| Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu | |
|---|---|
| |
| Country of origin | Brazil |
| Parent arts | Judo |
| Focus | Grappling, especially ground fighting |
Brazilian jiu-jitsu (BJJ; Portuguese: jiu-jitsu brasileiro; Japanese: グレイシー柔術 gureishi juujutsu) is a martial art and combat sport that focuses on grappling and especially ground fighting.
Description[]
Brazilian jiu-jitsu is a martial art and combat sport based on ground fighting (ne-waza) and submission holds. BJJ focuses on taking an opponent to the ground, gaining a dominant position, and using different techniques to subdue the opponent by using joint locks or chokeholds. BJJ can help smaller and weaker people successfully defend themselves against bigger and stronger opponents by taking down and using different locks and holds to defeat them.
History[]
Brazilian jiu-jitsu is an art that came from Japanese jiu-jitsu and other grappling-based arts from Japan. It is a derivative of early 20th century Kodokan Judo, which was itself then a recently-developed system (founded in 1882), based on multiple schools (or Ryu) of Japanese Jujutsu. The most known contributors were the Gracie family. Brazilian jiu-jitsu was developed in 1920 by Brazilian brothers Carlos, Oswaldo, Gastão Jr., George, and Hélio Gracie, after learning Japanese jiu-jitsu. They made their own self-defense system called Gracie jiu-jitsu. Eventually, Gracie jiu-jitsu and other Japanese grappling arts such as Judo, evolved into BJJ and had its own defined combat sport.
Ranking system[]
Brazilian jiu-jitsu ranks are shown by a belt system and are generally awarded at the instructor's discretion. There are separate ranking systems for youth (<16 years old) and adults (16 years old and above). While the ranking system for adults is generally agreed upon by the different governing organizations for BJJ, the ranking system for youth is not universally agreed upon.
Adult rankings (16 years old and above)[]
| Belt | Requirements |
|---|---|
| White | |
| Blue | Minimum age: 16 years old |
| Purple | Minimum age: 16 years old |
| Brown | Minimum age: 18 years old |
| Black | Minimum age: 19 years old |