' My Favorite Sport '

Muay Thai

Muay Thai is the Thai form of a hard martial art originating in Indochina. It is similar to Muay Lao from Laos, pradal serey from Cambodia, tomoi from Malaysia and closely related to lethwei from Myanmar. The art has a long history in Thailand and is the country's national sport. Muay Thai as it is practiced today varies significantly from its ancestor muay boran, such as in its use of gloves similar to those worn in Western boxing.

The word muay derives from the Sanskrit mavya and Thai comes from the word Tai. Muay Thai is referred to as the "Art of Eight Limbs" because it makes use of punches, kicks, elbows and knee strikes. A practitioner of Muay Thai (called a nak muay or "child of boxing") thus has the ability to attack using eight "points of contact", as opposed to "two points" (fists) in Western boxing and "four points" (hands and feet) used in sport-oriented martial arts.

Various forms of kickboxing have long been practiced th

roughout mainland Southeast Asia. Based on Chinese and Indian martial arts, practitioners claim they date back two thousand years. Cambodia, one of the most influential countries in Indochina, may have been instrumental in spreading the art across the region. In Thailand, Muay Thai evolved from muay boran (ancient boxing), an unarmed combat method which would probably have been used by Siamese soldiers after losing their weapons in battle. Some believe that the ancient Siamese military created Muay Thai from the weapon-based art of krabi krabong but others contend that the two were merely developed alongside each other. Krabi Krabong nevertheless was an important influence on Muay Thai as can be seen in several kicks, holds and the movements in the wai khru which have their origins in armed combat.

muay boran, and therefore Muay Thai, was originally called dhoi muay or simply muay. As well as being a practical fighting technique for use in

actual warfare, muay became a sport in which the opponents fought in front of spectators who went to watch for entertainment. These muay contests gradually became an integral part of local festivals and celebrations, especially those held at temples. It was even used as entertainment for kings. Eventually, the previously bare-fisted fighters started wearing lengths of hemp rope around their hands and forearms. This type of match was called muay kaad cheuk (มวยคาดเชือก).

Muay gradually became a possible means o

f personal advancement as the nobility increasingly esteemed skillful practitioners of the art and invited selected fighters to come to live in the royal palace to teach muay to the staff of the royal household, soldiers, princes or the king's personal guards. This "royal muay" was called muay luang (มวยหลวง). Some time during the Ayutthaya period, a platoon of royal guards was established, whose duty was to protect king and the country. They were known as Grom Nak Muay (Muay Fighters' Regiment). This royal patronage of muay continued through the reigns of Rama V and VII.