Below is a link to an article on martial arts from Africa –
“When we say the word martial arts, most people imagine shaolin monks, ninjas, Bruce Lee and now MMA. Almost never do people think of Africa; I know I don’t. In many ways, African martial arts are just like the martial arts of Asia, Europe and the Americas; this can be accounted for by our shared humanity. However, African martial arts also have features that are unique to themselves.
For example, Dambe’s derivation from spear fighting is similar to the development of Escrima empty hand techniques, which were derived from the system’s weapons techniques. Gunting, defanging the snake, is the strategy of disabling your enemy’s weapon holding hand in order to disarm him. This strategy makes perfect sense in fencing but Escrima takes it a step further by applying it to unarmed combat as well. Another example of blade-to-hand derivation is Bruce Lee’s Jeet June Do, where he is said to have borrowed the foot work of western fencing. However, Dambe seems unique in that it’s not a simply a blade-to-hand style but rather a blade and shield-to-hand style. Alongside Africa’s striking and wrestling styles are its weapon systems, most particularly, stick fighting.”
For the full article, check the link below.
http://fightland.vice.com/blog/the-styles-of-african-martial-arts
Reproduced under fair-use and with credit.