Martial Arts Musings: Martial Arts vs MMA

After writing the Martial Arts From Around the World serial blog, it's occurred to me that there is a small problem with writing to my age group and younger on this subject. Most people don't give much thought to what a martial art is, and the problem with addressing it is that the concept is only vaguely defined in most circles. I propose herein to offer a thorough explanation for what a martial art is and give examples to differentiate Martial Arts from Sport Boxing, and to touch on the phenomenon of Mixed Martial Arts. MMA and Sport Boxing aren't new, as I'll delve into here. Some of it will be rehashing from my ongoing blog, but here goes.

Sport Boxing has been documented all the back to Ancient Egypt. The precise method and rules have been lost, but for the sake of clarity I would like to point out that only in the modern west is boxing confined to fists. The term 'Muay Thai', for example, loosely translates to Thai Boxing and 'Muay Boran' loosely translates to Ancient Boxing. Sport Boxing was an event at the first Greek Olympics, and dueling has been a staple of the martial arts communities around the world since before writing was developed.
The first contests of pugilism and fisticuffs were likely duels between families as China does not have a monopoly on familial martial arts traditions. Over time, as in Greece and Rome, nations endorsed particular modes of fighting and from these factional combat systems developed offshoots for civilian defense. In the modern era, Muay Thai is one such system that developed out of Tomoi and Hryggspenna is another phenomenon in the Scandinavian regions of Europe that developed out of Lausatok. Thus we see the progression from military application to civilian on a cultural level played out across the world.

Interesting read.
I've said it before and I'll say it again; thanks for posting these. I really enjoy reading them.

While I don't agree with everything you've said, this is a brilliant piece and a great read. Easily your best work, IMO.