Martial Arts Bibliography

History (23)

How the arts were born, changed and spread — written by historians, using sources.

1. Donn F. Draeger & Robert W. Smith (1980). Comprehensive Asian Fighting Arts. Kodansha International. ISBN 9780870114366

   A classic survey of Asian fighting systems by two practitioner-scholars; older, but still widely cited.

   KarateJudoKung FuPencak SilatArnis · Eskrima · KaliKalaripayattu

2. Michael B. Poliakoff (1987). Combat Sports in the Ancient World: Competition, Violence, and Culture. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300037685

   Wrestling, boxing and pankration in Greece, Rome and the ancient Near East, from the sources.

   PankrationWrestlingBoxing

3. Patrick McCarthy (1995). Bubishi: The Bible of Karate. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 9780804820158

   Annotated translation of the Bubishi, a Chinese-Okinawan text that influenced several karate founders.

   KarateGoju-ryu

4. Douglas Wile (1996). Lost T’ai-chi Classics from the Late Ch’ing Dynasty. State University of New York Press. ISBN 9780791426531

   Translations and analysis of 19th-century taiji texts, with a critical look at the art’s origin stories.

   Tai Chi

5. Karl F. Friday (with Seki Humitake) (1997). Legacies of the Sword: The Kashima-Shinryū and Samurai Martial Culture. University of Hawai‘i Press. ISBN 9780824818791

   A detailed study of one koryu (old school) and how samurai martial culture was taught and transmitted.

   Kenjutsu

6. Mark V. Wiley (1997). Filipino Martial Culture. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 9780804820882

   Interviews and history of the Filipino blade and stick arts (arnis, kali, eskrima).

   Arnis · Eskrima · Kali

7. G. Cameron Hurst III (1998). Armed Martial Arts of Japan: Swordsmanship and Archery. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300049671

   History of Japanese swordsmanship and archery, and how they changed from battlefield skills to "ways".

   KenjutsuKyudoKendo

8. Mark Bishop (1999). Okinawan Karate: Teachers, Styles and Secret Techniques. Tuttle Publishing. ISBN 9780804832052

   Field research among Okinawan teachers and lineages; useful for the island roots of karate.

   KarateGoju-ryuUechi-ryuIsshin-ryuOkinawan Kobudo

9. Sydney Anglo (2000). The Martial Arts of Renaissance Europe. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300083521

   The landmark study of European fighting books (sword, wrestling, pole-arms) of the 15th–17th centuries.

   HEMAOlympic Fencing

10. Richard Cohen (2002). By the Sword: A History of Gladiators, Musketeers, Samurai, Swashbucklers, and Olympic Champions. Random House. ISBN 9780375504174

    A readable history of swordsmanship by a former Olympic fencer.

    Olympic FencingKendo

11. Kenji Tokitsu (2004). Miyamoto Musashi: His Life and Writings. Shambhala. ISBN 9781590300459

    Musashi’s life checked against the sources, with translations of his writings.

    KenjutsuKendo

12. Matthias Röhrig Assunção (2004). Capoeira: The History of an Afro-Brazilian Martial Art. Routledge. ISBN 9780714650319

    The most complete academic history of capoeira, from slavery-era Brazil to the global art.

    Capoeira

13. Brian Kennedy & Elizabeth Guo (2005). Chinese Martial Arts Training Manuals: A Historical Survey. North Atlantic Books. ISBN 9781556435577

    A survey of printed Chinese martial-arts manuals of the 20th century and what they tell us.

    Kung FuTai Chi

14. Meir Shahar (2008). The Shaolin Monastery: History, Religion, and the Chinese Martial Arts. University of Hawai‘i Press. ISBN 9780824831103

    The standard scholarly history of Shaolin, based on steles, archives and manuals.

    Shaolin Kung FuKung Fu

15. Kasia Boddy (2008). Boxing: A Cultural History. Reaktion Books. ISBN 9781861893697

    Boxing in art, literature, film and politics, from antiquity to the 21st century.

    Boxing

16. Thomas A. Green & Joseph R. Svinth (eds.) (2010). Martial Arts of the World: An Encyclopedia of History and Innovation. ABC-CLIO. ISBN 9781598842432

    Two-volume academic encyclopedia; the best single starting point for the history of almost any art.

17. Brian Kennedy & Elizabeth Guo (2010). Jingwu: The School that Saved Kung Fu. Blue Snake Books. ISBN 9781583942420

    History of the Jingwu Athletic Association (founded 1910), which modernised and spread kung fu.

    Kung Fu

18. Peter A. Lorge (2012). Chinese Martial Arts: From Antiquity to the Twenty-First Century. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9780521878814

    A historian’s overview of Chinese martial arts from the Bronze Age to today, separating evidence from legend.

    Kung FuShaolin Kung FuWushu TaoluTai Chi

19. Denis Gainty (2013). Martial Arts and the Body Politic in Meiji Japan. Routledge. ISBN 9780415516501

    How the Dai Nippon Butokukai and the Meiji state turned old warrior arts into modern budo.

    KendoJudoKarate

20. Peter Vail (2014). “Muay Thai: Inventing Tradition for a National Symbol”. Sojourn: Journal of Social Issues in Southeast Asia 29(3), 509–553. DOI 10.1355/sj29-3a

    How modern Thai boxing was shaped into a national symbol, and what that means for its "ancient" stories.

    Muay Thai

21. Benjamin N. Judkins & Jon Nielson (2015). The Creation of Wing Chun: A Social History of the Southern Chinese Martial Arts. State University of New York Press. ISBN 9781438456935

    How Wing Chun grew out of the markets, guilds and politics of Guangdong — beyond the Ng Mui legend.

    Wing ChunKung Fu

22. Alexander C. Bennett (2015). Kendo: Culture of the Sword. University of California Press. ISBN 9780520284371

    From samurai fencing to a modern sport and school subject, by a historian who is also a high-ranked kendoka.

    Kendo

23. Udo Moenig (2015). Taekwondo: From a Martial Art to a Martial Sport. Routledge. ISBN 9781138701458

    Shows how taekwondo developed from Japanese karate into an Olympic sport, with technical analysis.

    Taekwondo

Technique and primary manuals (8)

Books by founders and masters, and translations of historical fighting manuals.

1. Masatoshi Nakayama (1966). Dynamic Karate. Kodansha International. ISBN 9780870117886

   Classic JKA technical manual; one of the first to explain karate with basic physics.

   KarateShotokan

2. Jigoro Kano (1986). Kodokan Judo. Kodansha International. ISBN 9780870116810

   The founder’s own technical book: principles, throws, holds, kata and the idea of judo as education.

   Judo

3. Jeffrey L. Forgeng (trans.) (2003). The Medieval Art of Swordsmanship: Royal Armouries MS I.33. Chivalry Bookshelf / Royal Armouries. ISBN 9781891448386

   Facsimile and translation of the oldest known European fencing manual (sword and buckler, c. 1300).

   HEMA

4. Renzo Gracie & John Danaher (2003). Mastering Jujitsu. Human Kinetics. ISBN 9780736044042

   A clear, systematic explanation of grappling strategy: positions, control and submissions.

   Brazilian Jiu-JitsuJujutsu

5. David Kahn (2004). Krav Maga: An Essential Guide to the Renowned Method — for Fitness and Self-Defense. St. Martin’s Griffin. ISBN 9780312331771

   An introductory technical guide to Krav Maga combatives and defences.

   Krav Maga

6. Toshiro Daigo (2005). Kodokan Judo Throwing Techniques. Kodansha International. ISBN 9784770023308

   The Kodokan’s detailed reference on every nage-waza, with photo sequences and variations.

   Judo

7. Rory Miller (2008). Meditations on Violence: A Comparison of Martial Arts Training and Real World Violence. YMAA Publication Center. ISBN 9781594391187

   A corrections officer compares dojo training with real violence; essential for honest self-defence.

   Krav MagaMMA

8. Christian Henry Tobler (2010). In Saint George’s Name: An Anthology of Medieval German Fighting Arts. Freelance Academy Press. ISBN 9780982591116

   Translations of German fighting texts: longsword, wrestling, dagger and armoured combat.

   HEMA

Sports science and biomechanics (33)

Peer-reviewed studies and textbooks. These are the sources behind the numbers in our Technique Manual.

1. Henrik Sørensen et al. (1996). “Dynamics of the martial arts high front kick”. Journal of Sports Sciences 14(6), 483–495. DOI 10.1080/02640419608727735

   Explains the whip-like sequence of the front kick: the thigh slows because the shank speeds up.

   TaekwondoKarate

2. Marcus S. Smith, R. J. Dyson, T. Hale & L. Janaway (2000). “Development of a boxing dynamometer and its punch force discrimination efficacy”. Journal of Sports Sciences 18(6), 445–450. DOI 10.1080/02640410050074377

   Measured punch force in elite, intermediate and novice boxers: skill level clearly separates the groups.

   Boxing

3. Timothy J. Walilko, David C. Viano & Cynthia A. Bir (2005). “Biomechanics of the head for Olympic boxer punches to the face”. British Journal of Sports Medicine 39(10), 710–719. DOI 10.1136/bjsm.2004.014126

   Olympic boxers punched an instrumented dummy: punch force, hand speed, effective mass and head acceleration.

   Boxing

4. David C. Viano et al. (2005). “Concussion in professional football: comparison with boxing head impacts — part 10”. Neurosurgery 57(6), 1154–1172. DOI 10.1227/01.neu.0000187541.87937.d9

   Compares hooks, uppercuts and straight punches; the hook produced the highest force and head rotation.

   Boxing

5. Laurent Blais, François Trilles & Paul Lacouture (2007). “Three-dimensional joint dynamics and energy expenditure during the execution of a judo throwing technique (Morote Seoi Nage)”. Journal of Sports Sciences 25(11), 1211–1220. DOI 10.1080/02640410600982204

   In seoi-nage the legs and trunk, not the arms, produce most of the work.

   Judo

6. Rodney Imamura, Mitsuyoshi Iteya, Alan Hreljac & Rafael Escamilla (2007). “A kinematic comparison of the judo throw harai-goshi during competitive and non-competitive conditions”. Journal of Sports Science and Medicine 6(CSSI-2), 15–22. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/24198698

   Compares the kinematics of harai-goshi in competition-like and cooperative practice.

   Judo

7. David A. Winter (2009). Biomechanics and Motor Control of Human Movement (4th ed.). Wiley. ISBN 9780470398180

   The reference text for measuring human movement, including body-segment data used in our calculations.

8. Emerson Franchini et al. (2011). “Physiological Profiles of Elite Judo Athletes”. Sports Medicine 41(2), 147–166. DOI 10.2165/11538580-000000000-00000

   Review of the fitness profile of elite judoka: aerobic and anaerobic power, strength and body composition.

   Judo

9. António M. VencesBrito et al. (2011). “Kinematic and electromyographic analyses of a karate punch”. Journal of Electromyography and Kinesiology 21(6), 1023–1029. DOI 10.1016/j.jelekin.2011.09.007

   Portuguese national-team karateka vs non-practitioners in choku-zuki: the whole punch happens within 400 ms.

   Karate

10. Julien Pozo, Guillaume Bastien & Frédéric Dierick (2011). “Execution time, kinetics, and kinematics of the mae-geri kick: comparison of national and international standard karate athletes”. Journal of Sports Sciences 29(14), 1553–1561. DOI 10.1080/02640414.2011.605164

    International karateka kicked faster than national ones — but not harder.

    KarateShotokan

11. Jacek Wąsik (2011). “Kinematic analysis of the side kick in Taekwon-do”. Acta of Bioengineering and Biomechanics 13(4), 71–75. pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22339376

    Knee and foot speed move together in the side kick; peak speed comes before full leg extension.

    Taekwondo

12. Helmi Chaabène et al. (2012). “Physical and Physiological Profile of Elite Karate Athletes”. Sports Medicine 42(10), 829–843. DOI 10.2165/11633050-000000000-00000

    Review of what elite karateka need physically: speed, power, aerobic base and reaction time.

    Karate

13. J. R. Mitchell, D. E. Roach, J. V. Tyberg, I. Belenkie & R. S. Sheldon (2012). “Mechanism of loss of consciousness during vascular neck restraint”. Journal of Applied Physiology 112(3), 396–402. DOI 10.1152/japplphysiol.00592.2011

    Measured how brain blood flow falls during a vascular neck restraint and how fast consciousness is lost.

    JudoBrazilian Jiu-JitsuJujutsu

14. Peter M. McGinnis (2013). Biomechanics of Sport and Exercise (3rd ed.). Human Kinetics. ISBN 9780736079662

    Introductory sports biomechanics with many worked examples; good for the maths on our manual pages.

15. Seth Lenetsky, Nigel Harris & Matt Brughelli (2013). “Assessment and Contributors of Punching Forces in Combat Sports Athletes”. Strength & Conditioning Journal 35(2), 1–7. DOI 10.1519/SSC.0b013e31828b6c12

    How punch force is measured and which factors (legs, trunk, "effective mass") contribute to it.

    BoxingKarateMMA

16. Isaac Estevan & Coral Falco (2013). “Mechanical analysis of the roundhouse kick according to height and distance in taekwondo”. Biology of Sport 30(4), 275–279. DOI 10.5604/20831862.1077553

    How target height and distance change the mechanics of the taekwondo roundhouse kick.

    Taekwondo

17. Elena Pocecco et al. (2013). “Injuries in judo: a systematic literature review including suggestions for prevention”. British Journal of Sports Medicine 47(18), 1139–1143. DOI 10.1136/bjsports-2013-092886

    Injury risk at the 2008 and 2012 Olympics was about 11–12%; reviews injury types and prevention.

    Judo

18. Craig A. Bridge et al. (2014). “Physical and Physiological Profiles of Taekwondo Athletes”. Sports Medicine 44(6), 713–733. DOI 10.1007/s40279-014-0159-9

    Review of taekwondo athletes’ fitness, body type and the demands of competition.

    Taekwondo

19. Haruo Murayama et al. (2014). “Rotational acceleration during head impact resulting from different judo throwing techniques”. Neurologia medico-chirurgica 54(5), 374–378. DOI 10.2176/nmc.oa.2013-0227

    A crash-test dummy thrown with different judo techniques: osoto-gari gave very high head rotation.

    Judo

20. J. F. Scoggin III et al. (2014). “Assessment of injuries during Brazilian jiu-jitsu competition”. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine 2(2), 2325967114522184. DOI 10.1177/2325967114522184

    Eight tournaments in Hawaii: 9.2 injuries per 1000 match participations; the elbow was the joint most often injured, usually by the arm bar.

    Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu

21. Reidar P. Lystad, Kobi Gregory & Juno Wilson (2014). “The Epidemiology of Injuries in Mixed Martial Arts: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis”. Orthopaedic Journal of Sports Medicine 2(1). DOI 10.1177/2325967113518492

    Pooled injury rates in professional MMA; the head is the most injured region.

    MMA

22. Joseph Hamill, Kathleen M. Knutzen & Timothy R. Derrick (2015). Biomechanical Basis of Human Movement (4th ed.). Wolters Kluwer. ISBN 9781451177305

    University textbook of biomechanics: levers, torque, momentum and the kinetic chain, explained step by step.

23. Donald A. Neumann (2016). Kinesiology of the Musculoskeletal System (3rd ed.). Elsevier. ISBN 9780323287531

    Detailed anatomy and joint mechanics: which muscles move which joints, and how far joints can safely go.

24. Conrad J. Gavagan & Mark G. L. Sayers (2017). “A biomechanical analysis of the roundhouse kicking technique of expert practitioners: a comparison between the martial arts disciplines of Muay Thai, Karate, and Taekwondo”. PLoS ONE 12(8), e0182645. DOI 10.1371/journal.pone.0182645

    The same "roundhouse kick" is a different movement in Muay Thai, karate and taekwondo — in timing and joint motion.

    Muay ThaiKarateTaekwondo

25. Takanori Ishii, Michiyoshi Ae, Yuta Suzuki & Yasuto Kobayashi (2018). “Kinematic comparison of the seoi-nage judo technique between elite and college athletes”. Sports Biomechanics 17(2), 238–250. DOI 10.1080/14763141.2017.1284256

    Elite judoka entered seoi-nage with much higher forward speed of their centre of mass.

    Judo

26. Haruo Murayama et al. (2020). “Ukemi technique prevents the elevation of head acceleration of a person thrown by the judo technique ‘osoto-gari’”. Neurologia medico-chirurgica 60(6), 307–312. DOI 10.2176/nmc.oa.2020-0043

    Experts who used proper ukemi had far lower head acceleration than a dummy — breakfalls protect the brain.

    Judo

27. Samuel J. Stellpflug, T. Menton, J. Corry & A. Schneir (2020). “There is more to the mechanism of unconsciousness from vascular neck restraint than simply carotid compression”. International Journal of Neuroscience 130(1), 103–106. DOI 10.1080/00207454.2019.1664520

    Argues that venous (jugular) compression and reflexes also play a role, not only blocked arteries.

    JudoBrazilian Jiu-Jitsu

28. E. Sasaki, A. Ikumi, N. Sakuyama, N. Malliaropoulos, Y. Mikami & S. Nagahiro (2022). “High-rate settlement and unconsciousness with shime-waza in young judo athletes from a video analytic study in Judo World Championships”. Journal of Science and Medicine in Sport 25(11), 942–947. DOI 10.1016/j.jsams.2022.09.001

    Video analysis of 7426 World Championship bouts: how often chokes end matches and cause unconsciousness, and why releasing quickly matters.

    Judo

29. Tomasz Góra, Jacek Wąsik, Dariusz Mosler & Dorota Ortenburger (2025). “Relationship of kinetic and somatic variables to kicking strength in female taekwon-do athletes”. Acta of Bioengineering and Biomechanics 27(1). DOI 10.37190/abb-02592-2025-02

    The side kick hit harder and "carried" far more body mass than the turning kick.

    Taekwondo

30. K. Mańka-Malara & M. Trzaskowski (2025). “The risk of joint and neck injuries in mixed martial arts — grappling and submission techniques in professional fights”. Journal of Clinical Medicine 14(21), 7467. DOI 10.3390/jcm14217467

    2488 UFC fights: submissions ended 18.7% of fights; the rear-naked choke was 68.6% of all submissions.

    MMABrazilian Jiu-Jitsu

31. Takanori Ishii & Shinji Koshida (2026). “Elite seoi-nage biomechanics: integration of centre-of-mass control, propulsion and rotation”. Sports Biomechanics (online ahead of print), 1–17. DOI 10.1080/14763141.2026.2723212

    Compares higher- and lower-performing elite throwers using motion capture and force plates: centre-of-mass control, forward momentum and rotation.

    Judo

32. L. Liu, T. Deguchi, M. Shiokawa, K. Hamaguchi & M. Shinya (2026). “Kinetics of the lower limb during the rotational movement of the body in osoto-gari: a comparison between black belt and white belt judokas”. Sports Biomechanics 25(8), 1286–1302. DOI 10.1080/14763141.2026.2636943

    Compares lower-limb joint forces of black and white belts during the rotation of osoto-gari.

    Judo

33. M. Y. Fares et al. (2026). “Technical and medical trends of upper limb submissions in mixed martial arts”. Journal of Sports Medicine and Physical Fitness 66(8), 915–923. DOI 10.23736/S0022-4707.26.17426-X

    UFC pay-per-view fights since 2001: 97 ended by an upper-limb submission; seven serious injuries, with about 10 months to return.

    MMA

Philosophy, ethics and codes (14)

Classic texts on mind, conduct and honour — Asian and European — plus critical readings of them.

1. Inazō Nitobe (1900). Bushido: The Soul of Japan. Leeds & Biddle (public domain). gutenberg.org/ebooks/12096

   Written in English for Western readers; shaped the modern image of bushido more than samurai history did.

   KendoKenjutsu

2. Gichin Funakoshi (1975). Karate-Do: My Way of Life. Kodansha International. ISBN 9780870114632

   The founder of Shotokan tells his life, from Okinawa to Tokyo, and his view of karate as a way.

   KarateShotokan

3. Maurice Keen (1984). Chivalry. Yale University Press. ISBN 9780300031508

   The classic history of chivalry as an ideal, a social class and a culture.

   HEMA

4. Takuan Sōhō (trans. William Scott Wilson) (1986). The Unfettered Mind: Writings of the Zen Master to the Sword Master. Kodansha International. ISBN 9780870118517

   Letters of a 17th-century Zen monk to a sword master about the mind that does not "stop".

   KendoKenjutsuIaido

5. Morihei Ueshiba (trans. John Stevens) (1992). The Art of Peace: Teachings of the Founder of Aikido. Shambhala. ISBN 9780877738510

   Short sayings of aikido’s founder on harmony, non-violence and training.

   Aikido

6. Richard W. Kaeuper & Elspeth Kennedy (1996). The Book of Chivalry of Geoffroi de Charny: Text, Context, and Translation. University of Pennsylvania Press. ISBN 9780812233483

   A 14th-century knight’s own manual of chivalric values, with a historian’s commentary.

   HEMA

7. Eugen Herrigel (1999). Zen in the Art of Archery. Vintage (first German ed. 1948). ISBN 9780375705090

   Hugely influential in the West — but read it together with Yamada (below), who shows how much it misread.

   Kyudo

8. Richard W. Kaeuper (1999). Chivalry and Violence in Medieval Europe. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780198207306

   Shows the tension between chivalric ideals and the real violence of knights.

   HEMA

9. Gichin Funakoshi (trans. John Teramoto) (2003). The Twenty Guiding Principles of Karate: The Spiritual Legacy of the Master. Kodansha International. ISBN 9784770027962

   Funakoshi’s twenty precepts with his own commentary — the root of many dojo codes.

   KarateShotokan

10. Sun Tzu (trans. Thomas Cleary) (2005). The Art of War. Shambhala. ISBN 9781590302255

    The classic of Chinese strategy; its ideas on deception and avoiding battle appear in many arts.

11. Shōji Yamada (2009). Shots in the Dark: Japan, Zen, and the West. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226947648

    How the "Zen and archery" myth was built; a model of critical thinking about martial-arts legends.

    Kyudo

12. Laozi (trans. D. C. Lau) (2010). Tao Te Ching. Penguin Books. ISBN 9780141399300

    A respected scholarly translation of the Daoist classic behind the "soft overcomes hard" idea.

    Tai ChiKung Fu

13. Yamamoto Tsunetomo (trans. William Scott Wilson) (2012). Hagakure: The Book of the Samurai. Shambhala. ISBN 9781590309858

    Sayings of an 18th-century retainer; read with care — it is one samurai’s view, not "the" bushido.

    Kenjutsu

14. Ramon Llull (trans. Noel Fallows) (2013). The Book of the Order of Chivalry. Boydell Press. ISBN 9781843838494

    Written c. 1275, one of the most copied medieval books on what a knight should be.

    HEMA

Anthropology and martial arts studies (10)

Researchers who trained for years inside a school and studied it from within.

1. J. Lowell Lewis (1992). Ring of Liberation: Deceptive Discourse in Brazilian Capoeira. University of Chicago Press. ISBN 9780226476834

   A study of the roda as play, ritual and resistance.

   Capoeira

2. Phillip B. Zarrilli (1998). When the Body Becomes All Eyes: Paradigms, Discourses and Practices of Power in Kalarippayattu. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195655384

   The reference study of kalaripayattu, Kerala’s martial art, its training, medicine and beliefs.

   Kalaripayattu

3. Loïc Wacquant (2004). Body & Soul: Notebooks of an Apprentice Boxer. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195168358

   A sociologist trains for three years in a Chicago boxing gym: discipline, body and community.

   Boxing

4. Greg Downey (2005). Learning Capoeira: Lessons in Cunning from an Afro-Brazilian Art. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195176988

   An anthropologist who trained capoeira for years describes how the body learns malícia, music and the roda.

   Capoeira

5. Adam D. Frank (2006). Taijiquan and the Search for the Little Old Chinese Man: Understanding Identity through Martial Arts. Palgrave Macmillan. ISBN 9781403968289

   Fieldwork in Shanghai and the USA on how taiji builds identity, race and authenticity.

   Tai Chi

6. D. S. Farrer (2009). Shadows of the Prophet: Martial Arts and Sufi Mysticism. Springer. ISBN 9781402093555

   Silat in Malaysia studied from inside: martial training, Sufi religion and magic.

   Pencak Silat

7. D. S. Farrer & John Whalen-Bridge (eds.) (2011). Martial Arts as Embodied Knowledge: Asian Traditions in a Transnational World. State University of New York Press. ISBN 9781438439662

   Essays on how martial knowledge lives in the body and travels between cultures.

8. Paul Bowman (2015). Martial Arts Studies: Disrupting Disciplinary Boundaries. Rowman & Littlefield International. ISBN 9781783481286

   Founding text of "martial arts studies" as an academic field.

9. Sixt Wetzler (2015). “Martial arts studies as Kulturwissenschaft: a possible theoretical framework”. Martial Arts Studies 1, 20ff.. DOI 10.18573/j.2015.10016

   Proposes five dimensions for studying any martial art: fighting, play, performance, transcendence and health.

10. Paul Bowman (2020). The Invention of Martial Arts: Popular Culture Between Asia and America. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780197540336

    Argues that cinema and media helped invent the modern idea of "martial arts".

    Jeet Kune DoKung Fu

By art

Choose an art to see the works that cover it (works on martial arts in general are under each theme).

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