The world's oldest Martial Art?

I plan on writing a series of articles of about the history and sport of fighting techniques from around the world. Being a martial artist, myself is also a reason why I want to write about subjects like this one. Being a historian too.

The first piece which you now are reading, will be possibly the world's oldest fighting style.

It is known simply as Mongolian Wrestling (in case you could not tell from the picture above.)

Origin and History

According to the website I have listed (1) there is a rock carving in the Ulziit soum (country subdivisions) of the Dundgobi province that depicts a form of wrestling activity being performed.

What makes Mongolian Wrestling unique among these famed nomads is that because of the vastness of their country, there are no weight or field restrictions, time extensions and even trickery.

Time after time, Mongolian Wrestling has come to have three styles called: Mongolian bull wrestling, Khalkh wrestling and Inner Mongolia wrestling. Similar outfits are worn by the wrestlers, a ritual wrestling dance also known as the "Eagle Dance" (devekh), along with rituals for the judges, those attend and those who compete.

These three styles of Mongolian Wrestling are performed during the Naadam Festival, otherwise known as "the three games of men" which also has archery and horse racing.

The competition itself

While their are three different styles of Mongolian Wrestling, there are different rules based off of those styles. But many of them are similar to the fact that if the wrestler's back, elbow or knee touch the ground through the various methods, that wrestler loses.

During the match, if the wrestler's clothes get loose or entangled, the opponent has to assist even if it means losing the match. It still would be considered a form of respect.

Ranks

Since no medals are given, titles are given instead.

The titles move upwards in order of Falcon (Nachin, 5th round), Elephant (Zaan, 7th round), Lion (Arslan, 9th round), and Titan (Avarga, the winner from the Lion rank).

As you can tell the names are based on powerful winged animals or even animals that are the strongest on Earth.

During the Naadam festival the title of Avarga, also Titan can be dubbed "Invisible Titan to be remember by all."

The Parliament of Mongolia decided to add two more titles back in 2003. The titles are: Hawk (Hartsaga, 6th round) and Garuda (8th round).(2)

Matches

During the first two rounds, all 512 competitors go against each other with the highest ranking going against the lowest ranking

By round three, the amount of wrestlers will drop to 128. The highest ranked wrestler can choose who to wrestle, provided they have already wrestled them before. Knowing that they need to conserve energy for the next six rounds, they would not challenge someone they already know.

Round four is merely a folding round.

Round five or the start of titles is where one earns the title of Falcon.

Round six is where the biggest and most well-trained wrestlers compete to make it to the next round and earn the title of Khartsaga (Hawk or Kestrel).

Round seven, also known as the endurance game, only eight wrestlers remain to compete for the title of Elephant.

Round eight is where if the wrestler is competing of the first time, he gains the title of Garuda —the mythical bird. If the wrestler manages to find enough speed and stamina to disturb the field (or grapple his opponent faster than he already is) then the crowd becomes delighted and begin shouting and cheering.

Round nine is where it all comes down to it. If the wrestler is a first winner in this final round, he is given the title of Lion. This is the ultimate goal for many Mongolian Wrestlers.

The Future of the Style

While a pair of UFC fighter's tried to use Mongolian Wrestling back in 2017 (4) it did not work out so well.

Despite this, Mongolia Wrestling many not be a style practiced world-wide, it should still be known throughout the world as a traditional, but also most enjoyable style of combat sports.

If it was good enough for Genghis Khan and his Mongols, why should it not be good enough for those of us who want to watch non-traditional sports like Football or Baseball?

I for sure would not mind watching such events online or on TV.

(1)http://naadamfestival.com/the-three-games/mongolian-wrestling

(2) https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/Mongolian_wrestling#Ranks_and_matches

(3)https://www.eternal-landscapes.co.uk/mongolian-wrestling-your-guide/

(4) https://www.mixedmartialarts.com/vault/wrestling/ufc-fighters-try-mongolian-wrestling-doesnt-go-as-planned