Culture of Asia Xia Dynasty of ancient China from over 4000 years ago. Some of the best known styles of martial arts in the world were developed in East Asia, such as karate and judo from Japan, taekwondo from Korea and the various styles of Chinese martial arts known collectively as kung fu. Many other styles of martial arts originated in Southeast Asia, including muay Thai from Thailand, Vovinam from Vietnam, Arnis from the Philippines, and Pencak Silat from Indonesia. In addition, popular styles of wrestling have originated in Turkey and Mongolia. Development of Asian martial arts continues today as newer styles are
Sambo (martial art) Sambo (martial art) Sambo (; ) is a Russian martial art and combat sport. It originated in the Russian SFSR in Soviet Union. The word "SAMBO" is an acronym for "samozashchita bez oruzhiya", which literally translates as "self-defence without weapons". Sambo is relatively modern, since its development began in the early 1920s by the Soviet Red Army to improve their hand-to-hand combat abilities. It was intended to be a merger of the most effective techniques of other martial arts. The pioneers of sambo were Viktor Spiridonov and Vasili Oshchepkov. Oshchepkov died in prison as a result of the Great Purge