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Egyptian stick fencing (Egyptian Arabic: ????? ?a??ib) is an ancient martial arts dance. It is practiced during religious ceremonies, processions, and as sport or game, dating back to ancient Egypt. It is also one of the oldest forms of martial arts in the world and the oldest Egyptian martial arts dance.
The ancient Egyptians performed stick fencing or stick fighting as a form of entertainment.[1] This type of fencing was probably based on actual fighting systems used in combat with a shield and a sword – as with the wooden bokken or bamboo shinai in kendo – which then evolved into a system with its own rules and methods. The fighting stick does not appear to have been used as a battlefield weapon; rather it was used primarily as a training tool and/or for sport.[2] There were advantages of teaching stick fighting, along with other combat sports such as a wrestling, the main advantage being that the Egyptian army could be kept trained and ready for war. In many respects it resembles the sport of single stick.
Some assumptions have to be made in order to understand the stick fighting technique of the ancient Egyptians. Their rules were probably simple and few, and there are two schools of thought on the main objective: the contest was one of either endurance or skill. There is stronger evidence, however, that the game was one of skill and that striking the head was a primary goal.
Stick fighting has a long history in Africa and its origins as mentioned above can be found woven in to its many cultures and societies.
The art of stick fighting in Egypt around the twenty-first dynasty might have been similar to kenjutsu of Japan where a wooden bokken is used. A curved stick resembling the rungu of eastern Africa without the knobbed end was used in conjunction with a shield. Shabbako Sabtah, Shebitku Sabbtecha, and Tantamun Taiharcha reputedly saved Jeruselem and Egypt more than once from the attacks of Sanachareb, and later, Esshardon of Assyria using this system of combat.[citation needed]
Sabbekka and other wrestling or grappling systems also used daggers, but in practice used small sticks to limit serious harm to practitioners.
Stick fencing continues to be practiced by Egyptians[citation needed], particularly during festivals and the month of Ramadan[citation needed]. Stick fighting (usually a mock fight, but sometimes someone will force it to become real[citation needed] ) and stick dancing is performed during marriage ceremonies. It is called tahteeb or tahtib and still practiced in upper Egypt[citation needed] . The basics of Tahtib are very similar to those demonstrated by African Martial Arts experts, although this comes as no surprise because of the link through Egypt. The hanging guard and the overhead exhanges predominate these matches, with much faking and other stylistic elements that involve energy sensitivity and a counter-for-counter flow. The fight is accompanied by drummers, and is an event with its own ceremony and rules of conduct much like other martial arts.
Stick fighting has also been used to settle disputes between members of rival families, mostly in the Egyptian countryside.[citation needed]
The stick itself is about four feet in length and is called an Asa, Asaya or Assaya, or Nabboot. It is often flailed in large figure-8 patterns across the body with such speed and violence that the displacement of air is loudly discernible. There is another form practiced from horseback known as “Horse Stepping” which uses a stick that is nearly 12 feet (3.7 m) long.
The stick is regarded as a symbol of masculinity, i.e. a phallus. Although the dance form originally started as male-only, there are women who perform dressed as men and dance with other women. Another female version of stick dancing has been developed with a flirtatious and generally less aggressive style, and incorporated into cabaret or “belly dance.” The stick used for this type of dancing is generally thinner, more lightweight and hooked at one end like a cane, and generally embellished with metallic-coloured foil or sequins. The costume worn is usually folkloric: a simple Baladi dress, although Ra’s el Assaya (Dance of the Stick) is often performed as part of the popularized cabaret dance set. Performance styles include balancing the cane on head, hip or shoulder.
The music used in Tahtib features the tahvol (bass drum) and mizmar (shrill pipe). The tahvol is a double-sided drum worn with a shoulder strap so it hangs sideways in front of the drummer and is played with two sticks. The right hand uses a heavier stick with a hooked head to beat out the “dooms” which drive the heartbeat of the rhythm, while the left hand uses a light twig as a switch to produce rapid-fire staccato “taks”. (Doom = the deep sound from striking the center of the drum with the right hand or with a knobbed stick; Tak = the higher sound from striking the edge of the drum with the left hand or with a light switch).
