30/07/2026
๐๐๐ผ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐ผ๐: ๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐ฎ๐ฉ๐๐๐ฃ๐ ๐ฎ๐ค๐ช ๐ฃ๐๐๐ ๐ฉ๐ค ๐ ๐ฃ๐ค๐ฌ ๐๐๐ค๐ช๐ฉ ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐๐จ๐ฉ๐ค๐ง๐ฎ ๐ค๐ ๐๐๐ก๐๐ฅ๐๐ฃ๐ค ๐ข๐๐ง๐ฉ๐๐๐ก ๐๐ง๐ฉ๐จ
๐๐ฒ ๐๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฅ๐ฅ๐จ
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
#๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฐ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ, ๐๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐, ๐๐ง๐ ๐ค๐๐ฅ๐ข?
None. They are three names for the same martial art. For simplicity, I will use the term ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด, as it is the most widely used term in the Philippines.
#๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ค๐๐ฅ๐ข ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ ๐จ๐ ๐
๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐จ ๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ฌ ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐จ๐?
No. This is a conjecture by Buenaventura Mirafuente, who was the first to use this term in 1948. He believed it was the root of ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด (sword) and other ancient terms referring to dueling, such as ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ณ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฎ, ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ณ๐ฐ๐ฏ๐จ๐ข๐ฏ, and ๐ฑ๐ข๐จ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช.
#๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐ฒ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ?
๐๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด comes from the Spanish ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฆฬ๐ด, an old Spanish term referring to fencing equipment (helmet, armor, and weapons) or used more specifically to mean a weapon.
#๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐ฒ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐ ๐ฆ๐๐ง๐จ?
While ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฆฬ๐ด generally referred to fencing equipment, the Filipino term ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด ๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฐ, or the Spanish ๐ข๐ณ๐ฎ๐ข๐ด ๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฐ, referred specifically to fencing weapons; in the Philippines, the sword and dagger. In archaic Spanish, this combination (๐ฆ๐ด๐ฑ๐ข๐ฅ๐ข ๐บ ๐ฅ๐ข๐จ๐ข) was also referred to by the plural term ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฆ๐ด.
#๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ ๐ฒ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐?
๐๐ด๐ค๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข (or ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฌ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข) comes from the Spanish ๐ฆ๐ด๐จ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข, which means โfencing.โ It does not derive from โskirmish,โ which in Spanish is ๐ฆ๐ด๐ค๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ข. Both these Spanish terms, ๐ฆ๐ด๐จ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข and escaramuza have their roots in the Italian verb ๐ด๐ค๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ช๐ณ๐ฆ, meaning โto fight,โ โto skirmish,โ or โto fenceโ. Specifically, the English โskirmishโ and the Spanish ๐ฆ๐ด๐ค๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ฎ๐ถ๐ป๐ข are derived from the Italian ๐ด๐ค๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ฎ๐ถ๐ค๐ค๐ช๐ข, earlier ๐ด๐ค๐ฉ๐ฆ๐ณ๐ฎ๐ถ๐จ๐ช๐ฐ.
#๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฐ๐๐๐ง ๐๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐, ๐๐ฌ๐ค๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐, ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฌ๐ ๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐?
๐๐ด๐ค๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข and ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฌ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข refer to FMA, while ๐ฆ๐ด๐จ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข refers to Spanish fencing. However, this distinction is very recent. Older sources use ๐ฆ๐ด๐จ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข to refer to ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด (Filipino fencing) and others use ๐ฆ๐ด๐ค๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข or ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฌ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข to refer to Western fencing.
#๐. ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฅ๐๐ญ ๐๐ง๐ ๐ค๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐๐จ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐๐๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐จ๐ฎ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ๐ง ๐๐ก๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐๐๐ ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฆ ๐
๐๐?
No. FMA is usually used in its narrower sense to refer exclusively to ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด, or ๐ฆ๐ด๐ค๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข, practiced in areas subject to Spanish colonization. However, in its broader sense, as martial arts practiced in the archipelago, it may include ๐ด๐ช๐ญ๐ข๐ต, ๐ฌ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต๐ข๐ฐ, and the fighting arts or traditions of Igorot, Moro, Lumad, and other tribal peoples.
#๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ ๐๐
๐ ๐ฆ๐๐๐ง?
MFA stands for Moro Fighting Arts, a term recently coined by Moro practitioners who claim the right to distinguish their own arts (๐ด๐ช๐ญ๐ข๐ต, ๐ฌ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต๐ข๐ฐ, and other unnamed local arts) from ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด.
#๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฐ๐๐๐ง ๐
๐๐ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐
๐?
Everything. They differ in technique, tactics, training, spirituality, and mindset.
๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ค๐๐ฅ๐ข ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง๐ญ๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฎ๐๐๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐๐๐ง๐๐ฒ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฎ๐ซ๐ฒ ๐๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ญ๐๐ง ๐๐๐ญ๐ฎ๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐ง๐๐จ?
No. It is mistakenly believed that this story is told in an old book called ๐๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐จ๐ต๐ข๐ด. In reality, the text, considered ancient for many decades, was published by Pedro Monteclaro only in 1907. Historians regard it simply as a collection of legends, not as a source of historical value. Moreover, it does not mention the martial art at all.
At other times, this legend is linked to the ๐๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐ฐ๐ง ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ข๐ธ, a hoax invented by Josรฉ Marco and written by him in a forged text that he claimed dated back to 1838โ1839. This text does not mention Filipino martial arts either.
#๐๐ ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ, ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ข๐จ๐, ๐ค๐๐ฅ๐ข ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ก๐ญ ๐ข๐ง ๐ฌ๐๐ก๐จ๐จ๐ฅ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐จ๐๐ง?
No. This information comes from a text written in 1917 by Josuรฉ Soncuya, titled ๐๐ช๐ด๐ต๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ข ๐ฑ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ช๐ด๐ฑ๐ข๐ฏ๐ข ๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐๐ช๐ญ๐ช๐ฑ๐ช๐ฏ๐ข๐ด. More precisely, Soncuya used the Spanish term ๐ฆ๐ด๐จ๐ณ๐ช๐ฎ๐ข, not ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช. His text drew on the ๐๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐จ๐ต๐ข๐ด and the ๐๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐ฐ๐ง ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต๐ช๐ข๐ธ, the former being a collection of legends and the latter a hoax. In any case, neither mentions ๐ฃ๐ฐ๐ต๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ข๐ฏ. In fact, Soncuya never specified where he obtained the information about these precolonial schools. Filipino historians, familiar with the traditional methods through which local culture was transmitted, consider them an unsupported invention by Soncuya.
๐๐๐๐-๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐๐
#๐๐. ๐๐๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎ-๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐๐ง ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐๐๐จ๐ซ?
No. Lapu-Lapu was undoubtedly a great warrior, but he did not practice ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด.
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐ก ๐๐จ๐จ๐ค ๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ญ๐จ๐ฌ, ๐ฐ๐ซ๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐๐ง ๐๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฅ๐ญ๐๐ณ๐๐ซ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฆ๐ข๐-๐๐๐๐๐ฌ, ๐๐๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ซ๐ข๐ค๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎ-๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎโ๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐ฒ๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ฆ?
No. The text in question, titled ๐๐ช๐ค๐ค๐ช๐ฐ๐ฏ๐ข๐ณ๐ช๐ฐ ๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ฐ๐ด ๐ฅ๐ฆ๐ญ๐ช๐ต๐ฐ๐ด ๐บ ๐ฅ๐ฆ ๐ญ๐ข๐ด ๐ฑ๐ฆ๐ฏ๐ข๐ด, which was published in Madrid in 1848 by the printing house of Don Baltasar Gonzalez, is a legal book and has nothing to do with Lapu-Lapu, let alone the Philippines.
#๐๐. ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎ-๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎ ๐ค๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ง?
No. Magellan was killed by Lapu-Lapuโs warriors. According to recent research by Filipino historian Danilo Gerona, Lapu-Lapu was an elderly chief at the time of the battle and probably did not personally take part in it.
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ง ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐จ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐๐ ๐๐ฒ ๐ ๐ค๐๐ฆ๐ฉ๐ข๐ฅ๐๐ง ๐๐ฎ๐ซ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ญ๐ฅ๐ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐๐ญ๐๐ง?
Yes. Pigafetta used the term ๐ค๐ข๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ช๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ to describe a sword โsimilar to a scimitar [a long curved sword], but larger.โ However, it should be considered that during the precolonial period the term ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฎ๐ฑ๐ช๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ was widespread throughout the archipelago to refer to a long sword, with some exceptions. Therefore, the sword that wounded Magellan was probably not the straight, fork-tipped Moro sword that we all know today.
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎ-๐๐๐ฉ๐ฎโ๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ซ๐ข๐จ๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐๐ข๐ซ๐-๐ก๐๐ซ๐๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ค๐ฌ?
No. This comes from an incorrect translation of Pigafettaโs Italian text, first made by Buenaventura Mirafuente and later repeated by several FMA enthusiasts and writers. In his travel journal, Pigafetta wrote about fire-hardened spears, not sticks.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐ ๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ, ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฌ๐๐ซ๐ข๐ฆ๐, ๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐๐ซ๐ญ?
No.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ง ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ญ๐?
In the mid-18th century.
#๐๐. ๐๐ข๐ ๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐๐จ๐ฅ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐ฆ๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ฅ ๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐๐ฑ๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ?
During the precolonial period, the term ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด, in addition to referring to the sword, was used to mean using a sword, cutting with a sword, wounding with a sword, fighting with a sword, and fencing. If a martial art is understood as a codified set of techniques, then ancient ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด was probably not a martial art. If, instead, martial art is understood in the broader sense of skills used in war or in combat, then ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด may be considered one.
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ง๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ซ๐๐๐ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ข๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ค๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐ฌ๐๐ง๐ญ-๐๐๐ฒ ๐
๐๐?
It is unknown whether, or to what extent, ancient ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด was passed down into ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด. If Filipinos in areas under the Spanish Crown managed to preserve knowledge of ๐ฌ๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ด, it was probably through war dances.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ง๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ?
๐๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด developed as a civilian dueling fencing art, alongside the widespread popularity of ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ theater.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ ๐๐ฎ๐ง๐๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ?
๐๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด originated as a dueling art, but from the beginning it also served as self-defense, recreation, and entertainment.
#๐๐. ๐๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐ญ๐ญ๐ฅ๐?
Yes, but this was not the reason for its origins. ๐๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด was used in battle only later. The earliest sources date to the late 1800s, both among soldiers aligned with Spain and during the independence revolutions.
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐จ๐ฏ๐๐ซ๐ง๐จ๐ซ-๐๐๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ฅ ๐๐ข๐ฆ๐จฬ๐ง ๐๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐ฒ ๐๐๐ฅ๐๐ณ๐๐ซ ๐๐๐ง๐ง๐๐ ๐
๐๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐๐๐?
No. The decree of Don Simรณn de Anda y Salazar, issued precisely on December 29, 1763 (two days before 1764) banned only gambling, specifically card games, dice games, and cockfighting.
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ข๐ญ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐๐ฌ ๐ก๐ข๐๐๐๐ง ๐ข๐ง ๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐จ-๐ฆ๐จ๐ซ๐จ ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ฌ?
No. ๐๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด was simply a fundamental component of ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ plays. At first, ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด๐ข๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด were ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ด, and ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ด were ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด๐ข๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด. On stage, two types of combat scenes had to be distinguished: 1) ๐๐ข๐ต๐ข๐ญ๐ญ๐ข๐ด, in which the techniques and winners were predetermined; and 2) the ๐๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฏ๐ฆ๐ฐ, in which stage duels were free and represented tests of skill or even genuine matches (except for duels whose winner had to be predetermined to follow the plot, usually those involving the Christian prince and the Moro prince).
#๐๐. ๐๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐ก๐ข๐๐๐๐ง ๐ข๐ง ๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฉ๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐๐ง๐๐๐ฌ?
No.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐จ๐ฅ๐๐๐ฌ๐ญ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ฒ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ?
๐๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ and ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฑ๐ข๐ฅ๐ข ๐บ ๐ฅ๐ข๐จ๐ข.
#๐๐. ๐๐ข๐ซ๐๐๐ฎ๐๐ง๐ญ๐ ๐ฐ๐ซ๐จ๐ญ๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ญ โ๐๐ซ. ๐๐จ๐ฌ๐ ๐๐ข๐ณ๐๐ฅ, ๐๐๐ง. ๐๐ง๐ญ๐จ๐ง๐ข๐จ ๐๐ฎ๐ง๐, ๐๐๐ง. ๐๐ซ๐๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐จ ๐๐๐ฅ ๐๐ข๐ฅ๐๐ซ, ๐๐๐ญ ๐๐ง๐๐ซ๐๐ฌ ๐๐จ๐ง๐ข๐๐๐๐ข๐จ, ๐๐๐ฏ. ๐
๐๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐๐ซ๐๐ ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐จ ๐๐ ๐ฅ๐ข๐ฉ๐๐ฒ ๐๐ง๐ ๐จ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ซ ๐ก๐๐ซ๐จ๐๐ฌ ๐จ๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ซ ๐ซ๐๐๐ ๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ ๐๐ฅ๐ฅ ๐๐ฑ๐ฉ๐๐ซ๐ญ๐ฌ ๐ข๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ซ๐ญ ๐จ๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ.โ ๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ซ๐ฎ๐?
Yes. All the heroes mentioned, as well as many other heroes of the revolution, were ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด๐ข๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด.
#๐๐. ๐๐ข๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ฉ๐ฎ๐ง๐๐ง ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ?
Yes. ๐๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด was a very widespread martial art at the time, already known by many people, and many older sources attest to its teaching within revolutionary ranks.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐ ๐๐๐
๐๐๐๐๐๐
#๐๐. ๐๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐๐๐ฏ๐๐ฅ๐จ๐ฉ๐๐ ๐๐ฒ ๐
๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐จ๐ฌ ๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐๐ซ๐๐ฌ?
๐๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด is a Filipino art, created by Filipinos for Filipinos.
#๐๐. ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง๐๐ฅ๐ฎ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ?
Yes, but an important distinction must be made. At first, Spanish influence was only cultural, specifically, the passion for fencing and the tradition of chivalric dueling. Genuine technical influence came only from the mid-19th century, when Spain began training Filipino soldiers in fencing.
#๐๐. ๐๐ข๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐ก ๐๐ซ๐ข๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ญ๐๐๐๐ก ๐๐๐ง๐๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ง๐๐ญ๐ข๐ฏ๐๐ฌ ๐ฌ๐จ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ฒ ๐๐จ๐ฎ๐ฅ๐ ๐๐๐๐๐ง๐ ๐ญ๐ก๐๐ข๐ซ ๐ฏ๐ข๐ฅ๐ฅ๐๐ ๐๐ฌ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐จ๐ซ๐จ ๐ฉ๐ข๐ซ๐๐ญ๐ ๐๐ญ๐ญ๐๐๐ค๐ฌ?
No. Spanish friars taught military tactics and the use of fi****ms. No older source attests to the teaching of fencing. Besides, Filipino warriors already knew how to use their own weapons.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐ฒ ๐๐จ ๐
๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐จ ๐ญ๐๐๐ก๐ง๐ข๐ช๐ฎ๐๐ฌ ๐ก๐๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ข๐ฌ๐ก ๐ง๐๐ฆ๐๐ฌ?
Just as the authors of ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ plays wrote their titles and stage directions in Spanish to elevate the status of their works, ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด masters (who often were also the authors and directors of the plays) used Spanish to elevate popular Filipino fencing to the status of aristocratic Spanish fencing.
๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐๐
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐ฒ ๐๐ข๐ ๐ฉ๐ซ๐๐๐ญ๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐จ๐ง๐๐ซ๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฏ๐ ๐๐ซ๐จ๐ฆ ๐๐ฅ๐๐๐๐ฌ ๐ญ๐จ ๐ฌ๐ญ๐ข๐๐ค๐ฌ?
At first, the main weapons used by ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด๐ข๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด and ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ช๐ด๐ต๐ข๐ด were the sword and dagger, used together in the ๐ฆ๐ด๐ฑ๐ข๐ฅ๐ข ๐บ ๐ฅ๐ข๐จ๐ข style. They could be metal, sharp or blunt, or made of wood. Most likely, sticks were simply a quick, readily available, inexpensive, and safer alternative, reducing injuries.
#๐๐. ๐๐๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐๐ง๐ญ๐ฎ๐ค๐๐ง ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ง๐๐ข๐๐ง๐ญ ๐ง๐๐ฆ๐ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐
๐ข๐ฅ๐ข๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐จ ๐๐ข๐ซ๐ญ๐ฒ ๐๐จ๐ฑ๐ข๐ง๐ ?
No. ๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ข๐ฏ๐ต๐ถ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฏ is the name of an FMA system created in the late 1970s by Lucky Lucaylucay, combining boxing techniques with Filipino knife techniques. The name is probably a corruption of the Tagalog term ๐ฑ๐ข๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต๐ถ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฏ.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐๐จ๐๐ฌ ๐ฉ๐๐ง๐ฎ๐ง๐ญ๐ฎ๐ค๐๐ง ๐ฆ๐๐๐ง?
๐๐ข๐ฏ๐ถ๐ฏ๐ต๐ถ๐ฌ๐ข๐ฏ is an old Tagalog term meaning a fistfight, but it was also used to refer to the sport of boxing. Although less common, the term is still used today. In essence, it did not refer to a particular Filipino empty-hand fighting system.
#๐๐. ๐๐จ ๐๐ฎ๐ง๐จ ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฎ๐ฆ๐จ๐ ๐ซ๐๐๐๐ซ ๐ญ๐จ ๐
๐๐ ๐ ๐ซ๐๐ฉ๐ฉ๐ฅ๐ข๐ง๐ ?
Although these terms refer to specific styles of traditional wrestling, respectively in the Tagalog provinces of Luzon and in Panay, Visayas, they also have the general meaning of wrestling. For this reason, many Filipino masters use them to refer to the grappling techniques within their own systems.
#๐๐. ๐๐ฌ ๐ค๐ข๐ง๐จ๐ฆ๐ฎ๐ญ๐๐ฒ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ก ๐จ๐ ๐
๐๐ ๐ฌ๐ฉ๐๐๐ข๐๐ฅ๐ข๐ณ๐ข๐ง๐ ๐ข๐ง ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ข๐ง๐ , ๐ฉ๐ข๐ง๐๐ก๐ข๐ง๐ , ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐ฒ๐-๐ ๐จ๐ฎ๐ ๐ข๐ง๐ ?
No. The term ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ต๐ข๐บ, along with variants such as ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ถ๐ต๐ข๐บ and ๐ฌ๐ช๐ฏ๐ฐ๐ฎ๐ถ๐ต๐ข๐ช, began to spread within the Western Filipino martial arts community in the late 1980s, largely through Paul Vunak. However, the existence of such a system is not supported by the available Philippine documentation or by the accounts of senior Filipino masters.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ข๐ฌ ๐ญ๐ก๐ ๐๐ข๐๐๐๐ซ๐๐ง๐๐ ๐๐๐ญ๐ฐ๐๐๐ง ๐ฉ๐๐ญ๐๐ฒ๐๐ง, ๐ฃ๐ฎ๐๐ ๐จ ๐ญ๐จ๐๐จ, ๐๐๐ก๐๐, ๐๐ง๐ ๐๐๐๐ญ๐ก ๐ฆ๐๐ญ๐๐ก?
Etymologically, ๐ฑ๐ข๐ต๐ข๐บ๐ข๐ฏ derives from the root patay (death) and can be translated as โfight to the death.โ Antonio Ilustrisimo used it to refer to life-or-death challenges.
๐๐ถ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ฐ refers to the rules of a match: specifically, no protective equipment and strikes delivered at full power. Matches held under ๐ซ๐ถ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ฐ rules are called ๐ซ๐ถ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ฐ fights. Other rules also existed, such as ๐ซ๐ถ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฆ, a form of controlled sparring, and ๐ซ๐ถ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ด๐ช๐ฏ๐บ๐ข๐ด or ๐ซ๐ถ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ฏ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฒ๐ถ๐ฆ, which involved no contact (strikes were โcalledโ when they came close to the opponentโs face).
๐๐ข๐ฉ๐ข๐ฅ is a Cebuano term that referred to a challenge of honor, fought under juego todo rules. Later, it came to refer to challenges between schools or clubs (i.e. ๐๐ฐ๐ค๐ฆ ๐๐ข๐ณ๐ฆ๐ด versus ๐๐ข๐ญ๐ช๐ฏ๐ต๐ข๐ธ๐ข๐ฌ).
โDeath match,โ on the other hand, is a term coined in Hawaii to refer to public fights under ๐ซ๐ถ๐ฆ๐จ๐ฐ ๐ต๐ฐ๐ฅ๐ฐ rules, often organized at the Honolulu Civic Auditorium. The term probably originated after the death of an ๐ข๐ณ๐ฏ๐ช๐ด๐ข๐ฅ๐ฐ๐ณ in 1947. Such fights had already been held in the Philippines since the 1920s, often at Manilaโs Olympic Stadium.
#๐๐. ๐๐ก๐๐ญ ๐ญ๐ข๐ญ๐ฅ๐๐ฌ ๐ฐ๐๐ซ๐ ๐ก๐ข๐ฌ๐ญ๐จ๐ซ๐ข๐๐๐ฅ๐ฅ๐ฒ ๐ฎ๐ฌ๐๐ ๐๐จ๐ซ ๐๐ซ๐ง๐ข๐ฌ ๐ฆ๐๐ฌ๐ญ๐๐ซ๐ฌ?
I believe the oldest term was ๐ฎ๐ข๐ฆ๐ด๐ต๐ณ๐ฐ, as in the โmaestro de arnisโ of ๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ-๐ฎ๐ฐ๐ณ๐ฐ plays. All the others, such as ๐จ๐ถ๐ณ๐ฐ, ๐ต๐ถ๐ฉ๐ฐ๐ฏ, ๐ฅ๐ข๐ต๐ถ, and ๐จ๐ณ๐ข๐ฏ๐ฅ๐ฎ๐ข๐ด๐ต๐ฆ๐ณ, were introduced only in recent decades.
