HISTORY OF ARNIS Arnis, as a martial art, originated and developed in the Philippine soil.

This w as practiced and mastered by early Filipinos for defense and self preservation. It was known in ancient Philippines as kali believed to have derived from the In donesian word tjakalele which means fencing. Later on during the Spanish regime in the Philippines Filipinos called it arnis. Historically, It was a derivation from the word Arnes, a colorful trappings on defensive armors used in moro-moro plays which were then a socio-religious plays depicting the victory of Christian Spani ards over the muslims. The shows were used primarily as propaganda and also for entertainment. During that time, The Filipinos were prohibited by the Spanish re gime to practice their martial arts so the staging of moro-moro gave the players a good excuse to practice their fighting art. The Arnis system of fighting includes empty hands techniques which employ the fl owing method of training like the tapi-tapi(Tapping) sytem to develop reflexes, sensitivity, timing, and good coordination. It also utilized kicking techniques but usually applied to the lower part of the body. Traditional arnis is usually practiced in three forms of play. They are solo baston or single-stick in which a long stick or baston is used; the espada y daga or sword and dagger in which a long stick or sword and a wooden dagger are used; and the sinawali, a native te rm applied because of its intricate movements of the two sticks resemble the wea ve of sawali(crisscross fashion), the bamboo split weave pattern used in walling and matting which was very common in Visayas Islands. Modern Arnis is the system of Filipino martial arts founded by the late Remy Pre sas as a self-defense system. His goal was to create an injury-free training met hod as well as an effective self-defense system in order to preserve the older A rnis systems. The termModern Arnis was used by Remy Presas' younger brother Erne sto Presas to describe his style of Filipino martial arts; since 1999 Ernesto Pr esas has called his system Kombatan. It is derived principally from the traditio nal Presas family style of the Bolo (machete) and the stick-dueling art of Balin tawak Eskrima, with influences from other Filipino andJapanese martial arts.[1] Arnis is the Philippines' national martial art and sport, after President Gloria Macapagal-Arroyo signed the Republic Act. No. 9850 in 2009. The Act mandates th e Department of Education to include the sport as a Physical Education course. A rnis will be included among the priority sports in Palarong Pambansa(National Ga mes) beginning 2010.[2] One of the characteristics of Filipino martial arts is the use of weapons from t he very beginning of training and Modern Arnis is no exception. The primary weap on is the rattan stick, called a cane or baston (baton), which varies in size, b ut is usually about 28 inches (71 cm) in length. Both single and double stick te chniques are taught, with an emphasis on the former; unarmed defenses against th e stick and against bladed weapons (which the stick is sometimes taken to repres ent) are a part of the curriculum.[3] It is said that, originally, the cane was considered sacred by practitioners (Ar nisadores), and therefore an arnis practitioner was expected to hit his cane at the hand or forearm of his sparring partner and not at the latter's cane. This h ad the advantage of being the preferred method in actual combat, referred to as "defanging the snake", that is, making the opponent drop his weapon so that he i s less of a threat. However, it discouraged many would-be practitioners who foun d this training too painful and injury-inducing. The result was that the Filipin o martial arts became in danger of dying out; in most areas of the Philippines, Japanese martial arts such as Karateand Judo were much more popular than the ind igenous systems. Remy Presas' modernization of the training method was intended to help preserve the Filipino martial arts. He taught the method of hitting cane -on-cane during practice, which attracted more newcomers to the art and allowed the art to be taught in the Philippines' school system. "Defanging the snake" re mains a principle of Modern Arnis, however, and in practical application, one wo uld typically strike the hand or arm. The technique can be used empty-handed, wh ere it is known as "limb destruction".[4][5] Training covers empty-hand self-defense (striking, locking, throwing, etc.) as w

ell as the trademark single and double stick techniques of the Filipino martial arts. Other aspects of the art include espada y daga (sword and dagger fighting) , sinawali (double stick weaving patterns), and tapi-tapi (locking drills with t he stick). In addition to partner drills, Modern Arnis includes the use of anyo (kata), solo forms both with and without the stick. Emphasis is placed on fittin g the art in with a student's previous training ("the art within your art"), smo othly reacting to changing situations in the fight ("the flow"), and countering the opponent's attempt to counter strikes directed at him ("tapi-tapi"). Practit ioners are called arnisadors or Modern Arnis players.[6] In addition to its Filipino influences, elements of Judo, Shotokan Karate, and W ally Jay's Small Circle Jujutsu appear in the system.[7]Remy Presas studied his family's system from an early age. He went on to study the Japanese systems of S hotokan Karate and Judo, achieving high rank in each; but he simultaneously stud ied a variety of other Filipino systems, most notably Venancio Bacon'sBalintawak . Beginning with a small gymnasium in Bacolod in the 1950s, he attempted to spr ead the art to the local youth as both a cultural legacy and a form of physical development or sport. He taught the art at the University of Negros Occidental-R ecoletos. His desire to reinvigorate interest in his country's traditional marti al art grew over time, and he began making modifications and improvements to wha t he had learned. In 1969 he moved to Manila at the request of a government offi cial, and formed the Modern Arnis Federation of the Philippines. He was assisted by individuals such as those who now are on the Modern Arnis Senior Masters Cou ncil:Rodel Dagooc, Jerry dela Cruz, Roland Dantes, Vincente Sanchez, Rene Tongso n and Cristino Vasquez. He continued to develop and spread his art, including vi a books, until political considerations forced him to relocate to North America. [8] There he met Wally Jay, George Dillman, and other martial artists who influenced his development of the art of Modern Arnis. In particular, many locks from Smal l Circle Jujitsu were added to Modern Arnis. The art continued to grow and chang e, in technique and in emphasis, though it always retained a focus on the single stick and on general self-defense. Those who trained with Remy Presas in the Un ited States in the 1970s and early 1980s experienced the art differently from th ose who began training in the late 1990s. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s he trav the principal form of instruction in the system was eled extensively for seminars through weekend training camps held around the world but especially in the U.S. an d produced books and videos. During this time he experimented with different for ms of titles and leadership in the art. The International Modern Arnis Federatio n Philippines would come to be the lead Modern Arnis organization in the Philipp ines, and the Deutschen Arnis Verband of Germany would be the lead organization in Europe. In the United States, the International Modern Arnis Federation (IMAF ) was the principal organization as far as certification was concerned, but the founder created a variety of titles that indicated some level of organizational or leadership authority in the art (as opposed to titles such as guro ("teacher" ) or Punong Guro ("Head teacher") that recognized teaching and/or technical abil ity). Most prominent among these titles were Datu, meaning a chieftain or leader , awarded in this order to Shishir Inocalla, Kelly Worden and Ric "Bong" Jornale s (of Arnis Sikaran) (all in the 1980s), Dieter Knuettel (1996), Tim Hartman and David Hoffman (both in 2000); and Master of Tapi-Tapi, awarded to Jeff Delaney, Chuck Gauss, Jim Ladis, Gaby Roloff, Randi Schea, Ken Smith, and Brian Zawilins ki. The Masters of Tapi-Tapi titles were created to provide leadership and steer age for the IMAF following Remy Presas' passing; the Datus were expected to take leadership roles that might see them move in different, and perhaps less conven tional, directions. Through 2001, however, the art remained largely united under the founder.[9] In the wake of the 2001 death of Remy Preas, there has been a splintering of the remaining leadership of Modern Arnis. The IMAF, previously the organization of record for North American Modern Arnis practitioners, split into two subgroups, one headed by Randi Shea and one headed by Jeff Delaney; the remaining five Mast ers of Tapi-Tapi continue to be associated with the former group. Remy Presas' s on Remy P. Presas and his siblings formed a group following his father's death,

and Tim Hartman and Dieter Knuettel increased the independence of their organiza tions (the WMAA and DAV, respectively). Other groups, such as that headed by Kel ly Worden, had become independent well before the founder's death (and with his support). Dan Anderson formed another branch of the art which he calls "MA80 Sys tem Arnis/Eskrima" which adds influences from Balintawak Eskrima and Integrated Eskrima. He heads this group out of Gresham, Oregon. While both IMAFs have claim ed that rank must be certified through them to be valid, other individuals feel that the dynamic structure of the art, Remy Presas' frequent instructions to "ma ke the art your own", their rank or title, and/or specific authority granted to them by the founder, mean that they are entitled to head their own organizations or groups that teach their own interpretation of the art. In many ways, the situation is analogous to what occurred in the Jeet Kune Do an d American Kenpo communities following the deaths of their popular and charismat ic founders. In particular, the question of how high-ranking arnisadors should t est for higher rank has been settled by different organizations in different way s. In some cases this has caused controversy. However, the fact remains that sev eral groups are promoting what they see as 'traditional' Modern Arnis, while oth ers are promoting variations of Modern Arnis, in keeping with its "modern" appro ach. The art is healthy and continues to attract students. Current practitioners of Modern Arnis or arts strongly influenced by Modern Arni s who head their own organization or group or are otherwise prominent include: J eff Delaney, Tim Hartman and Dieter Knttel. [edit]Belt ranks Modern Arnis uses a ranking system similar to the Dan ranks used in Karate or ot her Japanese systems. There are some minor variations between organizations as t o the exact number of belts. There are 10 or 11 black belt ranks in Modern Arnis , depending on the organization. They are numbered in Tagalog: 1. Isa (pronounced as i-sah or e-sah; which literally means "one") 2. Dalawa (pronounced dah-la-wah; as literally means "two") 3. Tatlo (pronounced as tat-loh; literally means "three") 4. Apat (pronounced as Ah-pat; literally means "four") 5. Lima (pronounced as li-mah;literally means "five") 6. Anim (pronounced as ah-neem; literally means "six") 7. Pito (pronounced as pi-toh; literally means "seven") 8. Walo (pronounced as "wah-loh"; literally means "eight") 9. Siyam (pronounced as si-yam; literally means "nine") 10. Sampu (pronounced as sam-po; literally means "ten") 11. Labing-isa (in some organizations) (pronounced as lah-bing-i-sah; litera lly means "eleven") Many groups use a "zero-degree" black belt rank as a probationary stage that com es before Isa. The actual name of the ranks is gender-specific. For men the rank is referred to as Lakan (Tagalog for nobleman) while for women it is referred t o as Dayang (Tagalog forlady). Thus, a first degree black belt in Modern Arnis w ould be referred to as either a Lakan Isa or a Dayang Isa, depending on his or h er gender. The "zero-degree" rank, if used, is referred to as simply Lakan or Da yang. The black belt is traditionally bordered with red; however, some groups us e a plain black belt.[10] In addition to rank, titles such as Datu, Commissioner, Master of Tapi-Tapi, Sen ior Master, Punong Guro, etc., have occasionally been granted to certain high-ra nking individuals. The title Guro is typically given to all Lakans and Dayangs.[ 10] [edit]Organizations Modern Arnis is currently perpetuated by a number of organizations worldwide, wi th some of the largest being the DAV of Germany, theInternational Modern Arnis F ederation (IMAF) under Randi Schea, and the World Modern Arnis Alliance (WMAA). Countries where the art is most popular include the Philippines, the United Stat es, Canada, and Germany, but there are practitioners in many other nations.