Egyptian stick fencing

Egyptian stick fencing

Egyptian stick fencing is an ancient martial arts dance. It is practiced during religious ceremonies, processions, and as sport or game, dating back to ancient Egypt. It is also one of the oldest forms of martial arts in the world and the oldest Egyptian martial arts dance.
Contents
1 History
2 Today
3 The stick
4 Adaptions
4.1 Music
5 See also
6 Notes
7 References

History

The ancient Egyptians performed stick fencing or stick fighting as a form of entertainment.[1] This type of fencing was probably based on actual fighting systems used in combat with a shield and a sword - as with the wooden bokken or bamboo shinai in kendo - which then evolved into a system with its own rules and methods. The fighting stick does not appear to have been used as a battlefield weapon; rather it was used primarily as a training tool and/or for sport.[2] There were advantages of teaching stick fighting, along with other combat sports such as a wrestling, the main advantage being that the Egyptian army could be kept trained and ready for war. In many respects it resembles the sport of single stick.

Some assumptions have to be made in order to understand the stick fighting technique of the ancient Egyptians. Their rules were probably simple and few, and there are two schools of thought on the main objective: the contest was one of either endurance or skill. There is stronger evidence, however, that the game was one of skill and that striking the head was a primary goal.
Stick fighting has a long history in Africa and it's origins as mentioned above can be found woven in to its many cultures and societies.

The art of stick fighting in Egypt around the twenty-first dynasty might have been similar to kenjutsu of Japan where a wooden bokken is used. A curved stick resembling the rungu of eastern Africa with out the knobbed end was used in conjunction with a shield. Shabbako Sabtah, Shebitku Sabbtecha, and Tantamun Taiharcha reputedly saved Jeruselem and Egypt more than once from the attacks of Sanachareb, and later, Esshardon of Assyria using this system of combat.[citation needed]
Sabbekka and other wrestling or grappling systems also used daggers, but in practice used small sticks to limit serious harm to practitioners.