All African Martial ArtsBet you didn't know that there was such a thing as all African martial arts, did you? Actually, there are many organizations around the United States as well as the world that research, practice, and preserved traditional African combat arts. For example, there are four major African and African fighting systems in the martial arts field. These martial arts are called Dambe, Kokawa, Shanci and Mani. Dambe is a traditional fighting form of a tribe from Nigeria, which consists of using bare hands in a variety of moves that include punching, head butts, elbows, knees, and kicks. It is a full contact combat system and is, and can be considered, a variety of wrestling. Kokawa also comes from Nigeria, and it is a more grappling form of Dambe. Shanci is full combat system of ancient warriors. In addition to using a wide variety of weapons, it holds an "anything goes" tactic approach. Only the toughest warriors would be allowed to practice this combat art. Mani is actually African in nature, though it was developed in Cuba. Some people believe that this style of martial arts still exists in Cuba today. However, in the 18th century, slaves brought over from Africa used to be coerced into fighting to the death using this art form. It involves a wide variety of head butts, punches, elbows, palm strikes, as well as sweeps. Use of weapons in this type of combat usually consisted of knives as well as sticks. While all African martial arts are not considered generally popular or well known in the United States, an online search for such instruction in history in the tactics and moves involved in this ancient combat art form will produce results. While most people equate martial arts with the Asian continent, most other cultures around the world also have a history of hand-to-hand combat fighting. Africa is no different. While these forms of martial arts are not very common, especially in the United States, they are still practiced in various countries around the world, including Cuba and Africa. When learning about any type of martial art, it is always interesting to try and search beneath the surface and to discover combat arts that may not be considered as well-known are popular as some of the more obvious martial art choices. All African martial arts are one of those.
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