Modern Arnis

is the system of Filipino martial arts founded by the late Remy Presas as a self-defense system. His goal was to create an injury-free training method as well as an effective self-defense system in order to preserve the older Arnis systems. The term Modern Arniswas used by Remy Presas' younger brother Ernesto Presas to describe his style of Filipino martial arts; since 1999 Ernesto Presas has called his system Kombatan. It is derived principally from the traditional Presas family style of the Bolo (machete) and the stick-dueling art ofBalintawak Eskrima, with influences from other Filipino and Japanese martial arts. HISTORY:
Remy Presas studied his family's system from an early age. He went on to study the Japanese systems of Shotokan Karate and Judo, achieving high rank in each; but he simultaneously studied a variety of other Filipino systems, most notably Venancio Bacon's Balintawak . Beginning with a small gymnasium in Bacolod in the 1950s, he attempted to spread 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-Recoletos. His desire to reinvigorate interest in his country's traditional martial art grew over time, and he began making modifications and improvements to what he had learned. In 1969 he moved to Manila at the request of a government official, 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 Council: Rodel Dagooc, Jerry dela Cruz, Roland Dantes, Vincente Sanchez, Rene Tongson and Cristino Vasquez. He continued to develop and spread his art, including via 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 Small Circle Jujitsu were added to Modern Arnis. The art continued to grow and change, 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 United States in the 1970s and early 1980s experienced the art differently from those who began training in the late 1990s. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s he traveled extensively for seminars the principal form of instruction in the system was through weekend training camps held around the world but especially in the U.S. and produced books and videos. During this time he experimented with different forms of titles and leadership in the art. The International Modern Arnis Federation Philippines would come to be the lead Modern Arnis organization in the Philippines, and the Deutschen Arnis Verband of Germany would be the lead organization in Europe. In the United States, theInternational 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 ability). Most prominent among these titles were Datu, meaning a chieftain or leader, awarded in this order to Shishir Inocalla, Kelly Worden and Ric "Bong" Jornales (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 Zawilinski. The Masters of Tapi-Tapi titles were created to provide leadership and steerage 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 conventional, directions. Through 2001, however, the art remained largely united under the founder. 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 Masters of Tapi-Tapi continue to be associated with the former group. Remy Presas' son 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 organizations (the WMAA and DAV, respectively). Other groups, such as that headed by Kelly 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 System Arnis/Eskrima" which adds influences from Balintawak Eskrima and Integrated Eskrima. In many ways, the situation is analogous to what occurred in the Jeet Kune Do and American Kenpo communities following the deaths of their popular and charismatic founders. In particular, the question of how high-ranking arnisadors should test for higher rank has been settled by different organizations in different ways. In some cases this has caused controversy. However, the fact remains that several groups are promoting what they see as 'traditional' Modern Arnis, while others are promoting variations of Modern Arnis, in keeping with its "modern" approach. The art is healthy and continues to attract students. Belt ranks Modern Arnis uses a ranking system similar to the Dan ranks used in Karate or other Japanese systems. There are some minor variations between organizations as to 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; literally means "eleven") Many groups use a "zero-degree" black belt rank as a probationary stage that comes before Isa. The actual name of the ranks is gender-specific. For men the rank is referred to asLakan (Tagalog for male) while for women it is referred to as Dayang (Tagalog for "female").[citation needed] Thus, a first degree black belt in Modern Arnis would be referred to as either aLakan Isa or a Dayang Isa, depending on his or her gender. The "zero-degree" rank, if used, is referred to as simply Lakan or Dayang. The black belt is traditionally bordered with red; however, some groups use a plain black belt. In addition to rank, titles such as Datu, Commissioner, Master of Tapi-Tapi, Senior Master, Punong Guro, etc., have occasionally been granted to certain high-ranking individuals. The titleGuro is typically given to all Lakans and Dayangs.

Arnis
the system of Filipino martial arts founded by the late Remy Presas as a self-defense system. His goal was to create an injury-free training method as well as an effective self-defense system in order to preserve the older Arnis systems. The term Modern Arniswas used by Remy Presas' younger brother Ernesto Presas to describe his style of Filipino martial arts; since 1999 Ernesto Presas has called his system Kombatan. It is derived principally from the traditional Presas family style of the Bolo (machete) and the stick-dueling art ofBalintawak Eskrima, with influences from other Filipino and Japanese martial arts. 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 the Department of Education to include the sport as a Physical Education course. Arnis will be included among the priority sports in Palarong Pambansa (National Games) beginning 2010. HISTORY: Remy Presas studied his family's system from an early age. He went on to study the Japanese systems of Shotokan Karate and Judo, achieving high rank in each; but he simultaneously studied a variety of other Filipino systems, most notably Venancio Bacon's Balintawak . Beginning with a small gymnasium in Bacolod in the 1950s, he attempted to spread 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-Recoletos. His desire to reinvigorate interest in his country's traditional martial art grew over time, and he began making modifications and improvements to what he had learned. In 1969 he moved to Manila at the request of a government official, 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 Council: Rodel Dagooc, Jerry dela Cruz, Roland Dantes, Vincente Sanchez, Rene Tongson and Cristino Vasquez. He continued to develop and spread his art, including via books, until political considerations forced him to relocate to North America. 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 Small Circle Jujitsu were added to Modern Arnis. The art continued to grow and change, 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 United States in the 1970s and early 1980s experienced the art differently from those who began training in the late 1990s. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s he traveled extensively for seminars the principal form of instruction in
-is

the system was through weekend training camps held around the world but especially in the U.S. and produced books and videos. During this time he experimented with different forms of titles and leadership in the art. The International Modern Arnis Federation Philippines would come to be the lead Modern Arnis organization in the Philippines, and the Deutschen Arnis Verband of Germany would be the lead organization in Europe. In the United States, theInternational 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 ability). Most prominent among these titles were Datu, meaning a chieftain or leader, awarded in this order to Shishir Inocalla, Kelly Worden and Ric "Bong" Jornales (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 Zawilinski. The Masters of Tapi-Tapi titles were created to provide leadership and steerage 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 conventional, directions. Through 2001, however, the art remained largely united under the founder.
Belt ranks
Modern Arnis uses a ranking system similar to the Dan ranks used in Karate or other Japanese systems. There are some minor variations between organizations as to 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; literally means "eleven")

History of Anis
The origins of arnis are difficult to trace, primarily because there are nearly as many styles of Filipino stick fighting as there are islands in the Philippine archipelagomore than 7000! The races that settled in these islands came from India, Southwest Asia, China and Indonesia. These diverse races and cultures blended their heritage's over the centuries, producing a common method for employing sharp swords, daggers and fire-hardened sticks in combat. These highly sophisticated fighting styles have grown in popularity in the international martial arts community. One of the earliest known forms was called tjakelele (Indonesian fencing). Kali is another term familiar to stick fighters around the world today. When the Philippines were invaded by the Spanish, the invaders required guns to subdue their fierce opponents. The deadly fighting skills of Filipino warriors nearly overwhelmed them, and they dubbed the native stick style escrima (skirmish). Escrima was subsequently outlawed, but the techniques did not disappear. The were preserved in secret, sometimes under the very noses of conquerors, in the form of dances or mock battles staged in religious plays know as moro-moro. These plays featured Filipinos, sometimes costumed as Spanish soldiers, wearing arnes, the harness worn during medieval times for armor. The blade-fighting forms and footwork were identical to those used in escrima. The word arnes so became corrupted to arnis, and the name stuck. Historically, Arnis incorporated three related methods: espada y daga (sword and dagger), which employs a long blade and short dagger; solo baston (single stick); and sinawali (to weave), which uses two sticks of equal length twirled in weaving fashion for blocking and striking (term is derived from sawali, the bamboo matting woven in the Philippines). At age six, Grandmaster Remy Amador Presas (Filipino arnis master and founder of modern arnis) was already learning the fundamentals of kali, the forerunner of modern arnis, arnis de mano. In Cebu, Presas studied arnis under Rodolfo Moncal, Timoteo Marranga and Marrangas instructor, Grandmaster Venancio Bacon, all experts in Arnis and the Balintawak style of stick fencing. In addition to Arnis, Presas became proficient in Judo, Jujutsu, and Karate. When Presas first traveled his country, he took what he considered to be the most effective principles of each island style and combined them with his own knowledge of other martial arts. Modern Arnis, as Presas terms his system, incorporates empty-hand moves based upon the same motions used in solo baston and sinawali. Unlike kali, his systems also uses low kicks and takedowns for a more well-rounded approach. Presas also insists on modernizing a particular training aspect traditional in arnis: that of hitting your opponents hand or arm instead of his sticka painful practice that was tolerated because the rattan canes used in arnis were considered sacred. Presas decided that hitting the stick was just as good a practice method and would obviously discourage far fewer students of arnis,

preventing many painful injuries. Presas does not merely combine techniques, he encourages the individual student to adapt arnis principles to his own feel for each technique. The method should suit the person and not the other way around. This is known simply as using the flow. The flow is Presas universal term for defining the comfortable place where the movements of arnis and the individual human body meet for maximum effectiveness; body and weapon blend to achieve the most natural fighting style based on an individuals needs and attitudes. Arnis makes many martial artists discover new things about their own style, Presas says. They recognize the beauty of arnis because it blends naturally the best movements from many arts. Most of my students continue to study their own stylesthey just use arnis to supplement their understanding. Presas left the Philippines in 1975 on a goodwill tour sponsored by the Philippine government to spread arnis to other countries. He arrived in the United States, conducting seminars to groups diverse as law enforcement agencies and senior citizens. The Professor, as his students affectionately call him, has been welcomed wherever he goes, demonstrating the daring techniques of the bolo and the bewitching twirl of double rattan sticksthe sinawali. In 1982 Presas was inducted into the Black Belt Hall of Fame as Instructor of the Year for his devotion to teach the art he loves. Years of refinement have given Presas a personal style that makes his seminars among the most popular at many martial arts schools For his seminars, Presas has furthered simplified some of his teaching in order to give novices a tangible amount of self-defense skill through specific drills. Sinawali, for instance, is practiced first with the hands in a patty cake fashion, then the sticks are picked up and the student repeats the motions. Presas demonstrated how these weaving motions can be translated into empty-hand movements for blocking, punching and takedowns. He has designated 12 important angles of attack on the human body and 12 basic ways of dealing with each angle. There are also many disarming techniques and the variations and improvisational capabilities implied are endless. Arnis is a growing art, expanding in this country rapidly. Arnis tends to transcend stylistic distinctions and discovery seems to be a primary benefit from the study of modern arnis, especially under the methods of Grandmaster Remy Presas.