A question for michael janich about FMA

[Hissatsu5]

What is or is there a diffence between Eskrima ,Kali ,Arnis and Pekiti-Tirsia thank you for your time

[psychophipps]

The names, for the most part. You will find strong similarities among all those arts in a large portion of the methodolgy, if not necessarily philosophy.

[Dr. Snubnose]

What is or is there a diffence between Eskrima ,Kali ,Arnis and Pekiti-Tirsia thank you for your time

I am not MJ of course but I am a FMA Instructor. Eskrima, Kali (an ancient name) and Arnis, meaning Armour, or Arnis De Mano, meaning Armour of the Hands, are all different terms to describe the Filipino martial arts. Pekiti-Tirsia, is the name of particular system of Kali. There exist many different systems from the southern , central and northern parts of the Philippines. All have a slightly different emphasis and stylistic techniques, all will have single and double stick techniques, Sword and Dagger, double dagger, empty hand techniques, stylistic floor patterns and disarming. Some styles use a variety of bladed weapons and some longer poles and different styles will use different length Rattan sticks ranging from 24"-32".....Doc :D

[Hissatsu5]

Thank you for ur insight and I am a knife guy and a Balisong guy and I hear the terms being used and was never sure if they were used interchangeable or if their was a difference like karate and joudo

[Michael Janich]

Sorry for the slow response--I was out all last week doing a military show at Ft. Benning and visiting with the U.S. Army Marksmanship Unit.

Thanks to those who posted responses to the question. You were spot on.

The Philippines consists of over 7,000 islands. That type of geography tends to separate subcultures and emphasize cultural differences--like language. The people of the country speak more than 100 languages (usually estimated at 120-175). As such, it is very common to hear different terms used to identify the same thing.

That's the simple answer. If you're interested in understanding the topic in greater detail, Mark Wiley wrote an excellent book called "Filipino Martial Culture" in which he does probably the most thorough and logical job of breaking down the systems and styles of the FMA. Here's a "look inside" from the Amazon web site. Note the appendices that address categorizations of systems and styles. It's a great book and well worth the read.

Stay safe,

Mike

[Blerv]

The arts mentioned have similar goals and stylistic differences. I would do research to find the best teachers in your area rather than one that teaches the exact art you desire.

Seems to me FMA as an acronym is the new Karate of the 80's. Perhaps only usurped by the recently popular search for quality MMA teachers. That means there are amazing practitioners and others who have huge wallets and Kool-Aid pitchers :) .