A Study on the Intangible Cultural Heritage Knowledge Related to Unarmed Combat Techniques in Angampora Martial Art

Abstract

This research was conducted under the title "A Study on the Intangible Cultural Heritage Knowledge Related to Unarmed Combat Techniques in Angampora Martial Art." The study focused on the intangible knowledge related to "Angam"—the unarmed combat technique found within the discipline of Angampora, which is a scientific martial art possessing intangible cultural heritage knowledge that has existed in Sri Lanka since the historical era.

Primary data for the research was collected through interviews conducted with 30 skilled experts in the Angam martial discipline from the Colombo, Anuradhapura, and Kandy districts, as well as through palm leaf manuscripts. The main objective of the research was to study the intangible cultural heritage knowledge associated with the unarmed combat techniques of the Angampora martial art. The hypothesis utilized was that "Angam," found within the Angampora martial art identified as an ancient martial discipline, is a combat art practiced without weapons. The research methodology employed for this study was the ethnographic research methodology.

Through this approach, the study examined techniques within the Angam discipline such as hand attacks, foot attacks, blocks using hands and feet, wrestling maneuvers (Pora Haramba), locks and grips (Gata Haramba), jumps, leaps, and acrobatics, as well as various physical exercises. Through participant observation, the sample of 30 Angam artists used for quantitative data was categorized according to the various subject areas within the Angam discipline. Their distinct unarmed combat techniques—such as hand strikes, foot attacks, locking methods, nerve point attacks (Nila), wrestling maneuvers, and Maya Angam methodologies—were studied.

The study concludes that within the intangible cultural heritage knowledge base of "Angam" (unarmed combat techniques) of the Angampora martial discipline possessed by Sri Lanka over a long history, there exists a technical and scientific martial art performed using the human body's hands, feet, and head. It includes related locks, wrestling, physical exercises, jumps, and acrobatics, and uses no weapons whatsoever. It is further concluded that these technical methods are currently fading away due to various reasons. Therefore, it is proposed that the intangible knowledge related to the true Angam discipline should be studied using various printed, unprinted, and personal sources, and this knowledge should be recorded and conserved for future researchers.