Can anyone suggest any good reading material on the history of the Filipino Martial Arts? I read a thread on the JKD forum where some described Dan Inosanto's book as being based on unreliable sources. I saw a review of Mark Wiley's book on Amazon and was left with doubts again. This topic seems to be a sensitive topic with some people so I hope I don't stir up a pissing match with this thread.
Basically- no.
Inosanto's book is great for describing FMA techniques and concepts. It is not good for the history of FMA.
Mark Wiley's Filipino Martial Culture is better in the history department, but it is still very problematic. If you've ever read any of the old Spanish documents regarding the conquest of the Philippine Islands from the 1560s onwards, you'll see that FMA writers in general tend to be rather... selective, in what they quote from those documents.
Hopefully, this situation will change soon, with the publication of Celestino Macachor's Cebuano Eskrima--Beyond the Myth.
I live in a cave and don't get out much. Can you tell us any more about this upcoming book?
Thanks for the responses.
" I live in a cave and don't get out much. Can you tell us any more about this upcoming book?"
lol....if you really want to read that book then maybe you get out less often than I do :)
99Luft,
I live in a cave and don't get out much. Can you tell us any more about this upcoming book?
Check out these two articles--especially the second one, "NEW THEORIES ON THE ORIGINS OF ESKRIMA" by Macachor:
http://www.cebueskrima.s5.com/custom2.html
Macachor seriously considers the possibility of a Spanish influence on FMA, and I think he makes a good case for it.
Ostensibly, the book he is working on will be along these lines.
Thanks go out to Tactical_Grappler, for turning me on to this particular article.
Peace,
TFS
Hello Everyone,
There is not a lot of written Filipino Martial Arts development history prior to 1898 – 1899. Most was traditionally handed down in an oral transmission fashion. Here is a short list of some currently available books that have some references to the development or history of the FMA.( I cannot locate my historical texts of that area, but I’ll include them when I locate them.) They all have good and bad points, but can give you an outline or overview of the development of the more modern FMA’s from the 1900’s on up. Akso, I have included a few website links to help give you a better understanding of the history, economic, and cultural aspects of the Philippines.
Arnis, Reflections on the history and Development of FMA.(Wiley)
Complete Sinawali (Galang)
Modern Arnis (Presas)
Weapons and Fighting arts of Indonesia (Draeger)
Filipino Martial Culture (Wiley)
Secrets of Giron Escrima (Somera)
Filipino Martial Arts (Wiley)
Masters of Kali, Escrima, Arnis (Sulite)
Filipino Martial Arts (Inosanto)
Balisong (Batangas)
Swish of the Kris (Hurley)
Jungle Patrol (Hurley)
Pananandat Yantok a Daga (Marinas)
Balisong Manual (Imada)
Dan Inosanto (Kelly)
The Secrets of Kalis Ilustrisimo (Diego/Ricketts)
Secrets of Cabales Escrima (Wiley)
Rapid Journal
http://www.filipinolinks.com
http://www.bibingka.com/dahon/
http://www.oralhistory.hawaii.edu
http://home.pacbell.net/sika/index.html
http://www.philippinehistory.net
http://pinas.dlsu.edu.ph/history/history.html
http://www.sspxasia.com/Newsletters/2001/Oct-Dec/A_short_Philippine_History.htm
http://www.bisaya.com/homepage.html
http://www.geocities.com/Tokyo/Temple/9845/tech.htm
http://www.univie.ac.at/Voelkerkunde/Asian-Pacific/aufi/culhist.htm
Pre Hispanic history
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/Senate/5727/bibliography.html
http://www.geocities.com/CapitolHill/Senate/5727/philprehist.html
Gumagalang
Guro Steve L.
ps: I have more but have to locate all the old sources and links!!
www.Bujinkandojo.net
Great list, Guro Steve!
Thanks for the links fellas, that's fantastic. I really appreciate it. I'll head back to my cave and start reading.
Hello Guys,
No problem and your welcome! I started researching the historical aspects of the FMA and ran into all of the tight spots, twists and turns that you will see appear in your studies. A different approach will be to look at the FMA in three sections:
1) Pre Hispanic - Many new and exciting developments are constantly expanding the information of this time period.
2) Spanish rule - limited information from the filipino side (in written form) but much from oral traditions etc.
3) Post Spanish rule - this is where you will find the most documented information.
I have an article/timeline (almost complete) about the 20th century moments in FMA history, I'll let you know when it's up on my website.
ALl the best
Guro Steve L.
Thanks for all the links!
TFS, I'm sorry I wasn't clearer. I had read his articles, previously, but for some reason missed any reference to an upcoming book.
Speaking of articles, I'm still eagerly anticipating anything you write about espada y daga ... western, hybrid or otherwise. :)
99Luft,
Speaking of articles, I'm still eagerly anticipating anything you write about espada y daga ... western, hybrid or otherwise. :)
DOH!
Stay tuned...
TFS