Limalama

Limalama, also known as Lima Lama, means “The Hand of Wisdom”.

Limalama is a Hybrid martial arts system.

Perspectives on its development vary with its origins being credited to Tu'umamao Tuiolosega^{[citation needed]}both on the Limalama website and writings by Solomon Esquivel he distributed to some students, though some consider it the result of a combination of efforts from the members of the original Limalama organization.

Tino Tuiolosega was born in American Samoa in 1931 and his family later migrated to Hawaii. A Samoan growing up in Hawaii he had traditional Polynesian Martial Arts passed down to him by his father and uncle. In the 50s and 60s he achieved Master Ranks in the five animal styles of Sil-Lum Kung fu ^{[citation needed]}.

Like American Kenpo and Kajukenbo Limalama was developed from the mix of pacific-rim styles synthesized in Hawaii from the late 1800’s up to the 1950s due to the influx of successive waves of pacific-rim immigrants. These new synthesized styles emphasized street fighting effectiveness.

The center for many of the schools shifted to Los Angeles in the 1960s, which is where Limalama was first developed and taught. Limalama was heavily influenced by kempo and is sometimes considered to be a branch of American Kenpo.

Other contributing members of the original founding team included: Richard Nuñez, Sal Esquival, Haumea 'Tiny' Lafite, John Louise, and Solomon Kaihewalu.

Tuiolosega incorporated 13 Samoan systems in Limalama, which were:

1. Afikau – the study of warrior's traditions, specifically dance.
2. A'mofoe – the understanding of the manipulation of weights, shifting and swaying tactics to off balance weight.
3. Fa’aelise – the study of coordination, reflexes, balance, holds, breaks and throws.
4. Fa’ako’elau – movements similar to wrestling, including holds and tripping.
5. Faufusu or Ku’iku’iga – movements similar to hand to hand fighting, boxing or street fighting.
6. Lua’aga or Le’iga – the study of pressure points, nerves and joints.
7. Milosia – the study of the execution, delivery and application of circular movements; such as locking wrists.
8. Pepelu ma Pega – the study of knife fighting, this is a cutting coordination. This is a conceptual method in the use of weaponry.
9. Uma Ma Kaupi’I – the study of holds, breaks and take downs.
10. Vaeka ma Kavae – the study of foot movements such as kicks and foot counter movements.
11. Ti’apega ma Lo’u – the study of Kaoi'a, stick fighting.
12. Tal’amoa – the study of combining several of the other concepts together.
13. Upaga ma Lo’ulo’uga – the study of trapping.

Limalama’s distinguishing characteristic is its grounding in historical Samoan/Polynesian martial arts – including wrist lays, hand-traps, and bone dislocation and breaking, along with knife and stick techniques. The art has a wide following in South and Central America with several divergent branches from the original style. There are also a number of schools active in the United States and Europe.

• Official Limalama website
• Thread including discussion of Limalama's founding and founders
• Kempo family tree diagram showing Lima Lama
• Tino Tuiolosega's biography
• Article on History of Limalama and Martial Arts in Hawaii
• Limalama No-Ka-Oi school in Los Angeles
• Olohe Solomon Kaihewalu, A Limalama organization founder
• Open Directory listing of Limalama schools in Latin America