A Brief History Of Eskrima/Kali/Arnis

According to the International Kali Arnis

Eskrima Federation, "Over the centuries and
with the influence of the various tribes and
cultures in the Philippines, the martial arts
developed to be highly effective. Certain tribes
had limited stick fighting skills, such as only
fighting at long range or short range, these were
eventually combined which made the art a highly
effective combat system.
 The three best known names are Kali, Eskrima,
and Arnis. Kali is the oldest term and has its origin in
Cebuano, a dialect of the middle island groups,
" Ka " stands for camot " hand ", and " Li " for lehok
" movement ". As a whole, Kali can be translated
into " movement of the hand ". A practitioner of
Kali would be a Kallista.
 The Spanish occupiers named the martial arts
of the Filipinos " Eskrima ". That derives from the
Spanish word " Esgrima " describing a brief fight or
fencing. At first the Philippine martial arts were well
regarded by the Spaniards. They eventually thought
it to be too dangerous. By 1596 this art became
unpopular, and in 1764 its practice was entirely
forbidden. In the Filipino alphabet there is no "C"
so the correct Filipino usage of the word would be
Eskrima. Whereas Esgrima by westerners was some
times changed to Escrima and an acceptable
variation. Due to the Spanish origin a practitioner
of Eskrima would be an Eskrimador.
 This means was an attempt to destroy the
entire Philippine culture. Books were burnt,
and the use of the native alphabet was
forbidden. In a disguised format the Filipinos
kept their culture alive by incorporating the Kali
movement into their religious Moro-Moro
dances and by weaving the alphabet into the
artistic needlework of their garments
 Impressed by the dances, the skillful
movement of the hands, the
Spaniards named this art after their
hand protection, the "arnes". Over
time, this word evolved to "Arnis".
Following the Spanish origin a
practitioner would be an Arnisador.
Today, Arnis is the Philippines' national martial
art and sport, after President Gloria Macapagal-
Arroyo signed the Republic Act. No. 9850 in
2009. RA 9850 is a consolidation of House Bill
No. 6516 authored by South Cotabato Rep. Arthur
Pingoy Jr., and Senate Bill No. 1424 authored by
Majority leader Juan Miguel Zubiri with the help
of Richard Gialogo.
RA 9850 is expected to help propagate arnis as a
modern martial art/sport that can compete with
popular non-Filipino arts,
i.e. taekwondo, karate and judo. The Act
mandates the Department of Education to include
the sport as a Physical Education course.
The Proper Way of Gripping
•Hold the Arnis with your fingers with the
blade of the palm one to three inches
from the base of the stick.
• Tighten your grip and press the thumb
over the finger.
• Each sticks must be executed with firm
grip. The waist should be flexible when
striking.
The Courtesy of Bow

• Close feet 45 degrees.

• Weapon hand on left chest (single
stick)
• Right fist on left chest, left arm
extended side ways (double sticks)
 Arnis Stances
What is a stance?
A stance is a stationary fighting
position which one assumes prior to
the execution of any offensive or
defensive movement.
 1. Attention Stance
This attention stance is usually used
for courtesy in preparation for a fight at
the beginning before sparring.
In this stance, you will stand with the
heels close to each other forming 45
degrees angle and the shoulders dropped
to the sides. Both hands should be kept at
the waist level.
2. Ready Stance
This is the most common used stance
when you are standing at ease. You can use
this stance in tournaments and fights before
you start engaging with the opponent.
In this stance you need to stand with
your toes pointing forward and your feet
parallel to your shoulders. Standing with
your feet apart gives you balance so that you
can move to the next position and attack
your opponent.
3. Straddle Stance
The name of this stance is due to
the resemblance to the position a
horse rider would maintain. This is
why it is also sometimes called the
Horseback Riding Stance.
This stance is one of the most
efficient stances used to block the
strikes especially to the side of the
body.
4. Forward Stance
Forward stance ca be right foot
lead, which is the right foot forward
stance or it can be left foot lead which
is the left foot forward stance.
Forward stance are commonly
used for frontal striking or blocking
technique.
5. Backward Stance
While the legs are in a straddle
position, the heels should form an
imaginary “L” shape.
Back stances can be done by
extending the right or left foot. They are
used in back evasion techniques and in
blocking.
6. Cat Stance
It is a defensive and offensive low
stance putting the weight almost on
one leg to make the other leg ready
for attack.