African Martial Arts in the Diaspora

Question 1

There are several forms of African Martial Arts which can be found

Answer 1

in different countries on the continent

Question 2

Dambe

Answer 2

which entails boxing and kicking techniques, is practised by the Hausa people of Nigeria

Question 3

In South Africa

Answer 3

Nguni and Zulu stick-fighting involve the use of sticks

Question 4

the same stick-fighting technique can also be found in

Answer 4

Egypt but there it is called Tahti

Question 5

T&T

Answer 5

Two forms of African martial arts which have been retained and are practised here are capoeira and stickfighting

Question 6

Capoeira can trace its roots to

Answer 6

Angola

Question 7

Capoeira was developed and is still widely practised in

Answer 7

Brazil and has a growing number of practitioners in TT

Question 8

During the period of enslavement in Brazil,

Answer 8

maroon communities called quilombos became safe havens for Africans to practise and pass on their culture and it is out of these communities capoeira emerged

Question 9

Capoeira is best described as

Answer 9

dance like movements between two opponents engaging in combat in a roda or a circle of capoeiristas (practitioners)

Question 10

Capoeira includes

Answer 10

graceful acrobatic movements such as somersaults, swinging the legs high, hand stands and back flips

Question 11

In capoeira’s very early forms

Answer 11

it also involved weapons such as blades or knives strapped to the ankle or held between the toes

Question 12

What plays an integral part in the practice of capoeira

Answer 12

Music

Question 13

An ensemble consisting of what are typical of capoeira combats

Answer 13

-1 to 3 berimbaus (stringed musical bows)
-1 or 2 atabaques (single-headed, standing conical drums)
-a pandeiro (Tamborine)
-an agogô (double bell)
-sometimes a reco-reco (Scraped bamboo tube)
-accompanied by call and response chants

Question 14

According to who, how many types of capoeira are there

Answer 14

According to the Capoeira Association of Trinidad and Tobago, there are 3 types of capoeira

Question 15

what are the 3 types

Answer 15

Angola (original)
Regional (restructuring the martial side)
Contemporânea, the most common in TT

Question 16

What does contemporânea do

Answer 16

mixes styles from both regional and Angola and is notably more acrobatic

Question 17

when and who returned to Trinidad and what did he decide to teach

Answer 17

In 1997, Sekhet Neb Amunwah, one of the leading exponents of capoeira in TT… and decided to teach Capoeira, the martial art and its culture

Question 18

Amunwah acknowledges that

Answer 18

Mr Brian Jara was initially involved in introducing capoeira to TT when he held small workshops and practised the Angola tradition, the very ritualistic form of Capoeira

Question 19

In addition to teaching, Amunwah has

Answer 19

performed at numerous events and martial art tournaments where he repeatedly proved the validity of the martial arts concepts of capoeira in academy and self-defence situations

Question 20

What did Amunwah do in 1998

Answer 20

he opened and registered the first Capoeira Academy in TT

Question 21

Amunwah was also responsible for

Answer 21

introducing capoeira demonstrations on the Brian Lara Promenade on Emancipation Day, August 1st

Question 22

These demonstrations would be viewd by

Answer 22

hundreds of persons who would have gathered to participate in the Emancipation Day Kambule (Street Procession)

Question 23

In order to continue the tradition and share it among our young people, Amunwah

Answer 23

conducts capoeira workshops for young persons as part of the annual Youth Day activities at LidjYau Omowale Emancipation Village

Question 24

What is a popular form of African martial arts in TT

Answer 24

stick fighting/ Calinda/ Kalinda- it is also a mainstay event in the annual Carnival celebrations

Question 25

Calinda’s origins can be traced back to

Answer 25

the period of enslavement where enslaved Africans would practise traditional fighting methods in their pass time and as a means of defence

Question 26

Historians have linked stick fighting to

Answer 26

communities in Central and West Africa and the Oromo people of Ethiopia

Question 27

The kalinda is the word used to refer to

Answer 27

the stick-fight, the dance, the songs and other elements associated with the African martial art

Question 28

In Kalinda, opponents use

Answer 28

sticks called a bois made from the yellow poui tree

Question 29

the bois are typically

Answer 29

about three and a half to four feet long and one inch in diameter

Question 30

Combatants aka

Answer 30

Boismen

Question 31

Boismen engage in

Answer 31

dance like motions with a bois held in hand in a ring called a gayelle

Question 32

Kalinda fights are accompanied by

Answer 32

drumming and chantuelles often singing patois

Question 33

In Kalinda, before the commencement of a fight, the

Answer 33

gayelle is spiritually ‘sealed’ with camphor and white rum, typically puncheon

Question 34

step 2, a Boisman would

Answer 34

through his bois into the gayelle to signal his willingness to engage in combat and dance the carray

Question 35

step 3 (calinda), an opponent would

Answer 35

enter the gayelle waving his bois to indicate his acceptance of the challenge

Question 36

What was also part of the calinda fight

Answer 36

Engaging in mockery and picong, and it was well enjoyed by the spectators

Question 37

Historically a boisman’s costume typically consisted of

Answer 37

coloured satin, decorated with beads, swansdown (duck feathers) and tiny mirrors, heart-shaped mirrors or decorations on the chest and back, a head tie with two long ends hanging on either side, stockings and alpargatas (sandals)

Question 38

The heart shaped mirror worn on the chest is called the

Answer 38

fol

Question 39

the knee length pants (calinda) is called the

Answer 39

kandal and according to Maureen Warner-Lewis, originated from the African word kandalala meaning death shroud

Question 40

In preparation for a fight, boismen will

Answer 40

engage in prayer, self-isolation, meditation, spiritual baths and abstinence from carnal pleasures
special rituals are also done for the preparation of the bois

Question 41

Each village has its own

Answer 41

chantuelle and drummers to support their boismen in fights

Question 42

(calinda) one example of a chant is

Answer 42

“Mooma Mooma, yuh son in the grave already,/ Take a towel, ban yuh belly”

Question 43

Some famous boismen include

Answer 43

Acid/King David; Kali; king Tony; King Stokely; Mother Marva; Congo Bara

Question 44

In what year during the Camboulay Riots, stick fighters played

Answer 44

In 1881… a crucial role in defending Africans from the colonial authorities and they continue to hold a special place in the African community today