22/03/2026
Really interesting research, especially for those of us studying FMA and the Spanish arts.
I’ve always believed we’ll never know anything with absolute certainty, only make our best educated guesses, grounded in solid research.
The same applies when looking into the history of Pencak Silat. Always evolving, always open to deeper understanding.
Richard Killick
𝘼𝙍𝙉𝙄𝙎 𝙎𝙏𝙔𝙇𝙀𝙎 𝙄𝙉 𝙈𝙊𝙍𝙊-𝙈𝙊𝙍𝙊
𝐛𝐲 𝐀𝐧𝐝𝐫𝐞𝐚 𝐑𝐨𝐥𝐥𝐨, 𝐏𝐡𝐃
In my previous article "Why do Filipino martial arts techniques have Spanish names?," available at https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1BuSxk8XNw/, I explained that, contrary to what many believe, FMA techniques were not hidden in theatrical performances. 𝘈𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 was simply an essential part of the 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰-𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰 plays.
𝘈𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 masters, who were often also the script writers and directors of the plays, gave names to FMA techniques. As they had done with the scripts, they chose Spanish to elevate the status of the Filipino folk fencing to that of the aristocratic fencing of Spanish nobles. Using Spanish terms was a sign of greater prestige, especially in the context of theatrical fencing, where heroes, princes, and kings were depicted.
The standardisation of FMA techniques occurred orally, as a typical custom in Filipino society, as part of the spread of the 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰-𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰 theatre genre, thanks also to the travelling groups of directors, choreographers and actors that brought this new form of spectacle in various locations of the Philippines.
The following script from a 1904 article published in 𝘌𝘭 𝘙𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘰 includes the names of two 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 styles: 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘻𝘢 and 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦. Before drawing her sword and beginning the fight, Princess Flocerfida asks the giant Gualberto Morón:
《𝐅𝐋𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐈𝐃𝐀 (dropping the Castilian) – Ah, boy! If it’s about war and fencing, you’re hopeless with me... Do you happen to know the Carranza system?
𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐎́𝐍 – What’s Carranza?
𝐅𝐋𝐎𝐂𝐄𝐑𝐅𝐈𝐃𝐀 – Oh! You see? You don’t even know that... Do you know the fraile system?
𝐌𝐎𝐑𝐎́𝐍 – If you want that damn friar, Lady Kuan, princess of the stick...》
The term 𝙛𝙧𝙖𝙞𝙡𝙚, meaning friar, refers to one of the oldest styles of 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴, mentioned in numerous books and articles. One description is provided by Alfredo and Mariano Pascual in their 1967 article “Arnis”:
𝘌𝘭 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦 or the Friar style – Rytmichal Arnis, as in 𝘊𝘪𝘯𝘤𝘰 𝘛𝘦𝘳𝘰𝘴. It consists of five to twelve numbers only. Practical and recommended for sport and combat. More moderate and refined.
The term 𝘾𝙖𝙧𝙧𝙖𝙣𝙯𝙖 might refer to the FMA style known as 𝘬𝘢𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘻𝘢, 𝘬𝘢𝘳𝘦𝘯𝘻𝘢, 𝘤𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘻𝘢, etc., a widely practiced style performed as a solo drill or shadow-fighting exercise, without a physical opponent, although the use of an initial capital letter, unlike in the case of 𝘧𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦, suggests it could be referring to Jerónimo Sánchez de Carranza, the father of the 𝘝𝘦𝘳𝘥𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳𝘢 𝘋𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘻𝘢 Spanish fencing. What weakens this possibility, however, is that Morón refers to Flocerfida as “princess of the stick,” an 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 weapon rather than one typical of Spanish fencing. Another possible interpretation is that the princess is contrasting a Spanish fencing style, 𝘊𝘢𝘳𝘳𝘢𝘯𝘻𝘢, with a Filipino one, 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦.
Regardless of these details, this brief excerpt from a 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰-𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰 dialogue supports both the claim that the theatrical actors were actual 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴𝘢𝘥𝘰𝘳𝘦𝘴, knowledgeable in 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 styles, and that Spanish was used as the technical language for 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 terminology in the 𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰-𝘮𝘰𝘳𝘰.
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𝘽𝙄𝘽𝙇𝙄𝙊𝙂𝙍𝘼𝙋𝙃𝙔:
“Diálogos moro-moristas: ¡Arriba ‘la’ bombo!,” in 𝘌𝘭 𝘙𝘦𝘯𝘢𝘤𝘪𝘮𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘰, 𝘋𝘪𝘢𝘳𝘪𝘰 𝘍𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘰 𝘐𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘥𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘵𝘦, Year III, n. 285, Manila, 08/26/1904, p. 1.
Pascual Alfredo, Pascual Mariano, “Arnis,” in 𝘗𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘪𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘔𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘻𝘪𝘯𝘦, Volume I, n. 3, Manila, Board of Travel and Tourist Industry & the Philippine Tourist and Travel Association, 1967, p. 36.
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𝙄𝙈𝘼𝙂𝙀 𝙉𝙊𝙏𝙀
The image is taken from the Pascual brothers’ article cited in the bibliography, where it appears both on p. 35, above the title, and on the following page. Although it lacks a caption, it may represent the 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦 style of 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴. The three elements that lead me to believe this are:
1. On page 36, it is placed at the top, immediately above the description of the 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦 style, which is reported above in the text.
2. The sticks are held in the shape of a cross, a sacred symbol for all Christians and a typical object associated with friars.
3. The crossed position of the weapons, often called 𝘤𝘳𝘶𝘻𝘢𝘥𝘢 or 𝘬𝘳𝘶𝘻𝘢𝘥𝘢 by many FMA masters, corresponds to a technique typical of the 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 system of the same name practiced in Paete, Laguna (📹 see my video on the 𝘈𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘦𝘭𝘦 style created by the late Egme "Daite" Dailo: https://www.facebook.com/share/v/189WKoBV4b/).
On the other hand, I cannot exclude the possibility that the placement of the image on p. 36 of the article is merely coincidental and that it was inserted at the top without any connection to the 𝘍𝘳𝘢𝘪𝘭𝘦 style of 𝘢𝘳𝘯𝘪𝘴. After all, the same image was also used above the title on the previous page.
