History of martial arts

Although the earliest evidence of martial arts goes back millennia, the true roots are difficult to reconstruct. Inherent patterns of human aggression which inspire practice of mock combat (in particular wrestling) and optimization of serious close combat as cultural universals are doubtlessly inherited from the pre-human stage and were made into an "art" from the earliest emergence of that concept. Indeed, many universals of martial art are fixed by the specifics of human physiology and not dependent on a specific tradition or era.

Specific martial traditions become identifiable in Classical Antiquity, with disciplines such as shuai jiao, Greek wrestling or those described in the Indian epics or the Spring and Autumn Annals of China.

The Boxer of Quirinal resting after contest (Bronze sculpture, 3rd century BCE)

Early history
Minoan youths boxing, reconstruction of a Knossos fresco (1500 BC). Earliest evidence for use of gloves.

The earliest evidence for specifics of martial arts as practiced in the past comes from depictions of fights, both in figurative art and in early literature, besides analysis of archaeological evidence, especially of weaponry. The oldest work of art depicting scenes of battle, dating back 3400 BC,[1] was the Ancient Egyptian paintings showing some form of struggle.[2] Dating back to 3000 BC in Mesopotamia (Babylon), reliefs and the poems depicting struggle were found.[2] In Vietnam, drawings and sketches from 2879 BCE describe certain ways of combat using sword, stick, bow, and spears.[2]

The spear has been in use since the Lower Paleolithic and retained its central importance well into the 2nd millennium AD. The bow appears in the Upper Paleolithic and is likewise only gradually replaced by the crossbow, and eventually firearms, in the Present Day. True bladed weapons appear in the Neolithic with the stone axe, and diversify in shape in the course of the Bronze Age (khopesh/kopis, sword, dagger)

Some early examples are the depiction of wrestling techniques in a tomb of the Middle Kingdom of Egypt at Beni Hasan (c. 2000 BC) and pictorial representations of fist fighting in the Minoan civilization dating to the 2nd millennium BCE.

In ancient China, Yellow Emperor (2698 BC) is described as a famous general who, before becoming China’s leader, wrote lengthy treatises on medicine, astrology and the martial arts. Literary descriptions of combat began in the 2nd millennium BC, with mention of weaponry and combat in texts like the Gilgamesh epic or the Rig-Veda. Detailed description of Late Bronze Age to Early Iron Age hand-to-hand combat with spear, sword and shield are found in the Iliad (c. 8th century BC) and also the Mahabharatha.

Africa
Detail of the wrestling fresco in tomb 15 at Beni Hasan.

An Egyptian fresco, dated to 3400 BC, and depicting military training at Beni Hassan is the world's oldest known artistic representation of an organised fighting system. In gymnasiums similar to those of Greece, recruits would practice wrestling, callisthenics and duelling with single-stick. The attacking weapon apparently had a basket-guard protecting the hand, while the left forearm had a splint strapped on to serve as a shield. Soldiers fought with spears, large shields with an eye-hole, clubs, axes, poleaxes, flails, bows, slings, and swords of various forms.

Later, martial styles as varied as Gidigbo (a form of wrestling practiced by the Yoruba people of Nigeria), Donga (a form of stickfighting practiced by the Suri people of Ethiopia), Musangwe (a form of bare-knuckle boxing practiced by the Venda people of South Africa), Tahtib (a form of stickfighting practiced by the Copts of Egypt) and Engolo (a form of kicking, dodging and leg sweeping practiced by the tribes of the Cunene river region of Angola), to name just a few, were developed by cultures all over Africa.

Asia
Further information: Origins of Asian martial arts and Modern history of East Asian martial arts

China
Main article: History of Chinese martial arts

Antiquity (Zhou to Jin)

A hand-to-hand combat theory, including the integration of notions of "hard" and "soft" techniques, is expounded in the story of the Maiden of Yue in the Spring and Autumn Annals of Wu and Yue (5th century BCE).[3]

The Han History Bibliographies record that, by the Former Han (206 BC – 9 AD), there was a distinction between no-holds-barred weaponless fighting, which it calls shǒubó (手搏), for which "how-to" manuals had already been written, and sportive wrestling, then known as juélì or jiǎolì (角力).

Wrestling is also documented in the Shǐ Jì, Records of the Grand Historian, written by Sima Qian (c. 100 BCE).[4]

Jiǎolì is also mentioned in the Classic of Rites (1st century BCE).[5]

In the 1st century, "Six Chapters of Hand Fighting", were included in the Han Shu (history of the Former Han Dynasty) written by Ban Gu. The Five Animals concept in Chinese martial arts is attributed to Hua Tuo, a 3rd-century physician.[6]

Middle Ages

In the Tang dynasty, descriptions of sword dances were immortalized in poems by Li Bai and Du Fu. In the Song and Yuan dynasties, xiangpu (the earliest form of sumo) contests were sponsored by the imperial courts.[7]

In regard to the Shaolin fighting system, the oldest evidence of Shaolin participation in combat is a stele from 728 CE that attests to two occasions: a defense of the Shaolin Monastery from bandits around 610 CE, and their subsequent role in the defeat of Wang Shichong at the Battle of Hulao in 621 CE. From the 8th to the 15th centuries, there are no extant documents that provide evidence of Shaolin participation in combat.

Late Ming

The modern concepts of wushu emerge by the late Ming to early Qing dynasties (16th to 17th centuries).[8]

Between the 16th and 17th centuries there are at least forty extant sources which provided evidence that, not only did monks of Shaolin practice martial arts, but martial practice had become such an integral element of Shaolin monastic life that the monks felt the need to justify it by creating new Buddhist lore.[9]

References of martial practice in Shaolin appear in various literary genres of the late Ming: the epitaphs of Shaolin warrior monks, martial-arts manuals, military encyclopedias, historical writings, travelogues, fiction, and even poetry. However these sources do not point out to any specific style originated in Shaolin.[10]

These sources, in contrast to those from the Tang period, refer to Shaolin methods of armed combat. This include the forte of Shaolin monks and for which they had become famous — the staff (gun); General Qi Jiguang included these techniques in his book, Treatise of Effective Discipline.[11]

India
Main article: Indian martial arts
See also: Dhanurveda and Kalaripayattu

Antiquity

Classical Sanskrit epics contain the earliest written accounts of combat in India.[12] The term dwandwayuddha referred to a duel, such that it was a battle between only two warriors and not armies. The Mahabharata describes a prolonged battle between Arjuna and Karna using bows, swords, trees, and fists.[13] Stories describing Krishna report that he sometimes engaged in wrestling matches where he used knee strikes to the chest, punches to the head, hair pulling, and strangleholds.[14] Another unarmed battle in the Mahabharata describes two fighters boxing with clenched fists and fighting with kicks, finger strikes, knee strikes and headbutts.[15] Krishna Maharaja, who single-handedly overcame an elephant according to the Mahabharata, is credited with developing the sixteen principles of armed combat.

Kalaripayattu, the most ancient and important form of India, was practiced in Kerala. Its origins date back to the 12th century. Unniyarcha, Aromal Chekavar and others were Thiyya warriors of Chekavar lineage. It was during their period that kalaripayattu spread widely in southern Kerala.[16][17]

Many of the popular sports mentioned in the Vedas and the epics have their origins in military training, such as boxing (musti-yuddha), wrestling (malladwandwa), chariot-racing (rathachalan), horse-riding (aswarohana) and archery (dhanurvidya).[18] Competitions were held not just as a contest of the players' prowess but also as a means of finding a bridegroom.

Ten fighting styles of northern India were said to have been created in different areas based on animals and gods, and designed for the particular geography of their origin. Tradition ascribes their convergence to the 6th-century in the Buddhist university of Takshashila, located in today's Punjab region.

Middle Ages

Like other branches of Sanskrit literature, treatises on martial arts become more systematic in the course of the 1st millennium CE. The grappling art of vajra-mushti is mentioned in sources of the early centuries CE. Military accounts of the Gupta Empire (c. 240–480) and the later Agni Purana identify over 130 different weapons, divided into thrown and unthrown classes and further into sub-classes.[19] The Kama Sutra written by Vātsyāyana suggested that women should regularly "practice with sword, single-stick, quarterstaff, and bow and arrow."

The Sushruta Samhita (c. 4th century) identifies 107 vital points on the human body[20] of which 64 were classified as being lethal if properly struck with a fist or stick.[14] Sushruta's work formed the basis of the medical discipline ayurveda which was taught alongside various martial arts.[14] With numerous other scattered references to vital points in Vedic and epic sources, it is certain that Indian subcontinent's early fighters knew and practised attacking or defending vital points.[21]

Fighting arts were not exclusive to the kshatriya caste, though the warrior class used the systems more extensively. The 8th-century text Kuvalaymala by Udyotanasuri recorded such systems being taught at gurukula educational institutions, where Brahmin students from throughout the subcontinent "were learning and practicing archery, fighting with sword and shield, with daggers, sticks, lances, and with fists, and in duels (niuddham)."

The earliest extant manual of Indian martial arts is contained as chapters 248 to 251 in the Agni Purana (c. 8th – 11th centuries), giving an account of dhanurveda in a total of 104 shloka.[21][22][23] These verses describe how to improve a warrior's individual prowess and kill enemies using various different methods in warfare, whether a warrior went to war in chariots, elephants, horses, or on foot. Foot methods were subdivided into armed combat and unarmed combat.[14] The former included the bow and arrow, the sword, spear, noose, armour, iron dart, club, battle axe, discus, and the trident. The latter included wrestling, knee strikes, and punching and kicking methods.

Japan
Main articles: Japanese martial arts and Okinawan martial arts

The historical origin of Japanese martial arts can be found in the warrior traditions of the samurai and the caste system that restricted the use of weapons by members of the non-warrior classes. Originally, samurai were expected to be proficient in many weapons, as well as unarmed combat, and attain the highest possible mastery of combat skills, for the purpose of glorifying either themselves or their liege. A large number of schools evolved to teach these skills with those existing before the Meiji Restoration classed as Koryū (古流) or old stream. Over time there was a trend away from the traditional purpose to a philosophy of coupling spiritual goals with the striving to perfect their martial skills.

The Japanese Book of Five Rings dates to 1664.

Korea
Main article: Korean martial arts

Taekkyon is the traditional martial art of Korea. Taekkyon came into existence sometime before the Silla dynasty united the peninsula. It is believed Taekkyon was known as Subak at that time. Taekkyon focuses on up-right fighting: footwork, kicks, strikes, blocks, throws and rhythm.

Ssireum is the traditional wrestling art of Korea. Gakjeochong (각저총:角抵塚) murals show that wrestling in Korea dates back as early as the pre-Three Kingdom era. The Book of Later Han, a Chinese document that was written either before or early in the history of the Three Kingdoms also has records of Korean wrestling. Ssireum first gained widespread popularity during the Joseon dynasty (1392-1910).

Two Korean martial arts manuals Muyejebo and Muyedobotongji date from 1598 and 1790, respectively.

Sri Lanka
Main article: Angampora

Angampora is an ancient Sri Lankan martial art that combines combat techniques, self-defense, sport, exercise, and meditation. According to apocryphal Sinhalese folklore, Angampora's history stretches to as far back as 3,000 years, with the Yaksha tribe (one of the four "hela" - the ancient tribes that inhabited the island) being identified as originators. With the advent of colonialism over the entirety of the island in 1815, Angampora fell into disuse and was very nearly lost as a part of the country's heritage. The British administration prohibited its practice due to the dangers posed by a civilian populace versed in a martial art, burning down any angan madu (practice huts devoted to the martial art) found: flouting of the law was punished by a gunshot to the knee, effectively crippling practitioners; Angampora nevertheless survived within a few families, allowing it to emerge into mainstream Sri Lankan culture post-independence.

Persia (Iran)

The traditional Persian style of grappling was known as koshti, with the physical exercise and schooled sport known as varzesh-e bastani. It is said[24] to be traceable back to Arsacid Parthian times (132 BCE - 226 CE), and is still widely practiced today in the region. Following the development of Sufi Islam in the 8th century CE, varzesh-e pahlavani absorbed philosophical and spiritual components from that religion.

Pahlevani and zourkhaneh rituals is also an ancient martial art and the name inscribed by UNESCO for varzesh-e pahlavāni (Persian: آیین پهلوانی و زورخانه‌ای, "heroic sport")[25] or varzesh-e bāstāni (ورزش باستانی; varzeš-e bāstānī, "ancient sport"), a traditional system of athletics originally used to train warriors in Iran (Persia), and first appearing under this name and form in the Safavid era, with similarities to systems in adjacent lands under other names.[26][27]

Turkic

Other historical grappling styles from the region include Turkic forms such as kurash, köräş and yağlı güreş.

Arab
Further information: Furusiyya

The north Arabian tradition of horsemanship quickly became an integral part of warfare throughout the Arab world and much of the West Asia. The Middle Ages saw the flourishing of the furusiyya culture, combining the ancient Bedouin concept of honour (muru'ah) with the Islamic ideals of chivalry. A fārys (meaning knight or horseman) would first hone his skills in wrestling and armed combat on the ground before learning to fight while mounted. Furusiyya literature from the 9th to 15th century deal with equestrianism, archery, military strategy, duelling and charging with the lance. Armed fighting included the use of the sword (sayf), spear, lance, javelin, dagger (jambiya), staff, axe (tabar), warhammer, and curved bow. There is also Tahtib (التحطيب) which was practiced in ancient Egypt and is still performed in celebrations.

Europe
Main article: Historical European martial arts
Further information: History of fencing and Ancient Greek Boxing

Antiquity
Pankratiast in fighting stance, Ancient Greek red-figure amphora, 440 BC.
Further information: Ancient warfare

European martial arts become tangible in Greek antiquity with pankration and other martially oriented disciplines of the ancient Olympic Games. Boxing became Olympic in Greece as early as 688 BCE. Detailed depictions of wrestling techniques are preserved in vase paintings of the Classical period. Homer's Iliad has a number of detailed descriptions of single combat with spear, sword and shield.

Gladiatorial combat appears to have Etruscan roots, and is documented in Rome from the 260s BCE.

The papyrus fragment known as P.Oxy. III 466 dating from the 2nd century gives the earliest surviving description in writing of wrestling techniques.

In Sardinia, a Mediterranean island, a fighting style which has been called istrumpa was practised in the Bronze Age, as demonstrated by the finding of a little bronze statue (known as "Bronzetto dei lottatori" or "bronze of the fighting men"), which shows two fighters struggling with each other on the ground.

Middle Ages
Further information: Medieval warfare, Viking Age arms and armour, Holmgang, and Trial by combat
Fol. 4v of the I.33

Pictorial sources of medieval combat include the Bayeux tapestry (11th century), the Morgan Bible (13th century).

The Icelandic sagas contain many realistic descriptions of Viking Age combat.

The earliest extant dedicated martial arts manual is the MS I.33 (c. 1300), detailing sword and buckler combat, compiled in a Franconian monastery. The manuscript consists of 64 images with Latin commentary, interspersed with technical vocabulary in German. While there are earlier manuals of wrestling techniques, I.33 is the earliest known manual dedicated to teaching armed single combat.

Wrestling throughout the Middle Ages was practiced by all social strata. Jousting and the tournament were popular martial arts practiced by nobility throughout the High and Late Middle Ages.

The Late Middle Ages see the appearance of elaborate fencing systems, such as the German or Italian schools. Fencing schools (Fechtschulen) for the new bourgeois class become popular, increasing the demand for professional instructors (fencing masters, Fechtmeister). The martial arts techniques taught in this period is preserved in a number of 15th-century Fechtbücher.

Renaissance to Early Modern period
Further information: Early modern warfare

The late medieval German school survives into the German Renaissance, and there are a number of printed 16th-century manuals (notably the one by Joachim Meyer, 1570). But by the 17th century, the German school declines in favour of the Italian Dardi school, reflecting the transition to rapier fencing in the upper classes. Wrestling comes to be seen as an ignoble pursuit proper for the lower classes and until its 19th-century revival as a modern sport becomes restricted to folk wrestling.

In the Baroque period, fashion shifts from Italian to Spanish masters, and their elaborate systems of Destreza. In the mid-18th century, in keeping with the general Rococo fashion, French masters rise to international prominence, introducing the foil, and much of the terminology still current in modern sports fencing.

There are also a number of Early Modern fencing masters of note in England, such as George Silver and Joseph Swetnam.

Academic fencing takes its origin in the Middle Ages, and is subject to the changes of fencing fashion throughout the Early Modern period. It establishes itself as the separate style of Mensur fencing in the 18th

Modern history (1800 to present)

The Western interest in East Asian martial arts dates back to the late 19th century, due to the increase in trade between the West with China and Japan. European martial arts before that time was focused on the duelling sword among the upper classes on one hand, and various styles of folk wrestling among the lower classes on the other.

Savate appears in the early 19th century in France, as a mix between English boxing and French folk kicking techniques. At that time, in France, it existed in gyms called salles d'armes where savate, English boxing, fencing, canne de combat and sometimes even wrestling was practiced.

Edward William Barton-Wright, a British railway engineer who had studied jujutsu while working in Japan between 1894 and 1897, was the first man known to have taught Asian martial arts in Europe. He also founded an eclectic martial arts style named Bartitsu which combined jujutsu, judo, wrestling, boxing, savate and stick fighting. Also during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, catch wrestling contests became immensely popular in Europe.

The development of Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu from the early 20th century is a good example of the worldwide cross-pollination and syncretism of martial arts traditions.

The later 1970s and 1980s witnessed an increased media interest in the martial arts, thanks in part to Asian and Hollywood martial arts movies and very popular television shows like "Kung Fu", "Martial Law" and "The Green Hornet" that incorporated martial arts moments or themes. Following Bruce Lee, both Jackie Chan and Jet Li are prominent movie figures who have been responsible for promoting Chinese martial arts in recent years.

Combined Olympic medal table

Martial arts have been a part of the modern Olympic games since 1896. The following table is correct up to and including the 2021 Summer Games.

Country
Fencing		 Wrestling
Boxing
Judo
Taekwondo
Karate		 Total
Greco-Roman Freestyle
Afghanistan Afghanistan00000202
Algeria Algeria00062008
Argentina Argentina1002421028
Armenia Armenia081200011
Australia Australia003522012
Australia Australasia00010001
Austria Austria711070117
Azerbaijan Azerbaijan0718953244
Belarus Belarus077220018
Belgium Belgium10034130030
Bermuda Bermuda00010001
Bohemia Bohemia20000002
Brazil Brazil0008242034
Bulgaria Bulgaria032391930194
Cameroon Cameroon00020002
Canada Canada00171772043
Chile Chile00030003
China China1569142211279
Chinese Taipei Chinese Taipei000119112
Colombia Colombia002521010
Croatia Croatia00010506
Cuba Cuba101611783760158
Czech Republic Czech Republic11012005
Czechoslovakia Czechoslovakia0114610022
Denmark Denmark6901200027
Dominican Republic Dominican Republic00020204
East Germany East Germany1431390030
Egypt Egypt180424221
Estonia Estonia283130017
Finland Finland058251600099
France France12399255781232
Gabon Gabon00000101
Georgia (country) Georgia08111120032
Germany Germany2122723212096
Ghana Ghana00040004
United Kingdom Great Britain9017622090117
Greece Greece592024022
Guyana Guyana00010001
Hong Kong Hong Kong10000012
Hungary Hungary904115201001177
Iceland Iceland00001001
India India007300010
Iran Iran0938006154
Republic of Ireland Ireland0001800018
Israel Israel00006107
Italy Italy130193481742223
Ivory Coast Ivory Coast00000303
Japan Japan3156189613187
Jordan Jordan00000213
Kazakhstan Kazakhstan05122441248
Kenya Kenya00070007
Kosovo Kosovo00003003
Kyrgyzstan Kyrgyzstan03301007
Latvia Latvia01001002
Lebanon Lebanon03000003
Lithuania Lithuania02010003
Mauritius Mauritius00010001
Mexico Mexico1101307022
Moldova Moldova01020003
Mongolia Mongolia00107110028
Morocco Morocco00040004
Unified Team at the Olympics Mixed team10000001
Netherlands Netherlands5008240037
New Zealand New Zealand00040004
Niger Niger00010102
Nigeria Nigeria00160108
North Korea North Korea019880026
North Macedonia North Macedonia00100102
Norway Norway153502016
Pakistan Pakistan00110002
Philippines Philippines00080008
Poland Poland2221643800100
Portugal Portugal10003004
Puerto Rico Puerto Rico00160007
Taiwan ROC835634029
Romania Romania172772560082
Russia Russia262234301640132
Russia Russian Empire03000003
San Marino San Marino00100001
Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia00000011
Serbia Serbia02000417
Slovakia Slovakia00101002
Slovenia Slovenia00006006
South Africa South Africa0001900019
South Korea South Korea1616202046220140
Soviet Union Soviet Union496056512300239
Spain Spain101467221
Sweden Sweden7582811000104
Switzerland Switzerland8114040027
Syria Syria00110002
Tajikistan Tajikistan00111003
Thailand Thailand0001506021
Tonga Tonga00010001
Tunisia Tunisia10120206
Turkey Turkey02541729488
Uganda Uganda00040004
Ukraine Ukraine77111540246
Unified Team at the Olympics Unified Team597240027
United Arab Emirates UAE00001001
United States United States331512311714101313
Germany United Team of Germany472620021
Uruguay Uruguay00010001
Uzbekistan Uzbekistan0261571031
Venezuela Venezuela10060209
Vietnam Vietnam00000101
West Germany West Germany1654680039
Socialist Federal Republic of Yugoslavia Yugoslavia01241120029
Zambia Zambia00010001
Totals668625731996607176323835

Reconstruction

The reconstruction of a martial art as practiced in a specific period is distinct from the practice of a traditional fighting system handed down by way of master-student transmission. The largest movement of martial arts reconstruction is the Historical European Martial Arts revival (HEMA), gaining momentum since the late 1990s. To a limited extent, there are also attempts to reconstruct other styles, such as Korean swordsmanship and Persian armed combat called razmafzar.

The Japanese term Koryū refers to "old schools" of martial arts which predate 1868; it does not imply that historical styles are actively reconstructed, just that the school's tradition goes back 150 years or more.

A reconstructed martial art necessarily rests on historical records, either combat manuals or pictorial representations. Martial arts reconstruction specifically does not claim an unbroken tradition of some historical martial arts. On the contrary, the premise is that in an unbroken tradition, styles significantly evolve over time. It is not necessary for the tradition to have been interrupted in order to reconstruct an earlier style; a case in point is classical fencing which reconstructs the sport fencing of the 19th century before it evolved into current Olympic fencing, or historical German ringen which over time developed into contemporary styles of folk wrestling. Claims of ancient martial arts which survive unchanged by unbroken tradition (e.g. as suggested by Yehoshua Sofer), do not fall under reconstruction and are by their nature unverifiable, even to the person making the claim.

Certain modern schools of Ninjutsu may fall under the category of martial arts reconstruction; the Bujinkan organization claims to base their teaching on a manuscript documenting a historical school, known as Togakure-ryū, dated to the 12th century. But as this manuscript is supposedly in the private possession of Masaaki Hatsumi, its authenticity, or indeed existence, cannot be verified by independent parties.[28]

See also

References
  1. World grappling styles Archived 2015-01-01 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2013-06-22.
  2. Iwona Czerwinska Pawluk and Walery Zukow (2011). Humanities dimension of physiotherapy, rehabilitation, nursing and public health. p. 21
  3. trans. and ed. Zhang Jue (1994), pp. 367-370, cited after Hennin (1999) p. 321 and note 8.
  4. Henning, Stanley E. (Fall 1999). Academia Encounters the Chinese Martial arts. China Review International 6 (2): 319–332. ISSN 1069-5834
  5. Classic of Rites. Chapter 6, Yuèlìng. Line 108.
  6. Dingbo. Wu, Patrick D. Murphy (1994), "Handbook of Chinese Popular Culture", Greenwood Press, ISBN 0-313-27808-3
  7. The customary Bowing of martial arts is thus due to the "transmission of the task or work to be carried out", in ancient times precisely for the reigning Empire
  8. China Sportlight Series (1986) "Sports and Games in Ancient China". New World Press, ISBN 0-8351-1534-8.
  9. Shahar, Meir (2000). "Epigraphy, Buddhist Historiography, and Fighting Monks: The Case of The Shaolin Monastery". Asia Major Third Series 13 (2): 15–36.
  10. Shahar, Meir (December 2001). "Ming-Period Evidence of Shaolin Martial Practice". Harvard Journal of Asiatic Studies 61 (2): 359–413. ISSN 0073-0548.
  11. Henning, Stanley (1999). "Martial arts Myths of Shaolin Monastery, Part I: The Giant with the Flaming Staff". Journal of the Chenstyle Taijiquan Research Association of Hawaii 5 (1), Shahar, Meir (2007), The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion and the Chinese Martial arts", Honolulu: The University of Hawai'i Press
  12. Shamya Dasgupta (June–September 2004). "An Inheritance from the British: The Indian Boxing Story", Routledge 21 (3), p. 433-451.
  13. Zarrilli, Phillip B. A South Indian Martial Art and the Yoga and Ayurvedic Paradigms. University of Wisconsin–Madison.
  14. J. R. Svinth (2002). A Chronological History of the Martial Arts and Combative Sports. Electronic Journals of Martial Arts and Sciences.
  15. Section XIII: Samayapalana Parva, Book 4: Virata Parva, Mahabharata.
  16. Nisha, P. R. (12 June 2020). Jumbos and Jumping Devils: A Social History of Indian Circus. ISBN 9780190992071.
  17. Menon, A. Sreedhara (4 March 2011). Kerala History and its Makers. D C Books. p. 81. ISBN 978-81-264-3782-5. Retrieved 10 October 2021.
  18. The Timechart History of India. Robert Frederick Ltd. 2005. ISBN 0-7554-5162-7.
  19. Parmeshwaranand Swami, Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Purāṇas, Sarup & Sons, 2001, ISBN 978-81-7625-226-3, s.v. "dhanurveda"; Gaṅgā Rām Garg, Encyclopaedia of the Hindu World, Concept Publishing Company, 1992 ISBN 978-81-7022-376-4, s.v. "archery".
  20. G. D. Singhal, L. V. Guru (1973). Anatomical and Obstetrical Considerations in Ancient Indian Surgery Based on Sarira-Sthana of Susruta Samhita.
  21. Zarrilli, Phillip B. (1992). "To Heal and/or To Harm: The Vital Spots (Marmmam/Varmam) in Two South Indian Martial Traditions Part I: Focus on Kerala's Kalarippayattu". Journal of Asian Martial Arts. 1 (1).
  22. P. C. Chakravarti (1972). The art of warfare in ancient India. Delhi.
  23. GRETIL etext Archived 2009-07-24 at the Wayback Machine, based on Rajendralal Mitra, Calcutta: Asiatic Society of Bengal 1870–1879, 3 vols. (Bibliotheca Indica, 65,1-3); AP 248.1-38, 249.1-19, 250.1-13, 251.1-34.
  24. Nekoogar, Farzad (1996). Traditional Iranian Martial Arts (Varzesh-e Pahlavani). pahlvani.com: Menlo Park. Accessed: 2007-02-08
  25. official IZSF
  26. History of martial arts at Encyclopædia Iranica
  27. "Pahlevani and Zoorkhanei rituals".
  28. Watatani Kiyoshi and Yamada Tadashi (1963), Bugei Ryuha Daijiten, p. 293

Bibliography
  • Michael B. Poliakoff, Combat Sports in the Ancient World: Competition, Violence, and Culture Sports and History Series, Yale University Press (1987).
  • Thomas A. Green, Joseph R. Svinth (eds.), Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation, 2010, two volumes: vol. 1: 'Regions and Individual Arts', ISBN 9781598842449; vol. 2: 'Themes', ISBN 9781598842432.
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