Types & Ratings of Martial Arts

Martial arts started in Asia, but have spread around the world. While most of today's popular martial arts are Asian in origin, many countries have developed their own styles, like krav maga in Israel, or modified older forms, like jujitsu in Brazil. These newer forms often incorporate different techniques from several martial arts.

  1. Kung Fu

    • Kung fu can be translated as "skill" or "ability" and is the name given to all the Chinese martial arts. It began to flourish under Shaolin monks, who housed fugitives and warriors in five different areas, creating five styles. Southern styles use lower stances and more hand moves than the north, where more acrobatics are mixed with the techniques. All styles use sets of movements, often based on different animals, as the basis for techniques. The broadsword and butterfly knife are traditional weapons used. Grading systems vary depending on styles, but generally, there are five colored belts, ranging from yellow to black, with two levels in each color.

    Karate

    • Karate translates to "empty hand" or "Chinese hand," depending on the characters used to write it. It was developed in Japan in the 16th century and based on kung fu. There are four basic styles of karate, which all of the hundreds of modern styles of today can be traced back to. Karate is based on different sets of movements called "katas," which are sets of attacks and defenses. Karate emphasizes kicking and punching over weapons, and, like kung fu, calls for strength and flexibility. Beginners start with white belts and can move up to black, but there are six colored belts before black, and 10 different levels, or dans, of black belts.

    Aikido

    • If you have seen early Steven Segal movies, you have seen aikido in action. Aikido, or "way of harmonious spirit," is a fairly new martial art, founded in Japan in the early 20th century and based on jujitsu and kendo. Aikido is considered a non-aggressive, or defensive style, as it does not initiate an attack, but waits for an attack and uses the opponent's energy against him. Physical strength is not an important asset in aikido and few kicks and punches are used. Instead, many arm locks and restraining techniques are used. There are seven belts in aikido, starting with white and ending with black, for which there are six different levels.

    Jujitsu

    • Jujitsu, founded in Japan in the 17th century and very popular in Brazil, is a popular martial art with mixed martial arts fighters and police forces worldwide. Jujitsu incorporates many different martial arts techniques, including weapons, locks, submission holds, kicks and grappling. Brazilian jujitsu, created by Helio Gracie, emphasizes ground techniques more than Japanese styles because so many street fights end on the ground. Jujitsu, especially the Brazilian style, calls for agility, strength and flexibility. In Japanese jujitsu, there are nine belts, from white to black, with different levels of black belts, while for Brazilian there are only five belts, from white to black.