Engolo

N'golo (anglicized as Engolo) is a traditional Bantu martial art and game from Angola, that combines elements of combat and dance, performed in a circle accompanied by music and singing. It is known as the forerunner of capoeira.

Engolo has been played in Africa for centuries, specifically along the Cunene River in the Cunene Province of Angola.^[1] Ngolo finds its inspiration in nature, involving the imitation of animal behaviors. Examples include mimicking a zebra's kicking motion^[2] or emulating the swaying of trees.^[3] This warrior dance is not merely ritualistic; serious injuries have been known to occur during its practice.^[3]

The combat style of engolo encompasses a variety of techniques, including different types of kicks, dodges, and takedowns, with a particular emphasis on inverted positions. Many of the iconic capoeira techniques, such as meia lua de compasso, scorpion kick, chapa, chapa de costas, rasteira, L-kick, and others, were originally developed within engolo.^[3] As enslaved Africans were transported to Brazil, they brought engolo with them, and through the centuries, it evolved into the capoeira.^[4]

Engolo was "rediscovered" in 1950s when the Angolan artist Albano Neves e Sousa included it in a collection of drawings, highlighting its similarities to the Afro-Brazilian martial art of Capoeira.^[5]

Engolo is one of several African martial arts spread to the Americas through the African Diaspora. It descendant arts include knocking and kicking in North America, capoeira in Brazil, and danmyé in Martinique.^[6] Known sources document only one African combat game beside engolo that uses similar kicking techniques – moraingy on Madagascar and surrounding islands.^[7]