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Muay Thai / KickboxingDiscuss Muay Thai or Kickboxing here
Below is a short list of terms used throughout the style of martial arts known as Muay Thai.
Nak Su - Thai word for Muay Thai warrior (in Muay Thai term)
Kru - Instructor or trainer
Ajarn - Master or instructor (more advanced than kru)
Wai Kru (also transliterated as Whai Kru) - A ritual before a competition. The fighter performs three bows, on the third one the fighter concentrates, thinking about someone who is very dear to them. This ritual is meant to show respect toward family, gym and teacher.
Ram Muay - The Ram Muay is the pre-fight ritual conducted after the Wai Kru. It is a dance that the fighter performs to traditional music. In ancient times, the Ram Muay was used as a warm-up before a fight, but it is now performed prior to the beginning of a Muay Thai match.
Pra Jiad - A type of armband worn by Muay Thai fighters. The Pra Jiad gives good luck and confidence to the athletes. Some Muay Thai fighters prefer to wear one Pra Jiad, while others wear two. In some Western Muay Thai gyms colored Pra Jiad are used to show rank, much like the colored belt system used in Karate, Taekwondo, etc., although other methods of showing rank are used, as well.
Mong Kon - Headgear worn by Muay Thai fighters to signify those athletes whom their teachers feel have learned many of the skills and techniques of Muay Thai. They are presented at ceremonies honoring the fighters and are to be worn only in the ring during fights. However, they must never fall on, be close to or held near the ground as doing so will cause the Mong Kon to lose its magic. The student is never allowed to touch or handle the Mong Kon. Only his Kru or Ajarn may handle it. The trainer will take care of the headgear, will present the band to the fighter just before a competition and will recover it from him at the conclusion of the match. In the past, one could tell the school from which a fighter originated based on the color and style of his Mong Kon.
Krang Ruang - A Pra Jiad that has special meaning to the person wearing it. It could be anything from a piece of their father's hair to a swath from their mother's sarang.
Puang Malai - Floral wreaths that are given to a fighter before a fight by friends or fans. They look somewhat like the Hawaiian Lei.
thank you so much!!! no one really teaches you this kind of stuff at my gym, but they use the terms all the time. for the longest time i have been trying to figure out why the owner of the gym is called Ajarn when that wasn't his name!! how sad... the kicks and elbows and such i am picking up quicker, but they are explained more.
would there be a difference in which style you are taught and the terms? i imagine Thailand has different dialects. i learn a southern style that is not as wide spread.
that is really interesting thanks for the info. my only real exposure to muy thai is MTV's true life "im a muay thai fighter" which was interesting when it followed 2 american muy thai fighters to india for a fight. it was intense to say the least.
Thanks for that. I always forget martial arts terminologies and it's good to have a reference of terminology somewhere.
Btw: A guy from Thailand walked into a stable I was training at once and said our Muay Thai was incomplete because we didn't train Krabi-Krabong (or possibly Krabi-Rabon, like I said my terminology sucks). I had no idea what the hell he was talking about. Do you?
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