Tahtib Histoire - Egypt

Tahtib is a stick-fighting marital art that originated about 5000 years ago in ancient Egypt as a method for training soldiers for combat. Since then, it has evolved into a performance art and folk dance that is practiced mainly in Upper Egypt in the governorates of Minya, Assiut, Sohag, Qena, Luxor and Aswan. It is associated with the Saeedi community (rural population of Upper Egypt). The word tahtib is derived from the Arabic word hatab which means ‘branches of dry trees’. The stick used in tahtib is an essential part of the combat art. It reflects both the symbolic significance of the stick in the social life of rural communities and is regarded as a sign of masculinity. The stick is a tool that has helped support man over millennia; from helping to lift him and maintain his balance as he walked the earth to helping man pick fruits that are far from his reach to helping him with cattle grazing and becoming a symbol of the shepherd’s authority over his own herd. And during times of conflict, the stick became a weapon used by man to defend himself against any threats. The stick used by each player for tahtib is about four feet long (130cm) and is called asa, asaya, nabboot or nabut depending on the local dialect spoken.