Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation [2 volumes]

Joseph R. Svinth is editor of the Electronic Journals of Martial Arts and Sciences, a publication he started in 1999. He served in both the United States Marine Corps and Army National Guard. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Western Washington University, and a master’s degree in history from the University of Washington. Dr. Thomas A. Green earned his PhD in anthropology at the University of Texas, and served on the faculty of the department of anthropology at Texas A&M University. His most recent research focused on African and African-descended martial culture in the Americas.Martial Arts of the World is a landmark work. It is the updated edition of Dr. Green's 2001 two-volume set titled Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia. It contains over 120 multi-page, essay-type entries on martial arts practiced all over the world. I recognized many of the authors as being the go-to experts in their fields. Dr. Alexander Bennett, Dr. Paul Bowman, Dr. Karl Friday, Lance Gatling, Stanley Henning, Brian Kennedy -- the authors form a "who's who" list for martial arts scholarship, circa 2010.As stated on the publisher's description, "the first volume is organized geographically to explore the historic development of martial arts styles in Asia, Africa, Europe, and the Americas. The second volume looks at martial arts thematically, with coverage of belief systems, modern martial arts competitions, and a wide range of such topics as folklore, women in martial arts, martial arts and the military, and martial arts and the media."This is one of a handful of books that I constantly reference. (Another is David A. Hall's Encyclopedia of Martial Arts, which I will review in the future.) The book perfectly meets my standards for sound evidence and sourced research on martial arts history. The scope of the material is remarkable. It covers martial arts from all over the world, including places that are typically neglected like Africa, the Americas, Europe, and Oceania. The articles are all of a substantial length, making the book more of a collection of essays and less like an encyclopedic collection of short entries. The writing is clear and each entry concludes with a set of references. These investigative leads have been invaluable for my own research.I have very few concerns with this book. Some scholarship has improved in the intervening ten years, but not by much. My biggest problem with the book is the price. At just shy of $200 for a new copy and roughly $150 for a used copy, the cost is likely to deter many potential readers. I noticed the publisher offers an ebook version, but they do not list the price. Check out the preview at the publisher's site to inform your buying decision.I greatly enjoyed reading Martial Arts of the World. This two-volume work is required reading and a foundational reference for every martial arts scholar. While the price prevents me from endorsing it as the single best volume for the average reader on general martial arts history, I have created a special "scholar's choice" award to honor this book. I recommend saving your money for this book, as it is worth the price for the dedicated student and researcher of the martial arts.

At first glance this appears to be a well written and extensive volume detailing martial arts around the world. There are some eccentric choices in emphasis here, for example the inclusion of Celtic martial arts, but the exclusion of Tang Soo Do, which was a significant rift in the martial art history of Korea (with other similar cases). However, I am writing, I suppose, from the bias of the modern era, and the author(s) seem more focused on formative history that led to the somewhat pre-current world stage (although one whole prescient volume is dedicated to the current combative culture around the world). The writing maintains a formal scholarly tone throughout and will operate efficiently for any researcher (including PhD level) that is seeking general topical knowledge on a range of martial arts; however, the writing is not so complex a teenaged student couldn’t check a copy out from an instructor for extracurricular research and understand the material with ease. These 2 volumes are actually one large book that has been divided into two volumes... my biggest criticism is that there aren’t more volumes, actually—even though these still provide great depths to reach into. I would love for the authors to produce an expanded encyclopedia and would purchase it without hesitation.

The content in the first volume is great and well written; however, I have ordered this twice and only received volume 1 each time. Still trying to resolve the second order and the first was unresolved as I took too long to follow up.

This is a fantastic resource. It goes well beyond the typical my style vs your style in many similar texts. It provides well researched and thorough analysis on a range of martial arts, without resorting to stylistic bias. A good addition to the serious martial artist's collection.

the first volume too briefly describes the basic martial arts. The second volume contains a lot of interesting information which have never been met.

...die es zu den Kampfkuensten gibt. Zusammen mit dem ARIOMAR-Traktat "Über die Kampfkunst" und Crudellis Band ist diese Arbeit einer der Meilensteine fuer diese Thematik. Gut finde ich, dass man auf den kulturellen Teil ausfuehrlich eingeht, weniger gefaellt mir, dass doch einiges fehlt. Besonders einige weniger bekannte Kampfarten Afrikas oder Amerikas fehlen. Aber eine solche Sammlung kann eben nur den Stand des Wissen widerspiegeln, der beim Schreiben vorlag. Doch deswegen behalte ich keinen Stern ein. Der Preis ist der Grund. Denn obwohl es sich um eine gebundene Ausgabe handelt, sind 140 Euro einfach deutlich überzogen.