Gatka

Gatka ( . ; gatkā), also known as Khutka, is a form of martial art associated primarily with the Sikhs of the Punjab. It is a style of stick-fighting, with wooden sticks intended to simulate swords. The Punjabi name, , refers to the wooden stick used and this term might have originated as a diminutive of a Sanskrit word, , meaning "mace". It has been revived as a standardised, international sport. There are two forms, traditional and sport. It has also been described as a folk-dance. The stick used in Gatka is made of wood and is usually long, with a thickness of around . It comes with a fitted leather hilt, and is often decorated with Punjabi-style multi-coloured threads. The other weapon used in the sport is a shield, natively known as . It is round in shape, measuring , and is made of dry leather. It is filled with either cotton or dry grass to protect the hand of player in case of full contact hit by an opponent. Gatka originated in the Punjab in the 15th century as part of the Shastar Vidya martial art system. There has been a revival during the later 20th century, with an International Gatka Federation was founded in 1982¹ and formalized in 1987, and gatka is now popular as a sport or sword dance performance art and is often shown during Sikh festivals. The martial-art is known as Gatkabaazi or Gatkebaazi but has become abbreiviated as Gatka.…

Gatka ( . ; gatkā), also known as Khutka, is a form of martial art associated primarily with the Sikhs of the Punjab. It is a style of stick-fighting, with wooden sticks intended to simulate swords. The Punjabi name, , refers to the wooden stick used and this term might have originated as a diminutive of a Sanskrit word, , meaning "mace". It has been revived as a standardised, international sport. There are two forms, traditional and sport. It has also been described as a folk-dance. The stick used in Gatka is made of wood and is usually long, with a thickness of around . It comes with a fitted leather hilt, and is often decorated with Punjabi-style multi-coloured threads. The other weapon used in the sport is a shield, natively known as . It is round in shape, measuring , and is made of dry leather. It is filled with either cotton or dry grass to protect the hand of player in case of full contact hit by an opponent. Gatka originated in the Punjab in the 15th century as part of the Shastar Vidya martial art system. There has been a revival during the later 20th century, with an International Gatka Federation was founded in 1982 and formalized in 1987, and gatka is now popular as a sport or sword dance performance art and is often shown during Sikh festivals. The martial-art is known as Gatkabaazi or Gatkebaazi but has become abbreiviated as Gatka. Other spellings include Gadka and Gadā.

Competition

(meaning "sport" or "game") is the modern competitive aspect of gatka, originally used as a method of sword-training ( ) or stick-fighting ( ) in medieval times. While gatka is today most commonly associated with Sikhs in Punjab, India, it is also practiced to a smaller extent in Punjab and the Hazara region of Pakistan.

Influence on Defendu

The Defendu system devised by Captain William E. Fairbairn and Captain Eric Anthony Sykes borrowed methodologies from Gatka, jujutsu, Chinese martial arts and "gutter fighting". This method was used to train soldiers in close-combat techniques at the Commando Basic Training Centre at Achnacarry in Scotland.

Weapons in Gatka

Kirpan (knife) Talwar (sabre) Lathi (stick) Chakkar (throwing ring) Khanda Dhaal (shield) Barcha (lance) Teer-kamaan (bow and arrow) Saif (sword) Katar (push dagger) Sirohi (cavalry sword)

See also

Angampora Banshay Bataireacht Bōjutsu Commandos (United Kingdom) Hola Mohalla Indian martial arts Jūkendō Kalaripayattu Kendo Kenjutsu Krabi–krabong Kuttu Varisai Mardani khel Nihang Paika akhada Pehlwani Pahlevani wrestling Shastar Vidya Silambam Silambam Asia Special Operations Executive (SOE) Sqay Tahtib Thang-ta Varma kalai World Silambam Association

References

External links

Nanak Dev Singh Khalsa & Sat Katar Kaur Ocasio-Khalsa (1991) Gatka as taught by Nanak Dev Singh, Book One – Dance of the Sword (2nd Edition). GT International, Phoenix, Arizona. Olaf Janson (2015) Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife: The famous fighting knife used by British commandos and SOE during WW2. Gothia Arms Historical Society

Text derived from https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?oldid=1374703949 under CC BY-SA 4.0; modifications have been made.