Arnis: History and Development of the Filipino Martial Arts

by Mark V. Wiley (Editor)

The Filipino martial tradition, its history, cultural perspective and technique, makes for a rich and fascinating story. This is the first book to delve deeply into that legacy, examining the different schools of arnis and contributions made by leading arnisadores through history. This book examines training regimens, fighting techniques and innovations, and provides an exhaustive bibliography of all the books ever written on the subject. With 125 remarkable photographs, Mark Wiley's groundbreaking study of arnis stands as an important source book for all serious practitioners of unarmed Filipino martial arts-as well as any serious student of martial arts as it is practiced worldwide.

Genres: Martial Arts

196 pages, Paperback

First published June 1, 2001

About the author

Mark V. Wiley, B.A., received his bachelor of arts degree in sociology from Drexel University. He began martial arts training in 1979 and has focused on Cabales Serrada Escrima under Grandmaster Angel Cabales. As an author, Wiley's works included Filipino Martial Arts: Cabales Serrada Escrima (Tuttle 1994) and Filipino Fighting Arts: Theory and Practice (Unique 2000). He has worked in the publishing field, including Tuttle Publishing and CFW Enterprises, and now is self-employed with Tambuli Media.

Reviews

[Paul A]

As others have stated in their reviews, this is not a technical book for learning FMA, but rather a series of essays and articles covering a variety of topics, including diffusionism in martial arts, a short biography of Jose Rizal, how balisongs are made, a history of the juego todo matches, and much more. This book provides context and background to the world of FMA beyond just technique and is certainly one that I hope to revisit in the future.

[Miroku Nemeth]

An interesting read in its diversity and breadth (it is a collection of essays from various authors), and for the ways in which it challenges many of the dubious myths that are perpetuated in Eskrima circles without detracting from the actual Filipino Martial Arts themselves.

[Andrew Shieh]

Not very useful as a martial arts book, but good for understanding Filipino Martial Arts history and culture.

[Amine]

this book is good