Historical martial arts of
boxing was practiced in ancient
Thera (1600–1500 BC).Human warfare dates back to the
Epipalaeolithic and early
Neolithic era. The oldest works of art depicting scenes of battle are
cave paintings from
eastern Spain dated to between 10,000 and 6,000 BCE that show organized groups fighting with bows and arrows. Similar evidence of warfare has also been found in Epipalaeolithic to early Neolithic era
mass burials, excavated in
Germany and at
Jebel Sahaba in
Northern Sudan. The earliest known depiction of
boxing is a
Sumerian relief found in Mesopotamia dating to the 3rd millennium BC. The development of modern
Chinese and
Indian martial arts was likely facilitated by early cultural exchanges between
China and
India. During the
Warring States period (480–221 BC) in China, extensive development in martial philosophy and strategy took place, as mentioned by
Sun Tzu in
The Art of War (). Legendary accounts link the origin of
Shaolinquan to the
spread of Buddhism from
ancient India during the early 5th century AD, and the coming of
Bodhidharma, to China. Written evidence of martial arts in
Southern India dates back to the
Sangam literature (2nd century BCE - 2nd century AD). The combat techniques of the
Sangam period are the earliest precursors of
Kalaripayattu In
Europe, the earliest martial arts traditions date to
Ancient Greece.
Boxing (
pygme,
pyx),
wrestling (
pale) and
pankration featured in the
Ancient Olympic Games. The
Romans produced
gladiatorial combat as a public spectacle. A number of
combat manuals have survived from the European
Middle Ages, and include such styles as
sword and shield,
two-handed swordfighting and other types of melee weapons in addition to unarmed combat. Amongst these are transcriptions of
Johannes Liechtenauer's mnemonic poem on the longsword dating back to the late 14th century. Likewise, Asian martial arts became well-documented during the medieval period;
Japanese martial arts beginning with the establishment of the
samurai nobility in the 12th century,
Chinese martial arts during the
Ming era with treatises such as
Ji Xiao Xin Shu,
Indian martial arts in medieval texts such as the
Agni Purana and the
Malla Purana and
Korean martial arts during the
Joseon era with texts such as the
Muyejebo (1598). European swordsmanship always had a sportive component, but the duel was always a possibility until
World War I. Modern
sport fencing began developing during the 19th century as the French and Italian military academies began codifying rules. The Olympic games led to standard international rules, with the
Féderation Internationale d'Escrime being founded in 1913. Modern boxing originates with the rules of
Jack Broughton in the 18th century, and reached its present form under the
Rules of the Marquess of Queensberry in 1867.
Folk styles (1792 A.D.) Certain traditional combat sports and fighting styles exist all over the world, rooted in local culture and folklore. The most common of these are styles of
folk wrestling, some of which have been practiced since antiquity and are found in the most remote areas. Other examples include forms of
stick fighting and boxing. While these arts are based on historical traditions and folklore, they are not "historical" in the sense that they reconstruct or preserve a historical system from a specific era. They are rather contemporary regional sports that coexist with the modern forms of martial arts sports as they have developed since the 19th century, often including cross-fertilization between sports and folk styles; thus, the traditional Thai art of
muay boran developed into the modern national sport of
muay Thai, which in turn came to be practiced worldwide and contributed significantly to modern hybrid styles like
kickboxing and
mixed martial arts. The English martial art of
Singlestick, can often be seen used in
morris dancing. Many European dances have elements derived from martial arts, these include the Ukrainian
Hopak, Polish Zbójnicki (use of
ciupaga), the Czech dance
odzemek, and the Norwegian
Halling. in
England, 1811
Modern history Late 19th to early 20th century The mid to late 19th century marks the beginning of martial arts as modern sports, developing out of earlier traditional fighting systems. In Europe, this included the development of
boxing,
wrestling and
fencing as sports. In Japan, the same period marks the creation of modern
judo,
jujutsu,
karate, and
kendo based on
earlier schools of martial arts which existed during the
Edo period and which had been suppressed during the
Meiji Restoration. In 1882,
Kano Jigoro established the
Kodokan School of
judo, thus starting the sport of judo. Kano Jigoro had studied old forms
jujutsu before establishing his judo school. Modern
Muay Thai rules date to the 1920s. In China, the modern history of martial arts begins in the
Nanjing decade (1930s) following the foundation of the
Central Guoshu Institute in 1928 under the
Kuomintang government. Western interest in
Asian martial arts arises towards the end of the 19th century, due to the increase in trade between the United States with China and Japan. Relatively few Westerners actually practiced the arts, considering it to be mere performance.
Edward William Barton-Wright, a 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 style named
Bartitsu which combined jujutsu, judo, wrestling, boxing,
savate and
stick fighting. Fencing and
Greco-Roman wrestling was included in the
1896 Summer Olympics.
FILA Wrestling World Championships and
Boxing at the Summer Olympics were introduced in 1904. The tradition of awarding
championship belts in wrestling and boxing can be traced to the
Lonsdale Belt, introduced in 1909.
20th century (1914 to 1989) (right) and his teacher (left) The
International Boxing Association was established in 1920 and the
World Fencing Championships have been held since 1921. As Western influence grew in Asia a greater number of military personnel spent time in China, Japan and South Korea during
World War II and the
Korean War and were exposed to local fighting styles. Jujutsu, judo and karate first became popular among the mainstream from the 1950s–1960s. Due in part to Asian and Hollywood
martial arts movies, most modern American martial arts are either Asian-derived or Asian influenced. The term
kickboxing (kikku bokushingu キックボクシング) was created by the Japanese boxing promoter
Osamu Noguchi for a variant of muay Thai and karate that he created in the 1950s.
American kickboxing was developed in the 1970s, as a combination of boxing and karate.
Taekwondo was developed in the context of the Korean War in the 1950s. The late 1960s and the 1970s witnessed an increased media interest in
Chinese martial arts, influenced by martial artist
Bruce Lee. Bruce Lee is credited as one of the first instructors to openly teach Chinese martial arts to Westerners.
World Judo Championships have been held since 1956, and Judo was introduced to the
Summer Olympics in 1964.
Karate World Championships were introduced in 1970. The "
kung fu wave" of
Hong Kong action cinema in the 1970s, especially
Bruce Lee films, popularized martial arts in global
popular culture. A number of mainstream films produced during the 1980s also contributed significantly to the perception of martial arts in Western popular culture. These include
The Karate Kid (1984) and
Bloodsport (1988). This era produced some
Hollywood action stars with martial arts background, such as
Jean-Claude Van Damme and
Chuck Norris. Also during the 20th century, a number of martial arts were adapted for
self-defense purposes and for military
hand-to-hand combat.
World War II combatives,
KAPAP (1930s) and
Krav Maga (1950s) in Israel,
Systema in Soviet-era Russia, and
Sanshou in the People's Republic of China are examples of such systems. The
US military de-emphasized hand-to-hand combat training during the
Cold War period, but revived it with the introduction of
LINE in 1989.
1990 to present In 1993, the first
Pancrase event was held in Japan. The
K-1 rules of kickboxing were introduced, based on 1980s
Seidokaikan karate. During the 1990s,
Brazilian jiu-jitsu became popular and proved to be effective in
mixed martial arts (MMA) competitions such as the
UFC and
PRIDE.
Jackie Chan and
Bruce Lee were prominent martial artists who became major movie stars during the late 20th and early 21st century. They have played a pivotal role in popularizing and promoting Chinese martial arts in the
West. The continual discovery of medieval and Renaissance fighting manuals has led to the practice of
Historical European Martial Arts and other
Western Martial Arts, which have since gained popularity across the United States and Europe. On 29 November 2011,
UNESCO inscribed
Taekkyon onto its Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity List.
Revival Many
Indian martial arts were banned by the colonial authorities during the period of
British rule, which led to their decline. Some, such as
Kalaripayattu, were able to resist this decline by practicing in secret. Other Indian martial art, such as
Silambam, while not widely practiced in India, continue to be practiced in other countries in the
Indian cultural sphere such as
Indonesia and
Malaysia. Many other Indian martial arts such as
Mardhani Khel and
Paika Akhada survived by practitioners practicing the art in secret, or by telling the colonial authorities that it was a form of dance. While many regional Indian martial arts forms are fading into obscurity, martial arts such as
Gatka and
Kalaripayattu are experiencing a gradual resurgence. == Testing and competition ==