Glossary of Terms

Brief silent meditation in seiza at the start and end of training, literally “silent contemplation”. It is ended by the command mokuso yame.

Etiquette and ceremony Japan

Sacred rope headband worn by a muay thai fighter during wai kru and ram muay. The trainer takes it off the fighter before the fight.

Clothing ThailandMuay Thai

A muay thai fighter type who wins through technique, timing and distance control. Samart Payakaroon and Saenchai are given as examples.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools ThailandMuay Thai

A muay thai fighter type who wins with knees and the clinch. He keeps pushing, closes the distance and attacks the torso with knees in the clinch.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools ThailandMuay Thai

A muay thai fighter type who wins mainly with fists, supplementing punch combinations with thigh kicks.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools ThailandMuay Thai

Wooden dummy, a training device used mainly in wing chun. It has three arms and one leg and is used to practise blocks, strikes and footwork.

Equipment and training aids ChinaWing Chun

A state of mind that does not cling to a thought or emotion and therefore responds spontaneously. The concept comes from Zen, and the monk Takuan brought it into swordsmanship.

Tactics, timing and mindset Japan

Collective name for all throws in judo and jujutsu. The Kodokan lists 68 of them, divided into standing throws and throws that sacrifice one's own balance.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools JapanJudoJujutsu (Classical Japanese Unarmed Combat)

Thai term for a fighter in muay thai or boxing. A female fighter is referred to as nak muay ying.

Role in training and bouts ThailandMuay Thai

Division of Chinese martial arts into internal styles (taijiquan, baguazhang, xingyiquan) and external styles, for example Shaolin ones. The boundary is traditional rather than precise.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools ChinaKung FuTai ChiBaguazhangXingyiquan

Hojo undo tool: ceramic jars filled with sand, held by the fingers at the rim of the neck. They strengthen the grip, arms, shoulders, back and legs.

Equipment and training aids JapanKarate

The belt of the training garment, which holds the jacket and shows rank by its color. It is tied with the koma-musubi knot, similar to a reef knot.

Clothing JapanJudoKyokushin

A group of judo techniques in which the opponent is held on the back on the ground. Twenty seconds of uninterrupted holding means ippon in competition.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools JapanJudo

An exclamation that, in Kyokushin, part of karate, and in BJJ, replaces both a greeting and the reply “understood”. The characters 押忍 mean to push and to endure.

Etiquette and ceremony JapanBrazilian Jiu-JitsuKyokushin

Brazilian tambourine with jingles around the rim. In the capoeira roda it accompanies the berimbau and atabaque.

Equipment and training aids BrazilCapoeira

An Indonesian and Malay term for a master of pencak silat, in general speech also a hero or warrior.

Title and rank IndonesiaPencak SilatSilat Melayu (Malay Silat)

Cloth band tied on the arm of a muay thai fighter for luck and protection. Unlike the mongkhon, it stays on the arm during the fight.

Clothing ThailandMuay Thai

Chinese concept of life energy, breath and vitality. Ki in Japanese, gi in Korean. In the internal arts, cultivating qi is the main goal of practice.

Physical and biomechanical principle ChinaTai ChiBaguazhangXingyiquan

Ritual dance before a muay thai fight that follows wai kru. The movements differ by camp and teacher.

Etiquette and ceremony ThailandMuay Thai

Free practice in judo, aikido, jujutsu and some karate styles. Partners try techniques against real resistance, but without aiming to win.

Training method JapanKarateJudoAikidoJujutsu (Classical Japanese Unarmed Combat)

Tight-fitting elastic shirt for grappling without a kimono, no-gi BJJ and MMA. It protects the skin from abrasions and cannot be grabbed.

Clothing United StatesBrazilian Jiu-JitsuMMA

The bow and respect in general in Japanese martial arts. One bows standing (ritsurei) and kneeling (zarei) on entering the dojo, to a partner and to the teacher.

Etiquette and ceremony Japan

A set of rules of proper conduct, literally “law of respect”. In the martial arts it governs bowing, sitting, dressing and the handling of weapons.

Etiquette and ceremony JapanKendoKyudo (Japanese archery)

Combinations in judo: the first technique provokes a reaction in the opponent, which the attacker immediately exploits for a second. The counterpart is counter-throws, kaeshi-waza.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools JapanJudo

A principle of krav maga: defence and counterattack follow without a break until the attacker is neutralised or it is possible to leave safely.

Physical and biomechanical principle IsraelKrav Maga

A circle of players and musicians within which capoeira is played. Music, singing and clapping set the rhythm and character of the game.

Place and space BrazilCapoeira

Japanese for “stream”, in the sense of school or style. A suffix of the names of styles and old schools: Goju-ryu, Wado-ryu, Katori Shinto-ryu.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools Japan

Korean title of a martial arts instructor. Politely addressed as sabeomnim. Written with the same characters as the Japanese shihan.

Title and rank South KoreaTaekwondo

A fast, chaotic exchange in ground fighting where nobody has control and both fighters try to reach a better position.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools United StatesBrazilian Jiu-JitsuMMAWrestling

Striking surface of the fist in karate: the knuckles of the index and middle fingers. Literally “correct fist”, the basis of straight punches zuki.

Anatomy, target levels and striking surfaces JapanKarate

Formal Japanese kneeling on the heels, literally “correct sitting”. In the dojo one bows, meditates and practises iaido and part of aikido from it.

Etiquette and ceremony JapanAikidoKendo

Striking the opponent at the moment they begin to attack. One of three ways of taking the initiative, whose exact interpretation differs between schools.

Tactics, timing and mindset JapanKarateKendo

An older colleague in a dojo, school or company who started earlier. Toward the younger kohai he has a duty to help and advise, and they show him respect.

Role in training and bouts Japan

Japanese form of address for a teacher, literally “one who was born earlier”. In the dojo it goes to the training leader, in Japan also to a doctor or lawyer.

Title and rank Japan

Training in the air against an imaginary opponent. A boxer or fighter combines punches, kicks, dodges and footwork without a partner or equipment.

Training method United StatesBoxingMuay ThaiKickboxingMMA

A competitive match in Japanese martial arts, literally “mutual testing”. Unlike randori, it has a referee, rules and a winner.

Competition, rules and scoring JapanKarateJudoKendo

An honorary title of a high-ranking teacher. Literally “exemplary teacher”. Who receives it and under what conditions differs by organization.

Title and rank JapanKarateAikido

Pre-bout preparation of sumo wrestlers. They repeatedly face each other in a crouch, stare into each other's eyes and throw salt until time runs out.

Competition, rules and scoring JapanSumo

Choking techniques in judo and jujutsu. The Kodokan lists twelve, and in competition a choke ends with ippon when the opponent submits or loses consciousness.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools JapanJudoJujutsu (Classical Japanese Unarmed Combat)

The triad of mind, technique and body. It expresses the ideal that a practitioner should develop all three equally, since none is enough alone.

Physical and biomechanical principle JapanKarateJudoKendo

The first master grade, literally “beginning grade”. In 1883 Kano Jigoro awarded it to two students, the first such grade in martial arts.

Title and rank JapanJudo

“Beginner's mind”: openness and willingness to learn that a practitioner should keep even as a master. The concept comes from Zen.

Tactics, timing and mindset Japan

Throws and takedowns as one of the four skills of Chinese martial arts: kicks, strikes, throws and locks. They developed on their own in shuai jiao wrestling.

Classification of techniques, arts and schools ChinaKung FuShuai Jiao

Long-term hard training in which the practitioner improves both physically and mentally. The word comes from Buddhism, where it means ascetic practice.

Training method JapanKyokushin

Edge of the open hand on the little-finger side, literally “hand sword”. In karate it is used for the strikes shuto-uchi and the blocks shuto-uke.

Anatomy, target levels and striking surfaces JapanKarate

Form of address for a teacher in Chinese martial arts. Sifu in Cantonese, shifu in Mandarin. The characters 師父 mean “teacher father”.

Title and rank ChinaKung Fu

Form of address for one's own master's teacher, literally “master grandfather”. It belongs to the family hierarchy of Chinese martial arts schools.

Title and rank ChinaKung Fu

Forms of address for an older (sihing) and younger (sidai) fellow student of the same master. Time of entering the school decides, not age. Similar to Japanese senpai and kohai.

Role in training and bouts ChinaKung Fu

Rhythmic two-stick drills in Filipino martial arts. The strikes interweave like the strips of a woven mat.

Training method PhilippinesEskrima

Movement principle of ITF taekwondo: the center of gravity first rises during a step and then drops into the technique. The path of the body resembles a sine curve.

Physical and biomechanical principle South KoreaITF Taekwondo