes
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What's the name of this sweep and where did it originate?
You're describing the knee push variation of "Scissor Sweep." It's very common in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu.
There are two main ways to do it from full guard. Both involve getting control of one arm in ...
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10
votes
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What Level Of Expertise Did Theodore Roosevelt Have In Judo?
Roosevelt's Judo experience
Roosevelt trained judo under two instructors (John O'Brien, and Yoshiaki Yamashita) for a period of around a few months each in 1902 and 1904. He maintained an interest in ...
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10
votes
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What are the physical requirements for Sumo wrestlers? No exposing six-packs?
TL;DR
Mass is one of the most important aspects of winning sumo bouts.
More detail
The most prominent physical requirement, at least in Japanese sumo, is height.
In 1994, the Japanese Sumo ...
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10
votes
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Does Kung-Fu come from Kalaripayattu?
NO, or at least not until about 900 years after both Buddhabhadra and Bodhidharma died.
In Meir Shahar's The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion, and the Chinese Martial Arts, there is a whole ...
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9
votes
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How has BJJ innovated since diverging from Judo?
I think it's important to make a distinction between "someone, somewhere in the Judo community has used this at some point" and "this is widely known and used in mainstream or competition Judo". There ...
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9
votes
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What did Judo change/innovate when it branched from Jujutsu?
Judo's initial innovations were not in techniques, but in the manner of training them.
Randori
Kano emphasized the use of randori (free practice) in training. This contrasted with many jujutsu ...
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8
votes
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Does anyone actually fight with two katana simultaneously?
There are a few forms in Tenshinsho-den Katori Shinto ryu. I know they exist, but was not able to progress to that level in my local school. Here is a link to a video of the style. https://www.youtube....
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8
votes
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What Defines Something As A Martial Art?
Similar to Sardathrion's answer the definition on Wikipedia is
Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practices, which are practiced for a variety of reasons: self-defense, ...
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8
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Origin of this Zen koan-like story
I have not found a definitive answer for where the story originates, although I'm under the impression that it actually began in Zen Buddhism as a sort of a koan:
Zen teachers often tell the story of ...
- 11.9k
8
votes
Did martial arts really originate from India and is it based on yoga?
Short Answer: No.
Longer Answer: When and where have there not been martial arts? Individual styles and schools all have their own creation stories. And they can generally be ties to historical ...
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8
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Who said there are 3 paths of judo and where can I find the quote
Obviously, the sourcing is kind of messy, but considering Hal Sharp used to actually be in personal contact with this man, a video of his will have to suffice for validation.
Yoshimi Osawa, 10th Dan, ...
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8
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Why were leg-locks removed from Judo?
Leg-locks were banned shortly after an 1899 exhibition match in Kyoto (held before Emperor Taishō) between Kodokan 3rd dan Yuji Hirooka and Fusen-ryū master Mataemon Tanabe. During the match Tanabe ...
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8
votes
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What is kubi-nage?
Kubi-nage appears to have been coined by Mikinosuke Kawaishi, as the earliest references to judo throws by this name appear in his works.2 3 He describes it as a hip-throw with the arm wrapped around ...
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7
votes
Age of martial arts
For oldest, please refer to What is the oldest documented Eastern Martial Art that is still practiced? and What is the oldest martial art?. Also see What qualifies a school or business as a legitimate ...
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7
votes
What Defines Something As A Martial Art?
I totally agree on the pedantry stuff, and i think that it is really depending on what each person thinks about it. For me, a kind of Martial Art has a tradition, a specific form or style or is ...
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7
votes
Why are traditional karate gis white?
Karate adopted the white uniforms of judo in the early 20th century for two complementary reasons:
to increase its appeal to mainland Japan already familiar with its use in Judo
as part of the ...
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7
votes
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Historical esgrimas de navaja technical manuals
If 1849 is recent enough, there's the Manual del Baratero. I've only found a partial translation available for free, but there are a few ones for sale such as this one.
Excerpt from the free online ...
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7
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Is modern martial arts effectiveness intentionally reduced?
Absolutely. Though I would say it's the case for modern "traditional" martial arts. There are some martial arts that have not been affected. Here are the main two reasons for what you're seeing (I use ...
- 1,801
7
votes
Source: Hélio Gracie being offered a Kodokan Belt and refusing?
You may be considering one aspect of the story of the match between Helio and Masahiko Kimura. Kimura identified Helio as being a 6th dan in Judo in his biography and some accounts describe it as him ...
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7
votes
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Why are punches to the head prohibited in some Eastern striking martial arts?
As per what was mentioned in the comments, these are competition rules. But these arts do teach and practice face punches/strikes in their syllabus.
I'd like to draw an example from my style: ...
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7
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What style(s) of Jujitsu did Jigoro Kano study?
Kano's memoirs describe his jujutsu training.
Tenjin Shinyo Ryu under Hachinosuke Fukuda and Masatomo Iso
Kito Ryu under Tsunetoshi Iikubo
the Kito style was very different from the Tenjin Shinyo ...
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7
votes
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What martial arts are part of Kuk Sool Won?
The question asks about the origins and lineage of Kuk Sool Won.
In the past, I once had an interest in KSW as well. At various times, I've looked for this information, hoping that something ...
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7
votes
Where did knee-on-belly come from?
Knee-on-belly in BJJ likely originates from judo, as it is depicted in several early 20th century judo manuals (under the name uki-gatame, "floating hold"):
My Method of Judo (p.154) (1955)
...
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6
votes
What Defines Something As A Martial Art?
The Oxford dictionary defines martial art as
Various sports, which originated chiefly in Japan, Korea, and China as forms of self-defence or attack, such as judo, karate, and kendo.
Merriam ...
6
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How did jiujitsu spread to Britain?
According to Wikipedia, it was introduced to the UK by Edward William Barton-Wright in 1898.
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6
votes
Why is a gi worn left side over right?
Origin of keikogi, and Japanese left-over-right dress tradition
The uniforms of karate, aikido, kendo, Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu, sambo etc are derived from the uniforms of judo, which were themselves based ...
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6
votes
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Did martial arts really originate from India and is it based on yoga?
Sainid's answer mentions the common story that an Indian monk introduced exercises to the Shaolin temple, and their martial arts practice grew out of those exercises; this is probably what the ...
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