Capoeira

Capoeira  is a Brazilian martial art that combines elements of dance and music. It was created in Brazil mainly by descendants of African slaves with Brazilian native influences, probably beginning in the 16th century. It is known by quick and complex moves, using mainly power, speed, and leverage for leg sweeps.

In the 16th century Portugal had one of the biggest colonial empires of the world, but it lacked people to actually colonize it. In the Brazilian colony the Portuguese, like many European colonists, opted to use slavery to supply this shortage of workers. Colonists tried to enslave Brazilian natives in the beginning, but this quickly proved too difficult for many reasons, including the familiarity natives had with the land. The solution was importing slaves from Africa.
In its first century the main economic activity in the colony was the production and processing of sugarcane. Portuguese colonists used to create large sugarcane farms called engenhos, farms which extensively used enslaved workers. Slaves, living in inhumane and humiliating conditions, were forced to work hard and often suffered physical punishment for any small misbehaviour. Even though slaves outnumbered the Portuguese colonists, the lack of weapons, the colonial law, the disagreement between slaves coming from different African cultures and their complete lack of knowledge about the land and its surroundings would usually discourage the idea of a rebellion.
In this environment capoeira began to develop. More than a fighting style, it was created as a hope of survival, a tool with which an escaped slave, completely unequipped, could survive in the hostile, unknown land and face the hunt of the capitães-do-mato, colonial agents armed and mounted in charge of finding escapees.
At the end of the 19th century, slavery in the Brazilian Empire was already doomed for many reasons, among them the ever increasing number of slave's escapes. Many Capoeiristas started using Capoeira in unconventional ways, such as body guards, mercenaries, hitmen, henchmen...
 Groups of capoeira practitioners, known as maltas, used to terrorize Rio de Janeiro. In little time, in 1890, the recently proclaimed Brazilian Republic decreed the prohibition of capoeira in the whole country.
 After the prohibition, any citizen caught practicing capoeira, in a fight or for any other reason, would be arrested, tortured and often mutilated by the police. The art of capoeira, after brief freedom, was once again condemned and repressed. Cultural practices, like the roda de capoeira, were conducted in far or hidden places and often practitioners would leave someone as sentry, to warn if the police were approaching the area.

Capoeira today

Capoeira nowadays is not only a martial art or a small aspect of Brazilian society, but an active exporter of Brazilian culture all over the world. Since the 1970s masters of the art form began to emigrate and teach capoeira in other countries. Present in many countries in every continent, every year Capoeira attracts to Brazil thousands of foreign students and, often, foreign capoeiristas work hard to learn the official Brazilian language, Portuguese, in an effort to better understand and become part of the art. Renowned Capoeira Masters are often invited to teach abroad or even establish their own schools. Capoeira presentations, normally theatrical, acrobatic and with little martiality, are common sights in the whole world.
The martial art aspect is still present and, like old times, is still subtle and disguised, leading many non-practitioners to ignore its presence. Trickery is ever present and expert capoeiristas never take their sights off their opponents in a Capoeira game. An attack can be disguised even as a friendly gesture.