History of Brazilian Jiu-jitsu
Monday, January 4th, 2010 Subscribe To Our Feed
It is probably not surprising that Brazilian jiu-jitsu comes from Japan. After all, most martial arts have their roots in Asia. On a pilgrimage to share the teachings of his master, Mitsuyo Maeda arrived in Brazil in 1914. He proceeded to share his fighting style with the people of his new home and was successful at making an impact with them. His interactions with the many people who came to him out of curiosity would eventually lead to an important encounter.
One of the people that Maeda associated with was a man with the last name Gracie. Brazilian jiu-jitsu is highly associated with the Gracie name and this is where it began. Carlos Gracie began learning from Maeda and then in 1921, passed his knowledge on to his brothers, including the youngest, Hélio. Hélio adapted the teachings so that he, as a smaller man, could defeat much larger opponents. This became a key part of jiu-jitsu and would be shown again and again in tournaments that size really does not matter in combat.
It was when the Gracies came to America that their discipline became known as Brazilian jiu-jitsu. It was 1978 when Rorion Gracie, Hélio’s son, moved to Southern California with the intention of sharing his father’s art with the rest of the world, much in the same way that Maeda had shared Japan’s secrets with Brazil. Rorion brought his father’s fame with him, and followed in his footsteps by issuing what became known as the Gracie Challenge; an open invitation to any fighter to try and beat him in hand-to-hand combat in order to determine which discipline was stronger.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu exploded across the world in the early 1990s, with the creation of the Ultimate Fighting Championship tournaments. These were mixed martial arts fights that were largely no-holds-barred events that paired fighters of different disciplines. Royce Gracie jumped to fame and success by winning three of the first four tournaments, mainly by defeating opponents far larger than he and through submission holds on the ground. It became obvious that his martial art techniques were far superior to those of other disciplines and Brazilian jiu jitsu academies sprang up across North America.
The Gracies can take pride in having taken the secrets and techniques from judo masters of Japan, and bringing them to excellent use beyond anyone’s expectations. Brazilian jiu-jitsu might not have had the impact on the fighting world that it has had, if Hélio Gracie had not looked for ways to improve upon the techniques shared by Maeda. Through each generation the Gracies have made strides to continue the history of this martial art through the jiu jitsu schools they run and the fights they win.
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