Muay Korat
มวยโคราชNortheastern line of Thai boxing from Nakhon Ratchasima. A proverb credits it with a heavy fist, the best-known blow is the buffalo punch swung from the waist, and the ropes reach the elbow.
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About Muay Korat
Muay Korat is a northeastern line of traditional Thai boxing, named after the city of Nakhon Ratchasima, known as Korat. It is one of four regional lines alongside Chaiya, Lopburi and Tha Sao, and a proverb about them says: heavy fist Korat, cleverness Lopburi, fine execution Chaiya, speed Tha Sao. We have not found a founder or a date of origin. Ekchai writes that there is no clear evidence for the origin of the Korat style and that the region saw wars and repeated movements of people, which may have mixed fighting knowledge. Under Rama V the ruler of Korat Phra Hemasamahan recorded his teaching in rhymes, his book Tamra muay was published only in 1929, and his pupil Daeng Thaiprasoet received the title Muen Ngat Choeng Chok after a bout before the king at Sanam Luang, though the sources differ on the date.
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A Korat boxer stands facing the opponent with weight on the front leg and the rear heel raised, the front hand forward and the rear fist guarding above the chest. The best-known technique is the buffalo punch mat wiang khwai: the fist is pulled to the waist and flung out from the side in an arc, landing with the back of the hand. According to a study Ekchai cites, northeastern boxers prefer the fist, elbow and knee to kicks, and the Korat mae mai advise striking from the outside on entering and from the inside on leaving. Meekudwean and colleagues divide training into three levels with 47 positions: ten basic stances and movements, eleven luk mai and five master mae mai khru with twenty-one old mae mai. The ropes are tied from raw thread from the elbow to the fingers in knots shaped like a snail shell, the longest of all the lines, and are moistened with water before a bout so that they harden. Today muay Korat is taught at Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University, which in 2017 published a manual and a four-week program as health exercise, and in schools outside the province too. IFMA lists it as one of five muay boran disciplines. We have not found grades or sashes in the sources.
History
Ekchai writes that there is no clear evidence for the origin of the Korat style. The Nakhon Ratchasima area saw major wars, for example the rebellion of Anuvong, and repeated movements of people, the flight from Ayutthaya after 1767 or the deportation of inhabitants from Lan Xang under Rama III, which he thinks may have mixed the fighting knowledge of different groups. Meekudwean and colleagues name only prominent teachers, not founders. Under Rama V the ruler of Korat Phra Hemasamahan brought boxers to bouts at the funeral of Prince Urupong Ratsomphot and recorded his teaching in rhymes, his book Tamra muay was published in 1929. His pupil Daeng Thaiprasoet was given the title Muen Ngat Choeng Chok under Rama V, according to Vat together with the winners from Chaiya and Lopburi, which according to the same source produced the rhyme about the heavy fist of Korat. The sources differ on the date of the title: Meekudwean and Bangkok Biznews give Rama V, Thai Wikipedia, citing Silpa Wattanatham from 1984, gives around 1918 under Rama VI. According to Bangkok Biznews, other Korat boxers trained with the Prince of Chumphon at the Wang Prem Prachakon palace. According to teacher Praeng, rope wrapping was officially abolished in 1931 to 1932.
How it differs
The proverb cited by Phothipanya credits Korat with the heavy fist, Lopburi with cleverness, Chaiya with fine execution and Tha Sao with speed. Korat ties the ropes longest of all the lines, according to Ekchai up to the elbow, Lopburi less and Chaiya barely past the wrist. According to Phothipanya the Korat wai khru alone has the movements dern thaksinawat and kop phra mae thorani, and it shares the step yang sam khum with Chaiya. In dress Korat does not differ from Chaiya and Tha Sao, only Lopburi has red shorts and wrapped ankles. According to a study Ekchai cites, northeastern boxers prefer the inner weapons, the fist, elbow and knee, while southern boxers prefer kicks and knees.
Technique
The Korat stance according to Meekudwean and colleagues: facing the opponent, knees slightly bent, weight on the front leg, rear heel raised, the hand on the side of the advanced leg forward and the rear fist guarding above chest level. When moving forward and back the rear fist turns over the front one and the step is accompanied by rotation. Characteristic is the buffalo punch mat wiang khwai, popularly also mat khwang khwai, mat i-le or mat i-poe: the fist is pulled to the waist and flung out from the side in an arc, landing with the back of the hand, and it is attributed to Muen Ngat Choeng Chok. According to Somporn Saengchai, whom Ekchai cites, northeastern boxers prefer the inner weapons, the fist, elbow and knee fighting, to kicks because of their build.
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Meekudwean and colleagues divide Korat skills into three levels with 47 positions: five basic static and five moving stances, eleven luk mai called kae thang muay, that is counterattacks, and five master mae mai khru with twenty-one old mae mai. According to Ekchai the mae mai khru advise: pull in the fist and kick with the front leg, guard with the elbows, strike at the shoulder, strike from the outside on entering, from the inside on leaving, and chok chang prasan nga. Among the old mae mai are tat mala, ka chik rang, Hanuman thawai waen, lom phloi ai, ling ching luk mai, Kumphan hak hok or ruesi mut sa. Of the moving techniques the authors list the turning elbow after a missed kick, called talop nok klang wehat, and a combination of elbow and knee forward.
Training
Old training methods from verses by a teacher named Bua Nil-acha of Wat Im and the treatise of Phra Hemasamahan: stretch with a punch on waking, wash the face with the hands, look into the sunrise, dive with eyes open, strike with the elbows in neck-deep water, and shadow-box morning and evening. The trainer ties the ropes: the seated boxer extends the forearm, the trainer wraps raw thread from the elbow to the fingers, twists it into knots shaped like a snail shell and fixes it, and before a bout the hands are moistened with water so that the knots harden. According to Bangkok Biznews, once the basic movements are learned comes the yok khru ceremony, then the step yang sam khum. According to Meekudwean the wai khru has only two movements, the bow to the king thawai bangkhom and yang sam khum, according to Phothipanya five, including dern thaksinawat and kop phra mae thorani, accompanied by pi chawa, klong khaek and ching with the song Sarahma. The boxer wears the mongkhon on the head, prajiad on the arms. Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University published in 2017 the manual Silapa muay thai Korat and a four-week program with ten stances for children aged ten to fourteen and seniors, and Phothipanya studied the Korat wai khru at Ban Phai school in Khon Kaen province.
Ranks and progression
In the sources, muay Korat uses no grades, belts or sashes, the mongkhon and prajiad are amulets, not ranks. Progress follows the order of training according to Meekudwean and colleagues: basic stances and movements, then eleven luk mai, then five mae mai khru and twenty-one old mae mai. The historical title muen, such as Daeng Thaiprasoet received, was a royal distinction for winners, not a grade.
Today
Meekudwean and colleagues present muay Korat as health exercise that involves the fist, leg, knee and elbow and benefits fitness, balance and weight, with the aim of preserving the art, local and national. Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University published a manual and a program for children and seniors in 2017, and the wai khru is also taught at Ban Phai school in Khon Kaen province, outside the home province. At the Amazing Muaythai Festival 2023, Korat was one of three regional lines presented alongside Tha Sao and Chaiya. IFMA lists muay Korat as one of five muay boran disciplines distinguished by stances and techniques. We have not found an inscription of the line itself in the Thai list of intangible heritage, muay thai is listed as a whole.
Did you know
The buffalo punch has three folk names in Korat: mat khwang khwai, mat i-le and mat i-poe. The name of the ruler Phra Hemasamahan is written in two ways in the sources, differently in his 1929 book and differently by Meekudwean. Ekchai recalls that La Loubère already recorded that Siamese boxers wrap their hands with raw thread three to four times, while the Lao used copper rings. According to Thai Wikipedia, Daeng Thaiprasoet was born around 1888 in Nakhon Sawan, moved to Korat at the age of eleven, and his first teacher was Changwang Phang, who also taught krabi-krabong.
Frequently asked questions
What is muay Korat typical for?
The heavy fist, as the proverb says. Best known is the buffalo punch mat wiang khwai, a fist pulled to the waist and flung out in an arc from the side, and raw-thread ropes tied up to the elbow, the longest of all the regional lines.
Who was Muen Ngat Choeng Chok?
The Korat boxer Daeng Thaiprasoet, a pupil of the ruler of Korat Phra Hemasamahan, who received this title after a bout before the king at Sanam Luang. The sources differ on whether it was under Rama V or around 1918 under Rama VI.
Is muay Korat still taught today?
Yes, Nakhon Ratchasima Rajabhat University published a manual in 2017 and a program also as health exercise, the wai khru is taught at a school in Khon Kaen too, and IFMA lists Korat as one of five muay boran disciplines.
Similar styles
Selected by overlap in the style profile, not by historical lineage.