Eskrima

The history of Eskrima is surrounded by a legend which makes it difficult to pin down facts. Being a martial art for the common folk, they lack the education to create a written history. This is especially hard to do because there are many different fighting systems with different histories that are called Eskrima. One explanation for the origin of Eskrima is that they were originally the fighting systems possessed by every tribe in the Philippines and used by them to fight and defend against each other. Eskrima or Escrima refers to a class of Filipino Martial Arts that emphasize stick and sword fighting. Practitioners of these arts are noted for their ability to fight with weapons or empty hands interchangeably. Most Eskrima systems include fighting with a variety of weapons, striking with hands, grappling and throwing, and whatever skills needed to complete the task.