What kind of Martial Arts are there?
There are many ways in which martial arts can be divided. Here are a few of them that might be useful to use in defining Martial Arts and discussing them. These are not necessarily consensus definitions but they are commonly held. It is also useful to remember that very few of these martial arts are just one way or another… they are all mixtures of these elements in various degrees. When we say a style is “hard” what we mean is that the predominant expression of that style is hard. If we say Shotokan is linear, it does not mean Shotokan has no circular techniques. “Sport” vs “Fighting Art” vs. “Exercise” vs. “Philosophy” These are usually NON-useful comparisons because people tend to be very strongly opinionated on this matter. Most people want to think their art is an ancient “fighting art” and can be applied thus on the street. Some styles truly are all four, and to some degree all styles contain all four elements. In discussions of a style it is most useful when people highlight w
There are many ways in which martial arts can be divided. Here are a few of them that might be useful to use in defining Martial Arts and discussing them. These are not necessarily consensus definitions but they are commonly held. It is also useful to remember that very few of these martial arts are just one way or another…they are all mixtures of these elements in various degrees. When we say a style is “hard” what we mean is that the predominant expression of that style is hard. If we say Shotokan is linear, it does not mean Shotokan has no circular techniques. “Sport” vs “Fighting Art” vs. “Exercise” vs. “Philosophy” These are usually NON-useful comparisons because people tend to be very strongly opinionated on this matter. Most people want to think their art is an ancient “fighting art” and can be applied thus on the street. Some styles truly are all four, and to some degree all styles contain all four elements. In discussions of a style it is most useful when people highlight wh
