Comprehensive History of Martial Arts: Origin, Types and Facts

Martial arts is a sport everyone knows about. It has a long history. But no one knows about its history. If you are a true martial arts fan, then you may often have thought about the history of martial arts where did it originate? Who started it all?

Martial arts have existed throughout history, from ancient times to modern, and the history of martial arts is deeply interesting. Martial arts have developed independently in many different cultures, and martial arts have taken many different forms depending on where in the world they originated. Historically, martial arts have been with us for thousands of years, and it's perhaps because of this that the history of martial arts is so interesting to look at. This article discusses what martial arts are, where martial arts came from, and overall, a better understanding of the history of martial arts.

Almost every one of us has played martial arts at least once in our lifetime. Yet only a few of us may know the history of martial arts, the sport which is very common among us. This article fills this gap of knowledge about the history of martial arts with a brief history of the roots and evolution of almost all the martial arts in the world.

Before going toward understanding the history of martial arts, first, let's jump into the definition of martial arts. The term “martial arts” literally means “the art of Mars.” Martial is derived from the word Mars, who was the Roman God of War. So, to make it easy for you, martial arts means “the art of war.” This term refers to the European way of fighting wars, which is known as historical European Martial Arts. Through history, we can define martial arts as the way and system of traditions and training for combat.

Martial arts is not a single sport. It is composed of different styles and forms of martial arts. Each style has its own unique rules and characteristics. Most martial arts are linked to religious elements, philosophies, and spirituality. But all martial arts have one characteristic in common and that is they all are the systems of techniques and moves for fighting and combat against opponents.

The history of martial arts is divided into three sections on the basis of era. Section one is linked to the early history of martial arts, section two is about the Middle Ages, and section three is about the evolution of martial arts in the modern ages. These martial arts started very early on throughout the world.

• The first evidence of martial arts comes from the fights and combats in the art and early literature. These paintings are mostly found in the Egyptian art in 3400 BC. Another piece of evidence is given in Indian Vedas from 1700 to 1100 BCE (Before the Common Era). It contains some references to the martial arts. But these references indicate both armed and unarmed martial arts. If we look to the West, we will observe that boxing became part of the Olympic Games in 688 BC. This is evident in vase paintings, which included detailed descriptions of wrestling techniques. It was in the classical period.

• Romans also had some unique martial art styles, and that is known as Gladiatorial combat. In this combat, the fighters were armed, and they fought with each other for public entertainment. It was a public show, just like an exhibition. This martial arts style was started in the third century BC (Before Christ). Greek pankration was a martial art started and played by the Greeks. This martial art was played unarmed. It had scarcely any rules. It used techniques and moves from both boxing and wrestling. It was an empty-handed submission.

• Some other techniques were also added in this Greek Pankration, such as kicking, holds, and chokes. Two things were banned and not allowed in Greek Pankration, such as gouging out the opponent’s eyes and biting the opponent. Greek pankration is often considered the first martial art in the world. Asia is the region where most of the martial arts originated and evolved. In China, during the Semi-mythical dynasty, the Yellow Emperor introduced the earliest fighting systems in the country.

• The earliest references to Chinese martial arts were introduced in the fifth century BC, in which one-to-one combat theory was mentioned in a book. Interestingly, the earliest Asian martial arts were linked to Chinese martial arts as well as Indian martial arts. It is a blend of both countries’ martial arts. These countries shared knowledge, culture and traditions with each other because they had a lot of trade with each other during the sixth century BC. These martial arts continued to evolve into the Middle Ages. Development occurred in China, which resulted in the implementation of new strategies and techniques in these earliest martial arts.

• The origin of most Japanese martial arts is found in the middle ages. The martial arts in Japan evolved when there was the development of warrior traditions of samurai and caste system. This development limited the use of weapons by other members of the Japanese society. Samurai were expected to be proficient in martial arts skills. They were expected to reach the highest level of skill and become masters in unarmed combat as well as the use of weapons. This helped in the fast development of martial arts. The first iron sword was developed by Japan in the fourth century. It was based on the technology imported from China.

• The old schools of swordsmanship developed rapidly in the 14th century. This resulted in the development of many Japanese martial arts, such as Battojutsu, which means the art and skill of drawing a sword to counter the attack of your opponent. To learn how to attack an opponent who has a sword, a new technique, Japanese Jiu-Jitsu (JJJ), was developed. This martial art combined the techniques and moves from various other martial arts. JJJ was used in close combat, where you cannot use weapons. Japanese martial arts focused on throwing, choking, immobilizing, and joint locks.

• Neighboring countries, including Okinawa and China, focused on martial arts involving striking techniques. Japanese martial did not focus on striking because they believed that striking techniques were not effective against someone who was wearing armor on the battlefield. There was a legend in China who influenced a lot on the martial arts. His name was Bodhidharma, and he was a monk. He developed unarmed combat in China and the philosophy of the martial arts of the Shaolin temple in China.

• It is also believed that the martial arts values of discipline, humility, respect, and restraint were developed there. Shaolin's fighting system also has evidence of being involved in the war in which they defended the Shaolin monastery against the bandits in 720 CE. Korea also developed a martial art known as Ssireum in the Middle Ages which gained worldwide recognition and popularity in the 14th century. West also developed martial arts to combat the Asians. The martial art named “sword and buckler” is found in historical pictures.

• Wrestling, on the other hand, remained one of the most popular martial arts and was practiced throughout the Middle Ages. Jousting and tournaments were also popular martial arts, which was practiced by the nobility in the Middle Ages. With the evolution, the martial arts of the West suffered a loss and were developed less than the martial arts of other countries like Japan and China.

• In Europe, there was the development of firearms and big weapons, which declined the progress of martial arts. They are not as developed and rooted in history as they are in the Asian martial arts. Despite the decline in Europe, there are still many historical forms and manuals available today that show the martial art known as fencing. These manuals are as old as 1400 AD. Currently, there are some organizations that have been working for the revival and reconstruction of European martial arts.

• The revival and reconstruction involves deep study of the martial arts, including different styles such as sword and shield, two-handed sword fighting, halberd fighting, jousting, and many other types of melee fighting. All these efforts to reconstruct and revive the martial arts resulting in the modern growth of historical martial arts are known as Western martial arts. Many famous modern martial arts emerged in the West in the Middle Ages. One example of such modern and Western martial arts is French boxing or French kickboxing.

• This is also known as savate. In Savate, both feet and hands are used for striking the opponent, thereby blending the elements of Western boxing. This martial art style is also practiced today. Another Western martial art that emerged in the modern world is known as Capoeira, which is a Brazilian martial art. It was developed in the 16th century by the West Africans. It involves dancing, music, and acrobatics. Chinese martial arts continued progressing through all ages even in the modern world. Chinese martial arts are the most popular and most dominant martial arts in Asia.

• They developed rapidly due to the changes within Chinese society in the 20th century. It became popular during the Republican period in China in which most Chinese martial arts were accessible to the public and common people. After some time, popularity increased to the level that it was thought of as a national pride to practice Chinese martial arts to build stronger people. Many training academies were developed. Training manuals for martial arts were published to make it easier for Chinese people to learn and train Chinese martial arts. To make Chinese martial arts even more popular and accessible to the people, martial arts associations and demonstration teams were developed.

• They traveled throughout China and overseas to train people. Japanese martial arts also emerged and evolved in the modern age. Many martial arts, such as Judo, Karate, and Aikido, were added to the modern culture of Japan. Old culture with martial arts was restored. Muay Thai also developed a lot in the modern age. It is a traditional martial art of Thailand that has evolved and become popular today. Western people also became interested in Asian martial arts. This increased interest was the result of the trade between Western and Asian countries. Hollywood movies featured martial arts which increased in popularity in the world. This increased popularity is credited to Jackie Chan, Bruce Lee and some others.

Martial arts today have become interesting for many people. People throughout the world love watching martial arts. With time, new martial arts are coming into existence and becoming popular among people. Asian martial arts and Chinese martial arts are the most popular and widely watched throughout the world. Western and Asian martial arts are mixing with each other. Currently, the most famous martial arts include Muay Thai and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu. Wrestling has been popular throughout the world for centuries. Mixed martial arts are also popular today which combines the elements, styles, techniques, and moves of many martial arts.