In Japanese

martial arts Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defence; military and law enforcement applications; combat sport, competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; ...

a is a short shout uttered when performing an assault. Traditional Japanese dojo generally uses single syllables beginning with a vowel. The practice has become a part of Asian martial arts in popular culture, especially in martial arts films, in writing often rendered in variants such as ''Hi-yah!'', ''Aiyah!'', ''Eeee-yah!'' or ''Hyah!''. A ''kiai'' is usually not the word "''kiai''" itself.

Etymology

The term is a compound of '' ki'' (), meaning "energy" or "mood" and ''a(u)'' (, infinitive ''ai''), an emphatic marker. The same concept is known as ''kihap'' in many Korean martial arts, such as

taekwondo Taekwondo (; ; ) is a Korean martial art and combat sport involving primarily kicking techniques and punching. "Taekwondo" can be translated as ''tae'' ("strike with foot"), ''kwon'' ("strike with hand"), and ''do'' ("the art or way"). In ad ...

and Tang Soo Do, ''ki'' being the ''energy'' and ''hap'' meaning ''to join'', ''to harmonize'' or ''to amplify'', based on the Korean reading of the same characters; its

Hangul The Korean alphabet is the modern writing system for the Korean language. In North Korea, the alphabet is known as (), and in South Korea, it is known as (). The letters for the five basic consonants reflect the shape of the speech organs ...

spelling is 기합. In the board game '' Go'', the term describes fighting spirit.

Use in martial arts

Students of Japanese martial arts such as aikido, karate, kobudo, kendo, taido or

judo is an unarmed gendai budō, modern Japanese martial art, combat sport, Olympic sport (since 1964), and the most prominent form of jacket wrestling competed internationally.『日本大百科全書』電子版【柔道】(CD-ROM version of Encyc ...

(or related arts such as taiko drumming) use ''kiai'' to startle an opponent, intimidate, express confidence or express victory. In kendo, for example, a point is only given by the Shinpan (referees) if the hit is accompanied by a strong, convincing ''kiai''. A ''kiai'' can also be used besides tightening the core muscles to prevent damage to the stomach. The physical aspects of a ''kiai'' are often used to teach a student proper breathing technique when executing an attack which is a common trait adopted by many other foreign martial arts and combat sports. A ''kiai'' is also sometimes used to intimidate. This is especially useful for longer series of attacks such as '' kirikaeshi'', ''kakari geiko'' (rapid partner exercise creating openings) and ''uchikomi geiko'' (responding fast to openings made by the partner). Mental imagery techniques are used to teach the martial artist to imagine starting a ''kiai'' in the hara or dantian; from a physiological perspective, this means the yell should start in the diaphragm, not the throat.

References

Bibliography

* Don Oberloh "The Dojo Desk Reference- Translation of "Hyaku Jiten no Bugei" by Sakiyama Akatsuki. Densho Publications Honolulu, Hi. (2006) This book is now available as an ebook through Lulu, iTunes and Barnes and Noble. * E.J. Harrison, ''The Fighting Spirit of Japan'' Overlook TP; Reprint edition (1988) * Forrest E. Morgan, ''Living the Martial Way: A Manual for the Way a Modern Warrior Should Think'', Barricade Books, 1992, {{ISBN, 0-942637-76-3 Japanese martial arts terminology Battle cries