Two New North African Daggers

fearn · 16th July 2005, 03:32 PM

Hi RobT and al,

I was thinking Mediterranean with the second knife, but I'm no expert on those blades.

Having played capoeira for several years, my reaction to linking the faca de ponto to capoeira was "HUNH?" Can you post the address where you found this info?

Until the middle of the 20th century (roughly), capoeira was a ghetto art. They certainly used knives (and hatchets, machetes, clubs, and whatever else they could get), but the classic capoeira weapon is a straight razor. A capoeirista would go to the barber to get an old razor that the barber no longer used, resharpen it, and that would become his weapon. They simply didn't have the money for fancy knives, and they used what they could get.

More recently, of course, capoeira has emphasized the sport and performance art aspects. Even now, I'm not aware of a specific type of "capoeira knife." Considering that capoeira emphasizes circular moves, I'd expect a capoeria knife to be designed for slashing rather than stabbing.

ariel · 19th July 2005, 03:35 AM

I think the Moroccan knife is a "Genoui" (or a similar spelling): a straight-bladed (unlike Koummya) N. African dagger whose name derives from Genoa.

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16th July 2005, 03:32 PM	#1
fearn Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Posts: 1,247	Hi RobT and al, I was thinking Mediterranean with the second knife, but I'm no expert on those blades. Having played capoeira for several years, my reaction to linking the faca de ponto to capoeira was "HUNH?" Can you post the address where you found this info? Until the middle of the 20th century (roughly), capoeira was a ghetto art. They certainly used knives (and hatchets, machetes, clubs, and whatever else they could get), but the classic capoeira weapon is a straight razor. A capoeirista would go to the barber to get an old razor that the barber no longer used, resharpen it, and that would become his weapon. They simply didn't have the money for fancy knives, and they used what they could get. More recently, of course, capoeira has emphasized the sport and performance art aspects. Even now, I'm not aware of a specific type of "capoeira knife." Considering that capoeira emphasizes circular moves, I'd expect a capoeria knife to be designed for slashing rather than stabbing.

19th July 2005, 03:35 AM	#2
ariel Member Join Date: Dec 2004 Location: Ann Arbor, MI Posts: 5,503	I think the Moroccan knife is a "Genoui" (or a similar spelling): a straight-bladed (unlike Koummya) N. African dagger whose name derives from Genoa.