Kiai

Short yell uttered by martial artists In Japanese martial arts a kiai (Japanese: 気合; /ˈkiːaɪ/) is a short shout uttered when performing an assault. Traditional Japanese dojo generally uses single syllables beginning with a vowel. The practice has become a part of Asian martial arts in popular culture, especially in martial arts films, in writing often rendered in variants such as Hi-yah!, Aiyah!, Eeee-yah! or Hyah!.[citation needed] A kiai is usually not the word "kiai" itself. Etymology The term is a compound of ki (Japanese: 気), meaning "energy" or "mood" and a(u) (Japanese: 合, infinitive ai), an emphatic marker. The same concept is known as kihap in many Korean martial arts, such as taekwondo and Tang Soo Do, ki being the energy and hap meaning to join, to harmonize or to amplify, based on the Korean reading of the same characters; its Hangul spelling is 기합. In the board game Go, the term describes fighting spirit. Use in martial arts A man using kiai while performing a kata Students of Japanese martial arts such as aikido, karate, kobudo, kendo, taido or judo (or related arts such as taiko drumming) use kiai to startle an opponent, intimidate, express confidence