Gatka (; ; hi, गतका; ur, ) is a form of

martial art Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

associated primarily with the

Sikhs Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism (Sikhi), a monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Guru Nanak. The term ...

of the

Punjab Punjab (; Punjabi: پنجاب ; ਪੰਜਾਬ ; ; also romanised as ''Panjāb'' or ''Panj-Āb'') is a geopolitical, cultural, and historical region in South Asia, specifically in the northern part of the Indian subcontinent, comprising ...

and other related ethnic groups, such as Hindkowans. It is a style of

stick-fighting Stick-fighting, stickfighting, or stick fighting is a variety of martial arts which use simple long, slender, blunt, hand-held, generally wooden "sticks" for fighting, such as a gun staff, bō, jō, walking stick, baston, arnis sticks or simila ...

, with wooden sticks intended to simulate

sword A sword is an edged, bladed weapon intended for manual cutting or thrusting. Its blade, longer than a knife or dagger, is attached to a hilt and can be straight or curved. A thrusting sword tends to have a straighter blade with a pointed ti ...

s. The Punjabi name, , refers to the wooden stick used and this term might have originated as a diminutive of a Sanskrit word, , meaning "mace". 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. 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 Sword dances are recorded throughout world history. There are various traditions of solo and mock-battle (Pyrrhic) sword dances from Africa, Asia and Europe. General types of sword dance include: *solo dancers around swords – such as t ...

performance art and is often shown during

Sikh festivals This is the list of festivals observed by the followers of the Sikh religion. Other Sikh festivals There are some other (around 45) festivals that are celebrated at a much smaller scale with some being centred in particular regions or towns that ...

.Sikh martial art `Gatka' takes the West by storm.
(

Press Trust of India The Press Trust of India Ltd., commonly known as PTI, is the largest news agency in India. It is headquartered in New Delhi and is a nonprofit cooperative among more than 500 Indian newspapers. It has over 500 full-time employees , including abo ...

The Hindu ''The Hindu'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper owned by The Hindu Group, headquartered in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. It began as a weekly in 1878 and became a daily in 1889. It is one of the Indian newspapers of record and the secon ...

History

Gatka's theory and techniques were taught by the

Sikh gurus The Sikh gurus ( Punjabi: ਸਿੱਖ ਗੁਰੂ) are the spiritual masters of Sikhism, who established this religion over the course of about two and a half centuries, beginning in 1469. The year 1469 marks the birth of Guru Nanak, the found ...

. It has been handed down in an unbroken lineage of ustāds (masters), and taught in many

akhara Akhara or Akhada ( Sanskrit and Hindi: अखाड़ा, shortened to ''khara'' Hindi: खाड़ा) is an Indian word for a place of practice with facilities for boarding, lodging and training, both in the context of Indian martial artist ...

s (arenas) around the world. Gatka was employed in the Sikh wars and has been thoroughly battle tested. It originates from the need to defend (righteousness), but is also based on the unification of the spirit and body:

miri piri ) , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name = , subdivision_type1 = State , subdivision_name1 = , subdivision_type2 = Division , subdivision_name2 ...

). It is, therefore, generally considered to be both a spiritual and physical practice. After the

Second Anglo-Sikh War The Second Anglo-Sikh War was a military conflict between the Sikh Empire and the East India Company, British East India Company that took place in 1848 and 1849. It resulted in the fall of the Sikh Empire, and the annexation of the Punjab r ...

the art was banned by the new British administrators of India in the mid-19th century. During the

Indian Rebellion of 1857 The Indian Rebellion of 1857 was a major uprising in India in 1857–58 against the rule of the British East India Company, which functioned as a sovereign power on behalf of the British Crown. The rebellion began on 10 May 1857 in the fo ...

, the

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

s assisted the British in crushing the mutiny. As a consequence of this assistance, restrictions on fighting practices were relaxed, but the Punjabi martial arts which re-emerged after 1857 had changed significantly. ILITARY SIKHS: The Education of a Sikh Warrior. Victoria and Albert Museum.'An introduction to Shastar Vidiya - the education of a Sikh warrior' was a lecture by Nidar Singh, given as part of the Sikh Arts and Heritage Lecture Series at the V&A, 10 October 2001. The new style applied the sword-fighting techniques to the wooden training-stick. It was referred to as , after its primary weapon. Gatka was used mainly by the

British Indian Army The British Indian Army, commonly referred to as the Indian Army, was the main military of the British Raj before its dissolution in 1947. It was responsible for the defence of the British Indian Empire, including the princely states, which co ...

in the 1860s as practice for hand-to-hand combat. The Ministry of Sports and Youth Affairs of the Government of India has included Gatka, with three other

indigenous Indigenous may refer to: *Indigenous peoples *Indigenous (ecology), presence in a region as the result of only natural processes, with no human intervention *Indigenous (band), an American blues-rock band *Indigenous (horse), a Hong Kong racehorse ...

games, namely , and , as part of the planned

Khelo India Youth Games Khelo India Youth Games (KIYG), formerly Khelo India School Games (KISG), are the annual national level multidisciplinary grassroot games in India held in January or February for two categories, namely under-17 years school students and under-2 ...

2021, expected to be held in

Haryana Haryana (; ) is an Indian state located in the northern part of the country. It was carved out of the former state of East Punjab on 1 Nov 1966 on a linguistic basis. It is ranked 21st in terms of area, with less than 1.4% () of India's land ar ...

. This is a national sports event in India.

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, it has always been used in the martial arts of other ethno-cultural groups. It is still practiced in India and Pakistan by the

Tanoli The Tanoli (Hindko/ ur, تنولی ,تناولی ,تنولي) are a tribe living mostly in the Hazara area of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan. They form the majority of the population of Lassan Nawab union council. The Tanoli describe themselves as ...

and

Gujjar Gurjar or Gujjar (also transliterated as ''Gujar, Gurjara and Gujjer'') is an ethnic nomadic, agricultural and pastoral community, spread mainly in India, Pakistan and Afghanistan, divided internally into various clan groups. They were tradit ...

communities.

Influence on Defendu

The

Defendu Close Quarters Combat System (also known as Defendu) is a modern martial art developed by William E. Fairbairn and Eric A. Sykes prior to World War II. It is a hand-to-hand combat system based on practical experience mixed with Jujutsu and bo ...

system devised by Captain

William E. Fairbairn Lieutenant-Colonel William Ewart Fairbairn (; 28 February 1885 – 20 June 1960) was a British Royal Marine and police officer. He developed hand-to-hand combat methods for the Shanghai Police during the interwar period, as well as for the all ...

and Captain Eric Anthony Sykes borrowed methodologies from Gatka,

jujutsu Jujutsu ( ; ja, link=no, 柔術 , ), also known as jiu-jitsu and ju-jitsu, is a family of Japanese martial arts and a system of close combat (unarmed or with a minor weapon) that can be used in a defensive or offensive manner to kill or subdu ...

Chinese martial arts Chinese martial arts, often called by the umbrella terms Kung fu (term), kung fu (; ), kuoshu () or wushu (sport), wushu (), are Styles of Chinese martial arts, multiple fighting styles that have developed over the centuries in Greater China. Th ...

and "gutter fighting". This method was used to train soldiers in close-combat techniques at the Commando Basic Training Centre at

Achnacarry Achnacarry ( gd, Achadh na Cairidh) is a hamlet, private estate, and a castle in the Lochaber region of the Highlands, Scotland. It occupies a strategic position on an isthmus between Loch Lochy to the east, and Loch Arkaig to the west. Ac ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to the ...

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 Fairbairn–Sykes fighting knife is a double-edged fighting knife resembling a dagger or poignard with a foil grip. It was developed by William Ewart Fairbairn and Eric Anthony Sykes in Shanghai based on ideas that the two men had while se ...

The famous fighting knife used by British commandos and SOE during WW2.
Gothia Arms Historical Society {{Indian martial arts Indian martial arts Pakistani martial arts Combat sports Rajput culture Punjabi culture Punjabi words and phrases Nihang

History

Competition

Influence on Defendu

See also

References

External links