filipino martial arts

Ronald A. Harris, Ph.D.

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FILIPINO MARTIAL ARTS

The Filipino martial arts (FMA) can be called Filipino

fencing, because they are methods of personal armed combat

that emphasize skills in weaponry over skills in empty

hands. Unarmed combat is practiced in FMA, but is

traditionally studied after weaponry. This training

sequence sets FMA apart from other martial arts that

initiate with empty hands.

Armed combat is known as Arnis, Eskrima (fencing,

Spanish), and Kali. Arnis derives from the Spanish arnes

meaning armor. It also comes from “harness,” referring to

the battle harness worn by Filipino soldiers under Spanish

command. Arnis-de-mano means “harness of hand”, referring

to deft hand movements of Filipino grooms for Spanish

officers. These lightning fast hand movements were native

martial arts techniques in disguise. Forbidden by the

Spanish to practice martial arts, defiant Filipinos

retained their fighting skills in secret by hiding them in

dance forms called Santikan, Sayaw, and Moro-Moro.

Other etymologies have been suggested for the names of

the various Filipino arts. Dueling an opponent is “to

skirmish”. The Spanish term Esgrima is in the Pilipino

language. Kali might be named after the Hindu Goddess of


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Destruction. Dan Inosanto says Kali is the conjunction of

the first syllables of two words from the Philippine

Islands Visayan language--kamot meaning “hand” and lihok

meaning “motion”. Thus, Kali means “hand motion”. An

etymology of the Pilipino language indicates otherwise. In

the Hiligaynon dialect of the Western Visayas, the term

kali means “to dig”, as with a shovel (pala). A shovel is

a spade and the word for sword is espada. Kali probably

derives from the Visayan word kalis, meaning “sword” and

was written in a shipboard chronicle of Magellan’s voyage

in 1534 A.D.

Unarmed combat is Mano-Mano (“hand-to-hand”, Spanish),

but is also Kuntao and Silat. To describe the plethora of

FMA styles is arduous, but some: Doce Pares, Lacoste,

Modern Arnis, and Pekiti Tirsia, are publicized through

seminars and are associated with particular instructors

such as Ciriaco C. Canete, Dan Inosanto, Remy A. Presas,

and Leo T. Gaje, Jr., who spread the FMA in Australia,

Canada, Germany, Great Britain, and in the United States.

Geographically situated at the crossroads of Southeast

Asia, the Philippines are located near the equator above

Borneo and below Taiwan. With a population estimated at 60

million, the Philippines is larger in area than Great


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Britain, but smaller than Japan. Those readers unfamiliar

with the 7,107 islands and three major regions of the

Philippine Archipelago: Luzon (North), Visayas (Central),

and Mindanao (South), may be confused by the 87 different

dialects of Pilipino, which is the national language.

Besides dialects, English is the language of business and

education. Spanish is spoken--to a lesser extent.

Foreign languages are remnants of immigration to and

colonization of the islands, which influenced native

Filipino martial arts. Ostensibly, Filipinos have Malay

ancestry, Chinese culture, Spanish religion, and American

education. Mestizos are racially mixed Filipinos with

Chinese, Spanish, and American bloodlines. This cultural

milieu facilitated the blending of FMA. Thus, FMA are a

blend of martial arts having Indonesian, Malaysian,

Chinese, Spanish, American, and Japanese origins.

Filipino martial culture has both tradition and

history. Tradition is oral, and history is written. Their

culture was destroyed and created by foreign colonization.

Martial fiestas offer keys for understanding Filipino

martial culture. For example, the mythical meeting of the

Ten Datus (“chiefs”)of Borneo with the Negritos of Panay is

celebrated annually at the Ati-Atihan in Kalibo, Aklan.


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Similarly, the defeat of Captain Ferdinand Magellan by Datu

Lapu-Lapu of Mactan Island is celebrated at the Sinulog in

Cebu. This is in conjunction with Santo Nino Fiesta

marking the introduction of the Catholic faith to the

Philippines.

Theory posits that in a prehistoric period the

aboriginal Negritos (pygmies, Aetas) crossed over a land

bridge from mainland Asia, first settling the islands.

Next, waves of immigrants (from the area called Malaysia)

colonized the islands around 200 B.C. Anthropological

evidence shows that the prehistoric people of Southeast

Asia all belonged to a single population. They were later

divided into cultural groups (i.e., Filipinos, Malaysians,

and Indonesians) in accordance with the territorial

boundaries of their European (i.e., Spanish, British, and

Dutch) colonizers.

In the 9th Century, trade relations began with China.

Colonies were established in the Philippines during the

Sung Dynasty (960-1127 A.D.). Kuntao, a FMA with empty

hand movements similar to Taijiquan, has been traced to the

Kuntung Province. Chinese rivalry with the Hindus and

Javanese continued into the Ming period (1402-1424 AD).

Ancient civilizations--the Sri Vishayan and Majapahit--are


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prominent in Filipino history. Hindu influence includes

the Tantra and could explain the prominent role of women in

Filipino society. Bisaya purportedly means, “slave” and

was used by Moros to refer to people of the central region

whom they frequently captured or killed. The Majapahit

Empire was formed in Java around the 12th Century in the

area of modern Indonesia. This ancient Islamic Empire

included Burma, Indonesia, Thailand, Malaysia, Cambodia,

Madagascar, and Philippines. The martial arts from these

countries, such as Muay Thai, Bersilat, and Pentjak Silat,

have techniques that are similar to the FMA, such as Silat.

Islam came to Mindanao around 1380 A.D., spreading to

the Visayas and Luzon. These “Malays” ventured from Borneo

(Kalimantan) led by the ten datus (chieftains), the most

important of whom is Datu Puti. Datu Puti traveled from

Borneo to Panay, from Panay to Luzon, and from Luzon back

to Borneo, after helping the datus to settle other islands.

In 1433 A.D., Datu Kalantiyaw, the third chief of Panay and

descendent of Datu Sumakwel from Borneo, issued civil and

social orders called the Kalantiyaw for guiding his people.

Although its authenticity is questionable, the eighteen

commandments of the Kalantiyaw code may be one of the few

written records surviving the pre-Spanish times.


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Western history begins with Captain Ferdinand Magellan

landing on the Island of Cebu in the central Visayas on

April 15, 1521. The conquistador was circumnavigating the

globe and claiming lands for the Spanish Crown.

Philippines is “Philip’s Pines” named after King Philip.

In the Battle of Mactan, Captain Magellan was killed while

retreating from an attack on the native forces led by Datu

Lapu-Lapu. According to the shipboard chronicles of

Antonio Pigafetta, there were 1,050 Filipinos against

forty-nine Europeans. European weapons are identified as

lances, hackbuts (i.e., firearms), crossbows, artillery,

and armor. Filipino weapons included poisoned arrows,

lances of bamboo tipped with iron, javelins; unbound wooden

shields; fire hardened pointed stakes, and hurled stones.

The Spanish colonial period brought Catholic religion

to the islands and unified the islands into a single

nation. Independence from Spain was declared June 12,

1898. The Filipino revolution for independence was led by

secret societies, such as Katipunan. Most Katipunan

members were freemasons following pre-Spanish traditions

and were known to practice both Filipino Martial Arts and

Spanish swordsmanship. After the Spanish-American War, the

United States got Puerto Rico and the Philippines as booty.


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The Americans fought a guerilla war against the Moros in

Mindanao to claim the islands. Fierce resistance from

local Muslim tribes caused the United States to recall the

.38 cal. revolver and issue the .45 cal. revolver to

increase stopping power. Moros tied tourniquets on their

limbs and charged into the American trenches. The nickname

“leatherneck” refers to the United States Marines’ wearing

leather gorgets around their necks to stop the Moros from

cutting their throats.

Japanese Imperial armed forces invaded the Philippines

and occupied the islands from 1942 to 1945. An ideological

battle was fought for the soul of the Filipino people, who

were reminded by the Japanese that despite their history

under Spain and America, they were oriental not occidental.

The Japanese encountered fierce guerilla resistance in the

islands from Filipino nationalists and their American

allies. Following General Douglas MacArthur’s historic

return landing in Leyte, the Philippines headed for self-

determination. There is an indelible mark on the Filipino

psyche from the Japanese occupation in World War II. Some

of the two handed stick fighting styles, such as Dos Manos

in Doce Pares Eskrima, were developed to encounter Japanese

swords. After the commonwealth ended in 1946, the


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Philippines developed like other former Spanish colonies as

an agricultural society.

Nowadays, the Filipino arts include many types of

skills, but not all styles are versed in the entire range

of them. Inosanto classifies Filipino weapons into twelve

categories (1) single stick, sword or axe, (2) double

stick, sword or axe, (3) single stick, sword or axe and

dagger or shield, (4) double knife, (5) single knife and

empty hands, (6) empty hands, (7) short stick, (8) flexible

weapons, (9) throwing weapons, (10) archery and blowgun,

(11) spear and staff, and (12) double handed long stick.

The latter category can instead include healing arts and

metaphysics.

The single stick (Solo Baston, Garote, Olisi) category

includes the axe and sword--when used singly. A single

cane refers to a wooden weapon--about one-inch in diameter

ranging from twenty-two to forty-four inches in length.

Sticks are used to practice and are often made of rattan

for safety. Rattan is a noduled porous climbing palm tree

with a tough skin. Some FMA techniques are executed with

either sticks or swords, but many techniques are stick

oriented. Fewer are blade-oriented. Practitioners seldom

play with blunted or sharpened edged weapons, with the


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exception of aluminum sword blanks and steel training

knives. However, the late Tatang Illustrisimo was known to

practice Kali with bladed weapons.

There is a misconception on the part of some

practitioners that rattan is a suitable wood for self-

defense. Rattan sticks are used for safe practice, but

they lack the density needed for combat. Oral tradition

holds that Datu Lapu-Lapu killed Captain Magellan with a

rattan stick in single combat! Hardwood weapons made of

Bahi (palm) or Kamagong (ebony) are favored in fighting,

however.

The vara was a Spanish unit of measurement about

thirty-one to thirty-three inches in length. The vara was

also an implement used for wrapping bolts of cloth and

would be convenient to wield, say in a marketplace. Thus,

the vara is plausibly the fighting stick length used by

eskrimadores during the Spanish period. This is the stick

length of Original Doce Pares.

The stick is held in either the long range (largo) or

close range (corto) grip. In the long-range grip, the hand

is pursed, while in the close range grip the hand is

clenched. These grips provide reach and strength,

respectively. A variation on the close range grip is the


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reverse grip (an “ice-pick” grip), which is used for

infighting. This grip, however, is more likely to be used

in knife fighting.

Stick length varies according to personal style and

with practitioner morphology. An example shows category

one and category twelve of the Inosanto weapons typology.

Hence, the late Angel Cabales, of Serrada (“closed”, from

Spanish, cerrada) Eskrima, who was four feet eleven inches

tall and weighed one hundred pounds, used a twenty-two inch

stick to close with his opponents. In contrast, Romeo C.

Mamar, Sr. of Tapado, who is about five foot, seven inches

tall and weighs 160 pounds, likes a forty-four inch stick

to strike his opponents from a distance. A stylistic

difference is that while the Serrada practitioner uses one

hand to strike, the Tapado practitioner uses two hands to

wield the primary weapon.

Besides the single stick, there is the single axe

(wasay), club (batuta), and sword (kalis). Swords come in

many shapes and sizes, especially down South in “Moroland.”

Moro weapons include the kris, barong, and kampilan.

Krises have three or more (odd numbered) flaming waves in

the blade (i.e., flamberge) and is double edged designed

for thrusting. The Filipino kris is larger, wider, and


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heavier than the Indonesian kris. The barong is a shorter

leaf shaped single edged sword for chopping and thrusting,

without a hilt. The kampilan is a longer chopper with a

blunted point, which may be swung with two hands. Visayan

swords include the talibong and ginonting. The talibong is

single edged, made by stock removal on one side of the

blade with the hilt, while the ginonting has a blunt point

with no hilt. Farming tools, such as the bolo or machete,

are common.

The double stick (doble baston, sinawali) category

refers to two canes or swords of equal length. The

phiosophy which prevails in this category of weapons is

that “two swords are better than one, when you know how to

use them both in conjunction”. Sawali means “to weave”.

Sinawali refers to the striking patterns made by two

coordinated weapons.

The sword and dagger techniques (espada y daga)

recognize natural dominance in human physiology. If an

opponent is holding one weapon, then it will probably be

held in the dominant hand. If an enemy is holding two

weapons, then either the lighter or smaller weapon will be

held in the submissive hand, and the heavier or longer

weapon will be held in the dominant hand. This is not true


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for the sword and shield, but the principle of warding with

the “awkward” or submissive hand still holds.

The shield (kalasag, Pilipino) is used in combination

with the sword or the spear. Fighters wore armor during

the time of Magellan, but armor is seldom used for

contemporary practice. Beginning with the Spanish

colonial period, European martial arts, especially the

Spanish geometric theory of fencing, blended with native

fighting. For example, the concept of angular attack

influenced Filipino Karate. Filipino Espada y Daga might

have evolved from Spanish sword and dagger techniques. The

European fencing schools include the French, Italian,

Spanish, and German, and Rikarte Eskrima has attack and

counterattack methods for these schools. Since General

Ricarte fought in the revolution against Spain, these

methods may be a result of the revolutionary experience.

Moreover, FMA styles can have specifically European roots.

Mariano Navarro founded the Black Eagle Eskrima Club of

Cebu. Navarro’s Portuguese father taught him his

swordsmanship. An arnisidor (practitioner of arnis) from

Bacolod, Federico Serfino, Jr., was the national fencing

champion and represented the Philippines in the 1964


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Olympic games. Serfino already knew Arnis, but learned

European fencing at the Indonesian embassy in Manila.

The double knife category follows a progression from

double stick. The way in which the knives are held,

gripped in the hands with palms facing down, is connected

with suntukin, the Filipino boxing style. There are two

basic ways to hold the knife: with the point upward in a

hammer grip and with the point downward in an icepick grip.

These “up and down” knife grips are known as dusak and

pakal in the Visayan language. An important principal in

knife fighting is called “equalization.” The student is

taught always to carry two or more knives in case an

attacker has a bigger knife. For example, Pekiti Tirsia

practitioners carry three knives at all times. In double

knife fighting, there is a dominant and recessive side of

the body that comes into play. One strategy is to hold a

single bladed slashing weapon in the dominant hand and hold

a double bladed thrusting weapon in the submissive hand.

The dominant hand leads the body into combat, while the

submissive hand destroys the enemy after closure.

The single knife is usually a dagger practiced with empty

hands, but this category includes dagger versus dagger

(daga y daga). Some of the more important principles


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taught in this method are the following. A single edged

knife is better for cutting than the double-edged knife,

because the wider blade cleaves flesh. The double-edged

dagger has the advantage of penetration, because the knife

is usually more narrow and pointed. Still, the slimmer

dagger makes it more susceptible to breakage. Different

styles favor various knife shapes and grips. In Lapu-Lapu,

the practitioners used ordinary tools as weapons: like the

songut (an implement for cutting sugar cane) and the bita,

which was used for making shoes.

Certain styles evolved into long knife methods.

Philippine Army General Faustino Ablin originally developed

Derobio Eskrima for cavalry saber. After this style went

to Hawaii under the late Braulio Pedoy, the saber

techniques were practiced with stick, knife, and bolo. An

emphasis was placed on locking and disarming. The revised

techniques are not suitable when mounted.

While the empty hands category is certainly not

undeveloped, commanders on the battlefield considered

training in hand-to-hand combat less pragmatic than weapons

training. The experiences of Filipino guerrilla fighters

in World War II, infused realism into the modern arts.

Hence, the late Felimon Canete of Doce Pares Eskrima


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devised many bladed striking techniques based upon his

experiences in jungle patrols fighting against Japanese

soldiers.

The unarmed methods of Filipino combat (mano-mano)

include kicking (sikaran or sipa), boxing (suntukin),

trapping (gapos), grappling (buno, dumog), and disarming

(disarma). Sikaran is similar to Taekwondo (Korean), with

emphasis on highline kicking. Sipa is a children’s kicking

game, like hacky-sack. Dan Inosanto calls kicking

pananjakman. Suntukin is “to box.” Inosanto calls punching

Panantukan. Trapping (gapos) refers to immobilization or

hacking, but may include strikes such as thrusting and

palming. Grappling includes sweeps, throws, and locks.

Locking the joints is called tranka or kunsi. Pinching,

biting, gouging, and tearing are elements of close range

combat. Native grappling methods are called Buno in Luzon

and Dumog in the Visayas. Traditionally, disputes were

settled and justice dispensed through trial by ordeal.

Bultong was one type of “trial by ordeal” in which

adversaries wrestled until the victor proved the other

party to be guilty. The Filipino term agaw means

“disarming”, but the Spanish term is disarma. Disarma

refers to using weapons or empty hands or both to


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neutralize an armed opponent by taking away weapons. For

example, the Lapu-Lapu Arnis Affecianados practiced a

unique method of disarming by using reverse principles.

The short stick is a pocket weapon which can be held

in the hand, like a roll of coins, and used for striking.

This includes closed knives, like the balisong. The

balisong, or butterfly knife, is a three-piece gravity

operated folding knife. The kubotan (hand-sized cylinder

with a key ring attached) is a similar Japanese weapon.

Flexible weapons (ligas armas) include the flail

(panlugas, tayak tobok), whip (latiko, kaburata), chain

(cadena), and stingray tail (ikog-pagi). Like the

Okinawan/Japanese nunchaku, the flail is a farm tool (a

rice thresher). Flails are portable, concealable, and

quick to their targets, but difficult to control. Rikarte

Eskrima prefers short whips, approximately six feet long.

Panandata uses a fifty-two or sixty inch horsewhip .

Filemon Canete made twelve foot-long rope whips by hand and

wove spells into them. This is considered to be Christian

white magic. Snooky Sanchez can use a whip to extinguish

lighted candles while blindfolded. Although it stings and

is useful for punishing a restrained person, the whip is

not adequate in combat. Heavier and more flexible than the


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whip, the chain requires timing for adequate striking. The

stingray tail is usually a meter long or more. After sun

drying, the stingray tail gets hard and leathery and has

sharp spiky edges. The stingray tail is regarded as good

for crowd control.

Projectile weapons (inihagis ng armas) include the

slingshot (tirador), throwing knives (kutsilyong

panghagis), darts (palasong), blowgun (buguhan), archery

(pana), and firearms (putok). The various Filipino arts

prescribe specific ways to use these weapons. For example,

in Doce Pares Eskrima, single edged knives are thrown by

the blade, while double edged ones are thrown by the

handle.

Archery is the martial art of the Negritos. This

category includes not only the bow and arrow, but firearms,

as well. The Philippines has restrictive laws on gun

ownership, which are circumvented by ingenuity. Hence,

revolvers are hand made by “blacksmiths” to chamber 5.56 mm

bullets that soldiers carry in their Armalites. The

distance weapons (agwat armas) include the spear (bangkaw)

and staff (tungkod, sibat). Bangkaw refers to the pointed

mast of outrigger boats (bangkas). Thus, masts become

spears after landing. An etymological connection to the


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fact that in the pre-Spanish period, Malay villages called

barangays were settled with long boats may exist, also.

Dos Manos (“two hands,” Spanish) refers to two handed

stick and sword methods such as the following. Tapado is a

long stick fighting method with a forty-four inch stick.

In San Miguel Eskrima, a fifty inch stick simulates a

Samurai sword or Spanish saber. Also, two handed

techniques can be executed with a panabas (also, lantip or

tabas), which is a farm tool with a short blade and long

handle for cutting sugar cane. The kampilan is a single

edged long sword from Mindanao suitable for Dos Manos.

Kampilans differ from the Medieval European long sword (the

hand and a half Bastard sword), which is double-edged.

The healing arts and metaphysics are regarded as a

“higher understanding” of the Filipino martial traditions.

Healing arts are linked to the FMA, but are not integrated

with training methods--as in Chinese martial arts. The

former have preserved massage or chiropractic techniques

(hilot, kiropraktika), herbalism, and faith healing.

Hence, Rosita M. Lim is a curer (Seruhana, Arbolaryo) and

chiropractor (Manughilot), but not a Filipino martial

artist. She uses massage, exorcism, and incense to heal,

but her specialty is “gingering.” Gingering uses prayers


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to transfer evil spirits into a gingerroot, which is then

discarded. The metaphysics (Lubos) include Anting-Anting,

Kalaki, Orasyon (“prayers”) and Palabras (“words”). In the

metaphysics associated with martial arts in the

Philippines, overt Catholic religiosity is layered onto a

substratum of Huna magic. Kalaki, meaning “abilities” is

associated with practitioners of the native martial arts.

Eskrimadores are known as mystics, faith healers, and

sorcerers, using mesmerism and visualization (larawan).

The potent anting-anting (amulet, charm) is made from the

kneecaps of deceased persons. Grave robbers dig up such

“treasures” that then are made into a belt or necklace.

Prayers are used by warriors to prepare themselves for

victory or death before combat. Prayers are used to cast

spells or incantations against the enemy.

The fatalistic attitude of Filipinos derives from

their God concept. You will hear the phrase “Bahala Na” or

leave it to God. Resignation to fate or determinism is

deeply ingrained in the martial culture. Westerners remark

with frustration when encountering this attitude, but it

serves as a panacea for survival. Filipino fatalism peaks

occur when people “run amok,” killing everyone in their

path in a frenzy of rage, called jurimentado. This


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behavior is understood by a society in which repressed

feelings are harbored daily.

Certain concepts are central to all the Filipino

Martial Arts. The striking concept, spatial concept, and

sectoring concept of weaponry are a few. There are

strategies and tactics. Geometry characterizes FMA

methodology and was probably derived from Spanish fencing.

Abisidario refers to the abekada or ABC's. Usually, these

are twelve basic attacking techniques with the first five

(i.e., cinco teros) common to all styles. Serrada uses

three sets of twelve for thirty-six defenses, while Rikarte

has “doce metodos” or 144 defenses. Included are slashes,

thrusts, and butts. Slashes are strikes with the side of a

stick or with the edge of a blade. Thrusts use the pointed

tip, while butts use the blunted end. Weapons and empty

hands are used alone or in combination, depending on the

range. There are three ranges: largo (long), media

(medium), and corto (short). Media is often ignored,

because few fighters will stay there. Slashes are

delivered from long range (layaw), while butts are

delivered from close range (dikit).

Practitioners can reach the counter-for-counter stage

using numerado--to play by the numbers. Few exceed this


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stage, because they lack a safe way to spar. Techniques

which seem combat valid in training drills are invalidated

with full contact. FMA cannot be played well without

“flow.” Puguso is a deep Hiligaynon remark about players--

meaning “pushing too hard,” “too stiff,” “not relaxed,” or

“unnatural.” Fluid movements are found in the higher

levels of training. It is as if glue binds the weapons

together.

FMA ranking structure includes students, fighters, and

teachers (i.e., instructors, masters, and grandmasters).

Traditional Filipino society was divided into nobles,

freemen, and serfs. Nobles wore red, while the lower

classes wore black or blue clothing. The color worn by

students is blue (asul) designating the lower classes.

Fighters can wear black (itim) and teachers wear red

(pula). Novices are called Likas or natural, because they

have no preconceptions. The intermediate student is called

Likha or creation, because they learned fundamentals. The

advanced student is called Lakas or strength, because their

skills are well developed. A fighter is an expert student

on his way to becoming a teacher. Some teachers have never

fought and lack this important stage of development. The


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name for a teacher in Filipino is Guro, which is originally

a Hindu or Sanskrit word.

An instructor may be an apprentice, assistant, junior,

or senior instructor. Master instructors are sometimes

called Maestro, using the Spanish terminology. Some groups

use Datu (chieftain), while others use Lakan (lord) to

refer to a master. The grandmaster is the grandfather of

the school. Traditionally, you must reach age fifty to be

acclaimed. Founders of martial arts are rare. Most often

styles, methods, and systems are renamed.

The purpose of contests is to simulate conditions of

actual combat to overcome the fear of loss. The learning

process is facilitated through contestants in the arena

rather than an actual life or death experience. Combat is

risky and learning experiences can end prematurely.

Dueling, particularly death matches, is FMA tradition, but

was outlawed in 1982. For example, Romeo “Nono” Mamar of

Bago City was undefeated after 100 duels from 1960 to 1982.

With cash betting, duels are bloody affairs. Organized

competitions were held in the Philippines, since 1949.

Tournament sanctioning organizations, such as the National

Arnis Association of the Philippines (NARAPHIL) and the


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World Eskrima Kali Arnis Federation (WEKAF) sponsor

national and international stickfighting events.

Besides civilian self-defense and cultural curiosity,

Filipino martial arts are used for police and military

training, especially defending against edged weapons. The

FMA now provide a vehicle for expressing the late Bruce

Lee’s Jeet Kune Do (Inosanto 1980a; 1980b). Because FMA

are a blend, other stylists can adopt them. Filipino

Eskrima is the "secret recipe" for angling and fluidity in

American Kajukenbo (Harris 1992). Likewise, FMA can be

expected to absorb what is useful from every other martial

art in the world.

Bibliography

Agoncillo, Teodoro A. 1990. History of the Filipino

People, Eighth Edition. Quezon City, RP: Garotech

Publishing.

Andres, Tomas D. and Pilar B. Ilada-Andres. 1987.

Understanding the Filipino. Quezon City, RP: New Day

Publishers.


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Cabiero, JC and Gary Vatcher. 1996. The Pure Art of

Cabales Serrada Escrima. Fresno, CA: CSE Productions.

Clements, John C. 1998. Medieval Swordsmanship. Boulder,

CO: Paladin Press.

Draeger, Donn F. and Robert W. Smith. 1969. Asian

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