In the Philippines, with its many martial arts forms, pencak silat is still relatively unknown. And yet, pencak silat is part of our common Malay culture which covers Malaysia, Indonesia, Singapore, Brunei Darussalam, the Philippines and some small islands close to them. In all these countries pencak silat can be found although its name may vary. However, this is actually a compound name consisting of two terms used in different regions. The richness of terms reflects a wide diversity in styles and techniques across the regions due to the fact that pencak silat has been developed by different masters who have created their own style according to their preferences and to the physical environment and social-cultural contextin which they live.
Lets take as example West Java, Central Java and West Sumatra.
West Java is inhabited by a specific ethnic group with specific cultural and social norms. Pencak performances also use standard music rhythms such as tepak dua, tepak tilu, tepak dungdung, golempang and paleredan. Penca as art is not considered dangerous and can be openly shown to everyone. From generation to generation until today, penca performances animate wedding parties, rituals of circumcision, celebrations of the rice harvest and all kind of national festivities. Differently from West Java, in Central Java, Javanese people have traditionally used pencak only for self-defense and are not inclined to show it in public.