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Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian art of fighting, dance, acrobatics and music, born among enslaved Black Brazilians

the gist

Capoeira is an Afro-Brazilian martial art and game that blends fighting, dance, acrobatics and music, played in a circle called a roda to the sound of a berimbau, a single-string bow. It was developed by Black Brazilians over centuries, with scholars tracing its roots to engolo, a fighting tradition from Angola. Authorities first recorded it in 1789 as a crime, and it was criminalised again in the 19th century. In the 1930s the teacher Mestre Bimba standardised it, and the state legalised it in 1937 and promoted it as national culture. Its fundamental move is the ginga, a rhythmic sidestep that keeps the player always ready to move.

so what

Capoeira shows how a suppressed practice of enslaved and freed Black Brazilians was transformed into a symbol of national identity and then recognised globally. UNESCO granted it protected status as intangible cultural heritage in 2014, and it has influenced modern mixed martial arts.

fun fact

Capoeira was once illegal in Brazil, and practitioners were often arrested for playing it in the street.

more on this

key facts

Country
Brazil
Founded
1600
Created by
African Brazilians

Facts: Wikidata (CC0)

Adapted from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia · CC BY-SA 4.0

Image: Wikimedia Commons