stances than any known arts of India. While it is clear from the historical
record that Chinese contact began as early as the state of Funan, the early
history is murky enough to render the Chinese images a continuing mystery.
Contemporary martial arts in Cambodia remain uninvestigated. The
logical assumption is that, given the flow of peoples throughout the area
and Cambodia’s strong associations with Thailand and Vietnam, nations
whose martial roots (primarily Chinese) and traditions are more well
known, Cambodia shares a common heritage.
Similar points can be made about Laos, whose founders trace their
origins to the migrations, beginning in about the eighth century A.D., from
the Thai kingdom of Nanchao in southwestern China. Kublai Khan’s in-
cursions in the thirteenth century prompted mass migration of the Lao into
the area of the modern state of Laos. Despite the absence of research, it is
possible to speculate that indigenous martial systems based in Chinese
wushuand Thai arts survived into modern times.Indonesia
Silat is the primary martial art of Indonesia. The system is based on in-
digenous Indonesian combat arts with primary influence from India and
China. Silat employs striking with both hands and feet, throws, and locks.
A variety of weapons regarded as specifically Indonesian and Malayan
(e.g., the kris—a double-edged stabbing dagger) are integrated with un-
armed techniques in silat curricula.
Most sources contend that silat originated on the Indonesian island of
Sumatra during the period of the Menangkabu kingdom. It then developed
and proliferated from the seventh through the sixteenth centuries, becom-
ing a network of systematized arts by at least the fourteenth century. Ulti-
mately, silat is an amalgam of indigenous Indonesian martial traditions and
imported traditions from India, China, and the Middle East. The earliest
non-Indonesian influences are likely to have been introduced in the area of
the Sumatran seaport of Palembang during the period of the Srivijaya Em-
pire (seventh to twelfth centuries A.D.) by Indians and Chinese who landed
at the seaport. Until relatively late in the twentieth century, the styles of
silat were extremely localized, with each village or teacher having a distinct
style within the general pattern.
Within the variety of styles, however, there are elements in common
among Indonesian silat and its derivatives of Filipino silat and Malaysian
bersilat. In general, silat is characterized by the following. While all systems
are based on the use of weapons, training begins with instruction in empty-
hand tactics and progresses to armed techniques. Until the latter part of the
twentieth century, silat remained strictly combative, avoiding the compro-
mises needed to make the transition to sport. Outside self-defense situa-542 Southeast Asia