Brazilian jiu-jitsu
Brazilian jiu-jitsu, often abbreviated to BJJ, is a self-defense system, martial art, and combat sport based on grappling, ground fighting, and submission holds. It is primarily a ground-based fighting style and involves taking one's opponent down to the ground, gaining a dominant position, and then using a number of techniques to force them into submission such as joint locks, chokeholds, or compression locks.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu was first developed by the Brazilian brothers Carlos, Oswaldo, Gastão Jr., and Hélio Gracie around 1925, after Carlos was taught jujutsu and catch wrestling in 1917 by either Mitsuyo Maeda, a travelling Japanese judoka, or one of Maeda's students Jacyntho Ferro. Later, the Gracie family developed their own self-defense system that they named Gracie jiu-jitsu. BJJ eventually became a distinct combat sport of its own through innovations and practices, and is considered essential for modern mixed martial arts.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu is based on the concept that a smaller, weaker person can successfully defend against a bigger, stronger opponent by using leverage and weight distribution. The focus is on taking the fight to the ground and using a number of holds and submissions to defeat them. Sparring, commonly referred to as "rolling" within the BJJ community, and live drilling play a significant role in training. In contrast to some other martial arts BJJ can be practiced using a gi or without it, also called 'no-gi', for this purpose rash guards are used. BJJ can also be used for physical fitness, building character or as a way of life.
History
Origins
The first public demonstration of jiu-jitsu in Brazil took place in 1906 in the city of Manaus, the capital of Amazonas. In November of that year, the ship Jerome docked in Manaus, carrying two Japanese martial artists who were touring the Americas to showcase their fighting style: jiu-jitsu master Akishima Sadashi and his assistant Suiotos Ki.After settling in the city, the two men published a challenge in the local newspapers, inviting anyone willing to face them in public matches. An improvised arena was set up at the "Coliseu Metálico Brasileiro" circus in Praça da Saudade, where on November 18, Master Akishima and his disciple Suiotos fought over a dozen local challengers—defeating all of them in less than five minutes each, in front of a large crowd. This marked the first official jiu-jitsu matches on Brazilian soil.
After several months of exhibitions at the circus, Akishima and Suiotos left Amazonas and sailed to Liverpool, England, aboard the ship Antony.
In 1908, the Brazilian Navy ship Benjamin Constant rescued a group of castaways on a Pacific island, among them a Japanese jiu-jitsu instructor Sada Miyako. He and his disciple Kakiara were allowed to stay aboard and continue the journey to Brazil. During the voyage, the two Japanese men taught jiu-jitsu techniques to the sailors.
File:Jiu-jitsu contra capoeira.jpg|thumb|Panel by Alfredo Storni featuring capoeirista Ciríaco defeating jiu-jitsu fighter Sada Miyako with a rabo de arraia kick, O Malho, 1909.
Upon arriving in Rio de Janeiro aboard the Benjamin Constant, Miyako was hired by the Navy to train officers at Fortaleza de Villegagnon, later extending his teachings to Army personnel. He remained in Brazil for some time, giving private lessons, performing demonstrations, and engaging in public fights—most notably his 1909 match against capoeirista Francisco da Silva Ciríaco, which became legendary.
Mitsuyo Maeda, a distinguished judo black belt from the Kodokan, trained under Tomita Tsunejirō—the first student of judo's founder, Kano Jigoro—and embarked on a global mission to showcase and spread judo. Departing Japan in 1904, Maeda traveled to various countries, demonstrating his skills and taking on challengers like wrestlers, boxers, savate fighters, and other martial artists. His journey led him to Brazil, where he arrived by November 14, 1914.
Maeda & Gracie
In Brazil, Maeda's demonstrations of "Kano jiu-jitsu"—a term then synonymous with judo—laid the groundwork for what would become Brazilian jiu-jitsu. In 1916, the American Circus in Belém, where Gastão Gracie was a business partner, hosted performances by the Queirolo Brothers, an Italian-Argentine circus troupe, who introduced Maeda to the audience. The following year, Gastão's eldest son, Carlos Gracie, attended one of Maeda's demonstrations at the Da Paz Theatre and was inspired to study the art.According to the Gracie family's account, Carlos became a direct student of Maeda at his school, which was overseen by Jacyntho Ferro. However, some Brazilian jiu-jitsu practitioner historians like Robert Drysdale challenge this narrative, proposing that Carlos was primarily instructed by Ferro rather than Maeda himself. Regardless, Carlos went on to share his knowledge with his brothers, including Hélio Gracie. Due to his smaller build, Hélio struggled with executing many judo throws and with judo techniques that relied on overpowering opponents. Instead, he refined the art, emphasizing ground fighting and leverage—key aspects of jiu-jitsu and judo's ne-waza—over traditional throws. This adaptation became the cornerstone of Gracie jiu-jitsu.
While the Gracie family is widely celebrated for popularizing Brazilian jiu-jitsu, another significant parallel lineage emerged through Luiz França and gained prominence through his student Oswaldo Fadda. The França-Fadda lineage claims roots from Soshihiro Satake, Geo Omori, and Mitsuyo Maeda, although some practitioner historians like Drysdale speculate from data that França either learned from the Gracies or was self taught. Fadda's students were renowned for their mastery of footlocks and for defeating the Gracies in notable gym battles. Fadda's influence endures today through teams like Nova União and Grappling Fight Team.
Beyond the Gracie and França-Fadda lineages, Brazilian jiu-jitsu in Brazil has branched into several prominent schools, including Gracie Humaitá, Gracie Barra, Carlson Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, and Alliance Jiu Jitsu. Each of these lineages traces its roots back to the teachings Mitsuyo Maeda introduced to Brazil over a century ago.
Name
The name "jiu-jitsu" derives from an older romanization of its original spelling in the West; the modern Hepburn romanization of 柔術 is "jūjutsu".When Maeda left Japan, judo was still often referred to as "Kano jiu-jitsu", or, even more generically, simply as jiu-jitsu. Higashi, the co-author of The Complete Kano Jiu-Jitsu wrote in the foreword:
Outside Japan, however, this distinction was noted even less. Thus, when Maeda and Satake arrived in Brazil in 1914, every newspaper announced their art as being "jiu-jitsu", despite both men being Kodokan judoka.
It was not until 1925 that the Japanese government itself officially mandated that the correct name for the martial art taught in the Japanese public schools should be "judo" rather than "jujutsu". In Brazil, the art is still called "jiu-jitsu". When the Gracies went to the United States and spread jiu-jitsu, they used the terms "Gracie jiu-jitsu" and non-Gracies using the term "Brazilian jiu-jitsu" to differentiate from the already present styles using similar-sounding names. In a 1994 interview with Yoshinori Nishi, Hélio Gracie said that he did not even know the word judo itself until the sport came in the 1950s to Brazil, because he heard that Mitsuyo Maeda called his style "jiu-jitsu".
The art is sometimes referred to as Gracie jiu-jitsu, a name trademarked by Rorion Gracie, but after a legal dispute with his cousin Carley Gracie, his trademark to the name was voided. Other members of the Gracie family often call their style by personalized names, such as Ceaser Gracie Jiu-Jitsu or Renzo Gracie Jiu-Jitsu, and similarly, the Machado family call their style Machado Jiu-Jitsu. While each style and its instructors have their own unique aspects, they are all basic variations of Brazilian jiu-jitsu.
Brazilian jiu-jitsu shares many techniques with the original Kodokan judo, especially certain styles practiced before judo became part of the Olympics such as Kosen judo, and still practiced to a lesser extent, as well as with some earlier ryu jujtsu schools with their ground work emphasys that were historical predecessors like Okayama newaza, Oguri ryu, and Tenshin-Shinyo ryu. Because of this some practitioners have suggested that Brazilian jiu-jitsu should just be called "jiu-jitsu".
Divergence from Kodokan Judo and Jujutsu
Certain changes were made to the rules of judo after it was introduced to Brazil. Some of these rule changes sought to enhance it as a spectator sport, and to improve safety. Several of these rule changes de-emphasized the groundwork aspects of judo, and others have reduced the range of joint locks application. Brazilian jiu-jitsu since its inception did not strictly follow kodokan judo rules, this divergence helped BJJ develop a distinct identity becoming a groundwork and submission focus fighting style. This difference was later consolidated with the creation of a new set of rules that guide the BJJ practice today.Even though BJJ uses and allows many of the techniques found in judo and jujutsu, the evolution of these techniques in BJJ has followed a distinct path, giving primary emphasis to ground fighting positions and maneuvers, and having the guard as the central working point of the fight. This is reflected on how different fighting techniques are scored in competition. In BJJ positions such as the rear mount receive a higher score, and the focus of the fight is to establish a dominant position against the adversary on the ground and submit them using chokeholds or joint locks. By contrast in judo, throwing techniques are scored higher and can give a direct victory if executed correctly, the goal of the fight is to sweep or throw the opponent to the ground to win.
BJJ also allows heelhooks and knee-reaping which are prohibited in judo, and any takedowns used in wrestling, sambo, or other grappling arts, including direct attempts to take down by touching the legs or dragging the opponent to the ground. Spinal locks and cervical locks are not allowed in gi jiu-jitsu, amateur MMA, multiple forms of no-gi jiu-jitsu, Judo, and other martial arts, due to potential to cause serious bodily injury. BJJ also has become more "sports-oriented" in recent years, prohibiting techniques such as slams. Another divergence of BJJ from judo and jujutsu is that the first allows no-gi practice and competition, with its own subset of rules. Use of holds and takedowns from wrestling and other grappling styles is common in no-gi BJJ, and light strikes may also be used when the competition rules permit, such as the open palm strike in CJJ.